“Rhinestone Rodeo (Self Portrait)” 16x20” Procreate

This started as a simple portrait study since I hadn’t drawn a face in a while—but it completely spiraled out of control, and I ended up spending 11 hours chipping away at it. I really struggled with the proportions and kept battling with that stupid right eye, reshaping it over and over to avoid the dreaded cross-eyed look. Honestly, I thought I was losing my mind! I think the downward angle is what was tripping me up.

In the end, I may have Barbie-fied myself a tad too much but I hope it just matches the vibe of the piece. I’ve been looking at it so long I don’t even know if it looks like me anymore lol. I was inspired by this exhibit on French rococo wallpaper the RISD museum had, This one pink diamond dress from the Barbie princess charm school movie, and Alphonse mucha. Art nouveau, gothic and rococo are my favorite art movements so elements of those styles always creep their way into my pieces, as well as plain old y2k nostalgia. The French wall paper exhibit had such stunning pastel color pallets! I tend to view color, especially bright pink, as modern but the French loved it back then!

I wanted to push the crystal, glitter, and stained glass elements I’ve been playing with in recent work to the max, blending them with my digital style. I packed as much color into this limited pallet as possible.

Long story short, I made something totally self-indulgent—and I had an absolute blast doing it. If you’re interested in prints, let me know! I figure most people wouldn’t want my face on their wall, but who knows?

Do you like seeing the longer video? You can really see how badly I struggle! Normally my process is much smoother.