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Lady Winter

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Entry for the Nov/Dec Collaborative Challenge at CollaborativeMinds 
Poem Lady Winter by LuckySpirit14 

Traduction Française:

Dame Hiver

Dame Hiver
Gel et froid
Allez vers la lumière
Ne faites pas ce que l'on vous dit
Trouvez la porte
Vous avez déjà la clef
Vivez and aimez
Dans l'infini


Gouache on paper, A4




I was somehow really pissed at my lack of productivity, artblock and lifeblock, that I dicided I WILL do something. And so I did!
Is it perfect? No! Is it good? Eh... I don't know... But it is something, it's done, and it's not horrible =D So I'm happy, yeah... surprisingly!
Not going to talk about the technique, since it's pretty new to me, and I still gaven't figured out what works best for me ^^
But hey! HAIR! Hair that turns into a nature element! Isn't that great? It's more than enough to make me happy ^^

I really love illustrated literature, and I put so much effort into choosing the pieces for the challenges that it would pain me not to illustrate each one of them!
We stil don't have many participants, I really wish this could inspire you to join the fun ^^

I also know I owe LuckySpirit14 an illustration for a poem she wrote a while ago for me, and this piece is a kind of "sorry for making you wait" =D
I also want to create seasonal pieces, and this one was such a good oportunity ^^




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Comments64
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Contessa-Corvulus's avatar
:star::star::star::star: Overall
:star::star::star::star::star-empty: Vision
:star::star::star::star::star-empty: Originality
:star::star::star::star::star-half: Technique
:star::star::star::star::star-empty: Impact

Ooooookay. I have always toyed with the idea of writing a critique, but I always found an excuse not to do so. So I guess the best thing I can do is to JUST DO IT, so here we go. Keep in mind that this is my first critique, I apologize if I do something wrong. Let's get started.

First of all, I am impressed by how you handled the paint. You say you're new to gouache? Well, if you struggled, I definitely cannot see that in the final artwork. To me, it looks perfect (that is to say, I have never worked with gouache myself. An expert might be able to spot something odd or see mistakes).
In fact I think the colors are the strongest aspect of your work. The color scheme is just right for the wintry mood, I also like how the cold pink of her skin and the purple of the sky add to the scene.

You also did an awesome job concerning her hair structure. The area around her face looks more detailed and delicate while the part where her hair becomes the landscape is a bit rougher. Thinking about it, That's a little bit like winter itself: There are delicate things like snowflakes but also powerful ones like storms.
The glittery parts of her hair make the whole thing complete, sort of. And the idea of mingling hair and landscape is brilliant.

Moreover I'd like to mention the composition of the whole picture. You found the perfect balance between fore-, middle- and background. Nothing seems out of place or has a strange perspective or anything like that.

All in all I think this is a beautiful image, but I've got some critical points as well (I guess a critique wouldn't be complete without them).

My main critical point is her face. I have already mentioned the coloring, and I still think it's beautiful, but her face itself seems to be a little... off. I can't exactly put my finger on it, maybe her forehead is to high? Though, the longer I look at this I get the feeling this effect might be intended. She is supposed to be some sort of personification of winter, so it wouldn't be illogical if she doesn't look completely human.

Moving on to the next point: The stars. (Not the small ones, the bigger stars.) I feel as though they don't really belong to the picture. Unlike the rest of the painting which creates a scenery you can get lost in and which doesn't make you think about the painting technique, the stars are pretty obviously painted. It looks a bit like someone else (who isn't as experienced as the actual artist) added them later.
Of course this can also be a style you van settle for, but since the rest is so skillfully and delicately painted the stars seem a bit clumsy.

Okay, my next point is what we call "Nörgeln auf hohem Niveau" in Germany (which roughly translates to "complaining within high standards". That means criticizing minor issues that are no big deal actually, but are still criticized because of the lack of bigger problems). So you don't have to take it that seriously.
What I'm talking about is the way you included the poem into the picture. I feel like the text should only be on the part where her hair is. Now the "L" of the headline also touches the snow, and for me that creates a distance between the poem and the picture, as if it weren't properly incorporated into the painting. Or maybe another font would have been better? One that's a bit swirlier perhaps? (But no, actually I like the font you used. It looks more like it's from a children's book with illustrated poems.)

I think I should stop here before I say even more stupid things. If you have questions, don't hesitate to ask. I think my English is a little weird today, so I didn't always find the right words.