Himself {art}

[altocello]

This is the third in a series of Outlander portraits; the other two are "Mo Nighean Donn" and "Scourge." Jamie is the link between Claire and Black Jack, the pivot upon which their relationship rests, and he is that fulcrum simply because Claire loves Jamie for being himself, and Jack wants him for the same reason. Plus, he's Himself, the Laird of Broch Tuarach.



I see this as the center of a triptych, with Claire on Jamie's right, and Jack on Jamie's left.



Plus bonus WIP GIF:



Also on:

AO3 | DA | Tumblr

Huge thanks to jelazakazone, rocknvaughn, k_nightfox, @Kath_Powell, and @crlkn75 for all of their encouragement! <3 <3

Comments

[mrs-leary.livejournal.com]

Well, my love... I have to say that this triptych - and the double portrait of Jamie and Claire you posted a little while ago - would have to be your best work. Proper portraits, they are! Beautifully done. They all look like real people, and it is very refreshing to see that Claire is a woman - not a girl, not even a young woman, but a woman. Really really well done.

I can't imagine where you'll go to from here, but I am looking forward to it, whatever it may be.

[altocello.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much! They're all drawn from references, of course, the trick is getting me to duplicate them faithfully. :D

I can tell you how happy it makes me to hear you say the part about Claire being a woman and not a girl! I mean, I know you and I both have an appreciation for mature characters, but it's still lovely to hear it again! I could go on for days about why I've fallen so hard for this book series and TV show, but one of the many (many) reasons is that Claire is a mature woman, not a girl. And another is that it centers on how she and Jamie keep their relationship strong despite all the things that get tossed at them, because honestly getting married is the easy part, it's staying married that's the hard part.

I have some ideas for illustrations from some of the further books in the series, but I'm not sure when they'll materialize. They'll be a bit different from these, probably a lot less focused on the face, but then I always say that. For now I'm collecting references and drawing pose studies and letting it all marinate in my head.

I would love to do another proper portrait of Colin using what I've learned through doing these drawings. Maybe I'll do that while the other Outlander stuff is settling itself out in my head. :D And maybe I'll draw Ned Gowan (played by the wonderful Bill Patterson), and get some more love for mature faces out there. :D

[caitri.livejournal.com]

Wow! Those are AMAZING!!!!!!!!!!

[altocello.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much!! :D So glad you enjoyed them! <333

[yeuxdebleu.livejournal.com]

Another winner...actually several. You captured Sam as Jamie perfectly and I love the triptych. The work in progress pic is fascinating. I especially love Jamie's hair and once again, great work on his clothing. You astound me.

Who is the Colin you mentioned? I can think of several: Colin Firth, Colin O'Donoghue, Colin Morgan, Colin Donnell....

[altocello.livejournal.com]

Thank you, so VERY much! I love sharing process, but I also know not everyone is into that kind of thing, so I'm always delighted when someone likes my WIP GIFs. :D Jamie's hair is, well, it's a pain, but I love it. There is just no easy way to do messy curls like that, lol. So glad you like the result!

I'm referring to Colin Morgan, of Merlin fame. My default icon is a drawing I did of him for a fic by my very dear friend mrs_leary. Merlin was my first foray in to online fandom (I'm a late bloomer, what can I say?). :D

[yeuxdebleu.livejournal.com]

Well, I think you did a great job on Jamie's hair so I'd say the effort was worth it.

I never saw Colin Morgan in Merlin, but I know he was in it. I first discovered him in season 2 of "The Fall," (http://rebloggy.com/post/sorry-colin-morgan-the-fall-scgifs-stella-gibson-merlincastedit-i-am-shameless-d/105503385771) the British mini-series with Gillian Anderson and Jamie Dornan. I was smitten. I just saw him in "Testament of Youth" on DVD, too.

Speaking of late bloomers, the first fandom I followed was Robert Pattinson and the "Twilight" films.

[altocello.livejournal.com]

YAY! Always good to know the work was worth the effort to the viewer! <3

I first saw Colin in Doctor Who, actually (Midnight, with David Tennant), and was intrigued when I heard he'd snagged the lead in BBC's Merlin. And well, then I fell down the rabbit hole. He just keeps getting better, it's amazing. I liked what he did with the part they gave him in The Fall, that interrogation scene with Katie was SO good. Haven't managed to see him in ToY yet, or Legend, but they're both on my "to watch soon" list. :D And all the other things he's been in, my god the man never takes a break.

Late bloomers FTW!

[yeuxdebleu.livejournal.com]

Oh yes, Colin's interrogation of Katie was brilliant. I was so shocked when it showed him in Stella's bed. O_O I hadn't seen that coming.

If you watch Testament of Youth, be sure to have tissues nearby. It's the saddest movie I've seen in years....but VERY good. I want to see Legend, too. Looks like a very gripping film.

Yes, he's very busy. He is currently filming a movie about the Irish Easter Uprising, has a film in pre-production and three in post.

BTW, Colin's 30th birthday is tomorrow; he was a New Year's baby.

[yeuxdebleu.livejournal.com]

You should do a painting of Colin based on THIS (http://40.media.tumblr.com/6acc9e124900b19d4cac28f2aa0bf688/tumblr_ngw2r1Pb7U1u37oqio1_r1_1280.jpg) photo. I think it's gorgeous.

[altocello.livejournal.com]

Pretty much any promotional still of Colin is gorgeous, lol, it's the subject :D

[thalialunacy.livejournal.com]

The stubble!! The eyes!! holy cow you are talented and skilled <3 <3 <3

[altocello.livejournal.com]

<3 <3 Thank you so much, Thalia! (I love drawing eyes, can you tell? And stubble is oddly relaxing to draw, unlike that devil-spawn trim on Black Jack, lol)