Process: "Lifeguards of the Arctic"

Haven't done a full-on process post in a while, and even though this particular panel stayed fairly consistent all the way through, it also happened to get thoroughly documented in all of its stages as it underwent some minor evolution on its way to the finished, print version.

Done originally as a demo for this summer's Cartoon & Comic Art course, I worked it up through concept sketch/doodle to penciled rough, to completed inks, to digitized line art + halftone shading on the computer to a finished wash version on the original pen & ink piece. There was also a bonus inclusion of some linear perspective involved in the plotting out of the structure, and some on-the-fly research when it wasn't apparent to anyone else that what I meant to illustrate was an ice auger.

But one thing that this particular panel represented was a tipping point, what ultimately opened up a door into a revelation of sorts, an epiphany that all of the time I've been methodically scanning in linework to the computer and finishing the halftones digitally, and then going back to the original pen & ink piece to apply washes (either gray and/or color), I have been more and more increasingly ditching the digital version in favor of the manual one.

Not that I'd ever resent the investment of time & energy devoted to the digital, as it's good practice, on par with every scribble made in a sketchbook. I suppose it could be a symptom of a continuing journey of self-discovery, coming to terms with a changing personal aesthetic, or evidence that all those time I told myself to stop caring so much has leaked over into enough confidence to just simply let go a bit more. Next thing you know I'll stop crutching so much on the pencil...