Betrayal

This came right after the Hell Hunter drawing; I really wanted to try something different and experiment with Hell Hunter, but after going through all the trouble of designing both characters and getting the initials lines down for the sketch’s beginning I faced that fear I always face ... “Okay, I like what I have so far ... what if I try something and screw it up?” And I don’t feel I’m good enough an artist to recreate anything exactly as I’d had it before, so ... I went with what I knew.

Then while doodling to get an idea for a possible future sketch/pose, it dawns on me—why experiment with final drawings anyway? Why not take a doodle/rough sketch and experiment with that, and if I screw it up? Oh well, it was just loose conceptual piece anyway. At the time I was somewhat bored with my current style, and I like line-heavy, illustration-style, drawings that rely on various line qualities to define shadows, shading, and texture instead of smooth, seamless, gradients ... and I need to experiment along these lines since my line quality, quite frankly, sucks.

Anyway, with the exception of her bangs that look like split ends (or the tongue of a serpent), I was pleased with how her hair turned out. Things like hands and faces are difficult to draw—that’s always been a given. (Note: Actually the most difficult thing to draw is hair, but that’s another story.) For me, a problem I struggle with is fashion because I am incredibly oblivious when it comes to stuff like that. I think I did all right in this one instance, and none of the women (the experts I turn to for fashion criticism of my drawings since I don’t know any gay fashion designers/hair dressers) have given much complaint.

I didn’t really have any inspiration for her outfit, and it’s somewhat apparent since the base is more or less the same personal cliché I keep going back to over and over again (jeans/shorts and a tank top for women, open button up shirt for men.) I’ve only uploaded final sketches, but if you were to look at my stack of pointless doodles every frickin’ one of them is the same basic outfit. It’s kinda funny in its own sad sort of way actually.

Oh well, I ended up liking this drawing a lot more than I thought I would. I initially thought, “Well, I’m trying something new so I’m probably going to hate it until I get the hang of it.” There’s a slew of subtle details that strike me as not-quite-right, such the way her head is turned (less of her nose and eye should be visible), the back’s natural arch should be more apparent than what I’ve drawn, and the slight proportion errors in her forearms. But for a drawing that had no rhyme or reason and came out of nowhere in my imagination, I’m pretty happy with it.

Also available: Betrayal II