Summary
Ice-T Speed Painting by contemporary artist Bart Carels. A bold portrait of the iconic rapper, built with expressive brushwork and layered color.
Title: ‘H.U.S.T.L.E.R.’
Artist: Bart Carels
Year: 2020
Process
This Ice-T speed painting started with a Vermillion underpainting, similar to several of my earlier pieces. I sketched the outlines using Primary Cyan. My goal wasn’t realism — I wanted something that felt bold and unique. Color, not accuracy, was the focus.
I started with the eyes. Although we tend to think the whites of the eyes are actually white, they’re often not. In my reference photo, there was reflective blue and purple light in the eyes. To match that, I blended Cyan, Magenta, a touch of Yellow, and some White to get the right shade.
From there, I blocked in the darker elements — the cap’s shadow, moustache, beard, and shirt. I also began layering skin tones using the Vermillion background as a base. That red-orange peeking through creates warmth and depth. I added subtle blue reflections on the cheek, neck, and under the eye. The moment I placed the highlights in the eyes, the painting suddenly came to life.
After that, I focused on adding shadows, highlights, and skin color variation. For the chain, I used simple light and shadow strokes — enough to instantly suggest gold without over-detailing. Sometimes, minimalism works best.
The final touch? A mix of Cyan, Titanium White, and Primary Yellow to add cool-toned areas in the background. These contrast nicely with the warm Vermillion and balance the composition.
Like the rest of my music, rap and hip-hop pieces, this one was all about capturing attitude, not perfection. If you’re into fast, expressive portrait work, this one’s for you.
Painting Specs
- One-of-a-kind artwork
- Medium: Mixed Media on Paper (black marker & acrylic paint)
- Size: 24x32cm / 9×12 inches
- Color Palette: Cyan | Magenta | Yellow | Black | White
Availability
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