Lion Painting Timelapse - Hyperrealism Acrylic Painting

In this video I'll paint my biggest and most complex mixed media art piece yet. My name is Raisa Trent, I am a realism artist originally from South Africa and now residing in the UK. Drawing any piece of art it is vital to work out your size and structure so the piece is symmetrical. Here I'm drawing out the grid to keep everything to scale and in proportion. It's going to be 2 meters by 1.5 meters. Because of this and throughout the project I will need to move and adjust the canvas and frame when needed. Growing up I really enjoyed drawing. From a young age I was exposed to the art world through my parents own love for art. Ever since then it evolved into drawing more complex subject matter such as wildlife. I enjoy using a mixture of pencil and acrylic when creating my art. Art is a very emotional form of expressing yourself and I've always loved creating artworks in a realistic way. Especially when it comes to wildlife subject matters. I started painting the background base colours using an impasto technique. By applying the paint thickly with a sponge I have time to work with the paint as acrylic paint can dry fast. Given that this is a larger piece of work meant this technique was vital, allowing me time to blend my colours. I shall be washing out a lot of these heavier base colours with lighter layers shortly. I had to pay special attention to the mane as it's a delicate task. I began by working with the darkest colours first to the lightest colours as well as working from the fur that was furthest from his face so I could layer the fur on top to create depth. Now you can see the lion really start to take hold and come to life. In order to ensure the background colours are fitting and so that I can continue the impasto technique, I had to take the canvas off the frame and onto the floor so I can work with the lighting better. Now the painting is back on its frame, it's time for the finishing touches. And that's a wrap. Here is the gorgeous end result, I'm sure you'd agree. So that my art can be enjoyed by everyone, I have had prints made of the painting. I have also had my painting digitally enhanced. The backdrop itself reminds me of my roots in South Africa, this often inspires my work. Here it is compared to the original. There are two types of prints available to purchase, both the original and the digitally enhanced. The painting itself is also available for one lucky person, please see the website for more details.