Steps to a GRUNT Poster

Creating a GRUNT poster is often a competition of ideas. These start as thumbnails sketches that I’ve been sharing on this platform, and that generally winnows down the ideas to a couple of contenders. Sometimes though, you need to take an image a bit further to determine if it will make the cut.

This image has been an idea that’s kicking around in my head a while now. It plays on the concept of dronification, and loosing yourself in that in a more melded way. Generally, I have a pretty good idea of the visual in my minds eye, but for this one I needed to carry it through to a digital rough to really get a sense of it.

It wasn’t until I laid the charcoal of the rubber down that this idea really started to relay the slick of the rubber, even in the rough. The thing is, the images for GRUNT have to be a bit more, well, inviting.

The VML (@vanleathermen) GRUNT posters are starting to go up in locations other than our local leather bar, the Pumpjack. So that means pulling a few punches in the visuals, skewing a little more towards the “traditional” leather and rubber images - or as close as I get. I guess, what I really mean is, well a few folks have found some of the posters ”a bit scary”.

Also, I wanted to be mindful of Rubbout’s theme; Technicolor. And if there’s one thing this image isn’t it’s colourful.

Still, there is something here in the image. Something I will probably bring back as fine art piece.