In Honor of Fall and Our Nations Capital....

Hi All,

Well, it's fall again.  In a lot of places the leaves are turning orange, red and yellow and are starting to drop.  It's finally cooling off a little here in Arizona too.  And, football season is well under way here in North America.  So I decided to break out a picture I did a while ago for some friends.

Riggo - Pen and Ink with digital color

I lived in the Washington DC area for about 8 years and created this piece for some friends who are huge Washington Redskins fans.  The artwork commemorates the former Redskin great, John Riggins (or Riggo for short).  I know not all of you are fans, but  Riggo is a revered sports hero in the DC area.  He's a big ol farm boy from Nebraska who was a powerful running back in college and in the NFL.  He played for many years as a Redskin and on more than one championship winning team in Washington.

The technique I used is one I enjoy quite a bit.  I start out with reference material and sketch out my design.  On this one I liked the idea of incorporating a scene from one of the Super Bowls he starred in, his number, name and the team mascot in the background.

Riggo - Pen and Ink version

Next I render a nice tight pen and ink drawing.  Personally, I really enjoy pen and ink.  I used it a lot when I was starting out because we did a lot of one color printing.  I use bristol board and Koh-i-noor technical pens.  The thing I like about it as well, is that the pen and ink is a stand alone piece of artwork (I like it better than the color piece myself).  And after I add the color it can be used as a dual purpose piece.

After completing the inked artwork I scan it in to my Mac.  Then I use Photoshop and my Wacom tablet to paint in the color.  A couple things I like to do are first; touch up the pen and ink in Photoshop.  I want the black image on a layer by itself in Photoshop and I want it to be tight.  So, it takes a little touch up work and time.  Then, I can paint in the color on a layer beneath.  This keeps the black image crisp with the color popping in thru the area that they should.  I normally have several layers of color while working on it.

So, here's to all you Redskins fans and DC area residents; enjoy the beautiful Fall weather out there.  I know the Skins aren't having their best season, but hang in there.  The rest of you - enjoy yourself, wherever you are.

Have a great week all.

Aloha,

Tom