COFFIE

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you've all enjoyed Christmas and you're having a wonderful start to 2011.


This is the first illustration I've done for the year and it can take some effort to start new work after a period of no creative activity. A friend of mine recently asked me how I start my illustrations - whether they begin as a concrete idea or with a more spontaneous freeform approach. The truth is, it's somewhere in the middle. I do tend to start with fairly vague concept in mind but most of the details are built up as I work.

For this illustration, all I knew before I began was that I wanted to create a strong image of a black woman with distinctive ethnic features as I hadn't really done that in any of my work before. I also wanted her to have a braided hairstyle. All details such as her pose, the gold ear/hair piece and the background were thought of and included as the work progressed.

There's something really special about starting with just a rough idea and the process of developing that idea into the final artwork.


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Also, a little while ago, I was asked to donate some of my artwork to be auctioned off at a charity fashion event coming up later this month. I hastily agreed before realizing that I have no prints of my work to offer and I have no idea where to start. If anyone can offer any advice on professionally printing and packaging artwork, I would be very grateful! Thank you :)