Creating figurative art of bodies which may be traditionally described as "male" is still a bit of a new topic for me, but I am glad I gave it another go! I particularly enjoy the graceful and tender stance of this nude figure, which is very much in line with my artistic desire to express inner visions of "femininity", thereby dissolving and deconstructing gender stereotypes.
Have a look at this series of snapshots to track how I created my artwork:
For each of these steps, I listed the key tools and methods below. Feel free to reach out if you would like to know more about any individual steps!
1) I use tracing paper and a soft pencil to capture the outlines of my reference photo. I scan the outlines and print the drawing on a new piece of thick "BIOTOP 3" drawing paper.
2) Using 4B pencil on paper, I gradually render the artwork. Having the fine grain of the paper embedded in the artwork creates an authentic tangibility. After adding several layers of graphite, I use a soft eraser gum to reduce the graphite in places, which evokes the impression of light. This stage takes about 30 minutes to one hour, after which I scan the pencil drawing again to switch to digital processing.
3) I use the open source drawing software KRITA to enhance the depth and the level of detail of my pencil drawing.
4) Adding a monochrome gray base layer provides a middle ground to add plasticity.
5) Using a lighter hue of grey, I raise areas of the picture, creating the effect of direct illumination.
6) The entire picture is now converted to a colour gradient map, so everything looks like it was done with coloured pencil on toned paper.
7) The highlighted areas from step (5) are additionally coloured in a warm, orange hue to provide a color contrast between bright and dark areas. I use a complementary colour.
8) In the final step, I adjust saturation, brightness and contrast for printing.
Overall, I worked on this artwork for approximately 4 hours.
How do you like this nude figure? Could you imagine sending this picture as a postcard or having it framed at home?
If you would like to receive your personal nude artwork in this fashion, reach out and I am happy to provide you with a free quote!
Tobias