Friday, August 16, 2013

12. MLK


I grew up in Plainfield NJ in the 70’s.  There was a lot of racial tension still left over from the crazy days of the 60’s.  If you strayed too far from your neighborhood there was always a chance you could run into trouble, black or white.  I got my butt kicked a few times for no good reason.  But I would never fight back.  I refused to fight or run.  Don’t know why.  Pride, I guess.

So – MLK was a great man, no doubt about it.  I wanted to do a “serious” portrait of somebody everyone would know.  Throw a little gravitas into the mix.

It turned out well.  I worked in the style that eventually became the style that I settled on for the bulk of the drawings.  Cropped it a little too tight on the face, so its got a floating head vibe going on.  If I did it now I would pull back and get more of the head and shoulders in. And it was one of the last times I added tone to the background, which does nothing for the composition.

A good effort, it was no sweat, and I was back on track.   

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