Attack of the BHG (big headed girls)

 

I’m enamoured with the folk art Big Headed Girls (BHG) that I see everywhere. I’m obviously not the only one because everybody seems to be making them! I paid for a class by Suzi Blu, portraits and petite dolls…while I enjoyed the class and the styling I wanted to keep trying new things. Well last week my dear Girlfriend showed me a little series of youtube videos for making BHGs..Painting a mixed media portrait by Rach0113. I decided to give her technique a try! I ADORE my watercolor crayons in other uses (backgrounds mostly) so..why not?

Here was my first attempt:

Tipped head, kinda dreamy maybe. Puffy lips, purple eyes…(I can’t get away from strangely colored hair…I’m going with it until the urge passes). Not great. Not terrible either though considering. Her face shape is kinda weird but….she puts me in mind of Kelly Rae Roberts. The words, for an FYI, are the lyrics to an Indigo Girls song…they just kept hammering at me to put them in there. I know it’s probably not kosher to put song lyrics onto your art but…I’m largely unconcerned since I don’t intend to ever sell.

I rimmed her eyes with a metallic marker. I kinda like the results. I think her lips are my favorite feature since I’ve had a hard time with shading lips…(remember, I’m a BEGINNER to all art!)

Here is girl number 2:

Now, in making her, I learned a valuable lesson….watercolor paper has a “Right” side and a “wrong” side! She didn’t come out horribly, but the crayons didn’t blend in quite the same way on this, the “wrong” side of the paper. I had to go over her face with some acrylic paint then try blending again…not great results but again…not to terrible? One of her arms is way wonky but she’s not done. I think I’ll glue something over those arms….I do love how her eyes came out. Hair still baffles me but that’s okay, I have the straight and wild look down. I’ll try experimenting with other styles… I’m not at all thrilled with her big weird nose but…noses are hard! Her lips…this time I played with some markers because the watercolor just would not behave. I don’t know….to dark maybe? Way to pink?

Here she is, ready for a “Lay out”:

It’s all about experimentation and finding my own style/voice I guess. It’s there somewhere, definitely in the wildly colored green/blue/pink hair. Maybe one day I’ll get over my BHG obsession and move onto something else, but for now I’m embracing it. Why not? It’s all for me right?