Inktober 2023: prompts 23-31
This is the final post sharing my paintings from the #Inktober 2023 challenge. If you missed the previous three posts, or would like another look at them, they can be found using the links below:
Prompt 23 – Celestial
The first interpretation which came to mind was of a big sky full of stars and interesting cloud formations, so that was what I decided to paint.
Prompt 24 – Shallow
[Image ID] Watercolour of shallow pools on a beach. [description end]
The word shallow made me think of rock pools, so I based my scene around those.
Prompt 25 – Dangerous
My first thought when I saw the prompt word was the dirty and decaying uranium mine setting from the ‘Crosscut’ episode of Thunderbirds Are Go; so that became the basis for the painting.
This isn’t the first time I’ve been inspired by that episode, as last year I shared a digital painting fan art with the mine control room as the background – click here to view.
Prompt 26 – Remove
I struggled with the prompt at first, because it’s quite hard to depict something which is no longer there. Eventually, I turned to a real place for inspiration. There is a road bridge at Guyhirn which goes over the river, and when driving across it there are some struts from an old railway bridge still visible sticking out of the river. The bridge itself has been gone for many years but although it was removed, the struts which held it up remain as a sign that something was once there.
I haven’t used them very often during Inktober this year, but I went back to using watercolour pencils on this illustration.
Prompt 27 – Float
This prompt felt a bit too similar to ‘rise’ from earlier in the month, and I struggled to come up with anything that floated and seemed like a good subject for a painting. Although the island with the ruins could appear to ‘float’, the waterlilies were what I intended to fulfil the prompt.
Prompt 28 – Sparkle
‘Sparkling in the lamplight’ is often used as an atmospheric description in creative writing so I took inspiration from that and painted a Victorian-inspired streetlight. This is another piece which has references from Candle of Ice – namely that the bat-wing lamp design was originally done for some architectural sketches I’d drawn to help with my worldbuilding.
Prompt 29 – Massive
There were so many ways to interpret this prompt, to the point that it was quite hard to choose. I finally settled on a huge moon after remembering a short scene from my favourite anime series in which a character is stood with a huge moon dominating the sky behind them.
Prompt 30 – Rush
When I first saw the prompt word I thought it would be a difficult one as on the surface it lends itself more to comic-style artwork such as a character running down the street. However as I considered the prompt further I came up with the idea of a sand timer that has been flipped so times is running out. As is often the case these days, I added some steampunk elements to make the idea fit my style.
Prompt 31 – Fire
This painting once again has roots in my fantasy novel project. I’d sketched a similarly shaped fireplace with a decorative bat panel on a previous occasion and came across it whilst seeking inspiration. I’d always liked the shape of the fireplace from that sketch, so was quite happy to have a reason to paint it.
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Watercolour paints – Windsor & Newton Cotman range
Watercolour paper – Daler Rowney Aquafine in textured (cold pressed) or smooth (hot pressed) depending on the painting.
Watercolour Pencils - Castle Art
Brush pens – Tombow Fudenosuke in black and brown
Fineliners – Steadler Triplus (colours 77 & 9)
Brushes – DaVinchi Cosmotop-Spin (red handle) round brushes in sizes 14, 8, & 5
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Brush pens – Tombow Fudenosuke in black and brown
Fineliners – Steadler Triplus (colours 77 & 9)
Brushes – DaVinchi Cosmotop-Spin (red handle) round brushes in sizes 14, 8, & 5
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Artwork ©Dragonsflyatsunset 2023, all rights reserved.