Shhh Process & File - This Is Why I Add the Reference in My Illustrations
Added 2024-05-31 16:00:19 +0000 UTCBefore painting, I often make a list of points about what the characters are about, but the day I did this piece I woke up with a particular character type in my mind instead of a specific narrative or character motivation. This character type was a dark-skinned female with white hair, and I imagined her dressed in an office outfit. That's why my process started with brush strokes and colors instead of line art, as you can see in the process video.
I often share methodical approaches that can streamline the process. These approaches can be repeated across days and yield fair results, but after a while, it gets boring, no emotion, no surprise, everything is too predictable. Shifting towards different kinds of executions depending on what inspires you in principle is good for breaking the routine from time to time, as it was for me in this piece.
Notes aside, one particular benefit of putting a reference to what your character was inspired by is that it allows the viewer to grasp even better information about your design. This is because, due to the nature of social media, people rarely stop to fully understand what's behind your art. Adding the reference, although it might break the look of the piece as a whole, helps them build a deeper connection with your character through the context already existing from the animal, object, or subject of comparison. This is a theory based on what I've noticed, and I hope it makes sense!
Process Video: https://youtu.be/E7UZ368kM4o
Thank you for your support, keep creating art!
