Project Rose and lily

A while ago I was commissioned to paint a mural in a bar in St Julian's by my friend and interior designer Chantal. The theme was a bit awkward, not really my style.You see ,the Bar is called "Rose and Lily" so the mural had to some how tie in. Floral stuff is not really my forte but...
Well here is the work( I took photos of each step):

Started with a ploting the proportions on the bare wall. The area was approximatly 2m X 3m.The horizontal and vertical line ( basically 2 pieces of string) gave me a rough guide. I than proceeded in sketching the design.

Next I started filling in the first colour , the red of the rose. I use mainly acrylic. Its cheap, easy to handle and dries fast.

I than used black to give the red shap and shadows. I avoided using lighter reds on each petal and just used some cadmium yellow on small parts to give a bit of highlight. I believe i gave the rose a more velvety feel( on the side you can see the reference pix i used)Next came the lily.

Lilies are normally thought of as white, i know . But I couldn't really see a white iliy on a white wall!! So I went for a purple colour, high lighted with white.

Finished the lily ( still need to do the stamens but that will come later) I started the background.
I basically used watered done shades of Green , just to give the surface a colour wash , adding more colour using the airbrush.

More green.:)

And finished. After finishing the lily from the Stamens I added the curvy designs on the sides, just to balance out the composition.

Lady in red

I know .It's a crap title. It's not final so suggestions are welcome:)

Dropping coffee on your work?

Another day and more work.This time a portrait( actually2) of Maria, a good friend of mine.
Started with treating the paper with coffee and tea. Love this effect and I used it many times before. It's very simple : basically you sort of sponge a wet teabag on the paper( use thickish watercolor paper as thiner one would start falling apart) .This give it an uneven brown tint. Than, while the paper is still wet sprinkle some coffee ( using powder rather granules gives a more subtle effect) which will seep in the paper , giving the paper a mottled finish. And 'tada' you are ready to start the painting. I remember ages ago doing the same thing in my history projects to age the paper( believe it or not we used to get extra marks for crap like that!)
I find aquarells give the best results , with inks to deepen some areas.Funnily enough the mottled pattern looks like freckles in some areas which luckily enough Maria has:)

Any way me be off to bed.Damn it work tomorrow.
Ian

Finally managed -part 2

Yesterday I posted the entry pretty late and since by bed was beaconing I had to be short. I wanted to include a bit more detail on the process,materials etc..
So.
Wendy 2. Worked mostly with blue and black watercolour pencils on a prepared blue background. I than used ink to deepen the black and oil pastels for lighter highlights .However if i had to do it again I would have gone for brown tones rather than blue as the give a warner feel

(the original pic)

Finally managed

I finally managed to finish a piece I've been meaning to do for some years. I did try several times before but never quite managed to get it right.I was basically a photo I've taken with my old camera phone of Wendy, my ex, some time ago. Well I like the effect. The pics aren't that good so I'll have to take some more before uploading them on the main side.

Detail

(i've worked with solid colours instead of blending the colours into each other)

I also did this while I was at it. Same subject.

The Beauty Of Women.

Most of my art always revolves women. Well I can't deny that women inspire me . I find women ( well to be completely honest most women) beautify and sexy. I love the body and curves of the naked female form .The beauty is in most cases obvious: we see them everywhere in the streets, on telly on the net. But in most cases I find the beauty of a woman in a less obvious places. In their character, their joy for life. The eyes , and I truly believe that the eyes are a window to the soul. I don't really find shiny woman attractive ,much prefer a more curvy figure ,more womanly( for lack of a better word).

However I believe that every woman should be considered beautiful. Every woman has that special thing which make us stop and be fascinated..

So , Here is some more news on my first attempt to exhibit my work. It will be on the 29th Feb @ the Melita Gardens in Attard. For more info click on the link below.
Ian

Core Green Collective Exhibition

Some more work.

Hope you enjoy. More stuff on wood.
Anyway I'm putting some of my work in an collective exhibition .My first. It should be on the 29th Feb at Melita gardens in Attard. More details soon..

Thanks Kar.

Thanks to a cute work mate for landing her face as a subject. I loved some pics I saw and had to try them on canvas..Thanks Kar.