Punching in

Hi all,

My name is Janet Hamlin, I'm an illustrator covering a lot of different beats- courtroom (Guantanamo Bay tribunals, Skakel, etc)
editorial, advertsing, publishing, etc. I thought it would be fun to start a blog and share some of the techniques and experiences I've had.

So I figure my first posting on this blog can start with a bang- my painting of 'The Greatest' Muhammad Ali along with the preliminary value study sketch. Whenever I do a portrait of someone, it's always first and foremost in my mind to pay some kind of homage, bring out the essence of who that person is. Ali's quote "Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee" really says it all- so made that visual. The painting is done with mixed media; charcoal drawing fixed on an illustration board, and gesso to build texture. I then layered the piece with washes, pushing and pulling. After that, sometimes I'll digitally adjust areas or add
some color and enhancement, levels, etc.
If you'd like to see more, check out my site:
http:www.janethamlin.com ( soon to have a facelift and revamping!)
and click the link to my ispot page to see some recent work.

I'll be back...