Hella WIPs

So after joining the amazing WIP Nation, I've already got some great feedback on my Arctic Horror piece, which I'll be revising.  I'm also working on about five different pieces simultaneously to try and trick myself to not get bored with any one piece.  As long as I'm working on something new, the painting process gets less tedious, and by working on different pieces, I find that I'm painting each one faster, as since I'm taking breaks from each piece I reapproach each one with a fresh pair of eyes.

Anyway, here's two new WIPs (works in progress) for your viewing pleasure.

Larissa, Airship Mage, 1st Class

  Noxia, Queen of the Slime

Started working in two different styles, came out with two different points.  I'm a lot more happy with the direction Larissa is going, but I think it's just because I really focused on the figure in the slime painting first without resolving the background.  Thus, you have a much more finished foreground and a crap background, making me hate the painting, when I really just have to work on the background as much as the foreground.

Well, just gotta keep going.  I'm working on two other digital paints and a traditional piece, but they're in such a rough, crude, "I want to stab myself" point, I'll wait until they're a bit more respectable before posting them.

Arctic Horror - finish! No really this time!

Okay, decided there were still some tweaks to make, and thus, I spent the hour or two tweaking stuff.  Much happier with it, and I think it's time to move on and at least let this one be done for now.  cool.

Arctic Horror - finish!

Whew.  So while I think I only logged in about 12-19 hours on this one (I wasn't the best at tracking time spent on this project), I'm pretty happy with the end product.  Perhaps I'll come back to it in a few days and work on it more, but so far I'm pretty happy.  This is also the longest I've probably ever spent on a digital paint, so that in itself is a big accomplishment for me.

Cool, time to get on with the other pieces I have in mind.  Go Friday art days!

I'm pretty excited that with the new HP Lovecraft movie in the works, the shoggoth is gonna get more attention.  Woo!

WIP..still

And progress.  Still chugging along.

It's weird that I'm usually okay spending 20+ hours on a traditional painting, but even spending 7 on a digital one seems super difficult.  At least it's coming along!  Still lots of rendering to do, more lighting on the background, etc. etc. etc.  Yosh!

Anyway, I'm already starting some loose sketches and thumbnails for other new pieces.  I asked some fellow Big Umbrella members for inspiration, I got "Punchline" and "Three legged Dog."

For punchline, I ended up with a sketch of a dark circus that has a bone bridge leading up to it and tons of crucified people staked around it.  For three legged dog, I had a rotting zombie dog eating it's own leg.    And who says I can't turn anything dark and creepy?  No one, that's who.

Anyway, if you have any interesting themes or suggestions for future paintings, I find I usually get inspired easier from other people than myself.  Comment away please!

Happy 2012

Yay for a new year!  I feel like more and more, years go by quicker and quicker.  I would assume that's a good thing, but there's already so much work to be done in 2012!!  Arg!

Anyway, one of my new goals is to develop two portfolios - one for book/CCG/RPG illustrations, and one for creature/monster design.

Here's a quick WIP (about three hours in) of an illustration I'm working on which I hope to print and put in the upcoming Big Umbrella "Girls with Guns" show.