Blue Tiki Gurl

Well I've been MIA since I first joined a while ago. I'm back with some practice. I've been working on drawing the human figure. Here's an oil painting I just completed. I'm still working on hands and faces so that's why her face and hands are hiding lol.

[ Edited by: octopussy 2008-05-15 09:05 ]

[ Edited by: octopussy 2008-06-06 08:54 ]

[ Edited by: octopussy 2008-07-23 06:35 ]

[ Edited by: octopussy 2010-05-08 13:53 ]

Hands and feet? Looks like you got the important parts right.

I like your way of thinking, plan your project to what you are able to do. Looks great!

I like the colors and wave texture. Giving the figure room to breathe with all that sky gives a vacationy escape feeling.

phew Sungod I wouldn't want to leave out the important ones!

Thanks Robb, nice compliment comming from an artist such as yourself!

You got it MadDogMike! Now where can I get some more photos like this? Guess I'll just have to keep working on those unimportant parts like faces and hands.

My OH's birthday is fast approaching and he's been bugging me to paint something for him to put up in our "soon" to be tiki bar (although if I don't like it he's free to put it in the pole barn). Specifically -one of Russell Falls in Tasmania with wahine's in it. With my artistic license in hand I did a quick sketch.

Then I primed a 2x4 ft piece of mdf board. This morning I was able to get time to block in some main parts of the rocks.

Next step is to get the oils flying!

Thanks for looking!
O

[ Edited by: octopussy 2008-05-15 09:07 ]

[ Edited by: octopussy 2008-05-15 09:09 ]

Here's the next update. Still wet where the oil paint is and the lights not the best but it gives you the picture.

Its looking swell as did your other painting. The great thing about painting is you can always paint over your mistakes, so go ahead and do the face on the wahine 12 -14 times, get fed up and then paint hair over it, it's all good! Nice figure painting BTW!

Your work looks like acrylic the way you treat the colors in bands and separate them, which is fine. Part of the beauty of oil is in the scumbling and mixing wet paint into wet paint on the canvas or dragging a fairly dry brush with a hint of another shade across the top. You can also do semi-transparent glazes just like in acrylic, substituting oil, drying medium, and thinner in any combination for water.

To be able to glaze faster over a lower layer, add drying medium to your paint, to dry slowly for wet into wet, add extra oil in to your paint. Oil paintings can get really thick so don't be afraid of too much paint and remember drying medium or Alkyd is your friend. Then glaze away!

I'm assuming of course that these are not water based oil paints, of which I know Jack...

Okay! now go critique my work, it needs it! I have learned so much about acrylic paint from the peeps here, I need more clues an' cues tho.

Paint on bruthaman!

Keep practicing those heads and hands. The more you do, the better you get.

When GROG was young, GROG have a hard time with hands, but then GROG buckle down and spend a concentrated effort on drawing hands, and now GROG really enjoy drawing hands. Hands are an important part of acting in animation, so GROG glad GROG put in the effort to get better at drawing them.

Julie, you have some very nice watercolors on your website. Keep up the good work.

Hi SneakyTiki,

Thanks for the info on the oils, I'm still playing around with them and can use all the help any ones willing to give me! I did start with acrylics, self taught, so I may have bad habits to pass on...
but your stuff is pretty fun.

Thanks GROG, I love Grog drinks, my Favorite character on BC is Grog and now I've got some great advice from GROG! Thanks (loved your art on the cover of Tiki mag by the way). I've been practicing life drawings (including hands and feet)several nights a week while others watch tv. Faces give me the biggest challenge. I've looked for books on drawing faces but haven't seen anything yet that floats my boat. Anyone have any good references?

Here's a few updates on the waterfall wip...

next comes the water, loads more tweaking and somewhere along the way I add the people they'll have bikinis on this time, (need to keep to pg in our house due to other peoples kids)

Thanks for looking -
O

Here's the next update. I've been working with the water, adding more details. Need to do more work on the rocks, but will save that for later. Once I get more layers on the water I'll start thinking about where I want the people. I've decided to skip the swim suits, just have strategic placed flowers and plants.

Thanks to GROG some will have faces and hands. I have been diligently working on my drawings and am now starting to become satisfied with my results. If not... well it's oil paint I can clean the slate and start over!

Julie,

Your work is beautiful. I'm glad you have chosen to share it with us. I love your water scenes :D The boobies are nice too.....

Hi Gman,

Thanks! OH's getting excited about putting this one up. He's going to have to wait a while though, as this one's taking time!
Boobies? What Boobies?

Here's the latest updates

I darkened the water and kept working on plants and rocks

In this one I started making it look more like a rain forest and less like Canada (no offense, it's just not to warm there!)

I was hoping to put a tiki under the waterfall ie the log, but too much water covered it up.

Hopefully when it's a bit dryer I'll be able to start adding the people. Any maybe a bird...

Thanks for looking.

Here's the next update:

I've started to add the peps. Had to do a dude, after all I prefer the male models as do some others. I'll be adding two wahines later.

here's a closeup of the peps

here's a closeup of the Canadian side.

Any suggestions for birds? Not to hip on a macaw but those are the only flying birds with color that I have.

Julie

Canadian dudes? What the....? Looks great Julie! I imagine it is only going to get better as you add more layers (and boobies :D)

yea what he said except for the boobies part.

I could add more boobies but I don't think that species is indigenous to rain forest areas .......:o

Oh you mean those boobies! :roll: :P:

Thanks Sophista-tiki! :)

Here's the next update. I was able to get the people looking more like people and added one more wahine.

Here's an overall pic:

and here are some close ups. We're keeping it G as we still have youngins in the house, and other families just don't understand nudity. But hey they'll still be making paint once they're grown up!

next - finish up the people, add some vines, a flying bird and a tiki.

comments and critique welcome,

Thanks for looking.

On 2008-06-03 16:01, octopussy wrote:
comments and critique welcome,

GROG think you should finish up the peolpe, add a flying bird, and maybe a tiki.

so nicely done. I love the directional splashing of the water fall. I wanna go there

And maybe a vine or two.

and a crock -o- stimpy just kidding

On 2008-06-03 17:40, Sophista-tiki wrote:
and a crock -o- stimpy just kidding

:lol: awesome!

Anyhow, love the progress so far! :)

you should definitely try and squeeze in some nice bright lil colors here and there...I think it'd be even prettier :D

I found a bird! and it's not a boobie (sorry GMAN) it's a toucan.

So birds and vines to be worked on today and yes I'm thinking some more color, good idea Raveene.

and a crock -o- stimpy just kidding

This newbie was wondering what a croc-o-stimpy is oh mighty Grand Member Sophista-tiki?

crocostimpy

-G$

crock-o-stimpy has nothing to do with tiki. it was the first thing thatpopped into my head. I couldnt help myself. my 12yr old self is showing!

I actually really like it the way it is. I don't think it needs a bird or a tiki(yeah, I said it). Some vines would be a nice touch, but the color and composition are there. Great work.

On 2008-06-03 16:01, octopussy wrote:
Here's the next update. I was able to get the people looking more like people and added one more wahine.

Here's an overall pic:

and here are some close ups. We're keeping it G as we still have youngins in the house, and other families just don't understand nudity. But hey they'll still be making paint once they're grown up!

next - finish up the people, add some vines, a flying bird and a tiki.

comments and critique welcome,

Thanks for looking.

Hi all and thanks for the comments and suggestions.

Well I think I've completed it, for now, till I want to change it again, no I'll sign it and be done, OK here it is....

and some close ups. I added a bird to fill in the blank spot of the upper falls, added some little flowers for a little color and finished up the wahine in the falls.

[

I left out the tiki. :( I had planned on making the log under the left side waterfall a tiki but there was too much going on. OH said we've got plenty of other tikis around the house. He's right :D. Maybe we will have Mr and Mrs Mai Kai flank it!

Well thanks for looking.

O

[ Edited by: octopussy 2008-06-06 08:54 ]

Beautiful! I'm not an artist so I don't know how paintings "evolve", it was nice seeing all the steps from sketch to completion. I understand the need for modesty. Don't get me wrong - I like breasts as much as the next guy (even more than some guys :P), but what good is a painting or sculpture if you have to hide it in the basement for fear that your nephew might show up?

I love that painting AND I love half naked wahines in waterfalls....

very nicely done.. I like it just the way it is. theres enough going on in the foliage and rocks, with moss, leaf details, etc. I stil wanna go there. I think its got a real vintage feel to it too. Dawn

Great painting. I just want to dive in!

Thanks MadDogMike and Mr. Gambino,
I enjoy painting the human figure in it's natural form (Not that I enjoy the half naked wahine's like you guys do!)but ... I live in the wrong place - to mid west here so I'm glad you guys don't mind them somewhat clothed.

Thanks Dawn and bgizzy, I visit there in my mind. :) I think it's my new happy place!

thanks for looking

-o

Nice! Please send that to my home address immediately!

Nice! Please send that to my home address immediately!

Hehe, thanks, well hubby would be a bit miffed! You'll need to sort it out with him.

Here goes another try. This time she'll have a face and two hands! And yes GMAN there are bobbies...

Here's the sketch of the mermaid. I couldn't find any reference photos so I grabbed an art model book and some imagination and went to work.

Here's the start with the oil paints and the next few stops along the way. And yes I know your not supposed to put things on corals cause it can kill them - I'll let the mermaid know next time I see her -or maybe I'll paint a nice grassy spot around the treasure chest...

I got some more time to work on her today.

I'm planning on doing a wash over her skin either of blue or purple - haven't decided yet - any suggestions? I also got some corals in and worked on the octopus. Now I get to wait again for the oil to dry...

O

Great composition on the waterfall painting. I think blue wash over the mermaid, perhaps to simulate reflected water would be cool.

[ Edited by: TikiMango 2008-07-25 20:59 ]

Thanks TikiMango, with any luck she'll turn a bit blue today...in a good way I hope.

O

Love your Mermaid very kool , im workin on a Life size one right now . KEEP ROCKIN.

Hey Tyger Jymmy, thanks. Just checked out some of your kool stuff too - awesome. Have you posted your mermaid?

Here's the newest update. I'm still working on her hands and started on her face, worked on the torso some more so I'll have to wait till it's dry to add a tint. I'm liking the octopus so I think it's done. And I keep messing with the coral.

thanks for looking
O

[ Edited by: octopussy 2008-07-27 18:20 ]

and the next update:

and a close up of her face:

Took a little time on other projects but now she's finished.

C & C welcome.

This one's been hiding for a while. I like the tentacle wrapped around the finger, almost like Michelangelo's "Creation of Adam" in the Sistine Chapel. The coral turned out great and the shadows on the octopus head. Decided not to go with scales on the mermaid body?

Thanks Mad Dog, good old Michelangelo would probably roll over in his grave... he he. She does have scales you just can't see them from where your at, you have to get very very close...
actually the scales weren't coming out right then I realized if you saw a fish from that distance you probably wouldn't see the scales either.

thanks for looking!

O

Good work, it'll be nice to see it finished.

"I love that painting AND I love half naked wahines in waterfalls...."

Sam - you should be a poet.

My thoughts exactly. Love it.

-G$

Love the theme and work!!!
Fantasytastic!

If I may make one unsolicited suggestion:

You modeled the light on the octopus and coral and ocean substrate similarly, along with the tail and it feels watery and deep where certain colors disappear or are absorbed.

Consider the torso of the mermaid under water compared to the other parts of the composition.

She seems evenly and brightly lit from top to bottom with shadows that are a little starker and define her musculature as cut.

Besides the fact I like to look at mermaid boobs, my eyes are overly drawn there due to the high key pallette that contrasts with the water.

You might try some adjustments for "atmosphere" from top to bottom and soften the contrast as you go deeper because the light underwater gets more diffused quickly, highlights don't get so high, and the color red starts to drop away.

This may have a double whammy effect to add visual depth and mood as well as accentuate and draw additional attention to her well done hair and the octopus which are mirroring each others' color fields and complexity of line.

Looking forward to more!

Cheers