Ever since I was young I would spend hours exploring the woods behind my house with my sister. We had many different imaginary fortresses and would often leave offerings for the fairies who inhabited them. Growing up I indulged in my love for worlds undiscovered as I became immersed in books, games, and movies that further developed my passion for fantasy. At that point my head was filled to the brim with mystical imagery and the only way to express my love for all of these fantastical places was to pour it all out onto the page. 

In this particular piece I had used photoshop to create the entire illustration. I approached this piece how I would approach an oil painting, starting with a sketch and then painting in an underpainting. After that initial process of blocking in values I slowly began to inch away. With photoshop you can easily manipulate your piece and add texture that you seldom cannot achieve in traditional work. Within the piece I really challenged myself to use the photoshop brushes to my advantage to create painterly brush strokes as well as rough textures. I love using photoshop to enhance my creative process.

This video shows the progression of my piece through multiple save files.