I've been doodling around in one of my throwaway sketchbooks - one of the ones I use when I don't feel like being at all serious about what I'm drawing. It's a good way to work through some block issues, convincing myself that it doesn't matter and it's just for fun. I started drawing some monsters/mythical creatures, like the Sphinx, harpies, angry fairies, and so on. Apart from being an excuse to draw boobs (always fun), I'd like to draw more fantasy art, and this is good practice.
The Medusa popped up in a corner of the sketchbook page, and it made me want to do a more finished version with watercolor pencils. It isn't quite there yet - it's missing something to make it special - but I'm not unhappy with it so far. I layered some iridescent green paint over the pencil as kind of a representation of the power of her gaze. I'm thinking about maybe doing some collaging over it next, adding more mixed media. It's also considerably larger than I usually work for drawings like this, 8"x10".
It's interesting how things changed between the rough initial sketch and the more formal work. They are two very different faces. In some ways, I like the sketch a little better. It's rougher, but it has a vitality to it that I don't feel in the painting. Maybe it's that the snakes are wilder. Maybe it's her open mouth and wider eyes. Both expressions are ambiguous, though, and I like that.
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