Environment design project No.1

Hi,

I finally posted my environment painting! Theme wise not much thinking, I just used some references that I collected for my last project.

My focus here was to draw and paint the environment design with different emphasis, such as value, shape, composition.

This my first painting for this project was started from interesting shapes that I created.
The shape that I got from "happy accident" really reminds me of the flying castle, and I added dragon and fighters to the scene. I struggled a lot with unifying chaotic scene, using value focus, color. I hope you like it.

Shape driven exercise :

Many artist use so called "happy accident" for their work, some use 10% marker, some use Ink. I often used graphite and literally draw chaotic images on a paper, then I tried to find the interesting shape,then using those shapes, I start to put face, muscle,etc, till it starts to look like creatures or characters.

Before I did the painting, I practiced generating the interesting shapes with one theme, such as circle, triangle, curve. I found the result of these shape exercise itself interesting, and decided to post this too.

Value driven exercises :

Another approach that I`ve taken for this project was value driven approach. Compare to the approach above, I could control many element, like, where I should put horizon line, vanishing point, where I should put this and that, etc. If I have something in my head already, this way might be better, coz I have more control over the scene, but I had to spend more time on each small sketches.

Next post :

I will paint one or two environment stuff, then more project coming ! : ))

Mikio

Japanese Ghost ver.3

So, this is supposed to be the in-between image of version 1 and 2. Though I really like this painting, I have to admit that I failed to gap between the two paintings. The reason is that the first painting was very cartoony, and the second one was more realistic. Though I tried to combine two different elements, they were too different in terms of style.

Since this is the very changing sequence, I used a lot of gesture and movement. Other than the fact that I just mentioned, I like this version the best of all. I hope you liked this series of Ghost painting ! I remembered John Carpenter(famous horror movie director) said in his interview, that he didn`t know why, but making horror movie is really fun. I felt the same thing throughout this project. I wasn`t even brave enough to save reference ghost painting images in my PC folders, but painting ghosts was definitely fun !!

My next painting(or sketches) would be environment. I still haven`t decided if I keep on using the same theme(Japanese ghost) or something else. But hope you guys keep on visiting here : )

Mikio

Japanese Ghost Ver.2

Hi, guys.

This is my second Ghost painting. My last painting was the final stage of the ghost`s changing sequence, and this one is the first stage, just started transforming into the ghost.

Though I wanted to leave her normal human quite a bit so that I can make contrast to the final stage, I had to make sure that she looks ghost, using crazy hair, top lighting, and so forth. I also wanted to use same type of props as Hitodama(small blue fire, hanging besides her in the last painting). Hitodama was believed to be human soul, often seen at the grave. This is another props that you often see in Japanese Ghost painting. For this painting, I instead used Blood, indicating that she was murdered(by her boyfriend !), also serves as framing.

My next painting might be a bit challenging, coz I need to combine this painting with the last one, and show the in-between. It`s also gonna be crazy and ugly for sure.

Mikio

Japanese Ghost !

When Summer comes in Japan, people starts to see many people in TV show talk about horror story. It is very humid in Japan during Summer, and listening to horror story is one way for us to cool down our body.

円山 応挙(Maruyama Oukyo) is famous for Ghost painting, and its painting is kinda standard of what the ghost looks like. Japanese ghost doesn`t have legs, and sometimges put triangular cloth on a head, with holding up two hands(like my Ghost painting).

My painting is far from his, but I wanted to paint Ghost for this Summer, and going to paint more. It`s gonna be a process of this Ghost turns into this stage.

ps. I recently made another blog for my 3D stuff, please visit there too ! (http://mikio3d.blogspot.com/)