Sunday, November 15, 2009

Funky Door Process

Step 1: Interview process.... everyone gets an interview and a photo taken.

Step 2: Sketches and thumbnails. This is the daydreaming stage. It can be done at work, during yoga, on the train, driving, sleeping. The creative part.

Step 3: All boards get a watercolor layer of color. Very transparent to show off that groovy wood texture.
Step 4: Start the oil portrait part for at least some paintings. I worked 9 paintings all at once so I had to do them in groups and rotations. Great for getting a perspective on them... a little time away from a painting, even a few hours on another one, can really help get problems figured out. Here are some in various stages.
To get a better sense of that stage....
Step 5: The story! This is the part where I decided to use gouache instead of acrylic. Gulp... But in the end I liked it better. Mistakes are easier to work with and it had a better and faster application. The interview process in action.
Step 6: The varnish. The portrait was oil so I couldn't use the same varnish I used on the gouache. Tape 'em up. Take 'em up on the roof and spray. The sun was on my side that day.

Step 7: Frames frames frames. It takes longer than you think. Especially when you've never frames wood before! Thank goodness to my OSH days when I was obsessed with buying tools. They really came in handy.

Step 8: Hang them and enjoy with new and old friends at Funky Door!

2 comments:

Tora Stark said...

wow, what a cool idea. And how awesome they look! nice!

Ashly Picazo said...

Great job, Elba! These pieces are really terrific. They are such a great combination of the realistic and fantasy you do.