Disappointments, Inspiration and New Paintings

"Mistress of the Black Dog" Detail

It's been a while since my last post and in that time I have experienced a few ups and a lot of downs. Yesterday - the 12th of September - "R U OK?" Day was initiated in Australia addressing the rise in cases of depression and suicide attempts.

I am one of those Australians who have been diagnosed with depression and have had thoughts of suicide. This was first recognised when I was studying Fine Art at University over ten years ago. At the time my parents were splitting up and I was failing the only thing I thought I was good at it. I had no energy, no enthusiasm and I just felt constantly sad. My head was in a fog. My mum recognised the signs and got me to a doctor who was able to prescribe me suitable medication and recommended I get counselling. It wasn't a quick fix, my parents were still splitting up, I was still doing badly at uni but the medication helped me to focus, I started to think clearer and I managed to graduate with a Bachelor of Art.

Then came last month where I experience a massive bump on this journey called life... though I should say it was a series of bumps that just grew without any relief in sight (I'm still struggling with it to be honest). I won't go into it at this point (unless any of you would like to know please comment below) but lets just say it had a lot to do with traveling/visas, money, employment and illustration.

Anyway what I would like to say is, if you're doing it tough and you are struggling don't go it alone. Find someone you can trust, a friend, a family member, a boy/girlfriend, your wife/husband, priest, mentor - whatever - even your pet will do, (I know I have vented some of my frustrations to my pet dog Buddy and he gives the best feed back - a happy tail wag and a soulful look) tell them you are struggling and that you need a; hug/support/advice/help/coffee. Sometimes it's surprising just how supportive they can be. Don't give up, keep going and keep your integrity.

Below is two images I did during this difficult period. The first is my take on a nymph of a birch forest. She's preparing to leave the forest as it approaches winter and receives a message from Winter in the form of a raven. Her dress is caught in some of the undergrowth and tears as she glances towards the raven, she longs to bring life back to the forest but knows she must wait until spring.

The second is for the Artorder Inspiration Challenge  run by the fantastic Art Director of Wizards of the Coast Jon Schindehette. If you have never heard of these challenges and you like to create either digital, traditional 3D or 2D art you should definitely give this a go. The challenge is due November 18th 2013, so you have plenty of time to get something in.

When I first started working on this I really struggled. I was trying to come up with a cohesive way to combine my love of trees, Pre-Raphaelite art and my pet dog. At first the tree was the focus but I just kept coming up with ideas that have been done to death... then I came up with the final composition, I can't remember how (I think it might have been during an afternoon nap!) but there it is. I have been reading tonal painting and colour theory in "The Student's Guide to Painting" by Jack Faragasso which really helped me with this. The book is very good and is based on "The Reilly Method", I highly recommend it for anyone wants to grow as an artist.

The next painting "Mistress of the Black Dog" points of inspiration include; Pre-Raphaelitism, Romanticism, trees, flowers, sunsets and my pet dog Buddy - who is also representing "The Black Dog" . As I described above I have had some battles with The Black Dog and at the moment I'm keeping him on a tight leash, though it ain't easy! Luckily the black dog in the painting (Buddy) is not a depressing dog and is a fond member of the family.

Thanks for reading this and watching. I wish you all the best.

Belinda Morris.

UPDATE October 2nd 2013 
My painting "Mistress of the Black Dog" won the "Encouragement Award" at a local arts festival :) You can view photos from the event here. It's ironic... haha I needed an "Encouragement"

And for those who are curious here's my photo references, thanks goes especially to Deviantart stock photo artist *chirinstock who provided the inspiration for the girl and her expression.

NOTE THERE IS SOME NUDITY IN THE FOLLOWING IMAGES

Now here is the next painting "Mistress of the Black Dog";

and for the curious, here's the reference material (minus the blossoms as I used some blossoming branches from my mums garden - it's spring in Australia);

PLEASE NOTE THERE IS SOME NUDITY IN THE FOLLOWING IMAGES

 

 

Frank - A Fantasy Character Illustration

The following painting is for Bevan McGuiness a fantasy writer who has published several books including Scarred Man. The painting is based on a scene in his upcoming book depicting one of the main characters - a girl called Frank - seen from the view point of another character;

 

 " To distract him, he focused on Frank. She was floating across his ragged, dying lawn towards the front door like a beautiful black cloud. At the door, she looked around, her hair flowing out with the motion of her head like a black silk waterfall, catching the sunlight and glowing with luxuriant health. That perfect, wide smile lit up her face, crinkling the corners of her eyes, making the intricate pattern that extended out like red and black branches move as if in a light breeze. Billy was utterly entranced. 

-->

How could anyone so perfect love a big lumbering oaf like me?  

It was about then Billy realized that his perception of Frank ‘floating’ across the lawn was not the hyperbole of a man in love. She had actually floated. Her feet were hovering just off the ground. He could clearly see the gap between the soles of her black Doc Martens and the wooden planks of his verandah. Billy shook his head, seeking to shift the thickness that was rapidly filling his mind, muffling sounds and blurring his vision. His balance shifted, sending him staggering sideways to land heavily on the side of the VW. He grasped at the car, trying not to fall, but only managed to inadvertently slam his injured right hand onto the steel. A cry of pain, quickly bitten off, escaped his lips, changing Frank’s expression from happily smiling to instant concern. She ran back across the lawn towards him, but Billy’s mind was so full, so muffled, that he could only barely make her out."

Usually artists prefer not to show their mistakes - it's hard enough to show pictures we made that we think are ok! This time I thought I'd post the photos that show my mistakes. One of the important lessons I learned while doing this painting is - even when you think you have ruined something don't give up!

Enjoy :)

At this point I showed the image to a couple of people and after a bit of feedback I decided her expression was just not quite right...

 

...so I scrubbed her face away - and freaked out when I found that the paper just wasn't holding the paint...

After a couple of days of thinking and sketching another version on a bigger piece of paper, I came back to the original painting to see if I could re-paint the face...

And here she is - Frank - I changed the colour of the eye makeup from red and black to turquoise and dark blue to match the colouring of the overall image. I was really glad to be able to complete the painting and send it off to the author Bevan McGuiness. Check out his books and like him on facebook to keep up to date with the progress of his books, he is currently in negotiations with Harper Collins for getting the first 2 Frank books published. He also just told me recently that he just signed a contract for a mainstream novel based in WA. It’s to be published with Satalyte Press and should be out early next year. It’s called The Only Evil.

And for those with sharp eyes - yes there is a watermark in the paper, you can just make it out underneath her skirt, it says Fabriano Artist [Paper]. This can be removed in photoshop (thank God!).

Reference Credits;

Cara Smith
Mahafsoun
Faestock
House and sky photos taken by me.
You can find the rest of the images I referenced here
 

If any of you have any questions you'd like to ask like techniques, commissions or collaborations you can contact me via facebook or leave me a comment below and I'll get back to you as soon as I can. No SPAMMERS thanks :)

The Water Thief - Nymph Painting Process 2 of 3

The Water Thief

Process 1 - The Thumbnails
Process 2 - Experiment
Process 3 - Refinement of Ideas

To be honest I skipped these steps as I was inspired while working on the Little Mermaid

Process 4 - Rough

Process 5 - Cover Rough

Skip...

Process 6 - Detailed Pencil Drawing

Unfortunately I didn't have access to a scanner at this point so I had to make do with my cheap digital camera and bad lighting... plus I forgot to take a photo of the detailed sketch so this image is the earliest capture I could get. As you can see, I originally painted the nymph as only clad in a leather thong.

Here are some progress shots. 

Process 7 - The Finished Painting

Process 8 - With Text Treatment

This is what I ended up submitting to the Artorder Challenge. The text submission divided the juror's opinions;

hmm i guess i am the voice of dissension on this topic, but i disagree, i don't think you should put type on pieces unless you want to be judged on the type as well as the art. in this case it would be fine to have done the blue framing because it is important to the layout of the bubbles, and have left it at that. 
Lauren Panepinto

I think it really helps sell the image as a book cover when you take the time to mock it up.

Jeremy Cranford

I particularly like the effort made for the cover layout. It makes for a very interesting graphic design.

Daren Bader

Next week - Asteria Nymph of the Stars.

Dragon Tea

This was submitted to the online competition "Artorder Dragon World Challenge"
Medium - Watercolour and gouache on 300gsm watercolour paper
Size - 240mm x 265mm

Dragon Tea

I imagined a culture such as ours back in the Edwardian times when Orientalism and tea was really popular that traditional Chinese Dragons would be both the mascots and guardians of teas production and consumption. I also imagined that the Tea Dragons would be a ladies best friend, keeping the tea warm once poured, guarding a ladies secrets from gossipers, transferring messages to lovers and providing companionship.

This painting can be purchased here