Sorry to say that another week has gone by without any gaming posts, and it's entirely because I've been spending so much time on other things. So let's take a little stock, as I have a few thoughts and developments to share.
First of all though, I'm pleased to note that about two hours before I sat down to write this, I finished blocking all of those canvases. That's what you see in the photos included with this post, as it's been a large part of my focus this week. All those blank canvases I had lying around are now filled with some basic colour blocking, which feels really good to have completed.
There's still some work left to be done (of course), but even though it doesn't look like much, blocking is one of the most important parts of the process for me. The nature of this series is that they need to be a diverse combination of colour schemes, which isn't as easy to apply as it might seem. So having the basic colours laid out in blocks is a big leap forward, as it informs everything else that gets added to each picture.
Not only that, but blocking out simple shapes is an important way to define the boundaries for each configuration. After all, when you're doing a bunch of faces, there's a risk that they will all end up looking the same, so having a variety of shapes is essential. Hence why blocking is so important, as it not only determines the palette, but lays down some firm shapes to follow in later stages.
It's interesting to me because it's one of those stages that never looks all that impressive. I mean, after all it's just a bunch of simple and colourful shapes that have very basic forms and loose edges. However, a good part of the time is spent looking at paints to pick colours, staring at the blank canvas to visualise the shapes, and then a little bit of back and forth to lay them down in the right way. Suffice to say, it's much easier to get the shapes and edges in the right place during the blocking stage, than it is when you're putting final touches on a piece.
So that's where my focus has been sitting lately, which is why I haven't been posting much at all. However, it's not just a couple of days' worth of blocking that's drawn my focus, as I've also been working on all the other things that go into a big project and organising an exhibit.
I'm so close to being able to launch into a lot of detail about the project, but that has to wait until about mid-May. Until then I'm still trying to keep it pretty quiet, as I don't want to spill the beans until I absolutely have to and there's something happening in May that requires me to make everything public by then.
What I will say though is that this is a project I've been working on for about a year in one way or another, and I'm finally at the tail end. Once I complete these final paintings (19 blocked and ready to be completed), I'll only have logistics and admin type stuff to work on, which is a big deal in my little world. Not least because it means that I can focus on painting other things and working on other projects while this one has the final pieces all lined up.
With that in mind, I decided that I'll make some changes to this blog as well. I'll go into some more detail another time, but the basic idea is to get rid of the art section altogether and remake everything into a straight up gaming blog. More on that later though, as there are some reasons behind it that I think are worth sharing for anyone that might be interested.
For now though, I definitely have a queue of gaming posts to finish off about a range of different games that I want to talk about, but right now I have other priorities. Once these last paintings are complete (hopefully within a couple of weeks), I'll have all the time in the world to dedicate to other things.
Still, I'm pretty stoked to be at the stage that I'm at with this project, and I can't wait to tell everyone all about it. For now though, thanks for hanging around and for any time anyone has liked a post or commented on something - it's always a buzz to see that someone else stopped by.