What the man behind the curtain is up to.

This concept speed painting is in many ways inspired by my recent delving into the Philip Pullman’s Dark Materials series of books, the same series that includes The Golden Compass. His stories are very rich and insightful to human character on an epic level. I’m thoroughly engrossed and want to read the books over and over again just because of the sheer imagination it took to create not just one world but multiple worlds of fantasy and have it all relate in some way to the the human condition as we know it in this world. It’s inspiring and challenges my creativity and imagination to the core even though they are considered to be children’s books.

Take a closer look at this image to see things that are very subdued in the smaller image, and even in the larger image. I think if I were to improve upon this concept it would be to explore how to push the limits of subtlety and make this image engaging still.

I’m trying for more different approaches to painting concepts. I used custom brushes to make the large forms and shapes concentrating on composition and speed. I was actually just testing the brushes and happy coincidences became instigators to this sketch. It’s actually quite a departure from my usual techniques. It’s pretty hard to work in only muted subtle tones. Hopefully the frigidness of this piece is aptly conveyed.