"Dressed to Kill"--The Joker

Save for the eyes and the hair--and the usual final tweaks and touch-ups--this project can be deemed COMPLETED!!! 

I am going to try to finish at least Phase I of the hair over the weekend: if I can finish the hair by the end of the week, this piece should be in the display cabinet by the end of next weekend.  

Hitherto, I've had two favourite pieces: the "Queen of the Prom" and my "original" bust of the Red Skull. "Dressed to Kill" now joins this exalted company to round-off the "terrible trio".

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

The Joker "TwE" - Painting: Oils--Home Stretch

In spite of the amount of work remaining, the piece exudes an all-but-finished aura about it. And, personally, I am delighted with what is before me. In fact, even at this relatively premature stage, it vastly exceeds any expectations I might have had!

Tonight will largely be an "off" night. That is not to say I may not tweak things here and there, but for the most part, I will let things settle and cure. . .

Oh, one final thing. You might recall that in the first posting of this thread I mentioned that I had revised the title of the project to accommodate the absence of Harley. Henceforth, this piece will be known as. . . Dressed to Kill.

FOLLOW-UP. . . Phase I of the eyebrows is DONE!

03.08.2018. . . The right eye is done. All that remains on the eyes is distressing and glazing. Phase I of the boutonnière is done. 

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

The Joker "TwE" - Painting: Oils--Intermezzo (II)

With the tailcoat done, I decided to take this project into the 'home stretch' and mount it on 

its display base. This could have gone "south" very easily; but it just felt right; and thankfully 

it worked out beautifully!

Assuming I have an hour or two to paint each night, this project may be completed over the weekend!

Stay tuned!

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

The Joker "TwE" - Painting: Oils (III)--The Tailcoat

The tailcoat was a very simple process, much simpler than anticipated. I decided early-on that I would use Ivory Black with a touch of Liquin for the silk/satin lapels. The collar and the minute portions of the coat itself were primarily executed in Lampblack. 

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

The Joker "TwE" - Painting: Oils--Intermezzo (I)

I did a little more work following yesterday's update, namely shading the neck and the neck cavi- ty/shirt collar. This was in anticipation of what I have just finished: the Joker "TwE" is now com- pletely assembled, with the head permanently attached to the torso.

That will be the extent of the work today. I will continue working on the face in the days to come, but the next major painting session will be the black tailcoat. Once that is done, I can then trans- fer the bust to its display base.

Getting closer. . .   

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

The Joker "TwE" - Painting: Oils (II)--The Flesh

As with the white garments, Mister J's flesh will be executed as a series of mixed-media stains/ grisailles over the white primer-undercoat. I have just completed Phase I, including the staining of the teeth and basecoating of the lips. 

At this stage of the process, the surface looks admittedly "rough"; however, the promise of what is to come is as plainly evident. 

Stay tuned!

UPDATE 30.07.2018. . . The left side of the face, save for glazing the eye, is essentially done! [NOTE: The greens (hair) will be tackled as a separate item.] And I am delighted!! Methodically staining a stark acrylic undercoat has definitely earned a place in the gamebook!

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

The Joker "TwE" - Painting: UCing (III)

With the torso uc'ed, all that remained was the head. Whereas the one color to be applied below the neck was black, the only acrylic hue to be applied above it was green. [NOTE: the red of the lips will be applied in oils.]

And that is now done and curing in the oven. Save for the black of the tailcoat (100% oils), the remainder of the project will be a multi-media exercise. 

More to follow!

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

The Joker "TwE" - Painting: Oils (I)--White Garments

With the torso uc'ed/"blocked-in", it was time to start playing with the oils. . . 

On this project, the whites are more of a stain/grisaille over the white primer-undercoat. This is more of an illustrative approach to maximize depth and volume vs. textile textures in the relatively small surface area provided by the scale. 

As of this writing, Phase I of the waistcoat is done. Stark highlights remain to be done: these will be done in acrylics once the oils are "dry". 

More to follow. . .  

FOLLOW-UP. . . Phase II of the waistcoat is DONE! The waistcoat has been effectively complet- ed, but now comes the multi-media tweaking that will maximize contrast and tonal variance on the achromatic canvas. . . The tweaking will be executed over the remaining duration of the pro- ject. 
 
“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

The Joker "TwE" - Painting: UCing (I)

The bust was primed in its entirety in Tamiya Fine Surface Primer-White. Using this superb pri- mer allowed me to kill two sub-steps with one spray session: the flesh and the non-jacket gar- ments were also undercoated as well as primed!

Thus uc'ing is largely limited to the black of the dress tailcoat. Which, given the opacity of black acrylic, is something to be undertaken with caution. I have just completed Phase I, which means 85-90% of the coat is undercoated--the remaining 10% (Phase II) will be the harrowing "cutting-in" of the coat to the white underlying garments. 

Stay tuned!

FOLLOW-UP. . . Phase II is DONE!

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003

The Joker "TwE" - Painting: Priming

Before addressing the matter at hand, I would just like to say that I have revised the title of this project. Having said that, in the interest of continuity, I will retain the now-'working title'. The new title will be the subject of the concluding post in this arc.

Now. . . the torso is now primed (Tamiya Fine surface Primer-White), and in the oven curing. I am still in the process of final finishing of the head, addressing minor tweaks and points of de- tail. 

UPDATE 25.07.2018. . . The head/face is DONE!!! The head will be primed sometime over the weekend. . . 27.07.2018 DONE

“When the cost of a hobby exceeds the fun and doesn't attract new people, the game is over.” -
Oscar Koveleski, August 2003