Thursday, February 2, 2012

Conan Commission, part 4


Here are the new progress shots of the Conan painting. A few days ago I somehow managed to bring the painting to the edge of disaster, when I tried to paint the background. I needed to define the color and the values of the background first, in order to know how to tackle the rest of the painting.  It just did not work out. I got more and more desperate as I started to realize that my initial intention to paint the background  lighter than the foreground, was not a good idea after all. So, at the end of the exhausting day, I finally decided to make a radical change and to rearrange and repaint the background.

The painting looks still quite messy and far from being finished, but at least now I know how to proceed with it. 

Some paintings are destined to have a relatively smooth and more or less clearly defined path. Others are unpredictable and have a stubborn character. The paintings with the less “tamable” character tend to cause some headaches and sleepless nights, never the less, they often help us to transcend the dusty and established routes, and our cliché-thinking, that from time to time  need to be shaken a little, in order for us to grow and to bring our work to another level. I guess that not everyone likes the turbulences that the change often brings with it, but if we want to be completely honest, we have to admit that the change (together with the transience) is the only permanent and certain thing in Life. It will never disappoint us by its absence. So I say, don’t be afraid, embrace it instead, as much as you can.







11 comments:

  1. Awsome work. If a person has not painted an original painting it is difficult to know what goes into planning. Your work is amazing. Thank you for sharing.

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  2. This is looking fantastic Petar! Thank you so much for sharing your process as you work with it. Really look forward to seeing more from you.

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  3. You are a fantastic artist Petar, and I love your work. Sorry you are struggling with this one. There are some great parts in this painting, but I see some overall design issues with it. Maybe you are too close to the piece and need some fresh eyes.

    The perspective is really odd. The eye level is clearly high up, as the horizon is well above the figures. Yet the figures look like they are viewed from a low angle. The composition also seems left heavy.

    I'm not sure what is going on with the Frost Giant on the right, It looks like he is losing balance from a strike from Conan's swinging blade. If that is the case, he should be leaning the other way from the impact. Or is Conan just charging them? Either way, the giant on the right seems awkward. I liked how he looked better in your first drawing.

    Those are the main things that I see. However, I don't know what has been discussed with your client, and what impact it has had on your choices.

    Even though your work is very different style-wise than Frazetta, there are similarities with his iconic Snow Giants painting. Such as the staging and the composition. Is that a client request?

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    1. I am sorry but I have decided not to reply any more to the anonymous comments.

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  4. Hi, Petar I just want to say I wish I could be only half the good that you are. Thank you for posting that pictures in resolution enough that we can admire the brushstrokes. If you were an American I think probably you were already rich with your art, although I know that's not the point.

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  5. Thank you, Francisco. Keep on practicing. Practice makes perfect, as they say.

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  6. You have a way with color that amazes me.

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  7. As far as the color in my paintings is concerned, I only try to prevent garishness, the rest is done by my automatic color-pilot.
    Thanks, Phil!

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