Corelpainter - Tumblr Posts
Originally Posted to my Waterfall!
So let’s have a context-copy-paste from there:
The old-ish stuff! (part 2) Classic Batgirl!
Now we get to the good stuff, AKA, Batgirl!
(Done pre-Wacom tablet upgrade.)
Now if you were to ask me what my favourite incarnation of Barbara Gordon is, honestly, I'd be torn between two:
--Batgirl of Burnside
and
--1966 Batman
Interestingly enough; Batgirl of Burnside draws incredibly heavy on Yvonne Craig's influence on Batgirl, and it's not hard to see why.
See, originally, Batgirl as an identity wasn't meant to be a side-kick (that was a 1990's post-zero hour retcon! And a messy one at that!)
Batgirl was basically meant to stand on equal footing with Batman; she was an ally, not a copy. Inspired by but not working for nor under. That was pretty much established in her debut episode, in fact! She loved what he stood for, but had her own way; a much more empathetic, working-with-the-people approach!
That carries on to the current run today! So, wheras Bruce nowadays is happy to inspire fear and act as a semi-urban-legend, Barbara wants to be right on the street with the people--using a combo of criminal psychology with the most updated tech!
It's fascinating really!
But I digress.
While Burnside put emphasis on the practical design, the 1960's were all about stage presence! Something I wanted to capture here, using Yvonne Craig's history as a champion Ballerina!
It's actually a lot of fun to see how or if you can truly meld fight-coreography with the grace of dance...and ya know, I think it can be done. But I wanna explore and push it more!
Originally posted to my Waterfall!
So let’s have a context-copy-paste from there:
(Done pre-Wacom tablet upgrade.)
Minor copy and paste for context:
Originally, Batgirl as an identity wasn't meant to be a side-kick (that was a 1990's post-zero hour retcon! And a messy one at that!)
Batgirl was basically meant to stand on equal footing with Batman; she was an ally, not a copy. Inspired by but not working for nor under. That was pretty much established in her debut episode, in fact! She loved what he stood for, but had her own way; a much more empathetic, working-with-the-people approach!
That carries on to the current run today! So, wheras Bruce nowadays is happy to inspire fear and act as a semi-urban-legend, Barbara wants to be right on the street with the people--using a combo of criminal psychology with the most updated tech!
It's fascinating really!
--End flashback.
Now this is the point where I'd actually started to really question my sense of style.
In drawing, that is; but we've all had those moments, right? "What makes my art distinct? What sets it apart?"
And I realised, for me, it's the expression in the brow and eyes...and somehow, I don't think I'd quite been hitting that.
I was so self-conscious of being too stylised for some reason, I could never pin it down; was I afraid of my work being seen as too 'manga-ish?' Too 'feminine', too 'flouncy?' Especially if I want to work in mainstream comics?
But it's when I sat down and really looked at my work...I realised that, so what?
Babs Tarr is my favourite artist in comics...ever, and she got to fully embrace how she drew because it worked. You were drawn in by the expression and then stayed because her figures bounced so easilly from panel to panel.
And...that's just how she draws! And there's nothing wrong with that.
Now, I'm nowhere near as good as Tarr--but I want to improve and part of that is, just simply, accepting what I like to see in my own drawings. Specifically; large, expressive eyes and unapologetically illustrated faces!
It's a start and I'm proud of that.
...Now as for the backgrounds, yeah, those need work from the ground up!