Lightning in a bottle

Photo study: original photo by Daniel Jung, found via this twistedlamb post.

Progress steps:

Week 20-25 sketches

I think the reason why I haven't been scanning my sketches lately (and I'm halfway through my newest sketchbook already!) is that I had a pile of books and, as of more recently, clothes, sitting on my scanner.

So I moved the pile of books and clothes to my bed. This was a strategic move: since I couldn't go to bed before putting them back onto the scanner, I stayed up scanning some twenty+ pages from my sketchbook. :p
 
These are all from mid-May until today. I put them in two bundles. One, sketches from the metro/bus/tram. Some are finished from memory/imagination, as people have the tendency to move away or get off at stations at inconvenient (to me) times. :)

The rest are all from imagination.

And a bonus: fluffheaps!

Week 23 digital sketches

These are from last week (though the face may be from end May). A couple of minutes each, no reference. Which, in retrospect, I should have used. :p

I have a lot more pages in the sketchbook, but I have yet to scan them. The new sketchbook I'm using doesn't fold open too well, making scanning a bit more of a hassle. I'm thinking of getting a bigger one next time!

Blue Paduflies!

 

I think he likes to torture CS undergrads, too.

From this tiny sketch I did in 2010:

The mantle

From last Friday, about an hour, no reference.

Malaak's Dream

I made this as a guest art page for the fourth volume of Malaak: Angel of Peace, a comic by Joumana Medlej.

Malaak is a young woman of mysterious origin, who is fighting to save Lebanon from a seemingly endless war.

This scene is somewhat independent of the main storyline, but if you read the comic (which I highly recommend), it should make sense. My painting will appear on the printed volume only, coming out early this June.

Inspired by the beautiful nature of Lebanon and the mystical aspects of Malaak's story, both of which made it so appealing to me.

Photoshop, Painter, a few days on and off.

Concept art for Caul: Mother and Priest

Concept art I made for Caul, an upcoming short film by Azhur Saleem. For a synopsis, more info and a chance to support the making of this film visit its Indiegogo campaign.

Photoshop, several days on and off. No reference used (which nearly drove me up the walls at some point), but I applied a wood plank texture from a photo in the background.

Glenys - & Week 18/19

Even fewer sketches lately - in the sketchbook, at least. I've been doing some anatomy studies as well, but they're on A3 sheets, too cumbersome to scan (and the studies are ugly! :p). The rest of the time is taken by a couple commissions.

I'm quite pleased with this small sketch of my friend Glenys (who is also a wonderful person - and a very good writer!)-

And some random from my (new!) sketchbook's pages.

First three are from the metro/bus. Then two attempts of a more cartoon-like style. The woman on the bottom right is Neri Oxman (whose work I found very insteresting). The others are from imagination.

The ambassador

A character sketch from a setting- and story-in-the-works. He's probably my favourite one. :)

 About half an hour, photoshop, used some reference for the crossed arms only.

Week 17 sketches: Lagoon

More painting than sketching this week. All I have is this: it's one of the fantastic Lagoon dolls made by batchix. Make sure you check her work here and also on deviantART.

Alice

A small quick digital drawing of Alice Duke. If you haven't seen her fantastic art, go do so right away!
http://alicedraws.blogspot.com/

Week 16 sketches

It was again a slow week (I came back on Good Monday, and left again on Friday for the Easter break), but something is better than nothing, I guess!

Two character sketches; the second is from a crazy dream I had, about a girl who, after being slandered and in danger of being murdered, went off to Palestine where she came to lead her own Bedouin tribe (?!).


And one pen sketch from life:

Week 15 sketches

I was away on a (long!) roadtrip, so there wasn't very much time for sketching (and none for painting). These were mostly done on the ferry to and from Ancona.

Week 14 sketches: Stalker

I can understand why a lot of people find Tarkovsky's Stalker boring. We're perhaps too saturated in ideas of what a film should be: fast-paced, action-packed. Stalker has a very independent sort of narrative. But for a visual artist, it's a real reasure trove.

I had painted a scene from the film years back, and now that I watched it again, I sat down to sketch the characters. From top left, counter-clockwise: the Professor, Stalker, the Writer, Stalker's wife, Monkey (their daughter).

Fire dog & Alchemy sketches

Inspired by Kanellos, the protest dog. :) He even has his own Wikipedia entry! Go check it out.
Edit: I think this is probably Loukanikos (Hot Dog), mascot of the May-June protests in Athens. I hear they want him for PM, too. :} 

Finished version here:

And some Alchemy doodles (colouring in Photoshop):

That looming dark angel has been a recurring theme since my teens. One day I might paint him properly.

Week 13 sketches

I think I should start arranging my sketches by week to keep better track of them.

It's odd that the more of them I do, I get the feeling they're not enough!

These are actually from last Sunday; poor likenesses of some stock photography for the first face & the hands, Christina Hendricks, Ursula K. Le Guin and Ingrid Bergman.

And some very quick ones; first two scenes are from previews of upcoming HBO series Game of Thrones, the rest are from the metro/bus.

Radiant

Done during lunch break. Initially referenced from last week's sketches, but it turned into something different. The title is, perhaps, a bad pun. :/

Despina Liapi: St. George

My mother, Despina Liapi, is a painter and iconographer. (Small wonder I ended up painting, too; my earlier memories involve her, brush in hand, painting.)

This is one of her latest works, an icon of St. George. I can't get over how beautiful it is.

Powder pigments on solid wood board, 50x70cm (19.7 x 27.5'')

It is painted in the traditional Byzantine style, which poses many restrictions and has many set rules; but my mother has some serious skills. Check out the details! :D

Sketches: Stephanie! & poses

This week's sketches:

The first three are from Kxhara's stock account on deviantART (very good material there; thanks for sharing!).

Random cat is trying to look lazy.

Another sketch (bottom left) from Twisted Lamb.

And last but not least, the lovely Stephanie Gutowski. Go check out her art and costume-making here!

Fade

What timeless hours must it take...

Apophysis, Photoshop, Illustrator, a few hours altogether.

Prayer Flags

About an hour for this one. Inspiration from wikipedia article on prayer flags.

For Japan.

Transit + TL sketches

More sketchbook pages. I drew the three faces on the top right corner on the bus/metro. The others were again referenced from Twisted Lamb.

Twisted Lamb sketches

I discovered Twisted Lamb by a friend's recommendation, and found some posts quite inspiring.I made some sketches off them. (The bottom sketch of the tree isn't; I just scanned it along with the rest.)

photo studies

Two photo studies. Partly to spice up a bit my repertoire of faces. I should really be working on HANDS, instead, but I got sidetracked as usual. :}

 

(click for full view)

Reference from Rammstein's Amerika video clip (02:39). Trying to tackle dark skin had me throw everything I thought I knew about painting faces out the window! Good exercise, though.

And a totally different one; reference from the beginning of this video (featuring Alexander McQueen's 2003 winter collection).

Aboard the Eliatras, in progress

The figure needs work. And he should look older.