Melisande, reference polaroid.

Here is an interesting reference polaroid I came across the other day.
It was the very first time I worked directly from photographs in my illustration work.
The model is a good friend and fellow illustrator, Siobhan Dodds.
I remember I was particularly keen to make the fall of the draperies convincing, but I didn't have access to any costumes back in the mid-1980s, so I made do with a sheet.
The painting is all the better for that. I had to invent details of the dress and Melisande's hair, and the whole of the town was created from my imagination.
Sometimes it's best not to have extensive reference photos, you can end up leaning on them too much. Finding the perfect balance between photography and imagination has been an ongoing challenge for me over the years.