New Home for a New Year

You have likely noticed that the name of this blog no longer matches its URL. That's because I have left the name 'Sigfried Designs' for the new name, 'Pickled Peanut Media'. All of my art will now be under my banner of Pickled Peanut Media, so keep an eye out for it! I will no longer be posting on this blog, and instead switch to my new art blog at: http://pickledpeanutmedia.blogspot.com/

My non-art blog, Pickled Peanuts, will continue unchanged. However, I have also opened a Deviant Art and Cafe Press store under the name of Pickled Peanut Media. With a new year comes some new changes.

Tomas Plekanec Painting

Prior to Christmas I made a painting of the Montreal Canadians player, Tomas Plekanec, for a friend's present. This was a large painting that measured 42 x 51 cm. The image was based on a number of different reference photographs I had of Plekanec and then painted with water colors. 

Once I have the idea of what I want to draw /paint and how I am going to render it, I then block out the shapes. 

Then I start adding details in a light pencil. This varies between a 2H and a B pencil. 2H's are nice because they are light enough to not show behind the paint, but are unforgiving as it is a harder lead and hence can scar the paper if something needs to be redrawn a few times. B's are nice because they are softer and do not scar the paper, but on the downside they are darker and the lines can show through the paint. 

I begin painting the background and lightest colors first. Blue was the lightest color, and so was the first applied. Much of the background was to be quite dark, so much of this was left blank until the very end of the painting. (some of the photos were shot at an angle, which skews the images here).

Once the blue was laid down, Plekanec's face was tackled.

Red was laid down following the face. To build up the form of the uniform, red was first applied with lots of water added to the paint. Then, less water was added to the brush to give a deeper red. This added form to the jersey and indicated light sources. Blacks were also sparingly added and sometimes mixed with the red paint. 

Once Pleakanec was finished and the blacks had been fully added, the background was tackled, again starting from the lightest colors.

Lastly, touchups are added. I often leave a painting overnight and tackle it in the morning even if it appears to be finished that night. This provides distance from me and the painting, so that in the morning I approach it with fresh eyes. This helps in noticing flaws or things forgotten.

Fear the Beard

Water color and india ink. 

Zombies, Spacemen, & Robots.

This is fun. Small cards that you illustrate and put your info on the back. I've done a few so far and here they are. The next few I'll do are in watercolor.

The words on the card is: 'Zombie Cake'

It says ZOMBIE.

I have a double chin too. Apparently I'm too good for just one.

MORE Paintings!!!!

Okay, I've been pretty busy lately! But not with my thesis!



This one might look familiar?! It's one of Denise's historic plates. I think this is her favorite one because the wreath pattern is rare or something. Anyways, this is a watercolor 22x28cm and mainly used a wet-on-wet technique.

I kinda like this one. I finished it the other night and is based on a photo I took of downtown Calgary. I wasn't too concerned with making it exact, more of an experiment in how I would tackle such a painting. Watercolor and felt, 22x28cm.

Close up of the painting. BTW, these weren't scanned but just photographed with my digital camera. So the colors are a little darker than in real life.

I did this painting in 2006 I think. I've done a few in this comic /slanted /acid style. Watercolor and felt. The fences were inspired from an earlier sketch I did of a painter in a back alley.

Finished this one a few weeks ago. Not too concerned with realism here but more looking for a sense of flow and color. I really like this and will probably hang it up somewhere. It is based on a photograph from Whiterock British Columbia.


Last of the bunch. Didn't mean for it to be posted on its side, but figured we all have necks.... so use 'em! Anyways, this is watercolor again but done in a more acrylic fashion where the colors were laid down quite thickly and with less water. Measures 22x28. I have another sketch of a hockey player; I think Tim Thomas. Over the next few months I want to do some more sports related paintings and such. After Thomas will probably be a few CFL paintings (Stamps, Riders and Aleuts perhaps -my favorite teams).

Oh, and on a final note, I've changed my signature: Did you catch it? What do you think?

Sketches and first page of Comic

Below are a number of sketches I've done int he past month.

The first two images are of a comic I'm working on called Refit.


Above: Close-up of the first two panels of Refit. These are the establishing shots. The first is a back-drop shot of Baghdad. The second panel establishes where the next few pages will be occurring and that this is a guarded building.

Below: The full page. I used mainly a 2H over th 4H sketch. A 2B was used only for the darkest areas. The guy looking at the pot is named Frank Slide. I like that name.


Below: Modeled after a photo of House. Me at my most whimsical.... the patient has a bone arm, which doesn't show up so well in this scan.


















Wolverine and Sabertooth. This is done in felt and marker. I kept Sabertooth in his traditional 1980's style costume but changed Wolvie's costume to give it a more militaristic style with the cargo pants. You can't really see it but he still has the pointed kneepads.











Harry and the gang outside of a
building at Hogwarts. I like the explosion'y' thing they are staring atwhile the ground shows the shadow of an evil doer raising his hands up!



Below: Da' Bear. Sketched this one out just before leaving for back home at the beginning of the month and then finished darkening it up when I got home. Playing around with perspectives.

Paintings for sale on Kijiji

Below are some paintings that I have listed on Kijiji for sale. They range in date from when they were made. The first one here is also the first acrylic painting I did, way back in '99. The second acrylic painting was done in 2002 and shown at an art expo at the University of Northern British Columbia. I received a number of encouraging comments from this painting. The third and final painting here was done 2005 and is a depiction of a comic-styled downtown Calgary. The frame cuts off the left hand side which shows more of the city including the Calgary Tower. This one was done in watercolor and felt.

Let me hear some feedback.