Visitations Characters: Creating the look of Nellie McCullough

Visitations is a complicated story about the history of a city and a century disguised as a ghost and superhero tale. But Before the idea of Visitations came to me, I conceived of the series' central character, Nellie McCullough. This is the story of where Nellie's look came from.

In an effort to expand my skills as an illustrator, I had been doing open studio figure drawing with live models at the Palette and Chisel Academy Of Fine Art in Chicago. While I became good at drawing the human form, I  hit a wall artistically. The problem with drawing from a live model - unless dong gesture drawings of people on trains, coffee shops or wherever- is that after a while it becomes ...well, boring. Repetitive poses are a big part of this. After about a year or so of life drawing, my work completely plateaued.

Typical 15 minute figure drawing pose from a live model

30 second gesture drawing done at a coffee shop 

It was suggested to me that I try my hand at sculpting. This completely opened up a new world because instead of working in two dimensions, I began working in three dimensions. working with my hands allowed me to understand the form and structure much better than drawing on a flat piece of paper ever could.

Scupture from Audy Cramblit's class

After doing open studio sessions I took a 4 week class at Palette and Chisel under Audry Cramblit The model, Paige, took the time during her breaks to walk around and talk to the people taking the class. She mentioned to me that she would be posing at Aaron Miller's Platform Studios. Miller has models dress up in costume for artists to draw once a month. I hadn't been there and Paige's invitation seemed like the perfect opportunity to go.

Email from Aaron Miller featuring Paige the model in steampunk outfit.

The thing that makes Miller's drawing sessions so intriguing is the variety of costumes his models wear. They've been pirates, Star Wars Stormtroopers, comic book and anime characters. It's definitely more interesting then the run of the mill nude model in a sitting pose. Paige was in a steampunk outfit - a costume that she created herself.

I thought the costume was really cool. The drawings were fun and I decided to file her look away for a future character, in case I would need it one day.

When it came time to start Visitations, Paige's costume determined the era in which the story would be set. But where did the character of Nellie, not to mention the entire concept of Visitations,  come from? 

To be continued...

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