Three Scary For Me: How Art Can Bite You

I don’t know what got into me today,
as I arrived home from the gym...

Even before,
I got out of my car...

I already searched for,
“digital painting glowing eyes”.

I was recently looking at fantasy art,
and everything is glowing in their world.

So I made everything glow in one of my portraits,
it looked great...

Until I asked,
what will the person in the painting think.

I looked at the portrait,
and they now had glowing blue skin.

I realized, by adding all the glowing stuff,
it no longer looked professional.

And by going back to the original,
I had to remove most of the glowing parts.

The glowing portrait was still recognizable,
but it was too scary, and more importantly too odd.

Even if I made a portrait like that of myself,
it would still look weird, I would feel weird about it.

It is just a weird thing to do,
It was weird.

Using reference images,
prevented the face from becoming too distorted.

It shows what a powerful guardian that is,
even with glowing blue skin.

Using reference images protected the portrait,
from becoming too unrecognizable.

As artists we have to be respectful,
of the people we paint.

And unless asked to do so,
never cross the line where you change a person skin to glowing blue.

I still learned quite a lot,
and tested out a theory I had.

That to make something glow,
you don’t make it brighter.

But rather begin your portrait,
at night, in the darkness.

A face in dark shadow,
is critical to making something glow.

And a glow is just a swipe of a strong color,
with a blur around it...

So, a second swipe, perhaps dimmer color,
with a brush thrice the size but at half opacity.

I think the rule of less is more,
is a good starting point.

But glowing scenes full of dancing figures,
especially whimsical fantasy figures, are still a beautiful thing.

It is as big of a realm of art as bobble heads,
that I am so fond of.

I have no doubt that the same kind of enchantment that I feel for,
for pop surrealist bobble heads.

Others will feel,
for magically glowing scenes at night.

For many people this,
may become a precious gateway into art.

If you do come across a request for painting,
a shadowy photo taken at night.

Then know, it is not a bad photo,
but an opportunity to venture into the realm of magic.

So as long as you have the permission,
and the customer understands that what they will get... is their fairie self, from a magical word.

Blue is cold, if you make their skin glow with blue,
then they will seem distant, alien, and weird.

Red is warm, it is also friendly towards all the tones of skin,
you will make them look friendly and magical.

The background, is a different story,
it can be blue, but blue again, is not a warm color.