Fuel in the fire WIP *Updated*

[Foxglove]

Hi all,
Our first illustration assignment for the year is to do an autobiographical piece about our art so far.
I sketch quite a bit, but don't make many finished pieces, so all the piles of paper are fuel for the fire. The furnace is like a heart, fueling both the mechanical technical skills and the organic imagination I need to improve.
C&C please!
http://www.rsad.edu/~lsmith1/Dailysketch/081603.jpg

[WildSpruceMoose]

Cool concept/idea. Good starts on colour/texture. I think it COULD be cropped down a bit.

[Foxglove]

About 5 more hours of painting...more critique please?
Wildsprucemoose, cropping the top or the bottom, or both?
http://www.rsad.edu/~lsmith1/Dailysketch/081903.jpg

[WildSpruceMoose]

Looking back on it the crop I suggested would be very minor shave from the top. I don't think it needs it anymore though. It was just that the length of the vessels looked uneeded, however I'm not sure anymore.

Looking good. I don't quite see anything wrong. The colours are looking good and well blended. Can't wait to see when your done with it!

[William b. Hand]

Good start!

I think the furnace is too dominating. The size is fine, but the colours are too light and bright. I think it should be a lot darker and the colours subtler.

I'm not entirely clear on the symbolism of the heart-shaped furnace, actually. Feeding a furnace fulfills its intended purpose and warms the building, right? So... Does the abandonment of started projects (throwing unfinished pics into the flame) really warm your building?

I think you might consider other possible symbols that you can scatter throughout to give us further, clearer insight into your experience.

The simpler your symbolism, the more sense it has to make.


;)

[Foxglove]

Another update of WIP, thank you for all the comments!
http://www.ladyfoxglove.dragoncity.net/Dailysketch/082003.jpg
Added in more shadow to make the colors less bright and the lighting more realistic.
William b. Hand- It's not so much they're unfinished projects as just piles of sketches. I draw a lot, they warm my technical skill and help me develop ideas for finished pieces. There's no canvases or colored work in the pile, just developmental work. :)

[bgermain]

I like the symbolism. The furnace provides power or energy to produce the sketches which in turn become additional fuel in the form of inspiration.

I suggest making the metal of the furnace body appear to glow blue and red (like overheated metal) instead of appearing painted.