Mugshot, 2017, In Progress Gif

January 15, 2017

Those of you who follow me on social media know that every year, right at the beginning of the year, I like to draw my character Azra in one way or another. What I aim to do with this drawing is to see how much I’ve improved over the past year and really push myself to make something detailed, believable, and at least semi realistic.

In 2015, I made this work:

Naive
Naive, 2015

In 2016, I did this one:

Azra, 2016
Azra, 2016

And now, in 2017, I’ve gone with this one:

Mugshot, 2017
Mugshot, 2017

The idea behind this one is uber simple. Azra is not exactly known for staying out of trouble, so it’s not surprise to anyone that he’d have been picked up by the police once, twice, or more than that. He has a long history of toiling with illegal activities, and he definitely has spent some time in federal lockup for at least one thing. So, why not explore the idea of a mugshot? Azra is super particular about being photographed, so much so that he will not allow anyone to do it, if he has any say about it. The thought crossed my mind — if he won’t go have a photo taken for an identification (say, for Agency usage), then they’ll have to dig up something elsewhere. What if they could only dig up an old mugshot of his? Last laugh, right there.

Here’s an alternative, with his short hair and his salt and pepper:

Shorthaired Azra Mugshot

But also, if the plate is correct, the photo might be in black and white:

Black & White Azra Mugshot

And then a detail shot so you can see his leucistic traits such as his colorless eyelashes, near colorless skin, and pink areas around his eyes. Plus I put a lot of detail into his face! It’d be a shame to lose it all.

Mugshot, Azra closeup

Then, here’s how it looked, funny beginning to end:

Mugshot, 2017 Gif

Aimee Cozza is a freelance illustrator out of Southern New Hampshire. She graduated from the New Hampshire Institute of Art in 2012 with a bachelor’s degree in illustration. Since then, she has been working in a variety of ways completing various illustrations for clients, friends, and for herself.

Love art?

Sign up for new illustrative artworks, Photoshop and digital art tips, tricks, timelapse videos, art product reviews, and more shenanigans delivered straight to your inbox! You'll receive one email a month. I'll never share or sell your information with anyone and you can unsubscribe at any time.
I am interested in emails about: