Native Ladies
I made this 3 piece artwork for a group exhibit we had in Hong Kong which was sponsored by
Club FILIPINO HK. The event was entitled MYSTIQUE and it was a charity ball in which I was one of the 10 who won the spot to become an artist beneficiary who would have the opportunity to exhibit their pieces in the grand ball.
The theme was to show the mystique charm of Filipino women in an ethnic setting. I aimed for the characteristics of the usual Filipina that could captivate local and international people at first glance (particularly, me). I originally planned for a 5 piece presentation but due to the lack of time, I ended up with only 3 pieces. The characteristics I chose were "Makulit" (hard-headed, stubborn, defiant, naughty) "Misteryosa" (mysterious) and "Inosente" (innocent).
My concept was to have these ladies interact with unfamiliar setting but at the same time make it look like they are effortless in adapting to their surrounding. I also added my own touch of patterns to their body art (ethnic tattoos) and clothing. It is believed that the designs of their tattoos are very sacred.
Here is how I did my pieces. :)
Ang Makulit
The theme for this one is the forest where the
natives settled back in the days.
Some Filipino tribes can still be found
living in the forests until now.
Started with the usual sketching and placements. I don't usually use rulers for my
works but I needed this one to be well balanced.
Did not finish all the sketching yet but I decided to start inking some spots.
Had to do some research in finding out what flowers should I include in my artwork.
Got over excited in doing the details of the head piece but I stopped myself to finish doing the outlines first because that's how I normally do it. :)
Outlines going smoothly.
Did a couple of mistakes but nothing I can't fix. ;)
Couldn't wait to add more patterns so I started with some of the floating cloth.
Got too excited seeing that it's looking really nice.
Started with the hair and continued doing the patterns at the same time.
Finished the lower patterns.
I erased all the sketches and cleaned up some of the lines and here it is so far.
Finished the top patterns.
Added details to everything but I felt it needed more to balance the whole look.
Added some more elements to the outer part.
It may not look noticeable but I added a serious amount of elements and details just to satisfy myself.
Now it's looking pretty good but then again,,,,,,
Yes, I added some more elements. lol
Don't be fooled by the black and white photos, I did the piece on a brown paper and here it is so far without the highlights.
Added some highlights using my white paint marker. I love that pen so much.
Viola! Finished piece.
Weapon of choice. Zig Painty White Paint Marker and the ever awesome Unipin pens.
Just some creative shots.
Good enough to smell. lol
Misteryosa
The theme for this piece is the sea.
Our ancestors took full advantage of the surrounding.
They hunt not only in the forests but also in the seas.
Having 7107 islands, the sea isn't a rare view.
I enjoyed drawing her body because I used to draw a lot of female nudes back then for the purpose
of learning. lol The experince was a bit nostalgic.
Decided to cover her mouth instead. This is to symbolize the mysterious quiet type female that she is.
I am inlove with her at this point. lol continued the first outline inking.
As usual, I couldn't keep myself from adding details right away.
Close up shot.
More details and outlines.
Hair strands, trying not to make them look like the ones on the commercials since these are tribe ladies.
Done with the basic shape and skeletal figure of the piece.
Detailing and shading
Started adding more elements to cover up more areas.
More details plus cleaning up of some lines.
This was supposed to be the finished piece but then again, when I compared it to the first one, it look a bit thin when it comes to area covered.
So like the first one, I added more elements on the side.
Finishing touches for the details and black ink.
After second batch of cleaning up the lines, time to add the white highlights.
Aaaannnd, it's done!
Close up shots and ss usual, my weapons of choice.
Isn't she the hottest? jk
Finished Piece, scanned and cleaned.
Ang Inosente
I was aiming for an urban look as the theme
for this piece but ended up with something else.
Completely happy with it though.
Sketching and placement. Her hair was originally straight.
But then I changed it to curly to show variety for the 3 girls.
Made a couple of mistakes while inking so I added some remedies.
Adding up more elements.
skeletal structure done.
Colored the hair and added additional elements.
Patterns are now visible.
More patterns.
you know it. The usual stuff.
This one didn't need adjustments for the area covered since I learned from my 2 previous mistakes.
Finishing up. Skirt is undone.
After final details for the black ink,,, time for highlights again.
Highlights finished!
Mandatory artistic shots.
Close up on the usuals.
Finished piece, scanned and cleaned. :)
Maraming Salamat Po!
(Thank You Very Much!)
(Thank You Very Much!)
