Some final painting process shots and notes:

I wanted to have a strong nature presence in the sanctuary, so the central courtyard and fountain became a major part of the image, as did the statues surrounding it - which are allegories to the different arts. Architecturally, the roman arches represent the past/our artistic inheritance, and the geodesic dome covering the central garden modernity/the future.

As I was thinking about story, I knew that I wanted a pair of newcomers just arriving from the outside as our way into the picture - and I wanted them to look like they'd had to fight their way through to get there. As I painted them in, I realised I had the opportunity to push the humorous aspect of the whole artists-as-apocalypse-survivors scene I'd created and added a touch of surrealism by including the giant robot (he's sad, because he can't come in) and fighter jets in the bg to represent the chaos of an outside world that's collapsing - in contrast to the peace and tranquility of the sanctuary.

Since I have a very specific structure in mind, I start building everything in 3D. This helps me figure out the placement and sizes of things and lets me try out different camera angles and lighting scenarios. I also add placeholder figures for the characters.

I pose some pre-rigged base characters for the statues and model some props, all very rough since I know I will solve the details in the painting stage.

Once I have decided on my composition and lighting I render it out and start the painting process.

As you can see my final render is pertty rough, with placeholder mannequins and no colors, which allows me to be more loose and flexible in the painting stage.

From there I make somewhat tighter sketches, starting to think about composition and values. Also noting down ideas about mood and story.

I like starting with scribbles and notes in my sketchbook, ideation is faster for me with pencil and paper.

As someone who feels most at home in the world when either learning a new skill or creating, I knew that my personal oasis would be a place of study and creative exploration. So I imagined a place that was part futuristic art school, part studio spaces, that would combine my love for renaissance sculpture, ancient roman architecture, massive libraries and a little bit of sci-fi...