Shapes & Gesture: I Tried Realistic Shadow but Ended Up Erasing It ?‍♂️ - Keys for Father!

Hey everyone!

Some insights about my process in the last 'father' character illustration.

Reference

I've been saving horse references for quite a while. I thought about using them for an anatomy related article at some point, but once I finished writing the past article about hair, I thought about using this particular reference. Not only does it highlight interesting horse hair shapes, it also tells a little story of a pony and a horse. I don't know much about horses, but the little white one doesn't seem like a foal to me. Anyways, the contrast between the two horses and the little interaction in the picture was interesting enough for me to replicate.

Concept

The context in the picture is not clear, but I thought it would be interesting to create a teacher/student situation out of it, in which the big, dark horse is the teacher and the little white one is the student. Due to the white horse's small size, I thought it would be compelling to create a contrasted composition between a small girl and a big, dark shape with a man surrounding her, like a shadow or an entity.

Execution

Shapes
As you'll see in the process video at the beginning, this idea was very clear from the start. I used 'Limberto - Hard Shapes' to convey strong edge shapes for both. It's interesting to note that shapes created by strokes are not always anatomically accurate, but they capture overall 'feelings' quickly, which line art might otherwise miss. By feelings, I mean gestures or overall big shapes. These big shapes are often the first thing for the eye to react to, and then details slowly get introduced through lines, colors, and values (light and shadows).

Drawing
The first thing for me to define through the line art was both characters' faces. I thought she should have a serious but nervous facial expression, as if it's her first time doing this, which her student/apprentice status suggests. Since the topic of the article was 'hair,' a big shape on her back, similar to the little horse's tail, would define her overall silhouette. At this stage, I wasn't quite clear on what her costume would be, so I took a simple approach in drawing her body, depicting her as a child around 10 years old. For him, the facial expression was more calm but maintained a similarly serious tone. At this point, I started to notice some inconsistencies in the shapes and proportions of both characters. It took a while, but after several attempts, the drawing finally aligned with the original idea. I wanted him to cover a large part of the canvas while maintaining a claw-like gesture around her. That's why the 'father' topic fit best for this specific situation.

After I was done with this first layer (shape and expression), I felt comfortable diving into costume design. I spent some time on a pair of boots I'd found on Pinterest, which I thought were very interesting. I believed they would be challenging to replicate due to the number of small details that might not be easily recognizable at a small size. Even while looking at the actual picture, I had difficulty understanding the tiny metal details. Nevertheless, I thought these boots would create a great contrast with the white outfit that would eventually define the child. For the 'father,' I did some research but knew he wouldn't have a highly complex outfit. His posture prominently displays his back, where I didn't feel comfortable adding too much detail, especially given his Gothic/Victorian 'Vampire D' style outfit. Perhaps some ornaments on the pants and boots, but in theory, considering his gesture, this character wouldn't display a great deal of costume design. While he was key, he remained secondary; the child was the main focus.

Color
What I love about these simple color references is that I often create variations of one main palette. For him, it was a very dark purple, and for her, it was white. The distinctions made within each palette come from a mix of darker/brighter tones and saturated/desaturated colors, all in an effort to introduce some contrast. I feel free to play with details of each costume, like patterns or textures, since I know that having all tones belong to the same palette means the character won't become oversaturated easily.

Shadow
The light was positioned on the left side of the canvas, so I could create some interesting contrast on both faces. This decision isn't self-evident at first; I often start by identifying the darkest area of the body and from there, slowly decide the direction from which the light will come. Lately, I've been creating a white layer on top of colors and then proceeding to add shadows. I enjoy choosing colors before lighting, but the values of the colors, especially the darker ones, don't let me see clearly how the shadow can be defined on the character's body. That's why the white layer is so useful (check the video for more).

I made a 'mistake' that I didn't understand until I took a quick break. The information I was building with shadows on the child's dress was too much. The references I was using for guidance had a lot of volume all over the dress. Although this was true, it didn't look very good in the illustration. I can't put my finger on why, but I decided to cover a large part of the composition with a plain shadow (no volume) on the right side of her dress and hair. The left side had little to no information in terms of shadows. For some reason, I prefer this simplified version more than the one I was initially building with more detail. You'll see the shift in the video.

Details
For the final adjustments, I created some small patterns on the child's dress and the father's clothing. These are secondary elements but they add realism to the costume. I also made the right side of the father's face full of scars and added some Victorian-themed tattoos on him. I love this aesthetic period of art, rich with ornaments and detail, but I didn't want everything to be from that era. That's why the gun and the boots break the theme in some way. In the universe I'm building, I want to incorporate everything I like, so there are always some casual or contemporary props around.

Conclusion
I wasn't sure if this piece would resonate, since I didn't think anyone would have anything to relate to these two characters. But I did it anyway because I thought it was cool, simple but interesting, and it seems people love it. I appreciate those happy accidents; we artists never know.

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