I have been fascinated by fashion and historical costumes for a long time. When I was introduced to the world of Pre-Raphaelite paintings as a teen, I longed to be able to recreate the romantic medieval dresses to one day wear. Although sewing is not my forte, I have enjoyed painting fantastic creations that I couldn’t otherwise bring to life.
As my artwork changed from anime-inspired to fantasy and fairies, I also found inspiration in the natural world. Visiting Japan made me appreciate the simple, yet elegant designs and patterns on kimonos and woodblock prints. At times my favorite styles have all come together to form a beautiful new style such as the late eighteenth century Aesthetic, Art Nouveau, and Arts and Crafts movements. These combined the twisting vines found in nature with myths and legends and aspects of Asian art.
The best part of fantasy art is being able to draw whatever you imagine. You are free to start with a historical inspiration and make it as fantastical as you desire or combine multiple themes to create something new. If you imagine a character as a forest fairy in ancient China—you can make it happen!
Each section of this book contains a painting demonstration on a different theme or historical period. Use the information in each section as a jumping-off point to inspire your own illustrations. Once you know the basics, you can use this information to research historical examples of any style in further detail.
The paints I use throughout the book are mainly made by M. Graham. I prefer to use them because of the high pigment content and honey binder. I find they are brighter than other watercolors I’ve used and they don’t dry out completely when I squeeze them onto my palette. I also use Winsor & Newton paints when I need a greater variety of colors.
If I describe a paint mix as “a mix of X and Y,” it is close to equal proportions of each color, while if I write, “bit or a little of Y” it means less of the second color. “A touch of” a color means very, very little. “Light” means the paint is diluted with a little more water, and “pale” or “very light” means add even more water to the paint. Watercolor mixing is inexact because water isn’t measured, so use your best judgement when mixing colors to come up with something close to what you see in the pictures.