Speaking of Black Widows...

fritzthefox · **Posted:** Fri Dec 25, 2009 11:19 am

...here's a recent illustration I completed. This drawing was an experiment in ink and pencil, and only really successful in the sense that I learned a few things. I was pretty disappointed with the way it turned out. Still, I hope to develop the idea into a somewhat more eye-friendly piece of art someday.

It is drawing of one of the P-61 Black Widows flown by the "Thunder Hunters" in '46-'47... pilots who did research for the NOAA on the interior of thunderstorms. I thought someone might enjoy a peek at it before it vanishes into my closet forever. (That is where many of my failed drawings hide. I keep them because they sometimes yield the inspiration for future endeavors, and because I still nurse delusions that someday I may be so successful that even my crappy sketches will be worth something.)

Merry Christmas!

warbird_patrick · **Posted:** Fri Dec 25, 2009 11:43 am

fritzthefox wrote:

...here's a recent illustration I completed. This drawing was an experiment in ink and pencil, and only really successful in the sense that I learned a few things. I was pretty disappointed with the way it turned out. Still, I hope to develop the idea into a somewhat more eye-friendly piece of art someday.

It is drawing of one of the P-61 Black Widows flown by the "Thunder Hunters" in '46-'47... pilots who did research for the NOAA on the interior of thunderstorms. I thought someone might enjoy a peek at it before it vanishes into my closet forever. (That is where many of my failed drawings hide. I keep them because they sometimes yield the inspiration for future endeavors, and because I still nurse delusions that someday I may be so successful that even my crappy sketches will be worth something.)

Merry Christmas!

Very Nice. Beautiful picture.

Patrick

Robbie Stuart · **Posted:** Fri Dec 25, 2009 11:46 am

NOAA PHOTO
Kinda Like These

Always enjoy your work Fritz. Merry Christmas

Django · **Posted:** Fri Dec 25, 2009 12:00 pm

Nonsense, that's very cool!!

pontiac58 · **Posted:** Fri Dec 25, 2009 1:27 pm

Wow, is all i can say. If that is a bad drawing, i cant imagine what a good one would look like. Any interest in selling that one.

mustangdriver · **Posted:** Fri Dec 25, 2009 1:30 pm

Wow! That is awesome.

Jack Cook · **Posted:** Fri Dec 25, 2009 3:07 pm

I love the all-weather flying center paint scheme!

T-6G N4269E Wayne flying

The Inspector · **Posted:** Fri Dec 25, 2009 4:47 pm

What a perfect opportunity to really play around with not 'normal' colors and shading-don't put it in the closet, prop it up on the side table and sit back and imagine bright bluish-whites, odd pinks, and the airframe outlined in bright green St. Elmos fire-theres a really different and very cool painting in there, plus a nod to some unsung but really brave dudes! Don't reject it just because-

Jack Cook · **Posted:** Fri Dec 25, 2009 5:03 pm

Here's good view!

P-61A 416th NFS over Austria 1945

fritzthefox · **Posted:** Sat Dec 26, 2009 5:39 am

Thanks, guys, for the encouragement. I agree with Inspector...I think the whole piece might be more interesting in color. I was originally going to do a Thunderstorm project T-6, because I had a hankering to do an aluminum plane, which led me to the Thunderstorm Project (because I liked the markings) and the P-61. I think there is a whole series of potentially interesting images in this program, really...so many planes, so little time. Sigh.

Y'know, Inspector, I think I'm gonna run with that St. Elmo's Fire idea...I think some color and a change in composition could put this concept over the top. A little better planning would help me next time around, too. My biggest disappointment with this particular illustration was with the clouds. I'd really hoped to have impressive and weighty thunderheads towering over the plane, but the clouds never really came together. The clouds were airbrushed in ink after about a ten year hiatus from the airbrush, so I suppose I should not have been too surprised. Ink is a pretty unforgiving medium for someone with that many cobwebs on their brush. I lost control of them pretty quickly. There is still some overspray on my window blinds lol. But my biggest failure was in my composition, I think. I just didn't have a good enough mental image to start.

I think it may be better to work in paint, too...with ink, I could always go darker, but never really go lighter. You can't really see it in the photo, which is grayscale, but the lightning was painted in with white gouache, which never really matched the tone of the white paper and looked like the afterthought that it was. Ink is a bad medium to go exploring in. It demands a plan. Paint would be much more fun.

See? You guys got me all excited about this picture again. Thanks!

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