Jim asked for a Phoenix that was unique. He liked both the bird of prey Anglo-Saxon phoenix, and the peacock-like phoenix from Asia. Not sure what direction to go, I decided to mix the two styles and added my own touch of prehistoric feel. Jim also asked that I incorporate a tribute to his two sons in the piece, so they are represented as two orbs in the claws of the phoenix. We had originally discussed this piece being in bright bold color. We started with the line work and initial grey shading, and kept an open discussion about the color during the first couple sessions. After a few attempts at color combinations, and a growing feel that it just needed to be black and grey, we let the piece be what it wanted, and knocked out the details in bold grey washes. Voila!
The original sketch:
