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[Treefox]

Hi all! I know it's super quiet on the forum and basically only a couple of people still active here once in a while, but would anybody be interested in following, discussing and helping with my Elfquest portrait project?
Would you like to see and comment on my works in progress and upcoming ideas? If yes, please let me know.  Otherwise I would just delete this thread again.

[Startear]

I’m willing to do it! 

[Amberfox]

I would love to! I know I keep mentioning it, but I also need to post the challenges and collage we’ve talked about. I’m always lurking about on this site, so count me in! Like the viruses I deal with, I’m hard to get rid of!

[Treefox]

Oh that is super sweet of you and I hope it will be fun and boosting our creativity.
I love that you guys are sticking around and are willing to exchange some ideas.

[Treefox]

So it's actually been a couple of years since I first had this idea. I was inspired by the beautiful pastel crayon portraits Wendy did of some of the elves once upon a time.
I thought I wanted to make a beautiful painterly portrait of each of the characters as they appeared on the back covers of the original quest (meaning in the order they appear on the back covers). As you can already see, I wanted to incorporate an animal companion that embodies the character. While starting to draw this series, my idea is already progressing, as I'm trying not only to include an animal companion but also trying to give each character attributes that symbolize the important persons in their lives. I think all in all it's 31 portraits. I will probably be retired before I get there, but the journey is fun and each finished portrait is a little success, right? I don't think I'll ever get all done. But let's see how far I'll come.
I'm loving it so far! It's so much fun delving deep into the characters and think about what they mean to me and what their journey is.
So, if you want to, share your thoughts on the characters and what defines them for you. I'd love to go on this journey together.

[Treefox]

So next up is Cutter's gorgeous mum, who gives Dolly Parton a run for her money (love you, Dolly!)

The sketch is already done and the basic colors are laid down. I thought of butterflies for her immediately.
The butterflies and flowers in her hair are going to be white and blue and start blending into the background.

[Startear]

UMN hi, this is gorgeous. I love the delicate hand holding what I assume is the bow. Love the clasp especially.

Okay, with that out of the way. The jutting of her chin bothers me. I think the issue is the Angle, it is lokking very pronounced while the Angle, to me, suggests that it shouldn’t be? Or maybe you need to make her jawline tilt slightly more up.

The other concern I have is with matching the color of the flowers with the butterflies. Right now, is easy to tell them apart, but I’d be carefull about making them too similar and make them blend too much together.

Of course the latter might be what you are going for, in that case ignore what I am saying.

[Treefox]

Oh yay Startear, thanks! Yep, the chin is a bit too pointy, it shall now be less so in the progress.
The flowers and butterflies will have similar colors, but will also remain distinct from another like they are now.
And indeed, that's a bow she's holding. From what we see in the comics, the weapon of her choice.
I was wondering whether to make the armband and clasp gold or silver... But now that I see it in gold, I think it fits. What do you think?
Oh, this is exciting thank you so much! It's nice to share this with you.

[Czarine]

Ooh, what a cool project! I love her pose <3

My suggestions would be to add butterflies to the bottom of the image too, as now the portrait feels a bit top-heavy with all the details up there.

The other thing would be to angle the wolf brooch (?) clasp (??) to face the same direction she does. Her face, arms and chest are turned to the same direction, but the wolf faces forward, which breaks the flow, so to speak.

Can't wait to see your progress!

[Amberfox]

Looking amazing, Treefox! I always liked the looks of Joyleaf, but I have to admit, I'm not much of a fan of the Dolly Parton reference. Ah well. Not offended, just...doesn't quite work for me.

But who cares! Loving this so far. I agree the chin seems to jut a bit for that angle, even though she did have a strong heart shaped face. It needs to remain a bit pointy, though, because of the heart shape, but perhaps emphasize the angle a bit less, give the lower jawline a little more fleshiness, if that makes sense. I did notice the wolf clasp on her cloak (what it seems like), but it's possible that it could face forward while she doesn't because jewelry does that. Some high- and lowlights can easily make it look perfect in its current position. Also, the butterflies and flowers in the hair can be the same blue but with different accents, highlights, and lowlights, maybe the butterflies and flowers can both have variations of subtle other colors in them since both typically do. There are no limits to that aspect. I don't think butterflies need to be added to the bottom of the illo to balance it out, strong contrasting colors in her cloak or some other detail would balance it out just as easily. I understand the butterflies are there to also help draw the viewers' attention to the face, the focus of the image.

I think while the visible hand is graceful, I think the fingers are a bit too thin. Just a little more fullness I think would make them even more elegant.

Can't wait to see the next posting! This is a remarkable challenge you've taken on, very stunning but not enviable.

[Treefox]

Woooooow guys! So much feedback! Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Czarine, I was inspired by art nouveau putting the "weight" of the picture on her face. It does almost look a bit like a Madonna (the holy one) painting, doesn't it? That was not my intention. But I still like the look.
And hey, it's digital, we can put in some quick butterflies at the bottom and see how it looks.
So far I offset all the claps to keep it more interesting and also copying how it was often done in medieval times. But I could place it in one line with her face to see how that would look. It's fun to try things out.
Amberfox, I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to be offending. The Parton reference actually came from Wendy or Richard. She's similarly blond, curly and curvaceous, that's probably where it's coming from.
The way you describe the colors of the flowers and butterflies is exactly how I plan to do it! I hope it will look neat.
And I will try to work at the fingers a little more. Still my nemesis...
Aw man, thank you so much guys! I missed discussions and conversations like these!

[Treefox]

One more thing: should I make the bow look like the one she has in the comics? I'm not sure I want to give it too much attention. I just wanted to add the notion that she's also a huntress.

[Amberfox]

Oh, no, you didn’t offend me in the least! There are certainly elements of Dolly Parton in Joyleaf, and I respect the woman and like her music, it just seems overused or emphasized. Something. Shrug.

Yeah, hands and feet, the bane of many an artist. I’m sure you’ll make it work!

I think it’s up to you about the bow. I’m glad you included it since Joyleaf often is depicted for her looks and little else. She WAS a huntress, and it often feels neglected in favor of pretty. Still, while it appeared to be her weapon of choice, it didn’t seem as symbolic or defining as Newmoon or Strongbow’s bow(s). Again, I think as long as it is depicted, that should suffice. She’s an archer, but doesn’t have a specific or special bow she uses.

[Treefox]

Glad to hear that I didn't offend you.
And I absolutely agree with everything you said. She was indeed a huntress and I want to include that. So I put in some of the suggested changes. I like the direction of the clasp better this way, but I think the increased number of butterflies just makes the picture feel too stuffed. I also changed her bow slightly, which you can't really see anyway, because it's behind a butterfly. Ah well. Her fingers are slightly thicker, but this will become more apparent when the colors progress. There's still so much work to do on this.

So, let's continue with the colors!

[Startear]

Yeah I agree, I think that the butterflies at the bottom are too much, I think maybe keeping one or two wouldn’t be an issue, but right now it is a bit too much.

I didn’t notice the clasp pointing the wrong way until Czarine mentioned it.

As for the Dolly Parton thing, while I do see the point of Joyleaf being more than just beautiful, Dolly Parton has done a lot to increase child litteracy with her Imagination Library. Likewise, I think people forget how much Joyleaf did for the Wolfriders.

[Treefox]

Thanks, then I will continue to work on her.
Don't want to work, want to paint!

[Afke]

Ooh, I actually like the extra butterflies at the bottom, but perhaps there could be more dimension to them if they are bigger, as if they're closer to us. Than it'll look like they're going toward her, surrounding her.
Her bow could use a bit of extra curl at the end I think.

Good luck with your project, sounds like a massive one.

[Yavia]

It looks great. I like the colors and was a bit wondering, if she is wearing fur of a fox because of the color.
Love this project very much and hope you will make it. Nice to see it here. 

[Treefox]

Yay!! Thanks so much afke and Yavia!
I like the ideas of giving the butterflies some perspective, but I don't want to take too much attention away from Joyleaf's face. I will see how it all comes together in the end and maybe even make two versions, like with Leetah... If only I wasn't so slow!
I looked at her bow and it isn't as curly as it was in my memory...I think I will make it a bit longer, then the curvature will be more apparent. I think I confused her bow with the one Cutter is using during the beginning of the quest when he is travelling with Skywise.
And I don't think I will ever be able to finish this project. But as long as it is fun, I'll keep doing it.

Because of the color, it really does look like she's wearing fox fur. But I plan to make it leather, just like the one she wore in the comics. She has this two-layer outfit going on, the upper layer is more of standard warm ochre and the lower layer has this reddish color. I really like her outfit in the comics, btw.

I hope I'll have time to work a bit on this during the weekend.

[Amberfox]

Of course, it’s up to you whether you want to keep the butterflies at the base, but it seems a bit distracting to me, almost as if “Hey, butterflies! Oh, and Joyleaf.” I say play around with it and see what you personally prefer.

I always thought Joyleaf’s bow was a simple long bow, but maybe the idea was it looks too straight to be a bow. Hmm. I’m at work at the moment and my phone just doesn’t cut it in terms of seeing details in illos.

I know how you feel! I have soooo many ideas rampaging through my pathetic overworked brain that I would love to put to paper, but I too suffer from slowness. I did come up with a new illo idea that I’ve started on, but I think this is number 827 of images I’m working on…sigh.

Keep up the great work! You’ve got a cheering crowd gathering!

[Treefox]

Yeah, I checked that bow out and it's really neat but basic. It has a slight curve.

But I'm happy to hear that you've also not running out of ideas soon. This means enjoyment for years to come.
Should I finish Joyleaf before Christmas, I'd like to put in a small three picture series... Probably not going to happen, but one can dream.

[Yavia]

Joyleaf's outfit is so cool. I loved it so much. Both colors are so warm and look soft.

I wish I had Idea's to make. But my brain is almost everytime satisfied with Imagine how the picture later will look, so I don't bother to make it. Also it always look better in my head.
I am very quick in drawing and painting, so that would be no issue. Sorry, if I offend someone or feel bad by saying this. That wasn' t intended

[Amberfox]

No offense taken! We all have our skills and approaches to drawing, we're all different. I perpetually have so many ideas in my head that I can never possibly get all to paper (or if I ever go digital...). But, in my life right now, I just don't have enough time or energy to be fast. When I was briefly in between jobs, I was churning out coloring that had been ignored for years. Now that I am very busily employed, sigh. Ah well.

Because I tend to work slowly, I also tend to change my opinion on my art before I can even finish it. Love that sketch, start inking it, I see errors that bother me, start to color it, I start thinking I could've done this or that much better. We are our harshest critics.

I liked Joyleaf's outfit as well, but I'd have to go back and check the designs again to see if there was anyone that really stood out to the point that I really wanted that outfit. Personal style and preference.

I look forward to seeing new art from you as well as what you've done for the calendar! I'm often inspired by others, and it just gets me more enthusiastic.

[Treefox]

Aw, Yavia! *hugs* My pictures never turn out the way I imagine them. I can relate. Luckily, the process of drawing is still so enjoyable that I do it anyway.
And your art is very much loved here.
@Amberfox: right? We are truly our harshest critics... And once I finish something I start seeing all those things that I wish I had done differently. But I really try to focus on the fact that I created something and put it out into the world. That's still fun for me. Especially if it's for and with you guys.

Sigh, the weekend is pretty full. But I managed to work on Joyleaf's cloak and armband a little. Next is her clasp.

[Afke]

That's a good thing though; I came across some info that if you're no longer critical of your work, your skills may have plateaued. As long as you're critical, you keep learning. Of course, there should be a healthy balance, not taking yourself down too much or be mean to yourself, but indeed also be pleased with what you did or that you did it at all!