Step-by-step: Designing an Arctic Mage

1First, I research on the cultures of the Arctic Circle and their lifestyles. I create a reference sheet that I keep open as I work and, instead of silhouettes, I start with line drawings over a posed figure to get an idea of the flow and weight of materials, and where fabrics overlap.

2Next I paint over my lines with a silhouette and block in positive and negative shapes to give some visual interest based on the initial line-work. In this case I keep the number of iterations simple, but this stage can go on infinitely. Keep an eye on the time!

3I want my mage to have the colours of the Arctic Tundra: rusty browns and oranges of wintery flora, against the icy blues and white of snow. I overlay some of these colours over my thumbnails, and take a couple of my favourites over to the next stage where I working up the details.