1
Create a concept thumbnail
The majority of my pieces begin with a rough concept sketch. It’s small and
fairly nondescript, but the scribble gives me enough information to determine
whether I want to pursue this idea further. In this case, I want to depict the head of
Medusa, tangled with snakes, and featuring a piercing gaze.
3
Refine the drawing
Once I’m happy with the basis of the sketch and placement of the snake
heads, I’ll refine the drawing down to essential lines so that it’s ready for the next
steps in my process. I don’t really bother to clean it up just yet because I know that
I’m going to redraw it later on my painting panel.
2
Develop the sketch
I really enjoy using the Procreate app on the iPad
to develop a concept further, especially since I’m not
slowed down by erasing and redrawing with pencil. I’m
a traditional artist, but digital tools like this one really
speed up my process and enable me to be less deliberate
in my choices, allowing opportunities for unexpected
moments in the artwork to emerge.4
Create a colour study
One of the benefits of a digital drawing is that I can
print it out on to a small scrap of watercolour paper and
easily paint over it for a colour study. I’ve selected a few
colours from my collection of acryla gouache that I hope
to build a moody Medusa with.Traditional Artist Workshop