This week wasn't about creating finished artwork.
It was about practice.
I've spent the last few weeks thinking a lot about Wonderland Redux and what I want this collection to become. The funny thing is, the more I think about it, the less I believe this project starts with Alice, the White Rabbit, or any of the characters.
I think it starts with the world.
So instead of trying to create finished illustrations, I've been slowing down and working on fundamentals. Line drills. Value studies. Cloud studies. Tree studies. Character sketches. The sort of work nobody ever sees when they look at a finished painting.
A lot of it feels awkward.
I've been painting for many years, but I'm discovering that painting and illustration are not the same thing. I can paint abstractly. I've done that for years. What's challenging me now is creating a believable world that characters can inhabit.
This week I spent quite a bit of time studying clouds.
Not because I'm fascinated by clouds, but because they are a great way to practice values. Strip away colour, and you're left with light, shadow, atmosphere, and form. The more I work on these studies, the more I realize that Wonderland Redux may not be a colour problem. It may be a value problem.
A convincing world needs structure beneath it.
I've also started exploring characters again.
One surprise was Alice.
I've known from the beginning that I don't want a Disney-inspired Alice. Countless interpretations already exist. What interests me more is the idea of an Alice shaped by experience. Not an innocent child wandering through Wonderland, but someone who has lived a little, questioned things, gotten lost, and perhaps returned to Wonderland with a different perspective.
The Tweedles have surprised me too.
The more I simplify them, the more they seem to work. They don't need much detail. A strong shape, a silhouette, and a presence seem more important than rendering every feature.
The biggest discovery this week is that I feel something beginning to emerge.
I can't fully describe it yet.
The sketches are rough. My drawing needs work. My values need work. My illustration skills definitely need work.
But I keep seeing the same ideas reappear:
Atmosphere matters.
The environment is as important as the characters.
Mystery is more interesting than explanation.
Suggestion is more powerful than showing everything.
Wonderland feels beautiful, strange, and slightly unsettling.
Most importantly, I'm enjoying the process.
That's probably the best sign of all.
For now, I'll keep practicing.
More clouds.
More values.
More trees.
More questions.
And hopefully, little by little, Wonderland Redux will reveal itself.