Aradani Arms

Hey there all you guys! I have been waiting to have this scanned and thus have been a few days late posting. This piece, Aradani Arms, is 18x24 Oils on Masonite. It is the 3rd installment in my Steampunk Trilogy. I have a few things to shoot pics of and update and then I will post them. Sneak peak: Dragons! I hope you dig it!

Blech and blogging

Hey all! Soooo after traveling to Broomfield, CO and getting incredibly sick, I returned to Nashville on Tuesday and stayed incredibly sick. Needles to say, this derailed my Gencon goals considerably. I still think I will show well, but it will be with only 2 of the 4 Steampunk paintings I had intended. Ah well... I am back on my feet now and have started working on my next piece: Aradani, Inc.: a steam mechanic piece. This large sketch is just for refined placement and composition resolution, but I thought you guys might like a sneak on whats coming. Modelling for this were Clayton Pollard, Laura Jones, and one of my best buds, Mike Bielazcyc. These guys are all fantastic artists in their own right, so look em up on Facebook or the inter-web thing.

On a quick side note, I have also discovered Pro Graphics in Nashville, TN. I met Adam Baker, an Assoc. of PG at a Dr Sketchy's event and he is in the process of scanning in my latest SP pieces and pumping out the prints as well. Their rates are very affordable and I am very much looking forward to having my work professionally scanned/adjusted. That said, I will no longer post quickies of my paintings. The pics look like crap and seem to generate redundant comments and criticism. Not to say that these reviews are invalid. In fact, part of being a professional is presenting professional work all the time. Making excuses and justifying short cuts/quickies are the mark of an amateur and a hobbyist. You have to be prepared to be called on your inconsistencies and shortcomings. I know this and yet get excited and want all of you to see what I have been working on. Soooo...:

Tip of July:

Pace yourself. Whether it be in preparation or presentation. Slow down and take deep breaths.

Alrighty guys. I will post soon with pics from Gencon and hopefully blog about exciting things. Take care and stay hydrated.

Beauty and the Beast

Hey guys! I finished this bad boy late last night. I am really pleased with how it turned out. Of course the pic captures none of the luminosity of the original, but I guess I have to live with that. I will be preparing a quick tutorial of this piece over the next few weeks. I learned so much about my own preparatory needs and how to overcome daunting obstacles in my path, and I think it should be valuable. I will start with prelim sketches, maquette creation, pertinent studies and all the way on from there.In the meantime, I'll be getting it scanned soon when I get the prints made for Gencon. Hope you guys like it!

Beauty and the Beast or How I get through the day

Lesson for the Day:

Keep Painting

I feel like I post this every month or so, but it is never any less applicable. For those that know me, I wear my emotions on my sleeve, and often let my mouth outpace, if not lap, my thoughts. Both can be a boon and a curse. I feel that these things also manifest themselves in my art career. I produce something neat, or get a positive critique and generate this foolish notion that everything has to be at that level instantly. Then I look for praise where there will likely be none and feel diminished when attention is not forthcoming. Stupid hobbit...

But wait, what does this have to do with painting.

No matter your skill level or position in the art community, you have to keep working. Stopping for a day turns into two which rolls into five and pretty soon you haven't produced something new in a month or more. Now I am not talking about a brief siesta or vacations. We all know when we wuss out or get in the dumps. When you find yourself there like I do ...um...weekly, then draw or do studies. Instead of taking a day off, take an easy day. Do something comfortable to replenish your confidence and get back to rolling that boulder uphill.

I get so bogged down with where I want to go, that I lose sight of where I was. I look back to the work Sam (Flegal) and I were doing a year ago, and the work we have done in the interim and feel like an idiot. As long as you put one dogged foot in front of the other, you can baby step your way to whatever comes next. That said, I have tossed up my current WIP that has been a testament to this process. I got so frustrated early on that I did a Foster Robot study, and then 3 other studies before laying the first Robot rendering. I am very pleased with where this is at, and am excited to dive into the figure. I'll be playing Dan Dos Santos's DVD on loop while working and looking at the figure study he gave me to punch through and level up my figure painting. I guess you guys will be the judges.

Anyways, if you can't keep your chin up, then put your head down and bull forward.

I, Steampunk

So I have got the fever. It's true. I never realized how bad I had it until I started researching my IMC piece. Steampunk kicks ace. Its true. Not just any and all, but GOOD steampunk. I'm talking Miyazaki and Otomo good. People slapping gears and valves on crap and calling it punk is lame, but well researched and fantastically viable Victorian style low-tech steam punk is the bomb. With that said, I am developing a series of book covers focused around the exploits of two steam engineers. I will be building maquettes for all of the vehicles and steam-jacks depicted. The finale will be a 20x30 battle scene depicting the heroic engineers and the standard Germanic empire baddies. Think Valkyria Chronicles meets Porco Rosso fighting across the Iron Kingdoms. If all 3 of these references don't strike a glorious chord, you don't know steampunk. I will make it my mission to educate your properly. It is my goal to have these pics done by Gencon.

The pics above are concept sketches for "Earl" the clockwork golem (steam-jack) as well as production and completion pics. I will be painting him up over the next few days to bring out his inner glory. He has taken about 10 hours to scratch build, and all of his limbs, torso and head are fully moveable and poseable. The fingers even come out if I need to change the grip. A big shout out to Jim Gurney for getting me to take this to the next level. His support and enthusiasm are the most blessed of contagions. I hope you guys like it.