I wanted to make a style of portraiture that was a mix of digital and handmade elements. I started experimenting making abstract paintings and scanning them into the computer. I then used the paintings to construct faces in photoshop. These portraits of Bruce Lee and Audrey Hepburn are the result of those experiments.
How They Were Made
Step 1: I began by making several abstract paintings on canvases. The abstracts are made with a variety of paints and inks moved around the canvas with air and gravity. I included two snapshots and the scan of one of these paintings. Several paintings were made to create these two portraits.
Step 2: After the paintings were dry, I scanned them into the computer. I took those scans into photoshop where I sliced them up into several smaller pieces. Then I arranged them into a rough and flat silhouette of the face I was going to create. This was the most time consuming part because there are endless ways to assemble the pieces. Below are the two silhouettes I created.
Step 3: Once the silhouette was made I went in and digitally painted in the shadows and highlights. At this point it was just like drawing or painting any portrait. I used a photo as reference and get lost in the shading and values. As the details were painted in the face began to emerge from the abstract.
That's all there is to it. Below I created short .gif animations to show how the faces come together.
Detail images of Bruce Lee
Detail images of Audrey Hepburn
Thanks for viewing!
Check out my site at www.criswicks.com for more artwork, videos, process photos, and other art related randomness.
