Proko - October Drapery Study Challenge

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October Proko Challenge - Costume Study

Lesson by

Steven Michael Hampton

assignments 244

For this master study, I referenced an illustration published by Del Fondo. Choosing Frankenstein felt like a natural homage, as I’m based in Ingolstadt, Germany—the very city Mary Shelley chose for Victor Frankenstein’s studies at the historic "Hohe Schule." I modified the pose so he is holding a carved pumpkin to make this drapery study about arm folds. The tension point is in his Armpit and the folds lead up to it. My goal was to direct the observer's eye from the primary focus of the face to the pumpkin. With the drapery course I feel like I can lift my knowledge of painting folds to the next level and create strong pieces. To ground the piece even further in local history, I framed the background with the silhouette of Ingolstadt’s landmark cathedral, the "Liebfrauenmünster." Fun fact: Not just Frankenstein came from Ingolstadt, but also the Illuminati. Happy Halloween, everyone! :)

ASSIGNMENTS

Prompt

We're back with a new Proko Challenge, just in time for spooky season!

Our Drapery course just wrapped up, so we're celebrating with a costume contest. Pick an existing horror movie character and do a drapery study of them, either in their original outfit OR in a Halloween costume you design. Vampire capes, mummy wraps, slasher coveralls, a werewolf in a bedsheet ghost costume... whatever the monster, the closet's open.

Entries will be judged on:

Fold Logic: Do the folds make sense? Show clear tension points, where the fabric pulls and pinches off the body's landmarks, and use active folds (pipe, diaper, compression, spiral, Z and flag) where they belong. No chaotic wrinkles.

Silhouette and Storytelling: Does the costume read as that character at a glance? Use shape language and gesture so the clothing reveals who, or what, is wearing it.

Designed, Not Copied: Edit the drapery so the main folds support the pose, and keep inert folds and small wrinkles quiet so they don't pull focus. Use light and shadow to guide the viewer's eye.

Medium: Any medium, traditional and digital, 2D and 3D is allowed.
Challenge is open to all participants 13 and older.

Deadline for entries is October 26th at 11:59pm PT and winners will be picked during a livestream by Steven Michael Hampton later that week. Submit your entry on this page.

Prizes

First place gets the Drapery course and 2 other Proko original courses

Second Place gets Drapery and one additional Proko original course

Third Place gets the Drapery course

Proko team pick and random winner will also receive the Drapery course

All winners will also get access to these model packs from Grafit Studio

950+ Elasticity And Fabric - Female Figure Poses
1150+ Female Classical Poses with Drapery, Props & Fabric
2450+ Art Academy Classical Female Poses And Fabric
Art Academy Figure Studies – 2350+ Female Reference Photos
1150+ Classical Artistic Female Poses with Drapery
and Pure Elegance: 1200+ Asian Girl in Drapery

Sponsored by Proko and Grafit Studio

Sourav Saha

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His scythe moves, His scythe grooves, He lives in the dark, As his weapons spark. He wears a shroud of shadows and truth, He speaks he whispers of your fleeting youth. His footsteps echo where the cold winds blow, Through fields of ashes where rivers of blood glow His hollow eyes his icy sighs Beneath his black hood where no joy lies. His cloak drags secrets across the floor, He silently knocks on every door. His scythe cuts through the veil of night, A silver flash, a beautiful sight. He whispers softly, “Your time has come,” He whispers softly and my body goes numb.

@rohaang

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Hiii proko, this is rohaan. I was trying to foreshorten the drapery to show something very dynamic. The caracter I have taken is "the batman who laughs". A hero turned into a monster. To me, that is very scary ! Thank you This my portfolio -https://www.instagram.com/rohaan.g?dlrf=MTI2dWdzYWM3c285aw==

Cheryl T

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Red from the movie "Us" is such a unique character who I haven't seen in horror before watching this movie. She's the leader of the tethered and the brain of a brutal plan to take over the United States - she dresses all of her allies in red boiler-suits, a leather glove and golden scissors. She endured a lot of trauma living in the underground and masks her anger and thirst for revenge under a calm expression, a harsh stare, and a scratchy voice. She fights with the grace of a ballerina and sharp scissors. I read that the inspiration for the outfits of the characters in Us were taken form Michael Jackson's Thriller song - in the opening scene she is shown as a child wearing a "Thriller" t-shirt.

Deepti Sonkar

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Hello! everyone. My submission of 'scarlet witch' is here. ( i tried ) thank you.

Chris Ulloa

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This is the last time I ever cut it this close. My writing looks more serial killer than the serial killer looks like a serial killer. Thank you for the opportunity

Haku BlaH

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I chose Jason

Haku BlaH

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This comment is to talk a little about the process I went through and what I wanted. Thinking about the wrinkles took me a long time, understanding them and deciding if the direction worked. I felt I should emphasize the folds on the arms and legs to leave a calmer space in the middle that would direct the gaze to the head. I also tried to make the folds point upwards. There were parts where I felt the folds, like the diaper crease and the spiral, blended into one. At some point, the right arm felt very quiet, too contrasting with the rest. I thought the gaze would be drawn there, and it wasn't a point of interest, so I decided to add more wrinkles. In that area, the right leg is slightly bent, and I thought about adding those folds after seeing my grandmother bend her knee and seeing that kind of pipe-like fold. Meanwhile, the other leg is relaxed, and the folds fall. I feel the contour itself points upwards, like an arrow. There were many things involved, but I think I've already gone on for too long.

Ruben Barahona

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Here is mine, grim reaper holding my tattoo machine. There is the initial pencil sketch, some in progress shots where you can see the drapery, and some studies of zigzag and half lock folds for the sleeves, I changed the hoodie, on the final version, thanks, it was nice meeting you this last weekend at light box.

Jo3_ The_Artbot

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Ayyy nice! what are the chances two tattoo artists pick a grim reaper hahaha 😂

Rubens Araujo

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For my entry, I decided to do a study of Dracula! I really liked the low angle perspective of this pose and how imposing it looked, but I felt that the head tilt made it look more heroic than scary. So I found this headshot of Bela Lugosi with this dramatic lighting and thought the shadows on the face looked really ominous, which perfectly fit my original idea with the pose. I chose this particular reference for the challenge, however, because of the difficulty of the caped draped over his arm. Because I was really drawn to that pose I decided to combine both references. I first did a rough sketch to nail the pose and mood of the scene. A lot of the emphasis was on getting the head to fit the body and the lighting of both references to work together. I wrote on the side “will probably add rim lighting” because I felt it would make the light direction of the headshot match the lighting in the full figure pose. Then I began studying Dracula’s silhouette and how it could make the pose more menacing. After that, I did a little composition sketch to establish light and dark patterns. Before starting the finished drawing, I studied how the clothing draped over the bent arm and the complexities of the shadow pattern. I also included some progress photos to show how I mapped the shadow pattern/key folds before rendering. Thank you so much for the opportunity!!

@infected_hamza

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My Submission!!!!!!! , ugh my head hurts close call!!!!!!! did what was given n did some optional stuff n right now, i don't have extra time to further polish my whole sheet Edited: Everything is Designed ! not Copied!!!!

@futameau

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Here's a drawing of the Beast I made based on Jean Cocteau's film "Beauty and the Beast". Although this 1946 film isn't a horror movie, it still has a scary side to it (making it scarier than the most recent films based on this tale). For this drawing I used graphite pencil and a black colored pencil. (I hope I'm not too late to participate in the challenge 😅)

@moon_flower

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I chose Coraline! Not my usual style so I definitely had to get a feel for how to draw her. Its interesting how the small scale of the figures affects the clothing folds, it seems theres often less of them or they're more bulky.

@futameau

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Here are three drawings I made based on Michael Jackson's horror "film" Thriller. For these drawings I used markers and colored pencils

oddgrid

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Indian Folklore Witch (Makdee) Rough study of a Daayan in tattered cloth. Focused on the knee tension, the heavy hunched shawl, and making sure the silhouette reads before she catches you.

Benjamin Roseman

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@scorpius

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Pennywise doing his jig. Would love to visit Derry some day.

@lancerharris

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Coraline. I wanted to do all four phases but there wasn’t time and there wasn’t the skill to do it fast enough. I don’t know a lot about drapery.

B Corona

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Drapery, among many other things, has intimidated me for a very long time. I decided to give it a go since I love Halloween and I need to push myself! ! I chose Paleman from Pan's Labyrinth, and tried to keep it simple with a bedsheet ghost costume. I definitely had intentions of using a variety of folds, but I just figured mostly simple pipes and diaper folds seemed to be most effective at describing the form.

Maria LM

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Hi! I chose “The Bride!” (2026). The costume was designed by Oscar winner Sandy Powell. The Bride’s new look it’s a rebelion against the classic silouette of the Bride of Frankenstein (rectangular white gown, bandages), and also her character, who had little appareance in the original movie. Now she’s not only “his bride”, but has her own identity. The crazy color combinations reflect her rebel spirit (bright orange dress, green/blue socks, red boots, bleached hair and stains of black ink) and also being an outcast in society. Her look becomes more chaotic as she is less certain of who she was and who she is becoming. The inspirations were a mix of 1930s fashion, punk, gothic and neo-noir, with touches of the 1940s.

Jo3_ The_Artbot

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Not a film classic but I did enjoy doing this grim reaper with a burlap textured hood! (Done on procreate). I used references of burlap sacks, couple skeletons and a scythe! Also holy moly it’s been a while since I’ve posted some art on one of these challenges! Love seeing everyone posting their art and seeing some awesome progress!!

@hedi_n0j

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Decided to do a drapery study of Pearl from the films Pearl and X. Also tried to design a costume for a version of her that would fit in the interim between 1918 and 1979, the years in which the films take place. It's 1940s inspired and utilitarian like her farming get-up. I also traded her girlish bows for a womanly headscarf that (hopefully) conveys a desire to mourn her unrealized dreams of escape and fame. The pose for the design comes from The Pose Archives, which I used to derive a silhouette that leans into the slasher element, a la Jack Torrance. I'm so glad I caught wind of this challenge. It was the push I needed to go out of my comfort zone and both assess and make decisions about things like drapery folds, shape language, and posing, all within the same drawing session. Thank you.