Briana Hertzog Illustration

2011-11-01T20:08:00.000-07:00

A couple not-so-good photos of a work in progress.

2011-06-17T13:30:00.000-07:00

In progress. Stopped painting it a while ago. Not sure when I'll go back to it.

2011-03-07T10:20:00.000-08:00

A detail of a new piece...almost finished.

2010-08-26T16:39:00.000-07:00

Trying to improve my painting skills.

2010-08-24T20:59:00.001-07:00

Oh, deer...

2010-08-17T14:08:00.000-07:00

More adjustments.

2010-08-16T12:03:00.000-07:00

Progress. I messed around with the color of the ribbon on Photoshop...still trying to figure out what I want to do with it. It is also cropped a little too close at the bottom.

2010-08-11T16:23:00.000-07:00

A detail from my new illustration.

2010-08-06T12:31:00.000-07:00

An update on this illustration.

2010-08-06T09:08:00.000-07:00

Sketch book pages and the start of a new illustration.

2010-07-08T13:47:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in a while...but I have been keeping up with my sketch book...I'll get around to posting those images soon. This is a piece in progress...I started to realize that I wasn't creating any illustrations because I'm spending so much time trying to make them the best I can (beginning with the concept)...eventually I start thinking the concept isn't good enough, and then I don't start anything and don't get anything done. So now I'm planning on being more impulsive...maybe then I'll be more productive.

2010-02-21T21:56:00.000-08:00

My father passed away unexpectedly in Nov. I feel like my life has been put on hold since then. I haven't been working on any illustrations but have been trying to keep up with my sketchbook. Here are a few pages from it.

2009-10-09T14:06:00.000-07:00

Almost the final drawing...I still need to add some things and change some figures I'm not happy with. I'll explain the theme and concept when I post the final. The image looks a little too confusing and crowded right now, but hopefully when I paint it I will be able to fix that. Most of the characters at the top will be pushed into the background which will help. I also want some of the characters to stand out more than others, so I will probably boost the contrast a little for those.

2009-10-02T11:50:00.000-07:00

I'm starting a new illustration while working on some commissions for friends and family...This is just a small detail of the drawing which is almost finished. I'm hoping I can finish the painting in about two weeks.

2009-08-31T16:05:00.000-07:00

I did this piece at the Academy as well, but it is unfinished.

2009-08-31T15:53:00.000-07:00

A couple of figure drawings from the Academy.

2009-08-28T14:53:00.000-07:00

Here is a detail of the piece I'm doing for my aunt. I still have a ways to go on it, but I'll post the final when I'm done.

2009-08-28T14:45:00.000-07:00

I forgot to put this up before...I was going to redo the lust piece at the academy, because it didn't turn out the way I wanted it to. Here is the drawing I started but never finished. And below it is just a page from my sketch book. I did some drawings of my sister's dog while it was sleeping.

2009-07-26T16:58:00.000-07:00

This is a piece I did for practice. My first self-driven illustration since I got back from the academy. There was no instruction on this, and I don't think it was very successful. But I'm trying. It is based on an article from Atlantic Monthly called Fish Story. I think the main purpose of the story was to talk about how things pass us by: known and unknown. So I used part of the narrative and pushed it a little further to illustrate a concept. The main character is hosing the fish, preparing it to be eaten, and the running water from the hose starts to form a pond or body of water that the fish can no longer reach. An opportunity of life that is passing the fish by.

2009-07-07T20:28:00.000-07:00

This is my fourth assignment here at the academy. We were told to illustrate a conversation. I chose to illustrate the fairytale The Frog King.

2009-07-07T20:22:00.000-07:00

I am extremely privileged to be attending the Illustration Academy this summer. Unfortunately we are in our second to last week. It's been an amazing experience thus far. Here is one of the images I created. Each student was assigned one of the 7 deadly sins. Mine was lust.

2009-05-04T13:57:00.000-07:00

2009-04-15T19:15:00.001-07:00

Everton

2009-04-15T19:03:00.000-07:00

Just for practice. I was trying to create a balance between flat and volumetric shapes. An instructor of mine mentioned once that tension is an element that makes a piece interesting. I think tension can be found in different elements of an image whether its an X shaped composition with opposing lines and angles, or the close placement of two complimentary colors, or maybe the contrast between flat and volume.

Coraline

2009-04-15T18:58:00.000-07:00

2009-04-15T18:54:00.000-07:00

2009-04-15T18:42:00.000-07:00

I created this image for an article about a Sri Lankan businessman who sacrifices different aspects of his religion and culture to benefit his son. The idea lies with the fact that pouring a drink is seen as a sacrifice in some cultures. Tea in itself is an important aspect of the culture of Sri Lanka. The father here is sacrificing his tea by pouring it into his son's overflowing cup.

2009-04-15T18:16:00.000-07:00

This piece was created for an article about cats having dominance over dogs when living in the same house. The idea for this illustration was to replace the irises of the cat's eyes with power symbols. It's a subtle change but still gets the point across. the composition of the large cat overpowering the small dog also helped push the idea. The stripes on the cat create a repeating circular pattern emulating an idea of hypnosis.

2009-04-15T18:06:00.000-07:00

These two pieces were created for for the Richmond Times Dispatch holiday calendar competition. The images were supposed to be representative of the holiday season.

Gun Show

2009-04-15T18:01:00.000-07:00

This is a piece I created in 2007 for an article about gun control at gun shows.