Inspiration: still frame from a Music video clip directed by Henri Angremy.

First step: dark grey acrylic applied with a knife all over the canvas. Then, drawing the main lines with chalk.

2nd step: establishing the extreme contrasts and then try to find the middle tones. I voluntarely kept the white less than a pure white and so for the black, so I could adjust it later. I now use oil, because I can mix the colors, as far as I want before it dries.

 

3rd step: Adjusting the extremes tones, by covering the previous layer of dark grey acrylic with full black oil. I also used full white to enhance the constrasts. Finally I did minor corrections of proportions of the body and lighting.

I used the knife to give a direction (from upper left to lower right) to the stroke. So the background can be associated with dozens of rays of light. Then, under the line which support my character I gave a vertical stroke to contrast with the other part of my painting. (we don't really see it on the pic, I will click an otherone, as soon as i covered it with varnish).