Tutorial 01 - GIMP

Follow the steps according to this document to Create a Surreal Piece of Art with GIMP

This tutorial is directed towards beginners and thus will go into significant detail on how to accomplish
each step. In this tutorial I will show you how to create this image from GIMP:

We will use several techniques including some filters and these tools:

In case at any point you have trouble finding any of the Dialogs that I refer to in the tutorial, you can find
all of them by accessing this menu:

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Step 1
First create a new image (File->New). I made mine 500x647px at 300ppi (bg color white). Next create
a new transparent layer (put name as path). Use the Paths Tool and create a simple path:

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Tip: click and drag from the ruler markers on the side of the image to create guidelines to place the dots
exactly where you want them.

Step 2
Go to the Paintbrush Tool and select this brush and these settings:

Access the Brushes Dialog (Shift+Ctrl+B by default) and on the brush, make the spacing anywhere
from 5 to 9.

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Step 3
Open the Paths Dialog and right click on the 'Unnamed' path. Select "Stroke Path" with these settings
(Edit->Stroke Path)

Step 4
Go to Filters>Distorts>Polar Coordinates and use these settings:

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Step 5
Go to Filters>Distorts>Wind and use these settings:

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Step 6
Repeat the Polar Coordinates filter but use these settings this time:

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Step 7
Create a new transparent layer (put the name as circle). Using the Ellipse Select Tool, create a circle
selection that looks like it naturally fits in the bottom curve of the path:

Tip: on the Tool Option dialog, make sure the "Fixed: Aspect ratio" is checked and set to 1:1 in order to
get a perfect circle.

Step 8
Next, select the Gradient Tool with these settings: (Select FG to BG (RGB) and click on reverse)

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Click and drag from the top left of the circle selection towards the bottom right of the selection to
create a gradient. Finally, deselect the circle by going to Select>None.

Step 9

On the Layers Dialog, move the layer with the circle below the path layer. Zoom in closely and use
the Eraser Tool to erase the part of the path that should be behind the circle.

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Step 10
Go to the background layer and with the Gradient Tool, create a simple gradient from top left to
bottom right.

Step 11
Hide the background layer and then go to Edit>Copy Visible and then Edit>Paste. On the Layers
Dialog right click on the "Floating Selection" and click "New Layer". Finally, hide the two visible layers
and reveal the background layer.

Step 12
Duplicate the top layer a couple times. Resize and move the other layers around to create some depth.

Tip: use Gaussian Blur to blur layers that are far away to increase the idea of depth in the image.

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Step 13
Now for a little color. Go to Edit>Copy Visible and then Edit>Paste. On the layers dialog, right click on
the "Floating Selection" and click "New Layer". Change the foreground color to #331900 and make sure
the background color is white. Go to Colors>Map>Gradient Map. Change the layer mode to "Overlay".

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