Piece by Piece

I like to create pieces like these in stages. Sometimes I'll sit and start and finish a piece in a mental sitting, but mostly I'll draw it up in pencil, rest with it a bit, enjoy the process of choosing every individual item/expression/emotion/symbolism in the piece. When I'm ready, I take a deep breath and head in with ink.

"Penny" in progress...
Finding images of Penny Farthings was wonderful for this one... I always like to reference images if I'm going to draw something I don't see everyday.
Did you know someone's made a Penny Farthing Motorcycle??!!

Up close details for "Penny" and "Eagle in the Sky"

"Eagle in the Sky" in sketch form didn't take on too many variations... I changed her gloves to incorporate feathers (whatever I sketched out reminded me of the weird frills you'd find on cooked turkeys. Not really the kind of intimidation I was going for with her.)
The falling dead bird was kind of an after thought but its now what I'm drawn to the most.
It reminds me of laying down harmonies in a song and then never hearing the song without them...
The pencil sketch by the edge of her skirt in the second image was going to be an eagle skeleton, but with the dead bird, perhaps death overkill for a pretty exhibition...