Gallery Studies

Following on from my previous blog post, I did some studies of the art that I found interesting from the galleries I visited. 

I did this for a number of reasons:

• The various textures and colours of the artwork could inspire future work, so I want to make sure I retain what inspired me by painting
• To do colour studies, looking at what I see in the images and try to gauge accurately what colours and hues to use
• To experiment with using different brush types in Procreate and see what different effects they create

Below is an image of my first attempt studying the work I saw:

I hated this, I was too focused on 'being fast' and feel like I completely missed the point of why I wanted to do this exercise. Another reminder for me that setting my design goals beforehand is really important - not just for concept art.

Below is my other attempt of these studies, I feel like I did a much better job here, and this is something I can actually see myself referring back to. I also included a 30 second time-lapse:

I listed what brushes I used on each, some, like the Emma Rodgers piece were more focused on looking at the image and trying to sketch the shapes in as accurately as possible - because the shape of the piece was more interesting to me. Then for other pieces I wanted to capture the textures and colours of the piece, so I would sketch over the image for a guide line and do the rest of the colours by eye.

It was really interesting doing this, and using all the different brush types really pushed me out of my comfort zone. It was also challenging to try to eyeball all the colours to use, and understanding when to use cooler and warmer tones.

I definitely would want to do more of this when I can, I think it was a good way to experiment and go out of what I am comfortable with.