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Been working on lots lately. I’m preparing to have some new work ready for Spectrum Art Live in May this year. It’s going to be an exciting convention! If you’re in the Kansas City area, mark your calendars to come out and see some incredible art! I’ll be sharing what I’m bringing here as it gets closer and such.

One project I’m working on in between things is the Flora/Fauna Project. It started with an image I created for Imagine FX magazine a while back – in which I created a creature made from plants. I had so much fun exploring plant-life that I’ve decided to create a mini series out of it. The image above is the first (official) creature from that series. This time I decided to explore Opium – poppies and such. I’ll be exploring other plant groups as I am the Lily beastie below:

Lily (work in progress)

This weekend I created something for a blog I’m part of called Fanartica (finally). I decided to draw and paint one of my favorite comic book characters, Wexter. He was a challenge because I don’t usually get to draw guns too often but he was too much fun to paint!

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He’s from a comic called AxeCop, which if you haven’t read this comic, you NEED to. It’s amazing. The artist that creates it is incredible and the writer (his 6 year-old brother) is awesomely imaginative. This comic has me laughing and cheering non-stop. It’s a favorite among me and my friends. Go read it here: http://www.axecop.com.

More updates to come soon! Work from The Red Valley is on the way with some new environment and creature studies I’m very excited about along with announcements of some upcoming projects due toward this summer! :)

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The new year brings new and exciting projects to work on! I’m already very excited about some new work coming out as well as some really great new opportunities. I think this will be a fantastic year!

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These two illustrations are out in Imagine FX this month. You can find them in issue 77 in the US right now. This particular set of Q&A’s were really fun and challenging. The top image actually led to an idea for a small project. I had mentioned it a few months back but I’ve recently been distracted with a day job. Now that I have more time to spare, I’m able to pick it back up again as my daily warm up. The project is called “Flora/Fauna” and it deals with creature design influenced by plant-life. I’m hoping to create a small series of Flora/Fauna and compile them into a mini-book. This was one of the critters I had started a while back for the project:

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I like the design so far but I might work a bit on the pose. For now this is just a side project that I plan to work on when I warm up before I start work on client projects or The Red Valley Project.

That’s it for now. Stay tuned for more updates soon! :)

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I hope everyone has a lovely Holiday this weekend! I know I have so much I am grateful for. This year has been amazing to me and I’m looking forward to a fun and productive 2012! :) Thank you everyone for your support.

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I have been working on some new images that I really can’t wait to share! Life has been a bit hectic lately with the Holidays coming and work. More updates are on the way for The Red Valley along with a few new images for my portfolio. I have two new images in Imagine FX magazine this month. You can see both of these in Issue 76! Be sure to check it out if you can. I had lots of fun painting that landscape and, of course, the canines as well. It’s always a pleasure working with the Imagine FX team. :)

Stay tuned for more updates!

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Two new images that I’ll post more about later. One has inspired me to create a series of plant/creatures. Should be fun when I get more time! :)

In other news, I’ll be showing and selling a few Limited Edition prints at Rendition Gallery’s “IT’S ALIVE” show. The show is focusing on creepy creatures for Halloween! If you’re in the Fort Collins area, you should check it out! It will be a really great show! I will take some photos of what I will be showing this week once everything is framed.

Working on deadlines today. This weekend is going to be sleepless…

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Finished this up the other day and thought I’d post it here too. It served as a warm up for a few mornings. I tend to forget that I need to take about a half hour to warm up before I start working for the day.

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Also working on another image that I think I might make into a promo-poster. This was originally started for COW over on ConceptArt.org. I haven’t participated with COW in so long!

Anyway, more work to come along with some exciting announcements in October and November! :)

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Two new images that I’ll post about later. Things have been busy with friends visiting this week! We’ve been having so much fun and we still have until Saturday! :)

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We went to Stinson Beach the other day and explored the coastline around there. It was so incredibly beautiful! Afterward, I felt so inspired. Sometimes I forget that putting your feet in the surf and being in nature can really help take the edge off. I’ve been under a lot of stress lately with work and finding more work. Somehow, standing in the sand and watching the ocean helped me feel grounded. It was just awesome to be with great friends in an awesome place. I will most likely return to this spot to recharge. :)

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John’s dad came to visit last weekend and we took a trip to see the Redwoods. Such an amazing place; especially right now. Because of all of the rains, the forest has exploded with green moss, lichen, saplings and new ferns everywhere! It looks almost prehistoric! It was nice to go and “re charge” for a bit. Sadly, I don’t get to make it up there all too often.

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I’ve been messing around with personal work lately too. Work on The Red Valley is picking up and I’ve begun to to lay out species ideas and thoughts about how the project will flow. I should be posting work on the blog come November this year. I’m very excited about the project and am really looking forward to exploring the concept.

I’ve been working on the illustration section of my website too – trying to round it out with more personal work lately. This is an image a created about a week ago.

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These two images are live now. They were created for Imagine FX’s Q&A section. As always, I have a lot of fun answering the questions and creating work for the magazine. I’m fortunate in that I get to answer questions that tend to relate to creatures and such. :) You can see them in the current issue (in the US now) here –> Imagine Fx – Issue 73

That’s it for now. Fall is looking busy! :)

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I can’t believe it’s already August. 2011 is just flying by! This year has been excellent so far. I’ve learned so much and I’ve gotten to work on some really exciting and fun projects; some of which I have yet to share! I really can’t wait to either. This is a work in progress – a profile study of something I’m working on in my spare time.

Lately, I’ve been trying to work out more human characters and I’m going to need it. I’ll need a lot of practice for another upcoming project I’ll be involved in. This is the more successful out of the few I’ve sketched out this last week:

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This character is actually directly based off of a man I saw in the Mission in San Francisco last month. I was on my way to give a talk at my former college when this man came walking down the street, cat and all. His boom-box was blaring metal too! It was a pretty remarkable sight. This can only mean I need to spend more time in the Mission to observe more amazing people for my sketchbook.

That’s it for now. More updates coming soon!

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New personal piece. I actually didn’t like the way this image started but it grew on me as I worked on it. I’m currently working on some new work to replace some of the images in my portfolio that I feel are “out of date”.

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One of the images I was working on was this one, of a female space pilot. (Can you tell I’m trying to include more humans in my portfolio?) Anyway, this character is actually part of a private commission that sort of came to a halt a while back. I decided I’d use some of the prompts as a loose inspiration for some character studies. When I was fleshing out the costume for this character study I looked up X-Wing pilots from Star Wars for reference:

(© Lucas film)

I love this costume. It looks so simple. I mean, I’m pretty sure you could replicate this pretty easily at your local hardware store. It’s awesome and I think it points to a time in film where there weren’t massive budgets to be thrown around. At least the budget wasn’t the selling point of a movie anyway. It was about keeping it iconic. You immediately know what this is when you see it (assuming you’ve seen Star Wars). I think it’s a great reminder that, in design, the best solution is usually the simplest one.

Anyway, I’m not sure if I’ll finish the pilot or not. She was a good warm up but I think I’d like to explore more ideas about the costume and such…

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Here are two new beasties! I’ll post more about them later when I get more info and such.

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I hope everyone (in the states at least) had a happy 4th of July! It was a great weekend for me. I was able to see family and sort of take a break from work. It was a good “re-charge” and I totally needed it. Excited to get back to work though. I have lot’s planned for the next couple months!

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Working on this among other things this weekend. This is just a bit of a larger subject. Decided to post this work in progress look for twitter. A neat idea came up about posting whatever is on your drawing board (and I assume computer screen) at 10am every day. Of course, you’re also supposed to mark the tweet with #10oclockart. If you’re on twitter, you should join in on the fun! :)

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Some quick creature concept sketches for the current CGhub Creature Planets challenge.

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I am very happy to announce that I’ve found out that “Elegant Hunters” has made it into Spectrum this year! I got the letter in the mail yesterday. I am so incredibly happy and honored to be a part of this amazing publication! A big thank you to the judges for accepting me into this awesome book! I really can’t wait to see it.

“Elegant Hunters” was created for Imagine FX magazine. You can see the magazine article here.

Anyway, I’ve been working on updating my current portfolio. This is a study I did for my concept art section – Mother and offspring. I’m wanting to try and expand on some other subjects and show them in alternate views more. I don’t think I will expand this species though. I’m also working out some new environments and such too. I’m excited to start posting some new work! I haven’t been able to much in the way of personal work lately so I’m excited to actually have some time. I’ll be posting some progress on a few new images for my illustration section later this weekend. I’m also working on lots of new work for Sychey Games. It’s a very exciting project to be a part of! I’ll be posting lots more on it as we release content online.

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Things have been bittersweet lately. The sketch up above was something I thought I’d finish but it’s been “collecting dust”. I’ve had some really great prospects for a new job coming up soon. I’m really very excited about it! It would definitely be a step up and more in the direction I’d like to go with my career. Of course, as it is with movies and video games, everything is “Non-disclosure”. I can share things as I go along though. I’ve been working closely with Sychey Games recently on a new project they are creating. Here is some artwork that I am allowed to share. Sketches for Plasmagonia™ :

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This project has been a blast to work on so far! Lots and lots of creatures to design. I’ll be sharing more about this project as it moves forward too!

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I suppose (some) of the bitterness of the last couple of weeks would come from the fact that my project, The Morae River, has come to a close. I’ve decided to leave it alone for now. It’s hard to let go of a project that has been such a huge part of my life for the last three years. I feel as though the project has grown stagnant and I’ve fallen into a “system”. Which is always good but I need the project to be more than that. The Morae River taught me so much though. Really, I’m seeing it as somewhat of a jumping off point for my next project. I’ve realized that I’d rather not be in Solturna. Of course, even though I rarely have time to work on personal work my mind needs a place to go so I’ve decided to take on something new a little closer to “home”.

This is a rough banner for my new venture. I’ll be posting more on this project soon but for now it’s very “under construction”. I am really excited for it though. I feel as though it’s closer to the project I envisioned in the first place.

Also a reminder that you can follow my activity and such on Facebook now:

Brynn Metheney – Concept Art & Illustration

I also post sketchbook pages on that page a little more frequently than I do here so check it out! :)

More exciting news coming soon!

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A very big thank you to the Imagine FX team for featuring some of my work! :) It is always such an honor to be included in this magazine and always so much fun answering questions for the panel!

Here are the two images that were created for the tutorials:

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That’s it for now. Some other really great news to come soon along with some new work from a new project I’m beginning to work on.

:)

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I don’t have much to post in the realm of personal work. Adjusting to my work load has caused some of my personal stuff to become neglected. I do manage to sketch here and there though. This is something I like doing – just sort of sketching lots of body-forms quickly in pen. I have a tendency to want to get everything right and so this helps me to loosen up and try to let go of making the drawing perfect.

Here are more doodles:

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I’ve also recently made a facebook page for my artwork. I was sort of opposed to the idea for a while – only because I already update a million things on the internet already so one more thing seemed like a bit much. However, it sort of needed to happen. If you’d like to keep up with my work on facebook you can here:

Brynn Metheney – Concept Art and Illustration on Facebook!

I know a very talented lady by the name of Laura Guill – we went to school together and had studios almost next to each other in thesis. Recently I commissioned a small illustration from her and just had to share it!

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This tiny tapir is literally the most adorable thing in the world. Laura’s work involves her painting subjects in acrylic and then cutting them out and pasting them to a background to created a three dimensional effect. I love my tapir so much! Thanks Laura! :D You can see more of Laura’s tiny animals on her blog, here: http://crown-of-laurel.blogspot.com/

Anyway, I’m off to work on some developmental work. I do have a about 10 card illustrations I’m hoping will be released so I can show those as well.

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This was an old sketch I stumbled across and I thought I’d post it. I was reminded of it by my recent “Daily Deviation” feature over on DeviantArt.com. “Dinner With Gnolls” was part of an idea I had to explore gnoll customs and physiology as a way to boost my portfolio with more fantasy/concept work. The piece was sort of a turning point for me as I began to experiment with light-source a bit more than I was used to. While I’m not really fond of the piece now it was a nice surprise to have it featured as it was to stop and remember it for a minute. In any case, I’d like to explore gnolls a bit more as I usually think they are overlooked in fantasy and such. Most times they a written off as bloodthirsty and dangerous – which I suppose could be the case. However, I always have fun taking something like this and putting a naturalist twist on the subject. ;)

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This is a more recent piece. Another one for Imagine FX magazine. This one should be out in stores soon. I have a few other Q&A’s that will be out sooner that this one but I felt as if I should post about it now since it hadn’t been put up anywhere else before now.

Work on personal projects is slow as I am busy with other projects – I feel like I’ve been saying this a lot. :P  Either way I’m beginning to adjust to the work load so I’m hoping to get some personal work done soon. I have some ideas for a new project I’d like to start. The Morae River has been halted for now. I think the project has been exhausted. I think there were too many restrictions with the way it was set up. In any case, I’m excited to start exploring a new world.

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Been trying to do more sketching in the sketchbook lately. Here are some recent doodles. Really liking the blue pencil. It sort of takes me back to when I was studying game design and animation in L.A. I’m hoping to dig a little deeper into more traditional media soon.

I’m leaving for L.A. 6 hours from now. I’m not very sleepy but I am exhausted. It’s a weird in between feeling. This last week has been full of work and surprises. I’ve been keeping up a steady flow of Q&A articles for Imagine FX magazine for the last couple of months. Mostly to do with creature questions. I’ve been having so much fun creating and showing process for the magazine. I’m really excited to see them in print soon and show them here on the blog.

Mostly nervous about L.A. I guess. Some exciting things are taking place lately. Things are looking up…way up.

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Things have been really busy as of late. Working on lots of projects all at once these days. This is always a good thing though. I’ll have more info and images to show when things go live and whatnot. I did post some of the new work on BrynnArt.com but I’ll post a more detailed look here in the coming months. Looking forward to sharing some of the work I’ve been able to do over the last few weeks. This was something I doodled in my sketchbook weeks ago and I thought I’d revisit the fellow. Trying to focus more and more on creatures as of late. I’m finding that they are really what I’d like to continue doing.  Still trying to figure out what I’d like to do with The Morae River…speaking of which:

I believe about a year ago I was asked by Brazilian Magazine – Contém Glúten to be included in their lovely publication. It features artists from all around the globe so be sure to check it out – There are some very talented people in there and I am very honored to be among them! It’s gorgeously designed! As you can see, the work I submitted is a bit older – The Greater Fugamus is still walking on two feet!

I’m also re-designing my website! This will be the 8th time I’ve done it since 2007 I believe. Sort of ridiculous right? I suppose I’ve never found a look that I’m fond of. I feel like I might stick with this look for a while though. It’s a simple design. I should have it up within the next few days.

I’m off to work on sketches for card illustrations…

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(this one was posted earlier):

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Happy New year! I’m so excited to start a new year. 2011 has some exciting promises! I’ve been busy this last month so I don’t have much in the way of personal work. Here are some pages from the sketchie book. (I’ve been loving my blue pencil lately) The top image is of a few doodles for an upcoming assignment. The others were probably done while I was watching some sort of nature documentary.

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I’m looking forward to the end of this month. I’ll be finishing up a project I’m excited to share!  I’ll also be sharing some work I did for Future Publishing – Creature fun!

Pixar Animation - click for info!

Something for you East Bay folks : If you live anywhere near Oakland, Ca. you need to make a stop by the Oakland Museum and see the Pixar: 25 Years of Animation Exhibit. It’s only up until January 9th so be sure to see it before it closes. I’ve never been so inspired. It really is a remarkable show. Here is where you can find: Information.

In other news my sister is getting married at the end of this month! I’ll be making the journey to Southern California, yet again, to celebrate with her and our families. I’m looking forward to seeing family and friends that I haven’t seen for some time. :)

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Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays everyone! Looking forward to the new year!

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I have a very talented friend who is part of a site called Alphabeastiary. She’s part of a lot of other sites too but I was recently inspired to join the project to fulfill those moments when my mind is blank for ideas and I just want to draw. The letter D was dedicated to the creature: Dobhar Chu

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This was my take on the critter. Be sure to check out the whole bunch, they are all awesome!

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In my attempt to be festive this year, I began to draw a reindeer in a stoic pose that I thought I would make Christmas cards with. However, he slowly turned into some sort of imp gnawing on a candy cane. Go figure. Anyway, these were my Christmas cards this year. I’m hoping to do something fun every holiday season. The cards were lots of fun to make too.

I have two other bits to share, one a book that has just come out – which I’m super excited about and an animation that blew my mind. First, I’ll talk about the book.

The book is titled, “Animals Real & Imagined“ and it’s illustrated by one of my most favorite creature artists of all time, Terryl Whitlatch. It looks to be a whole book of her studies and illustrations of animals that she’s observed and those she’s imagined and created herself. I cannot wait to get my paws on this book and I suggest that if you are into creature design, that you grab it as well. You can read about the book and Terryl here: Academy of Art News – Terryl Whitlatch

Anyway, here is the animation I mentioned before. It’s been circulating on the internet for the last week. If you haven’t seen it, I suggest you take a look:

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some recent sketches in the sketchie book.

I’ve been getting ready for Christmas lately by making all of my gifts. Being an artist in this point in time doesn’t make for lavish spending on gifts so I’ve gotten a little creative and crafted some fun accessories. I’ll post pictures and such after all of of my gifts have been given so as not to ruin the surprise!

Finished and more exciting work coming soon!

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I think this is done for now. She’s part of a collaborative project I’m working on with two other very talented ladies.

… been busy with other stuff I can’t really post.

More work coming soon.

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Navigator – Commission work (work in progress)

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doodles for Creature Planets

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Work in progress for Dominance War

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Life of the River – Finished for the Morae River – check out the show at Sagebrush here –> The Morae River.com

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work in progress for a collaborative project involving two very talented ladies – Allison Theus and Tiffany Turrill – Which I’m incredibly excited about!

Lots of works in progress for now… they will all get finished. Eventually…

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Here are two works in progress. This first one is only half of a larger piece for a project. I’ll post the finish when it goes live and everything. There are other parts to it as well, so more creature goodness is coming!

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This second one is for my upcoming show. It’s a selection of species from the Morae River itself. This piece has been in my head for a while now and I’m really excited to finally be able to start it.

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Just wanted to post a reminder about my book. I created a book of artwork through lulu.com. Its 40 pages of full color sketches and illustrations. I’m very proud of how it turned out and I’m hoping to make another volume next year. This volume will only be available until June next year.

It’s also on sale! I’ve marked it down 20 % until the end of December! 2011 will bring it back up to its normal price so get it now while its low at $17.60!

You can view more photos of the book HERE

You can buy the book here: http://www.lulu.com/product/paperback/fish-hooks/12917022

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Next week there will be a small work show entitled: “The Walls” at Periscope Cellars here in Oakland, Ca. I will have four small prints from The Morae River for sale there. There will also be a crafts bazzar where you can fine things like jewelry and small items of the sort! Hope you can come out if you’re in the area! There will be an awesome collection of art and of course, wine!

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This was created for Creature Planets. I’m too busy this month to participate this round but I thought I’d make a quick sketch anyway.

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Here is a scary beastie I created for Creature Planets.

“Unknown to many is Lucifer’s gate guardian, Lilith. When Lucifer challenged Yahweh with a higher throne, he was thrown down to the abyss forever. His most faithful lover, Lilith, followed him into darkness becoming his most beloved. Lucifer appointed Lilith as his gate guardian as she was most jealous and most protective of him. Her tongue can taste the lies on your breath, her eyes can see the darkness in your heart, and her whispers drive you mad. Only the most deserving can stand before her most beloved Lucifer and those deemed unworthy are torn and broken by her.”

Have a Happy Halloween Everyone!

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My take on the Lovecraft beastie, Tsathoggua. Work in progress…

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Two works in progress. The first is a study of the Southern Shore of Tul. It’s still in the “awful looking” stage but hopefully that will change the more I work into it.

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This is a page of studies of a new organism in the works… More on her coming soon.

Lately I’ve been trying to get ready for APE. I’ve put together a sketchbook though Lulu.com. I’ve sent out for the first draft and I’ll be posting pictures of it here on my blog. It will be available at my table as well as online through lulu. Look out for it soon!

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Things have been busy lately, leaving me little time to produce any work for myself. I have  a few projects happening, all of which are unmentionable right now. I was recently asked by the crew over at Science…Sort of to design a shirt for their 52nd episode – their one year anniversary. The shirt features Peaches the Brachiolope, their mascot, in some party gear. Science…Sort Of interviewed me a while back about my project, The Morae River. Anyway, check out the show – it’s really interesting, awesome and hilarious. If you like science, beer, and all things geeky then it’s definitely the show for you!

You can see and buy the shirts –> Here.

I’ll be posting more personal work later.Aactually some sketches for The Morae River. The project has been suffering from neglect. It’s a matter of time and not having it lately. I’m adjusting to a new job and so things are sort of on hold.

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This was a sketch I did for a recent Creature Planets. It’s still rough and I probably won’t go with it but I thought I’d post it anyway…

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- My work always starts out with a crappy sketch (above) Just to get an idea of what I want to put in the image.

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- With this piece, I flipped the image and worked out the pose a bit more until I liked it.

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- Then its on with the pencil drawing. I work with an irregular shaped brush on a normal setting with opacity at 100%. The brush works with the pressure sensitivity on my tablet so I can get dark and light without having to adjust anything. (the fact that I don’t know how to “talk” photoshop is showing…) I keep my sketch layer on a lower opacity than the final pencil layer so I can see my sketch while I’m drawing.

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- Now its time to add in some color. I’ve set my pencil layer to multiply (for now) and I have created layers for color – one for the rocks, one for BattleCat’s fur, and one for his armor. I like to use as few layers as possible when I work but in this case I needed to be able to edit the fur and armor separately. I’m adding in some modeling but not too much – just enough to get an idea of where I want my light-source to be.

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- If I were painting this traditionally I would have layed in the background first. However, with the magic of “layers” I can add in a background after I’ve painted most of BattleCat. For the background I used my “go-to” brush as well as a soft edges brush to make the clouds look softened here and there.

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-I’ve added in BattleCat’s stripes as well as add in some more shadows to his fur. I’ve done this on a layer above the fur but underneath the armor so I don’t have to worry about erasing too much.

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- Adding in some more shadows – this time to the armor.

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- Now I’m starting to add in some darker shadows over everything I’ve painted so far. These shadows are on their own layer and are a deep purple – as opposed to the darker greens and reds I was using for the armor and fur. I’ve also added in some whiskers at this point.

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- Highlights come in at this point as well as some cool reflective light to counteract the warmth in the piece. The highlights on BattleCat are a warmer, gold tone. While I’m painting all of this I will go back and forth in-between steps. I don’t paint the image completely step by step like this but this will give you an idea of how it all come together more easily.

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- Now I’m adding in some “ultra highlights”. Almost stark-white to give BattleCat some pop in his darker areas. I’ve also pushed back some of his limbs and his tail using a bit of atmosphere. This helps in giving the image a bit of depth.

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- Finally I’ve warmed up the piece by adding in a layer of gold tones on multiply. I set it to around 20% opacity. I’ve also added in some flecks of golds, reds and whites to the background along with some flags and things of the sort – keeping those on a lower opacity as well to keep them pushed back. At the end of the painting I’ll switch my pencil layer from “Multiply” to “Ghost”. “Ghost” is a filter by flaming pear that turns a line transparent. What I like about it is, that the line will become a darker version of whatever color is underneath it. The change is very slight, however if you scan in pencil drawings it will really come in handy. You can find that filter: Here. (It’s the download at the top titled: “Free Plugins”.

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All of the fur and texture on the saddle is created by my brush traveling back and froth on the wacom. I don’t use fur brushes or imported textures. This isn’t to say that they won’t save you lots of time and can’t look great – I just don’t know enough about them to use them confidently and I enjoy painting like I would be drawing in marker. Its just a preference for my personal work. For this image I used these brushes:

which you can download : Here. (That last brush, by the way, is my “go to” brush. I like the bristles and the slight texture it creates.

I also created a color palette to help with keeping the basic colors consistent. I don’t normally do this but it helps with something like this where color has to remain very vivid.

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Anyway, if you still have questions, you can contact me via the contact page or comment on this post. :)

Thanks for reading!

I should also add that BattleCat is © Mattel

]]> http://www.fishhookstudio.com/2010/08/mean-kitty/feed/ 12 http://www.fishhookstudio.com/2010/08/battlecat/ http://www.fishhookstudio.com/2010/08/battlecat/#comments Tue, 17 Aug 2010 06:29:10 +0000 Brynn Metheney http://www.fishhookstudio.com/?p=892 Continue reading →]]>

battlecat

Here is a work in progress of my take on Battlecat for CGHUB’s Creature Planets current challenge.

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This was for a prior challenge for a prompt called “WarBeast”. This was as far as I got on the concept and then I had to drop it. I like the drawing though.

“While most think genetic engineering didn’t get it’s start until the early 1970′s, the science’s beginning can be traced back to World War 2 with the introduction of the Q.E.D. -Quadrupedal Explosive Device (Pronounced “Ked”) Created by The Allies, the animal was a chimera of sorts, bred to chase flairs into battle with explosives attached to their bodies. They were bred without ears to keep the animal from being startled on it’s course. Because of it’s origination in the lab, the Q.E.D. was not considered an animal, but rather a tool of war and was used until they were outlawed and destroyed after the war. With the emergence of the animal rights movement, it was in fact, found to have animal-like qualities. Some argue the Q.E.D. played a pivotal role in defeating the Nazis, however it is still considered to be one of the best examples of how horrific war can become.”

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This was done for Creature Planet’s Dead Flat-Footed Drizzler Topic over on CGHUB. This particular entry was late due to a very complicated day I had yesterday.No matter though, here is the final…

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Some monster fun. Trying to round out my portfolio a bit. I’d like to have three samples of the types of work I do and can do. Anyway, hopefully more of these guys to come. I do have other more pressing projects I need to be working on but these are fun to draw!

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Finished up the Pygmy Esorifleu for CGHUB’s creature planets. These were lots of fun to do. I’m currently working on the next species for topic # 15 – Viscinian Scavenger. These are just some rough sketches of the overall form that I want the organism to have – following the guidelines provided in the prompt.

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This forum activity has been really good for me. It a lot of fun to help run but its also pushing me to try new things with creature design and even graphics. I’ve been producing the banners for the activity with direction from Shane Watson – CGHUB’s community director.

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In case you’re wondering, I did not paint the actual planet. I use Flaming Pear’s “LunarCell” to produce it. Creating a banner along with stats and a creature for the activity each week can be a lot fo work and so any shortcuts are vital to get things done on time. I did, however, paint the galaxy and produced all of the other graphics on the banners (except for the little icons on the top banner, those are winning entries) Anyway, This has been loads of fun for me and my partner in crime (co-runner of creature planets) - Ogi Grujic. As the activity progresses, I’d like to re-work the layouts of the planet banners and such but for now these seem to be working ok.

Like I mentioned in my post before, I’m wanting to share things that inspire me, things I find funny, and things that I think others should watch. This was a short that brought tears to my eyes. I love how animation is able to span gaps and make you care about lumps of dirt on the moon. Enjoy…

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Something I’m working on for Creature Planets – the weekly activity I help run over on CGHUB.

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Sketchie fun…

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Lots of projects coming up and lots of updates. These characters are from a private project I’m currently working on. Lots of fun! I love drawing dinosaurs way too much! I’ll show more later as the project progresses and opens up more. I’ll also be posting some work from a book collaboration I’m working on with Opal Palmer Adisa. I’m honored and very excited to work with this author on one of her personal book projects. I can’t wait to get started!

Some other great new is that I will start co-running the Creature Planets over on CGhub.com. My partner in crime is the incredibly talented Mr. Ogi Grujic. We will be working as a team to come up with topics for the community to participate in and lead in critiques and discussion about works being produced for the topics.. I’m very excited and honored to be a leader of this community challenge. I’m able to work with so many talented artists! Hopefully Ogi and I can help carry on what Mike Corriero had started – its a very high bar!

Anyway, I’m off to finish my evening with a bit of reading. I’ve added my good reads widget so you can check out some of the books I’m into.

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Some random sketches…

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…and then it got out.

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This amphibian has long wavy gills which it uses to blend in with grasses at the bottom of ponds. It is an ambush predator, quickly snapping up prey that become too trusting and get too close to its large mouth.

Some creature fun for this –> LINK

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Some shots on progress of two pieces I’m working in-between right now. One is a mock Conan cover, the other is a mutant animal. both will be done by this weekend…

On a side note – R.I.P. Dio – this is the month is for the passing of gods…

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Sort of at a loss tonight. I’ve been experimenting with painting environments with no luck so far. So to take a break from doing that I painted some quick alien-ish heads to serve as avatars for this blog. I’m hoping to have some more work up soon. I might do more fun things like this for a bit. I’m needing a bit of a break to get some things figured out. I have a trip coming up soon so that should be good separation from my work right now. I’ve been feeling somewhat dry. Anyway, I elaborated one bust a bit for fun…

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Haggis are omnivorous mammals that roam the Scottish Highlands. They grow to the roughly the size of a small dog and are almost hairless. They live in burrows in large family groups. Haggis  spend their days searching for roots, grasses, and insects to feed on underground and have even been spotted consuming carrion. Male haggis have large, bulbous crests on top of their heads with which they use to attract females. Males also have a pair of tusks which they use in combat with other males during the breeding season.

Based off of the traditional Scottish dish for this

:D just for fun

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Some sketches and quick finishes from a few weeks prior. I’ve just returned from vacation and am getting back into the swing of things…

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Character study for the day – more to come. This particular character was part of a project me and a some friends had going a few years ago.

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This was for CG hub Creature Challenge – “Dazzling Prancer”. I included a small run-cycle so the creature could be seen from a side view as well.

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Then I got distracted and tried to animate it. I’s not complete (you can see how rough it is and its stops half way through) but I thought it was fun.

prance cycle animation

More work coming soon in the human category…

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