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RoanNna — [Commission] Blackstar

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Published: 2018-08-28 19:55:28 +0000 UTC; Views: 13691; Favourites: 565; Downloads: 51
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Hello, guys!  

Let me introduce you my latest and the most tough art  up here  . This is a commission for a wonderful littledeadybear . I couldn't even imagine that this work would be so challenging for me, I regret only the fact that I couldn't finish it much earlier to make littledeadybear happy (ha-ha... I hope). She asked me to watch David Bowie's (yes, this is him) Blackstar short movie, to create an art based on the video and the message Bowie conveys.


OMG, at first, there are tons of stuff going on there and I phisycally couldn't distilate all his ideas into one still image. Second problem which I encountered was portraying his likeliness. I knew that I didn't want him to be either old ot too young, I wanted some kind of "iconic" yet recognizable image of him, so I gathered a lot of photos and began to paint.

You know what? I found this to be a great exercise, you should definitely try it out: take some celeb's photos and draw completely new image of him\her, but, of cource, it should be recognizable (I hope, my Bowie is recognizable too  ).


My next huge troble was selecting too big canvas size for my style. 2/3 of the time I was painting at 45x60 cm (18x24 inches) and it was a real pain for me, I was doing a lot of detail because at such size even an unsignificant nail is almost at the quarter of the screen. So, when I realised that I spent too much time actually doing nothing noticeable, I reduced format to standart A3, which is a bit more familiar to me and more convenient to my painterly style. I was surprised to notice how quicker my work went after this. So, advice №2: always use appropriate size to your task and skills.


And the latest problem was in my vague idea of Bowie becoming a part of the blackstar. At first I was thinking to make him dispercing like in my work here:

 

after trying for almost a week, I admitted that I'm too weak to paint it properly and that  this look too weird, I should repaint him into almost full body, only in such case the effect would be undestandable. So, I needed to think about other ways and suddenly muse has come to me! After that the white glow-ish fluid-ish kind of rays happened.

I'm uploading this work after some time after finishing and although I was proud of it the moment I created, now I'm not so excited. I suppose, it is just a normal process of being an artist. *nervous laughing*  


If You read till this sentence, I should say thank You for Your patience and I hope You are doing good and summer passes by wonderfully. I would be glad to hear from You, my reader, how August is going, what good things happend with You? Also, I'm so curious to know what do you think about this work, because I've put in here a lot of Easter Eggs and symbolism, so I'm ecited to know if you could find them all.


Special thanks to littledeadybear for her support and her faith in me.



If you are interested in more content such as sketches, painting procees, then join my  instagram , I'll be releasing soon a post with all the steps for this work, as well as the reference sheet.


Related content
Comments: 56

RoanNna In reply to ??? [2019-06-22 11:15:20 +0000 UTC]

you are too kind, thx

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Fiendcute In reply to RoanNna [2019-06-22 16:56:33 +0000 UTC]

   

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littledeadybear [2019-02-26 08:16:16 +0000 UTC]

As the commissioner for this piece, I could not be more pleased. This song was stuck in my head day and night when I first asked you if you would work with me on this. Seeing it finalized feels almost like being at peace, like the essence of what I appreciated about Bowie is there in his slight quirky, and knowing expression. I am completely sucked in and I am so glad that working on this piece helped you appreciate Bowie <3.

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RoanNna In reply to littledeadybear [2019-03-15 14:10:50 +0000 UTC]

You are best person ever! Thank a lot for your unbelievable kindness and support!!!    

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SoundsAwesone [2019-01-03 22:19:34 +0000 UTC]

Wonderful! 

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RoanNna In reply to SoundsAwesone [2019-01-12 13:06:14 +0000 UTC]

 

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ArtofStace [2018-11-21 04:07:15 +0000 UTC]

I am liking this! It can be hard to pin down the right angles on those cheek bones! I think you captured his Bowie-ness though. I also love those exceptional space wisp effects! Your space effects are most beautiful!

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RoanNna In reply to ArtofStace [2018-11-21 09:04:38 +0000 UTC]

Oh, thanks a lot. For me his nose was tricky too

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Hera-of-Stockholm [2018-11-17 18:55:31 +0000 UTC]

Gotta love this work, I took a look at it and saw an angrogyn face, and was thinking 'pretty Bowie' and yes it was him, the man with a million faces.

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RoanNna In reply to Hera-of-Stockholm [2018-11-19 08:52:37 +0000 UTC]

Oh yes! I'm so happy you think so! I tried to create iconic or idealized picture of him without marks of time or his on stage characters. And I'm so happy he is still recognizable!  

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Hera-of-Stockholm In reply to RoanNna [2018-11-19 18:20:44 +0000 UTC]

Yes, he is, at least you manage to capture his essense.

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blackdoom [2018-11-05 08:33:41 +0000 UTC]

David Bowie meets Carrie Anne Moss!

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RoanNna In reply to blackdoom [2018-11-08 15:03:24 +0000 UTC]

Looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooool

   

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Learstang [2018-10-16 15:33:02 +0000 UTC]

Major Tom, I presume. Excellent work!

Best Regards,

Learstang

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RoanNna In reply to Learstang [2018-10-17 14:50:46 +0000 UTC]

Thank you for the sweet words. But it is NOT ONLY Major Tom     

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cuffed247 [2018-10-14 23:35:31 +0000 UTC]

You can really tell this is Bowie! Good job.

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RoanNna In reply to cuffed247 [2018-10-16 07:47:35 +0000 UTC]

thanx a lot

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cuffed247 In reply to RoanNna [2018-10-17 18:43:17 +0000 UTC]

You're most welcome! Keep doing what you do.  

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JustJaxx [2018-10-14 13:38:53 +0000 UTC]

   

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RoanNna In reply to JustJaxx [2018-10-14 17:14:21 +0000 UTC]

 

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chorepa [2018-09-25 14:03:32 +0000 UTC]

dude i fucking LOVE this. this is my favorite kind of art. it really reminds me of the 60s pinup art style

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RoanNna In reply to chorepa [2018-09-25 18:30:34 +0000 UTC]

Thanks for the kind words.   
Could you please explain about the resemblance to the 60s pinup style. I hardly could notice any similarities   and I'm so curious to hear any explanation.   

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chorepa In reply to RoanNna [2018-09-27 20:41:39 +0000 UTC]

my mistake. i was confusing styles from different eras. i think i saw some sci fi inspired pinups and assumed they were from the same generation.                                                                                                                            To clarify, this piece reminds me of the art of Vincent Di Fate who did a lot of scifi illustrations. he also used a lot of stark whites and purple and his subjects were often handsome men.  

      
 

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RoanNna In reply to chorepa [2018-10-04 19:23:23 +0000 UTC]

Thanks for reply.

To clarify my previous message, (sorry, if it would be confusing) I was just sincerely wondering, why did you mention the Pin-Up style, because the one I know has nothing to do with my work. But, obviously, I'm not an art history specialist, so I thought that maybe I hadn't enough knowledge about that. Anyway, that you for the explanation, sounds interesting and I googled about Vincent Di Fate, although I've never ever heard about him, I'm glad that you mentioned such a great artist!
    

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spitesyre [2018-09-22 23:46:00 +0000 UTC]

I love it all, but what sticks out to me the most is the skull. Awesome~

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RoanNna In reply to spitesyre [2018-09-24 12:51:40 +0000 UTC]

Oh, thanks. Yes, the skull is the second main character in this story

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Phoenaxis [2018-09-21 00:34:12 +0000 UTC]

Great colour fading work, such a brilliant effect!

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RoanNna In reply to Phoenaxis [2018-09-24 12:50:16 +0000 UTC]

Thank you so much!!! I'm glad to hear that!

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Phoenaxis In reply to RoanNna [2018-09-24 20:55:13 +0000 UTC]

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kiranox [2018-09-17 16:09:24 +0000 UTC]

love the colors and the intensity in this one!

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RoanNna In reply to kiranox [2018-09-17 19:28:30 +0000 UTC]

Thank you so much! ^__^

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Stavri-Symeonidou [2018-09-13 09:04:12 +0000 UTC]

Amazing!!! Great work! I love the colors, the lighting, that purple shine! Well done!   

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RoanNna In reply to Stavri-Symeonidou [2018-09-13 20:38:18 +0000 UTC]

Thank you so much for the kind words! ^__^

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Stavri-Symeonidou In reply to RoanNna [2018-09-13 21:54:09 +0000 UTC]

You're welcome!!

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AfroAmericanArtist [2018-09-11 13:10:52 +0000 UTC]

Oh my goodness!!! Why was the first thought that came to my mind was "David Bowie," when I saw this piece?? I wonder if I saw an image with him like it and forgot? Anyway, beautiful work.

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RoanNna In reply to AfroAmericanArtist [2018-09-11 18:17:33 +0000 UTC]

Hm... I'm not sure if I understood your comment correctly (obviously, English is not my native language),  but this IS David Bowie, so your thought was totally right, and I'm glad that you recognized him easily

As I mentioned in my very loooong description to this art, I intentionally made him "out of age" in some iconic manner, so I doubt that you saw this image of him anywhere else.  

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AfroAmericanArtist In reply to RoanNna [2018-09-11 22:00:46 +0000 UTC]

Oh, O.K., I should have read the description. I just saw the image, and thought "he looks like David Bowie!"  

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RoanNna In reply to AfroAmericanArtist [2018-09-12 07:12:00 +0000 UTC]

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VividPrism [2018-09-02 21:40:44 +0000 UTC]

For a moment I did not reconise this image until I realized it was Bowie! Brilliant work, BlackStar was quite the intense video. 

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RoanNna In reply to VividPrism [2018-09-03 08:45:34 +0000 UTC]

yes, indeed.
I intentionally didn't paint him in some particular age. I wanted this portrait to be in some way out-of-his-timeline-iconic-image.

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EvgeniyZhdanov [2018-08-30 03:06:50 +0000 UTC]

great work!

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RoanNna In reply to EvgeniyZhdanov [2018-08-30 06:59:22 +0000 UTC]

Thanks

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Sapphire236 [2018-08-29 01:02:18 +0000 UTC]

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RoanNna In reply to Sapphire236 [2018-08-29 05:52:28 +0000 UTC]

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Sapphire236 In reply to RoanNna [2018-08-29 05:59:37 +0000 UTC]

I love this..it's wonderful. You definitely got Bowie's 'Major Tom'..!   

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RoanNna In reply to Sapphire236 [2018-08-29 06:08:11 +0000 UTC]

Oh, I´m so glad you love this.   But this is a bit more than only ¨Major Tom¨  *spoilers*    

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Sapphire236 In reply to RoanNna [2018-08-29 06:59:48 +0000 UTC]

...spoilers..??

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RoanNna In reply to Sapphire236 [2018-08-29 07:58:04 +0000 UTC]

If I tell you everything about the art I made, I lost the point of speaking to the viewer and provoking him to think about the story behind it. So yes, spoilers

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MajikcalMischief [2018-08-28 21:26:31 +0000 UTC]

Absolutely beautiful! I love it

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RoanNna In reply to MajikcalMischief [2018-08-28 21:33:38 +0000 UTC]

thanks for that

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