So I have been feeling a little bit stuck with my art. Admittedly, my brain has been rather full of other things, but my art has often been a refuge in those moments. Like a good book, it is something that I could curl up with and lose myself for a few hours after work.
But for several days, I couldn’t come up with any ideas. So rather than push it, I took a break. I finished reading a book (Siege and Storm, the second in the Shadow and Bone trilogy) and picked up a new video game (the New Pokemon Snap is surprisingly fun).
Then as I was at work, an idea started to form. I ignored it for a day (admittedly I was really into Pokemon Snap). But it just would not disappear.
Dark teal green trees, enveloped in mist.
So rather than just let the design simmer, I decided to give it a go. I also decided to try a new brush – the Streaks brush under Calligraphy in Procreate- to create the trees. I feel like I still haven’t found the right brush for conifer trees – or deciduous ones for that matter. I feel like the more I play, the closer I get though.
So I started with a plain grey sky to make the trees pop. Then I had to find a color palette that matched my vision. Admittedly the one I landed on was more green than the dark teal I had imagined. I actually tried changing it to a more teal scheme part way through, but didn’t like it as much.
Then I had to add the mists. I used the soft brush at about 40% opacity in different shades of light grey, varying the brush size to create a wispy effect. This is similar to how I create clouds, though again I am sure I will continue to learn better ways to create the look I want.
But when I finished my original idea, it felt incomplete. I added a few wispy clouds and darkened part of the sky, but it was still missing something. And given my recent designs, I decided to add – a mountain (surprising, I know…HA).
Initially I started with a design that looked a bit like Mt. Rainier, but as I kept at it, couldn’t quite get it the way I wanted it. So I unselected the layer and chose to try a different look, creating a multilayered Mt. St. Helens. But once again, it wasn’t quite right.
So I toggled between the two mountains, played with the opacity of the layers, and tried adding more clouds. As I fiddled with the settings, I noticed that the two mountains were intriguing when layered and the opacity of one turned lower (about 85%). So instead of creating a third mountain, I blended the layers and erased part of the mountain that had ended up on top.
Much like inspiration…
Sometimes, we find what we’re looking for in an unexpected place.
Fernheart Designs 