Wednesday, March 19, 2008

IF: Heavy


I was at a loss for an idea for this week's IF theme of "heavy." I had given up when today inspiration hit. The winds have been quite strong here this week, and while staring out my office window, the above idea struck me. This first thing that came to me was the kid flying thru the air, and the rest just fell into place after. I am quite pleased with this, though I am unhappy with the girls arm across her head. But, if you look at many illustrated children, they can't reach around their head anyway, so this was the best I could do at the moment!! :) I could have done more to the sketch, but my day job beckons! Like the "Garden" sketch, I plan to rework and finish this. Any suggestions you see fit will be appreciated.

11 comments:

ELLA ELVIANA said...

great idea! you did the posture correctly. however i feel bad for the flying kid, hope he end up alright. ^_^

Tom Barrett said...

Thanks, enigma! Yes, I was quite surprised how well the girls posture came out. We'll just assume the boy landed in a thick, soft flower bed somewhere! :)

tinycutie said...

you have a nice idea on this drawing of yours. i kinda like the way the little girl put her arms around her forehead.

thanks for dropping by my site and for your nice comments. can i add you to my fav. links?

Tom Barrett said...

Thanks tinycutie. Yes, please feel free to link to me, and I will add you to mine!!

Bee said...

I think your flying boy is super and the tumbling mouse is adorable!...Great effort with the girl, I think it is successful, alternatively she could be holding onto a tree or similar and being blown almost horizontally back? :)

Alicia Padrón said...

Hee, hee.... wonderful Tom!!! Your illustrations keep getting better and better :o) I really like this. Lot's of action, and I can almost feel the wind. The flying kid is wonderful, great expression and posture. Perfect! I adore the little tumbling mouse! My favorite :o)

The only suggestions I have are to try and move the house in the background so that is not "touching" the girl's head at a point. It is always useful to have things really separate or really overlap but not touch. If you choose to move the house more to the left (girl covering part of the house) then you'll give the feeling of a far away house better as two planes will appear (the girl in the first plane, house in the second). You can also move it to the right and have a white space around the girl, this can also be good as you can have her as your focal point. I agree about her arm covering her face, maybe you can have a bit of elbow show and then the rest of the arm and hand.

Other than that I really think this is awesome and can't wait to see it finished Tom. Great job :o)

Tom Barrett said...

Thanks for the feedback, Bee! I like the idea of her holding on to something. Might give it more believability.

Alicia: Hope you had a nice trip! And thank you for the comments. Good advice about the house. Never would have caught that! And I will definitely fix her arm.

Happy Easter to you both!

sketched out said...

Wow, you are really getting good at this! Such a clever, cute idea, and I also love that tumbling mouse.

As usual, Alicia is a good tutor. It's always best to be on the look out for tangents. They confuse the eye.

At times, when I'm struggling with the position of a hand, arm or a facial expression, I grab the nearest person and ask them to pose for me, (helps if you know them) or I pose myself in the mirror. It really helps me figure things out, even if I'm going to stylize it.

You're really doing great! Keep it up!

Tom Barrett said...

Thanks, Linda. Yes, Alicia has been a big help, as has everyone who has commented.

I do use the mirror every now and then, but it's in the bathroom, so I have to keep getting up from my table! :) I'll have to get one to put near where I draw.

Alicia Padrón said...

Hi Tom, I did have a great time. The kids enjoyed it so much!

You should listen to Linda too she is amazing really. That girl is all talent I tell you.

I need to add a mirror to my wall near my drawing table too. I was just thinking about that the other day. But think it might be a bit weird though... I can have the feeling that someone is watching me while I work. he, he.. maybe it just needs getting use to.

Tom Barrett said...

I agree, Alicia. It is a bit weird to get up and start posing, hoping no one walks in! :)