26 October 2006

illustration friday - ghost

This is the start of the feature painting for the new retreat/studio room we are renovating. I wanted to make something relevant to our home and given chicken and ducky (the street pets) are an everyday part of life I wanted to make a picture including them. Unfortunately chicken died this week, so I though it was quite apt to have his ghost laid down. Halloween is not really big in Oz, so I wanted to create my own impression of the theme. I am very interested in Asian cultural beliefs about ghosts and spirits. One of the most beautiful things I have witnessed is the floating of lanterns on the river in Japan during July/Aug when the ghosts/spirits of family members return. A simple explanation can be found here

I am a sucker for very bright colours, my favourites are red and pink, and lots of black outlines. I am limiting myself to muted tones and layers for this painting. I will post the progress so you can keep me on track if I am straying into those comfortable colours.

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