Searching for an idea

1

I was going to paint a bright portrait with vivid colours (top), but then decide to make the colours deeper and softer so that I can place more emphasis on her face (above). I want to give the portrait a calm atmosphere, but still make it colourful. The blue background, yellow dress and black hair help to keep the other colours bright.

2 Adding details and story

I change the canvas orientation to vertical, and then add hands, clothing details and white to the background. For story ideas, I imagine the girl finding an unusual creature in her garden. I make her hair edges smooth and soft so rather than being a distracting detail, they frame her face and direct the viewer to her hands.

3 Making final tweaks

While thinking about her dress I’m inspired by Korean national costumes that have wide, beautiful shapes. So I add some dress details while trying to keep my colours clean. I work with Soft Light and Hard Light modes because I usually paint on a single layer. I create hard or lost edges and softly integrate one colour into another.