CGAN June 2016 Cleric of the Moon God Lûne - WIP

That's looking good, Tyl.
The face looked immediately impressive and I like the way that you're slowly building the texture and mass of the fur and the thick braid of hair.
I see what you mean about the mouth, I think you just need to play about with the edges from the peaks of the top lip down into the corners of the mouth. Quite a lot of a person's facial expression lies in the subtlety of those lines and you can make big changes with just a little alteration to the curves.
Keep it going!

I think I have time this month too, so I'll jump in and see how it goes. I love character studies like this. Everyone has a good start, Tyl--that's looking especially good.

Here is the sketch right now. Tried to get my WIP into better shape than last time before posting. Had some issues trying to get her shoulders not to look blocky. The shading is all over the place (haven't decided where the light is at the moment). I strategically hid her boobs behind the dish to make it family friendly (LOL). Will probably have smoke or steam (something with motion) coming out from the inside of the dish.

Tyl--If you are using Photoshop, try these to put down the fur base on her outfit: pixelstains.net/3-photoshop-brushes-painting-fur-texture/

Won't be the end result, but you will have some nice base texture brush to work from.

Another good drawing, hansnomad.
The definition in the lower torso is very impressive and has a tangible sense of human flesh. I also like the way that you've broken the symmetry of the pose in a subtle way with the slight angle offsets of the head, bowl and elbows, and with the diagonal of the fabric at the bottom. It gives the image a bit of life and prevents it from being too static and stiff. Well done.

Hansnomad: I like the pose. Here expression is so serene. Nice work.
The most part I paint in procreate on an Ipad pro, then switch to photoshop. I will definably try-out the brushes for the fur. Thanks for the link.

new WIP

Tyl: New WIP looks good. The face is fantastic and the colors work well with the theme.

Made a few changes on mine, mostly on the figure torso and head (detail below). I was watching the second Star Trek movie (the new ones) and the scene with the primitive tribesmen ending up worshiping the image of the Enterprise gave me an idea for the challenge.

I thought what would happen if an ancient moon cult found the wreckage of a space ship? Would they take items from the ship as if they were religious relics? So that's where the changes in my concept came from. The headdress she has on is supposed to be what astronauts wear under the helmet, and she made a necklace out of gears and engine parts.

oh fab theme & some great work coming on.

I've been away for a while with crappy life/soul sucking stuff, so thank you to banj for keeping all this going!

Nice work, hansnomad.
Those changes add a bit more depth and meaning to the concept and the detailed hard geometry of the neckpiece is a good contrast to the softer shapes of the body.
I am envious of your intricate well-controlled sketches.I just never have the patience to do that kind of thing. I don't know how you resist the urge to quickly scribble and paint!

Tyl: That's continuing to develop well. I'm getting a real Nordic/Scandinavian feel to this image. The fur is looking thick and heavy and very appropriate to the icy night blue of the surroundings.

Hansnomad: I like the story you apply to the theme. Anything can be a relic; people like to combine material with spiritual. Good idea.
Valence: You’re right on the Nordic/Scandinavian feel. I’m inspired by the motives in the Viking medieval clothing, and the use of fur.
Another WIP: I've been rendering more detail until late this night. With a fresh eye this morning, I find her right hand too large. Also trying to design a jewel to replace the draft in the painting.