Jan '20
1

First time entering any sort of contest, might not have the time to bring it to a complete finish, but this looks super fun to start anyway.

Made a few quick sketches, exploring both earth and water elements. At the moment I think I’ll continue with the mermaid-looking sketch at the bottom.

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She lives at the bottom of the lake, in a cavern where light cannot reach. When she comes to the surface, a layer of algae and lake weeds protects her pale skin. She is rarely hostile, but when threatened, will rise the surface, grasp the attacker, and drag them deep to the bottom of the lake.

Jan '20

Good idea for a character. Looking forward to seeing the final painting!

Jan '20

This looks really nice! I like your lines, curious to see more! :smile:

Jan '20

So running with that lake woman idea, I had a bit of time and sketched out her basic design. Hoping to do some iterations in the future, and experiment a bit with different tail shapes, fins, etc. I liked the idea of a flowy, crown-shape on her head, and after spending a worrying amount of time browsing marine plants, I found these BEAUTIFUL GIANT KELPS. I've included a few of the images I was looking at. They have these gorgeous little bead things, and flow really nicely, so I think they'll be perfect for a crown.

Because she lives deep at the bottom of the lake, her skin is extremely pale and very sensitive to light. To incorporate the water symbol, I thought it would be cool to give her some designs on her skin, like white ink tattoos. I couldn't really find any good pale skin reference photos that also had white ink.

Anyway, I'm a little obsessed with kelp now. More updates soon hopefully : )

Jan '20

Really great progress!! This is getting even more promising!

Jan '20

Reply to

josierichmond

Looks really cool! Are the kelps on her face some sort of veil? Because it's a great idea, and it looks good. Loving the direction you're going, she seems like a mysterious mermaid, even reminds of a ghost.

Jan '20

love the sketches so far :> The kelp crown makes me curious to know what her lower half would look like as a jellyfish than a fishtail. Can't wait to see more!

Jan '20

Nice theme and moodboard !
(how is the white fish on the left called ?)

Jan '20

it is a white half moon beta fish , the same one i was inspired by !

Jan '20

I still want to explore her design a bit more if I get the time, but I've skipped ahead a little bit and have been trying to figure out a nice composition. (And struggling a bit honestly.) This first page looks pretty rough but basically I was just trying to find some nice shapes.

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Cleaned up 3 of the compositions a little bit, and might do a few more if I can. I like the idea of her dragging an attacker into the water, but I'm having a bit of trouble figuring out a scene where you can still clearly see the front of her.

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Anyway, if anyone has any advice I'd be grateful! :blush:

Jan '20

Awesome work on the thumbnails! The lighting is amazing! I like the middle one! :smile: