12/29/04 - This is the seventh stage of the cover painting for "The Wicked" by J. Newman

At this point (though you can't see it) I am more or less satisfied with the background, and I am moving forward in the plane of the painting to the statue. Since it is carved from stone and is old, I am giving it a worn texture. To begin this, I cut a mask from a scrap piece of tracing paper that exposed the statue but hid the rest of the painting. Then I mixed up separate puddles of Paynes Grey (Paynes Grey is a bona-fide paint color, but is really a mixture of Cobalt or Ultramarine Blue and Ivory Black) and Burnt Umber (a dark, cool brown) and employed an old toothbrush to splatter tiny droplets of paint on the exposed portion. These droplets, after manipulation by some upcoming scumbles, glazes and highlights, will ultimately portray a realistic-looking rough stone surface. If you look on the Paintings page of the web site to the "Cave of a Thousand Tales" or the "Night Creatures" covers, you'll see what I mean.

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