THE IDEA
There have been thousands, even millions of interpretations of love. As many as there are people on Earth, as many as there have been women and men. The first image that often comes to mind is a couple embracing and kissing. At first, I thought of the famous Kiss by the Hôtel de Ville photo, but while searching for it, I came across this image taken from Four Weddings and a Funeral, the British film directed by Mike Newell, released in 1994. It struck me as bolder and just as rooted in our collective memory. And that kiss between Andie MacDowell and Hugh Grant is just as iconic.
WHAT I WANT TO EXPRESS
First, I want to try to depict this scene in a simplified way. This will allow me to focus on the composition, understand its movement, and hopefully find the essence of a kiss that feels as universal as possible — and detach myself from the original image. I already see its potential, and I’m going to share it with you in the true order in which it unfolds.
MATERIALS
As usual, I use very basic tools you can find in any art supply store around the world. Here, I used a small Muji sketchbook (17 x 25 cm) with thin recycled paper. I like its smooth texture and cream color. For the brush pen, this is the reference I used:
UNI — Pin / Extra Fine Brush
STEP 1
It’s important to visualize the size and placement of the rest of the figure on the page. I start from the top, beginning with the man’s hand. Here, the thumb was the first stroke.
