You have no...

Zoey Tiefenthaler "You have no..."

Size, Pencil, Graphite Ink, Micron Pens, Alcohol Markers, 2022  

The inspiration for this piece came from a recent sketch that I found in one of my sketchbooks of a man smiling at an android-like person, who smiles back at them.  I decided to run with this concept, change its format, and stick with a black-and-white color scheme. 

Going from the concept sketch to the final project took more time than I thought it would.  Firstly, when I changed the format of the piece, I first looked at several different references for the poses depicted in the final project.   I wanted to be as accurate as possible with the proportions of the bodies and faces while also inputting my own style into the expressions of the figures and the tone of the piece.  Once the poses were drawn in with pencil, I used Micron Pens to outline the figures, using thicker pens to add the deepest shadows and values to them.  To add more shadows, I used Alcohol Markers and Graphite Ink with cotton balls to make the final shadows and the background.  Finally, I touched upon any trouble spots by erasing misplaced graphite and using a white gel pen to brighten the eyes and pupils of the android.

This representation of power depicts the presence of technology and how overwhelming it can be on the human mind.  The composition of the piece correlates with the consistently-evolving power of these man-made products and the comparatively snail's pace of evolution that we, the human species, are going through.  The human figure framed at the bottom of the piece is shown to have an expression of dread in his eyes.  His brows are knitted tightly with deep shadows around his face to help emphasize his "frozen-in-fear' look.   The figure above (the representation of technology, as a whole) has an expression that could be interpreted as calm and unfeeling.  Its position above the human man looms over him, boring down at his wide eyes with apathy and no regard for how he feels.  Even in its ruined, wire-frayed state, it doesn't appear to look like it's in pain.  The only question I would ask at this moment is "What happens next?"

The most challenging part of this process was finding the right references for the figures, specifically the top-left and bottom-right images of the human and "android".  Had I started this project over, I would've chosen to add in some touches of color through things like the eyes to further differentiate the two beings.

The style of this piece is mostly Surreal with some touches of Realism.  What makes this unique to my own style are the appearances of the figures and the use of shadows to deepen the unnerving tone.  I especially love the human in the bottom left and his expression; I don't draw expressions like this often so I'm quite happy with how it turned out.