This was an exercise in improving the value (Black and white contrast) in my drawings. I found an interesting collection of models covered in black greasepaint. The light would reflect off the black grease to a give extreme white reflections. Perfect for drastic light and dark values. I like to give myself exercises or projects in my sketchbook. I’ve heard from multiple designers and artists in a variety of different medias from graphic design to painting that everything stems from drawing. So work at it.
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I grew up in South Porcupine Ontario Canada. It’s a small town known mostly for gold mining and subjecting us to Shania Twain. Ya, that was us. Like a lot of kids growing up in northern Ontario, I was in love with playing hockey. Goaltending to be specific. I’ve been a goalie my entire life and as a kid the one thing I wanted more than anything else in the world was a crazy cool airbrushed goalie mask. Eventually many years later I would order my first professional paint job. I drew out a precise sketch in colour of what I wanted and sent it away. The green helmet above was painted by Heath Morrell a very talented painter that I’d recommend anyone to contact for some crazy skills on your grills.
A few years later, it’s time to change the green monster because I clash with almost every jersey. I wanted something with more neutral tones that could compliment most jerseys. So this time I went ahead and painted the adapted Monster myself. I went with a neutral whites and greys for the skin and as an accent I painted the gums a mix of dirty blond to chocolate brown. Now this helmet could match no matter what colour my jersey happened to be.
*Funny side-note: Immediately after altering the green helmet, I was recruited to play for a team wearing classic green North Stars jerseys.
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Frustration, oh the frustration in airbrushing a goalie mask. I painted my first goalie mask 2 years ago and I’ve painted a few more since then but let me tell you, it is a tedious process. I enjoy it, but I don’t promote it. It’s more of a hobby for me. I really just enjoy doing it for friends and my own goalie mask.
There is just too much effort that goes into making a good looking helmet that won’t be destroyed with one slap shot. Constant sanding to make sure every inch can grip the paint, mixing and layering your colours. Add the challenge of painting on a 3d object with a wavy shape and then hoping you don’t muck it up at any point and you’re done.
This helmet was for a friend that I met playing local pickup hockey. He asked for a mayan statue on both sides and some space on the chin for a future team logo. I drew up the sketch as a guide after I prepped the helmet for work. I don’t normally go into that much detail on a sketch, but I was waiting to receive his helmet and had time to draw. It’s always a great idea to map out where you’re going before you start a project, you’ll save so much time and hassle that way. I was a massive culprit of designing on the fly when I was student in college.
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