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Why is Matte Painting so much fun?

Bragino — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 16:00:34 +0000

Well, there's a whole list of reasons why it's fun to make Matte paintings. It's not just that they look cool but, for me, it opens up a whole new world of dialogue as an artist. Matte painting is something that's used for creating environments for TV, Film, and Gaming. It's an exercise in creating stories and that's what appeals to me the most. I just started learning about it and so far I've been having an interesting time getting my feet wet. I'm generally teaching myself the ins and outs of it with the help of some dvd instruction from the amazing artist's over at The gnomon workshop. I am in no way affiliated with them, just a very happy customer of about 5 tutorial dvds. I've learned a lot from them and I'm using that knowledge to move my self along as an artist. Here are a couple of quick black and white environmental design comps that I did. After I had a few compositional sketches completed I opened up a cool image that I had in my image library of Scotland and decided to try my hand at making a matte painting. Check out the results below. I'm personally very happy with where this is taking me…

Here's one of the first environment sketches I did in photoshop. Very loose, just trying to sell some depth in the image and an interesting composition. This took about 10 minutes to do.

Here's the second one I did. Again this was quick, about 15 minutes. Just working on creating an environment with some decent scale to it…

Here's my first matte painting. My intention was to incorporate the Asian buildings into this Scottish landscape. Please understand that I am just beginning with this. I realize this would not be suitable for an actual Matte painting but one day through practice I'll create something that will be.. I find this process interesting because your starting out with some kind of mood or feeling and then your allowed to build whatever world you want right into that landscape. It might be too early to tell but I think I'm hooked..

MATTE PAINTING, I call this "The BonnieLand"

West Gilgo Beach Mural Documentary

Bragino — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 16:05:33 +0000

This is a 12 foot tall by 240 foot wide collaborative mural accomplished in the summer of 2010 by the following artists:

I designed this mural as a 4 seasons cyclical theme starting in winter on the South wall and ending again in winter on the North wall. It's painted inside a 120' tunnel and both walls were painted to complete the cycle of the seasons. I gathered some of the best artists I knew to come down and join me in the creation of this mural. My brother John shot a documentary while we painted this.

Here are two versions to view. The top one is a wider format so you can see more of the mural at one time. The bottom is for checking out details. Enjoy!!

Valley of the Egrets

Bragino — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 14:18:02 +0000

This image has been through many stages to get it to this point. Here's a list and a good reason to embrace technology as a tool for art…

This started out as a commission for a client that needed a wedding gift for a mutual friend. I was given some information about the soon to be couple. They both loved outdoors and nature, his favorite animal is an Egret, and she loves sunflowers.

I remembered a conversation that I had with someone from that circle of friends about canoeing down the Nissequogue river on Long Island. The sun was about to rise and as soon as it crested over the horizon it appeared as if the lights turned on over the land and the birds that were resting on the river took to flight. The biggest of those birds was a Great Egret that flew by the two guys in the canoe just above the water. I recall them being pretty inspired by the whole scene.

With all that in my head I set out to create a comp or image on the computer that I could later use to paint a large scale painting from.

After the comp was complete and approved by the client I used it to work on and complete a 7ft x 3ft painting

After the painting was complete I took high resolution images of it and brought it back into the computer where I re painted the background of the image. In the actual painting there was some loss of the time of day that's reflected here.

What your looking at in the image below is a computer painted background behind a hand painted foreground. The trees and birds are a direct scan from the original large scale painting and the background was repainted in Photoshop. Sometimes having more tools available to you is beneficial. My challenge for the next image I paint large scale by hand is to be able to get the background painted the way I want it without having to redo in the computer. On the other hand having gone through this process has led me to many ideas and techniques that I would have never thought of…..

Bragino iPhone app

Bragino — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 20:20:20 +0000

Applications on the mobile phone platform are what websites were 15 years ago. Something your going to see more and more of very quickly so I took the plunge early in the game. With about a 2 week effort and the help of my new friends over at mobile roadie I'm proud to officially announce the launch of my new iPhone application.

iPhone and iPod touch users can download the Bragino app here >

It's basically everything in one place……..Artwork, videos, news, announcements, and special offers will all be at your fingertips. Stay tuned for original music from Marino Bragino, Videos by John Bragino, and even some original multi-dimensional works from me.

Here's some screenshots of what it looks like.

Reve

Bragino — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 03:57:35 +0000

Reve > is French for "Dream"

I often speak to other artists about naming of their pieces and it's not uncommon for it to be a tough subject for some. For me it seems like a simple process and this illustration was no different.

The look on the woman's face I had drawn seemed to have a longing for something different than her current situation, half removed from the person who's face was looking back at her in the mirror, a longing, dreaming of another life. Through word searching on the internet I came about the word Reve. I liked the look of the word and it seemed to fit the illustration style plus the meaning fit as well. Just like that a name is born. I've always been under the belief that no matter how much intention you have for a piece of art and what you'd like it to be you must always leave room for what it wants to be as well.

Figure Studies Sept

Bragino — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 00:37:09 +0000

Here are some of my favorite studies from September..

I chose this one because it's something I'm working on, which is just painting while working from the model. That is no mediums that are generally used for drawing, ie: markers, pens, oil pastels etc……Just acrylic paint and a few brushes. This page was prepared before painting this image with a solid green background. "Killing the white of the background like that helps you to work with paint a little better. It basically creates a mood that you can then place your figure into.

I really love the way this one came out. It reminds me of an old USO poster, or something that would have promoted Coney Island. It just has that 40's/50's feel to it mostly I suspect because of the color.

In this image, as opposed to the last two, I'm using drawing as well as painting. There are many things that I like about this but mainly the distortion through the page and the complexity of the angles in which body parts are moving. The stockings might have caught my attention as well.

Rock on with Sharpie

Bragino — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 18:48:48 +0000

I'd like to thank Lauren Loro for tracking me down and interviewing me about the guitars that I did with sharpie markers. Lauren is one of three "INKterns" participating in the Sharpie social media internship. Sounds like an amazing learning experience to me and with all those free sharpie's I have to say that I'm a bit jealous…Lauren started her own blog dedicated to her internship called "Sharpieinktern's blog" to delve deeper into her experience at Sharpie and to find out first hand what creative things people are doing with Sharpie markers. I'm honored to be the first artist she interviewed. Check out the full interview below and check back at her site often to see what else she discovers….

Rock On with Sharpie!
It amazes me what people create with Sharpies. That is why I am especially proud to introduce my first Sharpie Artist Peter Bragino. Thankfully he was kind enough to allow me to interview him and display some of his work… Hope you enjoy!

Tell me a little about your business.

My business is Bragino Creations and that incorporates my life in whole as a working artist. I own and operate THECEEFLAT Gallery in Brooklyn (www.theceeflat.com) and run the fine art section of my business out of there. I also create wall murals, art on random things, design work, figurative drawings/paintings, and airbrushing in any capacity.

How are Sharpie markers incorporated?

Sharpie markers have been and always will be a driving force in my work. From the early days of drawing friends names in grafitti and scribbling in notebooks, to current times of fine art paintings and art on guitars Sharpie has been there for me.

What benefit do you think this offers and to who?

The idea of having your own business as an artist benefits the artist in many ways. In my case I’ve always hoped that rejecting the norm and blazing my own trail would help inspire not only my immediate friends and family but anyone who comes in contact with my art as well.It’s possible to create the live of your dreams and that’s where I like to live, on the edge of creation…

Why are Sharpie markers a good fit for this?

Sharpie markers are a good fit for artist’s because they’re permanent, consistent, and simple. I especially like the industrial Sharpies. They write over just about anything which is why I used them to draw on the guitars. I also love to use them when I’m drawing the figure. I use mixed media a lot with the figure and the Professional or Industrial Sharpies can handle working over just about anything I put on the page, even wet surfaces. When each figure study only lasts 20 minutes it’s important to get the information down quickly without waiting for things to dry..

Tell us about some of your favorite designs. Why do they resonate with you?

Most of the designs that resonate with me are designs that are based on good composition. In the end composition is the most important aspect of any one of my pieces and the ones that succeed the most are ultimately added directly to my favorites list.

What was your inspiration for these designs?

Most of my inspiration for the designs that I create comes directly from nature. I draw a lot on location around New York and I study weekly from the human figure so in general it’s all natural and of course organic…

Can the public order designs or is this a private hobby?

The public may certainly order designs from my online store which should be up soon (www.shopbragino.com). I recently made the decision to redo the store so it’s in the process of a major rehaul. In the meantime potential clients can contact me through my website (www.bragino.com).

Have you tried to decorate any electrical guitars?

I haven’t painted any electric guitars. So far I’ve done 4 acoustic guitars.

Have you created any other piece of art using Sharpies?

I’ve drawn on many things using sharpies. One of my favorite things to draw on with sharpies is humans. Yes that’s right I use sharpies to create temporary tattoos on friends, and have even used them during photo shoots for giving a model a half sleeve.

What is your favorite Sharpie to use?

My favorite sharpie to use is certainly the basic black fine point. You can’t go wrong with the classics. For the more permanent situations and harder to mark on surfaces I love the professional Sharpie with the chisel point. It’s almost like using a brush with ink or paint.

The End.

Figure Studies 080427

Bragino — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 20:31:27 +0000

Here are the drawing / paintings for this week…….My thought process for this week was to push my images and keep adding to them. To explore layering and building up the images. I didn't want to settle for just a good drawing and that basically brought me into a more painterly attitude with these images……

Image 1: I like this image for the exploration of different sized marks or paint strokes on the page. The figure is barely emerging from within them but the variation of the marks makes for an interesting image despite the figure.

Image 2: I like this image for the thought process of painting and the adding of light to allow the figure to emerge from the page. There was an underlying abstract painting here initially. I created a line drawing of the figure on top and began painting in the volume of the body on top of that……

Image3: This image is a little on the rough side compared to some of the things that I usually do but that's what I like about it the most. I think that with the combination of colors, the primitive types of marks running throughout the figure and the composition of the page the image works. Detail could be added but I'm not sure if that would help or hurt what’s going on here……

Image 4: What I like mostly here is the way that the colors pop off of the grayed out background. Nothing seems to make colors sing more than juxtaposing them against a color that has little to no hue in it. If the background were white the colors would still sing but they'd be competing with the white background. Here the colors are left to perform on their own…

Image 5: I included this image because of it's simplicity. It amazes me how a simple wash can describe the form of the body. After that wash lays out the terrain it's always fun to come in and draw around and on top of that form.

Image 6: I like this final image for a bunch of reasons……I like the line drawing that runs throughout, the distortion of the figure to push space on the page, the way that the feet and hands came out, the abstraction in the background, and the patterning in the pillow. It's generally my taste for design and drawing that attracts me to this image. I hope you enjoyed the images for this week. More on the way soon…..

Figure Studies 080420

Bragino — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 04:17:41 +0000

This week I only had 2 1/2 hours of figure drawing vice the normal 5 1/2 hours so I'm going to post most of the image that I created in that time period. Generally the poses are between 10 and 20 minutes. Short poses seem to force you into a more concentrated thought process while studying the figure. There's no time to let your guard down. All your decisions need to be important, quick, and add to the overall success of the image. Working in this manner has helped me recognize what I find asthetically important very quickly and I use that to help guide myself through each drawing / painting (it's kind of like allowing the image to tell you what it wants to be). Each pose may call for something different and you'll notice that in how I handled the 3 standing poses. The more I play and explore different types of asthetics the greater my language becomes and the more enjoyable I find the process of creating images……Image 1: I chose this image because it was a struggle for me. The medium tried to get in my way but I fought with it and it turned out to have some really interesting textures in it. I like the lines that are scratched back into the image through the top layer of paint. I dont think this is the most successful image but some of these asthetics will filter into future drawings for sure…

Image 2, 3, 4: Here's the three seperate standing poses. The first is done with pencil, the second with oil pastels, and the third with acrylic paint. I like them all for different reasons but I especially like them together. I think the best thing about them is that each one has it's own mood or personality and for that alone I feel I was successful with each one…..

Image 5: I think this image had great potential but I lapsed a little in the way the distortion came out. This pose was very dynamic and strong and I feel that I captured that essence in the forward hand and leg but lost that quality in the head and the back leg. There are a lot of things I like about it though and one of the main things is the underpainting of colors and how they read through the image. I'm sure this will show up in some future images as well…..

Figure Studies 080412

Bragino — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 03:56:33 +0000

This week we drew another one of my favorite models. Her name is Lori and she's well known on the Long Island figure scene. She's a large model and just about one of the most interesting people to draw. My focus this week was to create mood in the images and to think about designing the backgrounds on the image as well. I was also looking to fill the entire page and create a more complete image rather than a solitary figure sitting on the page. I wasn't too worried about creating a representational image (one that looks just like what the model looks like). I was focused on the overall composition, design, and picture as a whole…….

Image 1: Chosen for it's overall composition and it's sense of volume. I enjoy how the figure feels like it's being chisled out of the page and the abstractions that exist in the background as well. I believe this image works as it is without adding anymore detail. I wouldn't be against adding some small bits of detail here and there but I don't think it's necessary for the image to work compositionally.

Image 2: I chose this image for it's mood and it's potential. Unlike the first image I feel this image needs more work to finish it. It's got an interesting mood to it which I like, but I will be painting back into this one to bring more weight into the figure itself. Once I do that it should create a lot of space between the figure and the background which will force the depth I'd like to see in this image..

Image 3: I chose this because of it's abstract composition. The figure's not recognizable and it's not supposed to be but the shapes that reside on the page have been created by using the figure as a point of departure. This is mainly a study in composition, color and space. I feel this image is complete. I think it's interesing to solve compositions on a page just as a musical composer solves compositions. When the songs complete you move on and create another one…..