The process for my pieces goes through a range of steps from beginning to end. Much of this process stems from my background as an animator and has partially developed out of me being a "perfectionist". This process allows me to fully flesh out the ideas and visions of the concept, bringing it to life through ink and watercolor.
The initial conversations with the client are about what they want and are looking for in the picture. Some clients have a very specific vision in mind while others have a simple, sometimes only a vague idea. Ether way is fine, I have a series of question we hash out to help me personalize and hone down the concept. This includes questions like posing, characters, animals, clothing, background, etc.
From what is gathered I’ll do my own personal research on the content, lots of brain storming, looking up or taking my own reference images. Next I create many thumbnails and sketches of all the aspects of the picture. Anything from the overall design to minor details such as clothing or facial expressions.
From this mess of sketches I consolidate all of it into 3-5 drawings the client will choose from. Each drawing is a rough variation of the concept done as its own individual perspective.
From this discussion I take any feedback and begin the final drawing based on which variation is chosen. The final drawing is done on watercolor paper, generally hot press 140lb paper.
When the final drawing is complete I move onto inking which is done through brush and India ink. After inking there is a cleanup phase where I go in and erase any spare pencil lines that are showing.
Next I move onto painting the picture with watercolor making everything pop with vibrance. Here I would like to note I love playing with negative space in my pictures. I’m very intentional where the ink and paint is places through out the piece.
When finished painting I’ll step away for a day or two to come back with a fresh perspective. If nothing else needs to be tweaked and it feels “done”, it’s time to sign it and officially claim it finished.