Matchstick Phoenix

Just thought I would post this little experiment of mine that I did for the University of Phoenix. I used a few more textures than I normally would, along with some new ones like the film grain overlay. After teaching my Skillshare course, Communicate with Color, Pattern and Texture, I figured I needed to play around a bit more out of my comfort zone. This piece where I visualized a phoenix out of matchsticks was a great exercise and really made me wish I had more time to play. Look for opportunities to get your hands dirty and experiment. I just read a fantastic article about taking advantage of downtime as a freelancer on How Design. Best time to pursue your own work is when you don't have work from clients. Take advantage of that time. The more mileage you have under your belt, the better you will become.