Development of an Illustration

Here we follow a John Clymer illustration step by step from start to finish

Step One: John starts with a charcoal drawing on canvas, outlining the composition and the position of the figures, animals, and humans. John then refers to his files for different animal studies, to help assist in the animals action. Most of the action John uses stems directly from his own experiences and knowledge of the animals.

Step Two: John photographs his models and begins to draw the people. This process takes some time but once his human figures are finished, John fixes the drawing with alcohol and shellac.

Step Three: The painting begins. With a general color scheme in mind, John begins painting in oil, handling the illustration as he would an outdoor sketch. That is, he does the sky first and then works toward the foreground. The color of things in the distance is affected by sky and as he moves into the foreground, the color becomes more local and less affected by the sky. John paints the people in last because their coloring is affected be the background and the top light. He keeps painting out of the sky into the foreground and, once the sky is finished, he finishes the painting portion by portion instead of progressing on the painting as a whole, a method followed by some other artists.