Dear Friends,
Most of my fans know that during the mid-’80s to the early ’90s, I worked with Hasbro producing G.I. Joe artwork for their Research and Development Department. This art was done as presentation for the Board of Directors to determine whether any particular character would move forward to future production. My task was to paint the characters designed as 3 1/2″ toys to look like real fighting G.I. Joe characters. None of this work was meant for publication, however, over the years, fans and collectors have seen some of this art via the Web or fan club communications. (One of the future projects I am hoping to get off of the ground is a collection of all of this unseen artwork into a G.I. Joe/Hasbro art volume. I will keep you up to date on information as this project progresses.)
I have many fans contact me directly about the art I did during this period. Recently one of those fans asked if I’d be interested in recreating some of those pieces for his private collection. This is not something that I normally do, but this particular fan showed so much enthusiasm that I thought that it might be fun to see how I would approach these paintings almost 20 years later. I took on his commission for the three recreations and now I present to you one of them as an art progressive:
Pencil on Illustration Board Recreating the Character to Be Painted
Progressive #2:
The original landscape for this painting had a textured rock pattern that I applied with very thick gesso. I repeated that technique on this new board as well.
Progressive #3:
Here I start laying in some of the b/g colors, starting with the explosion in the mid left.
Progressive #4:
The b/g is almost complete at this point with the main figure clean so that when I add color to the figure, it will be unencumbered by underpainting.
Progressive #5:
After the b/g dries, I now lay in the underpainting for the basic colors of the figure.
Progressive #6:
Continuing similar to the previous photo, I lay in the rest of the colors for this figure.
Progressive #7:
With the basic tones being laid down in oils, I now begin the detail work with acrylics, starting with the head and moving downward.
Progressive #8:
Work continues with the acrylics, adding more detail to the body and his equipment.
Progressive #9:
At this point, I've completed some of the finer shadowing details and refinements with various shades of gray markers. You'll note final details on the ground and some color corrections for the background. The above is the finished piece.
This piece was 16″ x 20″ oil, acrylic and marker on gessoed illustration board. It is the exactly the same size as the original Hasbro artwork. If you have comments or questions about this piece, please feel free to post them here.
Many of my G.I. Joe fans have asked me about commission work or recreations. This is the first one I have ever done, and I did enjoy bringing back good memories of working with the artists and creators at Hasbro. I would certainly be happy to do more of this type of work if any of you are interested. Please feel free to email me directly at dormanart@yahoo.com or message me via Facebook
As always, I thank you for your time and interest in my work.
Dave
Dave Dorman 
Blogger Dave Dorman Now Offering Product Reviews
Posted in Action Figures, Blog, Blogger, Blogger Review, Blogging, Busts, Charity, Chicago Comic Book Artists, Christmas Gifts, Collectibles, Collections, Collectors, Comic Book Art, Comic Book Artist, Comic Book Cover Art, Comic Books, DAVE DORMAN NEWS, Denise Dorman, Entertainment, F. Paul Wilson, Facebook, Fan Culture, Figurines, Geek, Geek Culture, GI Joe, Hanukkah Gifts, Hasbro, Holiday Gifts, Horror, Horror Art, Illustration, LinkedIn, Lucasfilm, Military Art, Nerd Culture, Painting, Pop Culture, Product Review, Product Reviewer, Sculptures, Snowtroopers, Social Activism, Social Commentary, Social Networking, Twitter, USACares.org, WriteBrain Media with tags Blogger, Dave Dorman, Denise Dorman, FTC, Honest Product Reviews, Product Reviews, Review Products, social media, Social Networking, Unbiased Product Reviews, WriteBrain Media on November 28, 2011 by DaveandDeniseDormanDear Friends,
In accordance with FTC blogger review rules, I am now making myself available to review products. Please know that regardless of who sends me an item, and regardless of its monetary value, I will give my readers an HONEST PRODUCT REVIEW. Product managers, please let me know in writing if it is time sensitive for me to review your product and provide me with a clear deadline. As you know, for a freelance artist, paying work always comes first, so if I get deluged with items, the types of products I will give priority to for reviews will include the following:
Any products that I can’t or won’t keep, I will donate to the needy families of my charity, USACares.org, or to fellow artists in need. To participate in a Dave Dorman Product Review, please send your items to:
Dave Dorman, Product Reviewer
P.O. Box 417
Carpentersville, IL 60110
If you have any questions, please feel free to email my publicist, denise@writebrainmedia.com.
As always, thanks for reading,
Dave
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