Sunday, February 27, 2011

Deadwood Dedications




This is Suzanne, one of two obviously-armed Showgirls in the entire crew. Suzanne ended up looking a lot older than I originally intended (not to mention slightly bemused), since I am still having trouble with the smooth blending transitions that signal youth and beauty. Nevertheless I think she's got character.

When I first started to paint this set, my original intention was to use design elements from the superlative,  postmodern, and late lamented Western, Deadwood. Set in an 1870's frontier town illegally established in the Black Hills of what was later called South Dakota, Deadwood is a fascinating re-imagining of the American frontier myth, populated by richly-drawn, larger-than-life characters. Much like Malifaux! So with this Performer I made a conscious effort to try to incorporate some of the costuming ideas in the show, including cheap striped stockings, and 'sensible' shoes that don't exactly go with the rest of the outfit.

I haven't decided yet whether to go back and redo her long blue skirt. I like the color, but I'm not certain about the highlighting. A friend has been telling me that 'cool colors recede, warm colors approach', so I think that highlighting with a cool albeit pale blue-grey might be causing the stark transitions I'm getting. On the other hand I'm keen on getting these ladies done, and can see the light at the end of the tunnel!

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