Paper Mache Eye: Take 2, part 3

So!  I am 99% done with this project. And I left it at work, so I can't get that 1% done tonight, but it just involves cutting a slightly larger window for the light switch - not a big deal.  I haven't updated about it in a while... so, here we go!

I've had a ton of fun with this.  A complete learning experience, and never quite what I expected.  I made a few mistakes, and if I had all the time in the world, I would make one more of these.  I might still, if I want one for myself.  But, this one turned out pretty well even if I feel it's a bit cheesy, all told.

Electricity!

But, I'm jumping the gun a bit.  So, I left off with the eye being mostly finished, at least in my mind at that point.  The paper mache had dried, and the iris had been... semi-painted. 

From the beginning, I had this idea of adding a cornea to the eye as well.  I felt like the white tissue paper was translucent enough to work.  And with a hole cut in the iris for the pupil, I could get a balloon in far enough to make a small armature for the cornea.

 So, I taped down the balloon to flatten it out some, and started to add a very, very thin layer of paper mache.  I put a release on the balloon and only wanted to use one layer of the tissue paper.  I wasn't even sure if it would stand up on it's own after removing the balloon.  I let it dry for two days, just to make sure.

And, it worked!  Sorta.  I wasn't very happy with it, though.  The paper wasn't nearly as translucent as expected.  Very milky white.  I'm still not sure why it didn't dry quite as see-through as it seemed to on the eye itself.  It may have to do with the color under it when it was on the retina though.  But, I left it for now.

Late one night, I decided to modify the lighting rig.  I had two door lights, the ones with the magnetic opener.  So, I ripped one apart.  Just completely demolished the casing in the hopes of lessening the space it takes up.  And, low and behold, it worked! 

This was a pretty big gamble, and the magnetic on/off switch did die (and I have not a single clue why.  there's nothing that actually broke.  So why would the magnetic on/off stop working outside the plastic?)  However, this time, the reward was worth the risk.  Although I did lose the diffuser effect.

All lit up, with the (mostly opaque) cornea.

I decided that it was way past time to get the backing painted.  I sketched out where I wanted the otic cup and fovea, and the vessels.  I did make the arteries match up to the thread arteries on the eye itself.  I'm inordinately proud of that.

I added a basic orange, and then a few layers to help lay things out.  And I decided to use the fovea as a type of light source.

Laying in artery placement

Adding shadows to the vessels

So I started to block in where I wanted the arteries to be.  And I found out that trying to paint tiny arteries on a 4 x 4" square with a set of brushes meant for 30 x 40" canvases at the least... is difficult. 

Very difficult.

Shadows.

More shadows.

I stared to add in the shadows that would be cast onto the retina wall.  And I started layering in the shadow more loosely, trying to get a more natural feel.  I kept the style pretty rough, though.

More shadows, still.

Highlights!

I made the shadows deeper, and started to use different colors.  I also defined the otic cup a bit more.

Then I added highlights along the vessels themselves.

 

Then I got a little crazy with the shadows and color layering.  The entire piece had felt a little disconnected, and I couldn't figure out why.  So I went more dramatic.  I layered in a few layers of shadow over the whole thing, and then I added a red and orange layer for good measure.  It's not perfect, but it's a sight better than it was.

But then I got a little paint happy.

I decided that since the background and the retina of the eye had taken color so well, I was going to add some to the white and just a hit of blue on the cornea.

It looked horrible.

Luckily, it peeled off.  Sorta.  the entire cornea was ripped off just like a bit of paint.  Goodbye, cornea.  Not sure I'm going to miss you.

With a combination of scraping, knives, sandpaper of various grits, and judicious use of finger nails, I was able to get the majority of the white paint off.  Nasty paint.

And I took a huge leap of faith and cut a viewing window into the eye.  I ended up liking the backdrop just a tad too much. 

And, no way to go back now!

Cutting a piece did help me to avoid the area where the white paint wouldn't come off.  This cut section had a short stardom role as test painting for about a hour or so, then was put to pasture as just a useful piece of funk.

I don't know if I'm crazy or just persistent (or both, quite possibly), but I tried paining the sclera once again.  I did test it on the eye scrap, and it turned out alright. 

I wanted the texture between the retina and sclera to match as well - at the moment, both sides are painted over with a black wash and then blotted dry to preserve some of the translucency.

I also added some different colors to the iris.  Made it a light blue with more striations and mixed in just a hint of green.  Mostly blue, as you can see.  Some iridescence as well.

Let there be light!

And that brings us back here.  Once I retrieve my eye from Stanford, I'll post some 'finished' pictures.  And consider not doing a blow by blow again... that makes for some long posts.