Using the pen as a curse, I draw the supreme wizard in my heart.
When my fingertips touched the slightly cool paper, a blue ballpoint pen slowly rotated in my hand, and I knew that a narrative about "protection" and "rebirth" was about to unfold in this small space. I am a creator who is obsessed with ballpoint pen drawings, and today, I am going to draw Doctor Strange, the hero with the most philosophical depth in the Marvel universe.
Choosing Doctor Strange was not a whim. The growth arc of this character is itself a portrait of great tension. He was once an arrogant and arrogant genius surgeon, capable of creating miracles of life with his hands, but was destroyed by fate in a car accident. His hands trembled and he could no longer hold the scalpel. This kind of despair from the peak of life to the bottom of the valley is just like the "darkest moment" that each of us encounters in life. Ancient One once said to him, "Death gives life meaning, so you know time is short and days are few." This sentence deeply hurt me and became the motivation for me to write. I want to use the brush to restore his whole process from being obsessed with "repairing his hands" to letting go of "self", and finally becoming the supreme wizard who protects the Earth.
Draft: Beneath the lines, there is the reshaping of the soul.
The initial stage of creation is the drafting stage, which is extremely time-consuming. Instead of writing with a ballpoint pen, I first sketched the outline with a very light pencil. In this process, I constantly adjust the composition: let Doctor Strange's face occupy the visual center, with sharp eyes like a knife, looking straight ahead; His left palm is facing forward, and his index and middle fingers are together, which is the classic gesture for unleashing the power of "Mirror Dimension" or "Time Gem".
I pay special attention to the depiction of hand structure. One of the characteristics of ballpoint pen drawing is that it cannot be modified, which means that every line must be precise. Doctor Strange's hand, which was once a surgical knife that saved lives, is now a sacred object that summons magic. I repeatedly experimented with the curvature of the fingers on the sketch paper, so that the hands would look both powerful and a little fragile after years of hardship. In the background, the round window of the sanctuary behind me, I use simple geometric lines to frame it, which not only recreates the mysterious atmosphere of Kamar-Taj, but also lays the foundation for the subsequent deep blues.
Color scheme: A single blue tone, with the contrast between light and dark revealing the universe.
After finishing the rough draft, I switched to my familiar blue ballpoint pen. Without the help of color, the round ball pen relies solely on the density, heaviness, and layering of lines to create layers. This coincides with the magical characteristics of Doctor Strange - deep blue and purple tones, with a mysterious and aloof aura.
I'll start with the dark area. I first conquered Dr. Strange's hair, cape wrinkles, and facial shadows. I use a dense wiring method, pressing the tip of the pen heavily to draw a deep base color. This process should not be rushed; it must be done at a steady pace, like a master chanting a spell. In order to distinguish the texture of the skin, fabric and magic energy, I adjusted the strength of the wrist: the lines are soft when drawing the skin, simulating the real texture; When drawing the cloak, the strokes are powerful and expressive of the thickness of the fabric; I deliberately left a large blank space in the area where I performed the spell in the palm of my hand, which is the source of the burst of energy.
As I watched the image become three-dimensional and vivid, I felt like I was seeing the once proud Doctor Strange step out of the shadow of the car accident and find his own strength in the snowy mountains of Kamar-Taj.
Detailing: Get to the heart of the matter, make magic come to life on paper
This is the most time-consuming and painful part of the entire creative process. The details of the ballpoint pen drawing are "milled" out. On average, hundreds of thousands of wires need to be laid out per square centimeter.
First of all, it is the facial grace. I focus on Doctor Strange's eyes. It was an eye that saw through the multiverse, with the depth of a wise person and the firmness of a guardian. I used extremely fine lines to depict the direction of the eyebrows, used light lines to lay out the shadows of the eye sockets, and then added a little highlight in the pupil. This highlight is the soul of his eyes, as if he can penetrate the paper and look at the viewer. The details of the whiskers on the corners of the mouth, I use the wiring to layer and layer, to restore that rough and stylish texture, so that the character's demeanor is more vivid.
The second is the shaping of magical effects. This is the soul of the picture. The magic light in the palm, I didn't use pure black to press, but used white space to match the radiating lines. I drew countless delicate lines in the direction of the burst of energy, simulating the dynamic of magic particles splashing. That kind of tension that spills out from the palm and spreads to the surroundings looks extremely impactful under the blue monochrome. I imagine that he is facing off against Dormammu, trapped in a cycle of time, with each line carrying his declaration, "I have returned."
Finally, the background is highlighted. I refined the glass texture of the circular window of the sanctuary, using different shades of blue to express the refraction of light and shadow. The shadows in the distance deepened layer by layer, firmly locking the visual focus on Doctor Strange, forming a strong contrast between reality and illusion.
Conclusion: The pen is mightier than the sword, and the brush is mightier than the dao.
I took a deep breath when the last line was finished. There is not a speck of color in the entire painting, only pure blue. In this moment, I realized that this painting is not only a recreation of the character, but also my understanding of "growth".
The most touching thing about Dr. Strange is not that he has the Time Stone, but that he accepts his own imperfections. He did not cure his hands, but instead chose to live with regret and use magic to protect more lives. Just like the ballpoint pen in my hand, it can't be modified, every stroke is predetermined, but as long as you draw with your heart, every stroke can become a masterpiece.
Looking at the supreme wizard on the paper wearing a cloak and holding a light in his palm, I felt like I heard that classic line:“Dormammu, I've come to bargain!”(Dormammu, I'm here to make a deal!）。
This painting is finished, but the spirit it conveys is not over. It reminds me that there is no eraser in life, we can't go back, but we can wake up in adversity like Doctor Strange, let go of attachment, take the pen as a staff, and draw our own supreme road.
PS:The text content is translated, please forgive me if there are any mistakes.