artofmadness on DeviantArthttps://www.deviantart.com/artofmadness/art/Lost-In-the-Line-of-Duty-168911540artofmadness

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Lost In the Line of Duty

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11.5" x 8.5," gouache and watercolor on 4-ply Strathmore illustration board.

This is my entry for ~StrictlyComeDrawing's second theme: Time Traveler. The assignment was to depict a character from a period in history, clothed and in a setting typical of that time period. I really wanted my entry to stand out, and more importantly, I wanted the period that I chose to depict to be instantly recognizable. Chances are that, if you're looking at this painting right now, you probably know the exact date of the scene portrayed in this picture. That's what I hope, anyway.

So many innocent people lost their lives that morning, but 343 of them were firefighters and rescue workers that headed into that maelstrom while hordes of New Yorkers were fleeing in the opposite direction. Looking back on my own memories of watching the horror unfold that morning, the televised images of those firefighters marching in procession toward what proved to be their end is something that's stayed with me ever since.

This is my tribute to them.

Like nearly all of my paintings, this scene's a composite of multiple photo references. While I found the concept of this painting to be a noble gesture, actually searching through dozens and dozens of terrifying photos from that day really bummed me out. :(

So, without further ado:

Background: [link]¤t=IMG2.jpg

Midground: [link]¤t=Midground.jpg

Foreground 1: [link]¤t=Foreground1.jpg

Foreground 2: [link]¤t=Foreground2.jpg

For the expression on the face of the firefighter in the foreground, I was forced to take my own reference photo. I wanted a sort of ambiguous expression that hovered somewhere between disbelief, anger, and sadness, which I feel summarized the majority of people's reactions upon first learning of this tragedy. That was my initial reaction anyway.

Now, the face in the photo that I took was completely bearded, and it wasn't until I was looking at the actual faces of the 343 rescue workers lost that day that I realized that beards apparently aren't allowed in the FDNY. This makes perfect sense, of course, when you realize that their gas masks would need to sit flush against their faces if they were to function properly, but it also forced me to alter the face of my reference photo. Hence the 70's style bushy mustache.

So that's pretty much it.
I hope to someday return to this theme when I have the luxury of time to really show this subject the level of love and care that it deserves, but until then, I hope that this piece serves as a fitting tribute to a tragic an unforgettable event.

And now, the judges' marks:

:iconradiant-suzuka:
Colour – 2/2
Composition – 3/3
Originality – 5/6
Technical Skill – 5/6
Research – 3/3

Total – 18/20

An incredibly touching piece for a sad day in America’s history, you’ve managed to capture the pure shock and melancholy of the situation at hand with a wonderful use of symbolism. A brilliant use of color and a wonderful composition, I feel you could have furthered this piece by adding to the sky a red-like tone that would blend in with the smoke (as the sky around the smoke is a tad too blue. It could also further the symbolism by suggesting that the firefighters were walking into their doom.) I feel you could have also added a greater amount of debris, as the buildings around seem to not be affected at all. Overall, a heartbreaking but beautiful piece of work

:iconsailorangel:
Well, once again I'd say you've got the most striking piece. This is definately one of those moments in time where everyone can recall exactly where they were and what they were doing at that moment. The expression, movement and lighting in the piece is flawless. My only small complaint is that you've done everything so perfectly realistic and then you've gone somewhat stylistic with the smoke - it just doesn't seem to be quite as billowing and cloud-like - especially when compared to your reference. You better be carefull, you might just be running away with this contest

Colour 2/2
Composition 3/3
Originality 5/6
Technical Skill 5/6
Research/historical accuracy 3/3
Total: 18/20

:iconsilver-eyes-blue:
1) Colour – 2/2 points
Wonderful use of color and great coloring skills here.
2) Composition – 3/3 points
The composition in this one works really well, one can almost feel as if being in the middle of what is going on. You did an awesome job on that.
3) Originality – 5/6 points
I saw that quite a few artists were considering depicting for this round of the contest. This was indeed one of the greatest tragedies in modern history and an event many will think about when asked about something which changed their lives. It is therefore difficult to judge the originality of the piece. I do find it lovely that you depicted it from the point of view of a firefighter.
4) Technical skill – 5/6 points
I love the way you handled the medium!
5) Research – 2.5/3 points
It is obvious you did some research, though not quite as much as some other contestants, so a half a point less for you this time.
Total: 17.5/20 points

:iconpinkpigtails:
1) Color 2/2
2) Composition 2/3
3) Originality 5/6
4) Technical skill 6/6
5) Research/ historical accuracy 3/3

Total: 18/20
excellent use of the medium and the composition is very nice. Its kinda refreshing to get into a time period after 1950. I expected to see more 9/11 inspired images but it makes your stand out more that there was only the one.

:iconjldragonfly:
1) Color 2/2
2) Composition 3/3
3) Originality 2/6
4) Technical skill 6/6
5) Research/ historical accuracy 2.5/3

Total: 15.5/20

I can not fault your technical skill, nor your obvious strengths in building a painting using proper references to depict both anatomy and architecture accurately. You are a very talented painter, who wields their medium well. However, I found in your choice of subject matter, while still in essence to be following the rules of the theme, somewhat lacking. The idea of this theme (and this contest) was to delve into something different, something unusual and to push yourself as an artist. While you did accurately depict your choice period of time very well, I feel that you sort of made the ‘easy’ choice. While I understand you wanted to pick something that was obvious and recognizable, I can’t imagine that you spent a great deal of time searching for accurate references or digging-up old books on fashion in the late 1680’s, as all of your back rounds and what-not are readily available in thousands of places amid the web. You had an opportunity here to really expand your frame of reference and create something very original fueled by your own research- and while you did create a very gorgeous painting, it really isn’t all that distinguishable from all the hundreds and hundreds of other works out there that honor 9/11. Work on this, on really creating ‘new from you’, and I believe you will go very far as an artist.
Image size
2511x3412px 978.34 KB
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