12/24/04 - This is the sixth stage of the cover painting for "The Wicked" by J. Newman

Still more underpainting, more texture and depth to the background using brush (#3 Round). I started mixing in some white to the Naphthol Red/Hansa Yellow to give some opacity to the smoke, and mixed Thalo Blue with Windsor Violet to deepen the smoke shadows and the beard shadows. The background is starting to move from "under"painting to "over"painting at this stage. I got rid of the lump under the statue's left ear that didn't look right. I also started cheating a bit by putting in some finishing touches (the embers flying out on either side of Moloch). These kinds of finishing touches are like dessert for me, and I don't usually put them in this early in the process.

Necessary Evil Press, 2007
Acrylic Polymer & Ink on Illustration Board, 8 x 11-1/2"