Dodo
09/9/2010
click for larger view
This was an experiment I started the other night in pencil, watercolor and oil – a method I used to work in constantly. It requires lots of layering with fixatives, and matte mediums. The end result is usually a more layered looking effect than this. I kept the technique up for a while until I started to get sick from the chemicals in the fixative – the back of label read: causes nausea, vomiting, headaches and dizziness. I endured a year of these symptoms before I realized what was happening. I was careful to spray things outside, wear a mask or cloth around my face and let the piece dry for a day or so. However, with tight deadlines in school I’d have to breathe in the fumes while I was working on the final product almost inevitably. The fixative would linger around the piece for a week or so.
I recently tried the method again without the fixative, with this drawing of a dodo, but found that turpenoid has the same effect. I’m not sure if it’s association now or if it is something in the thinner but I can’t use the stuff without getting dizzy spells and headaches for a few days. I hate writing about this because I feel like its my fault. I feel like I’m less. In any case, I’m trying to find new methods to replicate the way in which I used to work.
When I couldn’t produce work the way I wanted to, I learned how to paint in the computer. I knew I needed to learn because of the field I had decided I wanted to be a part of but was always reluctant – I think it had something to do with the environment I was in at the time. I had one instructor who always told me to learn it but it didn’t hit me until I went to “Revelations” – an art convention put on by Massive Black. I saw digital painting in a way I hadn’t ever seen it before – in the process of being done. I understood that it wasn’t so different from what I was doing on paper, in fact, it was structured exactly the same. I was excited about art-making in a way I hadn’t been in a long time. I came home, bought a wacom tablet and photoshop and began to teach myself…slowly. I didn’t have too many resources in college in the digital department. There was one class that covered everything briefly, but nothing that taught painting or anything that would be necessary to create a digital illustration from scratch. I taught myself almost everything I know now with class assignments and personal work when I could. Needless to say, most of my attempts were pretty awful in the beginning. I’ve since deleted a lot of my student work except for the work I did for The Morae River my last semester.
I am in no way an expert in digital media either. I only know about 10% of what I should probably know. I’m learning new things every day and I hope to be for a while. The illustration above has digital enhancements added to it. I couldn’t finish it in oil due to the headache. I’m wanting to figure out my process again, in a more health-friendly way because I like to work in watercolor and pencil.
I’m not sure why I felt the need to type all of this….I guess that’s what blogs are for? haha…
edit* …And since you’ve endured my rambling on, you should watch this as a reward. (if you skip ahead to watch it I wont blame you either, hehe)
