Roman

The Ant and the Grasshopper...again

In the fable, Grasshopper is rebuked by Ant for his idleness and not given any food.  While I see Ant's point of view, isn't he being a little severe?   I wanted to leave some hope for Grasshopper, so I chose to depict Ant in the midst of his decision to give or not to give.  This gives the image it's tension and allows the viewer to consider his/her own point of view.  

This is the final version of the illustration I first posted in January.  I've done a lot more rendering on the computer since then and this finish represents many of the solutions I had to invent through trial and error.   This included adding texture selectively, careful layering, and better managing my digital brushes.  Most of the work was done with photoshop.

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View my portfolio at: www.spencerhallam.com

on the bus

Some days everyone on the bus looks like this.

"Kali"

This is a character concept based on the goddess Kali for the graphic novel I'm working on.  It's a refinement of the photoshop style studies I've been working on so far this year.  I'm interested in ways to marry representational form with graphic pattern motifs.  This means I geek out on a lot on Klimt paintings.  The subject matter, a goddess, lends itself well to this since there's so much in Buddhist and Hindu art to draw on for inspiration.  

"Ladies of Dolores"

Sunburns aside, this was a seriously beautiful day at Dolores Park SF.  Some would even say "Dolorious!" You know who you are.  Thank god I have paintagenic friends or I wouldn't have gotten my work done that weekend.  Oh, and Nina, remember, you are not a giant, you are in the foreground. :)

Whooosh!

If I had a band this would be our album cover.

Many Styles

I've found myself attempting a range of styles.  These two early paintings were made within a year of each other.  The first was a Mary Cassat inspired pastel drawing.  The second is one of my early (and better) attempts at representational oil painting.