Lynn Minmay Update V

I got quite busy these last few days again, but I did get to advance on this piece. It takes quite a bit of thought process to continue after finishing one area and moving to the next. And doing on area require one to go back to previous sections to make sure they compliment each other color wise. Don’t know how long this one will take but I have been learning quite a bit from it and am no longer afraid to work with darker colors. I used some previously learned techniques which made things easier but had to develop some new ones so that I could work with a dark setting. I’d say the hardest part is making the lights look like lights. I’ve added some more details to make it look better than the last scan shows but you guys will have to wait for that update. The scanning always takes away the real lighting of my work and I have to correct it afterwords so it feels really off when I see the scanned piece on the screen.

In any case I am making progress. Just a bit more and I can have the background done so I can actually start on the main focal point.

Hasta la proxima,

-XERO

May 24, 2016 0

Lynn Minmay Update IV

I think I have everything that I wanted drawn, now it’s just a matter of coloring… I really hope I can pull it off.

Hasta la proxima,

-XERO

May 17, 2016 0

Lynn Minmay Update II

I had two final classes this week but I still have to do a couple more things until the 27th but over all I should have more time to focus on art (among other activities that will benefit my body and mind). Hmmm. I had a couple of days worth of searching for some more references of Macross and the main idols (Akina Nakamori and Seiko Matsuda) I will be using for this piece. Although I kept working on the piece throughout the week I didn’t really get much progress since I couldn’t decide on the outfit and the background.

Macross is quite interesting isn’t it? It has a very obvious 80s feel to it (it makes sense since it was made in the 80s) and yet is set around this time period. With that in mind I can actually modernize it if I felt like it. Though one can argue that the fall of the Macross on earth and the war that came from it might have stopped the progress of innovation when it comes to music and fashion. I think about things too much…

Anyway I decided to keep with the 80s feel so I set out to look at the concert performances during that time. I mostly focused on Akina Nakamori and after a couple of videos I came up with this:

I wonder if it even makes sense? I want to make this so 80s it brings nostalgia for those who actually lived it or saw the movies and music in the 90s.

Hasta la proxima,

-XERO

May 6, 2016 0

Next project 5/1/16: Lynn Minmay

I have decided upon the next project for my next piece, and that is non other than Lynn Minmay from Super Dimensional Fortress Macross (my all time favorite anime). When I first watched Macross I really came to dislike Minmay, she seemed to fickle and self-centered. But upon re-watching last year now that I am older I came to really like her. She was written in a way that doesn’t make her dislikeable, in reality she only saw Hikaru as a friend and nothing more (at least throughout most of the series) so seeing her not treat Hikaru as anything more than a friend is quite understandable (having experienced it myself).

Anyway, despite what people might think regarding her personality and actions she is quite cute making her a good model to draw. I went on a binge of downloading and searching for references. Eventually I got the idea to actually search for actual photos of idols from the 80s to serve as a firsthand visual reference to make something a bit different and more in tune to reality. That’s when I learned that Minmay was actually based on two of the most famous idols of the 80s in Japan. Those idols being Akina Nakamori and Seiko Matsuda. They are quite famous even now, I was actually quite surprised how much of a fanbase there still exists. And I’m glad because I found treasure troves of reference pictures to make my artwork come alive.

I can really see the influences in Minmay after looking through the photos. At first I was thinking about using a Chinese model for the drawing but after learning that these two were the influences I decided on just using them. And just before writing this I learned that Lynn Minmay is actually half Japanese from he mothers side so it’s ok if I just use Matsuda and Nakamori as the models.

I’ve written quite a bit so I will just leave it at that, here is a little taste of what I have done so far:

I know it doesn’t look like much yet, but I am quite happy with the base I have so far. I want to start incorporating movement into my work. And I truly think this is a good chance to do so. Drawing shouldn’t be hard anymore, what I worry is when I add color (which I still haven’t mastered).

Here’s hoping for the best.

Hasta la proxima,

-XERO

May 1, 2016 0