Spectacular 2D Entry: Lauren K. Cannon

#3

I’m so nervous. D:

So here’s my very quick concept sketch. I’m spending all my free time finishing up another picture in time for the Exotique deadline, so the Challenge will have to take a back seat until I’m done with that, but I wanted to get started.

My entry is going to focus on an event from my storylines: the destruction of the city of A’renkshiia. It fits into the spectacular theme because the entire city was destroyed in a single day by a single woman. However, this woman is not a villain by any means. I’m planning on the image focusing on her, in the midst of the ruins, despairing over what she has done with the city smoldering in the background, juxtaposed against a beautiful blue sky.

This is indeed going to be a challenge for me. I have no experience painting buildings, and the figure’s pose is very complicated compared to what I am used to. I’m also forcing myself to paint legs and feet for once. I’ll begin working on the lineart as soon as I’m done with my other picture. Until then, thank you for any feedback on this initial concept. :]

#4

Yeah! nice to see your entering the challenge. Great idea you have here I look forward to seeing more progress. Nice concept sketch :slight_smile:

#5

nice start and looking forward to updates :slight_smile:

#6

love the composition, I probobly would go darker with this, but I just like dark side
very cool, go for it
:thumbsup: :twisted:

#7

Thanks for the replies, everyone! :smiley:

Yeah, it’ll be much more contrasty and dark/dramatic. I just had to squeeze the sketch out in an hour or so, so it’s very very lacking… hopefully the idea will come through better once I start the lineart and all. :] I just didn’t want to wait too long until I started submitting things, and wanted to get a feel for the composition since planning out paintings is my weak point.

#8

Refined the sketch a bit and made some changes. Altered the canvas size a little and bumped the contrast considerably. I changed her arm–I think she’ll be grabbing a protruding stone from the wallface. I also changed the color of her dress. She looked too victimized before in the brown. The orange does a lot of nice things for the composition… puts the focus more on her and now it’ll also be easier to make her hands and arms–which will be blackened and bleeding, almost rotting away–much more noticeable. I played around with the colors in general because I’m not sure I want to go with gray tones. I want it to be vibrant yet desolate, so I’m thinking string blue highlights and deep red and blue shadows, offset by the orange fabric and the dark city behind her. Also added some debris in the foreground and made the sky more dramatic.

Thanks for the feedback, everyone. <3

#9

Double Post. My browser hates me.

#10

Thats a nice start Lauren,keep going. Best of luck!..

#11

I think the idea’s there. I’m looking forward to more. Keep it up my friend. :smiley:

#12

I was looking through the other entries and now I’m worried about my initial idea. There are a lot of concepts using destroyed cities… although I do like the concept I already posted and will probably paint it in the future, as it’s been an idea in my head for quite some time, I don’t think I’ll use it for the Challenge. I want to have a concept that stands out and isn’t so cliche…something spectacular without being loud and full of explosions. So here’s another idea that’s not so predictable, I hope.

The woman is Death, and she is trapped in spring. The branches and roots of the tree will be encasing her, and her garments will be twined around the trunk as though chaining her. The tree is in full bloom, flowers and buds everywhere, and there is lush grass and flowers all around her feet. However, the rest of the land–outside the circle of the tree–is covered in snow, dead and lifeless. Death herself is enamored with the life around her but distantly sad that she is unable to fulfill her purpose. She exists to take life, but she has fallen in love with it.

Death will be in white with red accents, with rather extravagant clothing and adornments. Lots of folds and little details
her one hand will grasp the trunk while the other wistfully reaches out to touch one of the buds. The tree is going to be the hard part—a mess of twisting branches and roots. I want it to be spectacularly beautiful yet also sinister, as the tree is trapping Death.

Thanks for the feedback, guys. :smiley: I really appreciate it. Hopefully this new idea is better than the old one.

#13

oh, recognized you from your nick, expecting from you much:] good luck.

#14

Good sketches so far, will be back lata!:thumbsup:

#15

Alright, now that the Exotique deadline is over with I can work on this again. Sorry for the long silence.

I think I’ll be sticking with the idea of death in spring. I played with the composition; I want the whole three in there, realy towerering over here. Colors will be rich browns and greens and oranges, with bright pastels in the sky surrounded by the coldness of the snow. The tree is pretty much shaped out, I think. Next I will be posting a more solid design for death herself. I tend to get distracted by the figure’s face and clothing, but since sheis so small I will need to concentrate on the tree and flowers more, so I should get it out of my system.

Thanks for the feedback!

#16

The more I think about this the more ominous the idea becomes. I’m leaning away from the simple overwhelming beauty of the scene and into sinister territory. I’m thinking about cropping the tree much closer, to focus on the figure.

The last sketch is I feel was too predictable–tree neatly framed by a sky with a girl and some hills. Yawn. I want to somehow make it more personal and frightening—with the tree overpowering her but not making her secondary. I want it to be top-heavy, branches intricately bearing down on her, framing her inside the picture. I really want the feeling that as awe-inspiring and beautiful as the tree is, it’s sinister, closing in on her, about to smother her.

I want to make a very strong wind element also, the cloth on her dress blowing everywhere. The colors will be lots of warm tones on the outside but the figure will be all cold whites and reds , with deep blue shadows. Her face will be caught between panic and fear and amazement–she’s trapped but she’s overtaken with the beauty of life. She’ll be almost tied to the tree from her blowing hair and the accents of cloth, her one hand grabbing the trunk and the other reaching out towards freedom hesitantly, a twisted shadow cast from the branches across her face. Her face will be turned to the side more, I think, and her outreached arm will be different… and the branches coming down all around her, in back of her, in front of her, encasing her. I have lots of time over the weekend, so I’ll be playing with the lay of the branches and her pose. I think I’ll do one more concept sketch of the whole scene, now that I’m set on how I want it to look, and one of her alone, then start the lineart.

#17

Am loving the latest composition… in particular - the tree. Personally, I like seeing that much of the tree. I think that the fact that it is bending over and pretty much encircling the figure draws our focus to her quite a bit. Love the fallen leaves too.

gustaf

#18

Hi navate. Looks great so far. Yep as botched said. The tree have for me the same expression like the ladie. May be you can combined those. Just an idea. :shrug:

Good luck
xbo :scream:

#19

botched: Thanks, I think I’m sticking with the last composition for that exact reason. It’s much more intimate to the figure yet also overpowering to her. The leaves will actually be flowers. Not sure what color yet, though. I sort of want to avoid white or pink, but I’m not sure orange works either. I’ll play with that later, though–the blossoms will likely be one of the last things I paint in so I have plenty of time. Need to concentrate on the bigger picture first.

2xbo: Thank you, I’m hoping to play around with the tree’s expression as much as the figure’s. :]

#20

Alrighty, final concept sketch. Really deepened the shadows and brought the tree’s branches in front of her a bit. Changed her pose a little, too. I’m still not sure what color the blossoms will be so I left them out for now. I also decided on a more pinkish sky than orange… I want it to feel like dawn rather than sunset.

Also did a concept sketch of Death, working on her pose and clothing. Looks like a mess to everyone else, probably, but I know how it’d going to look now so that’s what counts. ;] I want her to be really cold-toned in contrast to the warmth of the rest of the picture.

<img src=“http://www.navate.com/images/speed/death-con.jpg” />

Next: line art! o.o

#21

That’s very good composition! And only one. It seems to me that it is necessary to give the tree more space! Good luck! :slight_smile:

#22

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