Sometimes you need to get something  wrong to figure out what you want.

It’s not that I don’t like how this piece came out, but it represents my first thoughts on how the character should look and after a while, I realized this wasn’t quite right. Sometimes I’ll get a hit with my first attempt at designing something. More often, when the rubber meets the road, I figure out where I need to make adjustments.

Overall, I’m pleased with the thick, excessive features, contrasting the almost glamour-makeup look of the blue-black lips (modeled on Chow Chow and bear tongues), the overly wide mouth (stitched at the sides; he likes to talk, this guy) and dark eye-sockets. The flowing hair and wide sideburns make him look like a Gothic hero who’s been left to over-ripen and maybe even spoil. But this is a runner-up, not the character I’m looking for.

Every wrong turn brings me somewhere, even if it’s not where I thought I was going.