CGMythology's Sketchbook

[Lunatique]

Lunatique:  Yes, I agree.  I think what keeps me from doing that is that I feel sometimes that the image can look a bit 'unfinished' if there's too many strokes visible, like I didn't finish the blending process. But I tend to over-blend and overs-mooth, which can sometimes cause a bit of a lifeless look.  I'll try to revise my technique further to include more texture and imperfection work.  Thanks for your suggestions as always!

It's a mindset issue, and I struggled with it too when I started to make the transition to a more painterly style, and I still struggle with it even now. I spent so many years painting very clean and smooth and with lots of unnecessary detail that only created visual clutter and excessive micro noise that didn't contribute meaningfully to how the entire composition read at the macro level. 

If you listed your favorite artists (I don't know who they are, except that at one point you were a big fan of Linda Bergkvist, and then everything went to hell and she got bullied off the Internet and never returned), do all of them paint in that very smooth and detailed style? Are there artists you like that don't paint in that style? If so, do you feel like their work looks unfinished? If not, then ask yourself why they don't look unfinished, and perhaps more expressive because of the selective detailing and expressive brushwork. When I look at the more detailed promotional illustrations from artists like Craig Mullins, Jaime Jones, and many other top tier concept artists and illustrators, despite them having a painterly style with expressive brushwork and selective detailing, none of their works ever looked unfinished. It's the fact they were selective about where to put the details and where to leave less detailed that makes their work more dynamic.