Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke is a wonderful novel, I thought. It's quite an interesting take on fantasy. It has a very historical bent, which adds a lot of authenticity to the crazier fantasy elements that show up later on. Love the imagery -- great stuff to draw, generally.
And here is Jonathan Strange, as I thought he might look. The novel suggested a sort of exaggerated realism to me -- though maybe it would, because I think I kind of have this style stuck in my brain after Brink, but nevertheless it seems good to use here. Using Ingres's portraiture a lot for reference -- he worked during the same time period as the novel is set (though in France, not England), so it seemed pretty appropriate.
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At the moment I'm not entirely disliking the direction it's going. Needs magic paraphernalia to let everybody know it's not just a weirdly proportioned 19th century-type portrait. And more texture/material variation. And a different hand position. And stuff in the background. Lots more work, anyway!
This isn't the way I normally work for this sort of piece (I hate changing the size of my canvas -- means I screwed up the composition, or wasn't thinking ahead enough) but it started as a tiny doodle that grew, and that is the way of this sort of thing. Luckily it's a portrait and not a huge multi-figure illustration.
This is excellent, can't wait to see the finished piece. I read the book a while back, your painting reflects that world beautifully.
ReplyDeleteVery beautifull!
ReplyDeleteI like how you draw his face and hands!