Hellboy Private Commission Process

Hey y’all! Now that the conventions and events and such are over for the rest of the year (probably), i am diving back in to my commission list. Thought I’d share the process of this Hellboy piece. I do apologize as a few of the photos were taking with horrible phone.

Step 01: Hashing out the drawing on the illustration board. I knew the client was a big fan of Del Toro Hellboy flicks, so I went primarily with that anatomy and costuming, but I wanted to include a nod to the comics as well. So from the get go I know I was going to go heavy on the blacks.

Step 02: Once I have the general edges and shadows defined, I go in with a sharp prismcolor black pencil and, using the side of the lead instead of the tip, define the edge of my blacks. This is also a good time to start adding textures.

Step 03: Once most the edges are defined, I go in with a smallish flat brush and lay down acrylic black ink. For this piece, I’m using Liquitex Basica Ivory Black. Sometimes I get excited and start laying in fields of black before all the edges are defined, but that can help to make apparent any shadows that aren’t casting quite right.

Step 04: Once all the black is filled, its time to back in with the colored pencil and add detailing and continued contouring and shadow casting. Also time to add some flicks and splatters for texture

And there ya have it. The first part is finished. All inked and ready to go for color. Color will be done using diluted Dr. Martins acrylic ink, acrylic paint, and colored pencils. Hoping to get to the color in the next day or two; I’ll make sure to post the process of that as well!

Regards
-Adam