Update: Frédéric Chopin Historic Trauma Illustration

I finished this piece for Advance News Magazines. I posted the pencil draft of the illustration HERE. Since there only seemed to be one photograph taken of Chopin shortly before he died, the reference I had was kind of ghoulish. Nonetheless, it was a fun picture to draw. I took a slightly different approach this time. I kept the original drawing in pencil in my sketchbook and did the inks on tracing paper. I actually did the inks on several layers of tracing paper and scanned them in as separate layers in Photoshop, giving me a little more play once I got into the colors.

Historic Trauma Cases # 3

Recently I was given assignments to draw Steve Allen and Frédéric François Chopin for my job at Advance News Magazines. I thought it was interesting, both being piano players. I know very little about Steve Allen aside from the Tonight Show and the CDs I have with him playing as Jack Kerouac recites poetry. Steve is finished here in the style of all the other Historic Trauma illustrations...

I know even less of Chopin, but I like how intense he looks in the one known photograph that was thought to be taken in 1849, the year of his death. I referenced that photo, which can be found all over the internet. This drawing is still in its rough stages, but I wanted to give an early stage of the process before I pretty him up with ink and color. So this is Frederic as he now sits in my Moleskine sketchbook, waiting to become a final draft. This is usually what my final pencil sketches look like before I get feedback and approval from editorial staff...

I think I have John Lennon coming up in the next couple months. That will be some fun drawing time.