Just in time to celebrate the arrival of the fire-fuelled 5th astrological sign of the zodiac, I'm pleased to announce the availability of "Dragons of Astrologica - Leo"...with a 'new release' discount for the month of August...
But before sneaking a peak at the prints available, let me share some details about how my painted-and-penned Leo pounced onto paper...
Leo is of course symbolized by the strength of a lion and the element of fire - so it's no surprise that the main colours I used were reds, yellows and oranges, set against a darker, smoke-swirled backdrop for contrast.
As a reference, I searched for online pictures of lions and Dragons separately (looking at photos and pictures relating to your initial ideas often provides a great start to any piece of artwork). Then it was time to grab my A3 sketch pad with a virtual lion paw and start morphing the two creatures together in my own style...
[Final Leo sketch of Leo]
During the sketching phase, extra ideas tend to appear as if by magic (or maybe we simply get guided by the stars after all!). Little touches like the the flames around the wings, and the tail leading into part of the fire underneath the dragon happen almost without thinking.
Once happy enough with the final sketch, it was then time to copy "Leo" onto watercolour paper by using my lightbox. I can highly recommend a lightbox if you're into creating non-digital art using paper, pencils, pens and paint. It makes it so much easier tracing your sketches onto it's final paper.
The swirling torrents of fiery smoke that provide the dragon's contrasting background was fun to paint - I like to create those effects using black and white inks applied with a brush. For the more detailed foreground, it's a combination of coloured pencils and watercolours...
[Leo's wing and swirling ink background]
So, to all proud lions born between the dates of July 23rd to August 22nd, I wish you a wonderful celebration during your astrological birthday!
If you like the idea of this powerful, pawed protector hanging proudly against one of your walls, it's now available - with a launch discount - in a variety of sizes:
[ *LAUNCH DISCOUNT* "Dragons of Astrologica - Leo" - click here to view ]