so i’ve been doing this whole “draw a portrait of my oc silan” thing for a fe

so i’ve been doing this whole “draw a portrait of my oc silan” thing for a few years now, and having finally obliterated my streak of unfinished pieces this year, i thought now would be the perfect time to take a look at my overall improvement! 

click thru for little tidbits about each piece, and keep reading for some mushy reflective thoughts about my journey thru this v personal project of mine ❤

a lot has changed since i started this tradition back in 2014; originally, the point was to complete a digital painting start to finish in a single day, on may 16th each year. but the repetitive strain injury i’ve developed since then has made that, frankly, impossible. with my stubborn sense of sentimentality and need to follow my own rules as they were initially established, it was hard to convince myself that i needed to adapt and give myself the time i actually needed to finish. 

of course the result was a string of unfinished pieces and a lot of personal dissatisfaction. i tried giving myself a week instead of a day to finish. i tried making it a new year’s resolution to finish the dang portrait. all without success.

this year, i decided to cut the bullshit, buckle down, and really commit to finishing the project, no matter what. a lot tried to stop me: dips in motivation, having to take days off to rest my hand, feeling like i was gonna die trying to paint daffodils, etc. but more than feeling defeated by those complications, i wanted to see this project through, and i’m so so so glad and proud to say that i’ve finally succeeded!

it’s not perfect, but i’m definitely happy with how the 2019 portrait came out! i really tried to experiment with color this time and i’m particularly pleased with the softness of the colors in his face, hair, and in the daffodil leaves. i feel like i learned a lot from working on this and though i’m definitely ready for a rest, i’m excited to carry this momentum forward and make even better things in the future!

anyway! that was rly cheesy! thank you for following & enjoying my work! see u next year for the 2020 portrait!!