Plastic Man / Spidey's on Disney XD!
Mar. 23rd, 2009 | 05:27 pm
Yeah, I know, I've been away a while. Seems like ever since the holidays I've been swamped-- been busy on a couple of new projects, one of which I can share soon, the other I can share later, if all goes well.
Here's a little freedrawin' I did tonight... I'm finally getting back to the suggestions people gave me a while back, the first being... Plasticman!
I couldn't help throwin' Special Agent Morgan (from Kyle Baker's Plas series) in there too.
In other news, gotta mention that Spectacular Spider-Man will now air on it's new home-- Disney's new action channel, Disney XD!
The first 3 episodes with Vulture, Electro and the Lizard aired tonight, and you can catch future episodes every Monday at 7:30 PM. The show also pops up at other times during the week (8:30am & 3:30pm Tuesday, etc..) so keep an eye out if you need to catch up!
It's all reruns for now, but the more people who tune in, the more chance there is Spidey'll be back for a third! Brand new Season 2 episodes will premiere this summer!
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London Calling
Nov. 24th, 2008 | 01:58 am
Although I've broken my run of posting, I haven't fallen off the map completely-- just the local map. JJ and I got a great last-minute deal to visit London for the holiday, so I'm putting things on hold for a bit. (I was hoping to post a few sketches and photos while we're here -- maybe I should use this for more than just artwork, eh? -- but wifi's expensive) It's pretty frigid over here but we're having a great time and checking out lots of art in warm, dry museums :)
We're also moving to a new apartment when we get back, so I may be off the net for a bit; I'll get back to the hero series (those suggestions you guys posted) once all that settles down!
~
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The Spirit
Nov. 18th, 2008 | 03:24 am
A character I'd love to draw some stories for one day.
Can't wait for the movie-- was thinking it might end up a bit dark, but based on the trailer looks like it's gonna rock!
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Old Skool
Nov. 16th, 2008 | 04:53 am
We went to the Getty Villa Museum today to do some sketching and check out the art. The Villa is a small museum of antiquities on the waterfront, set up like a ancient Roman house. I really liked their method of setting it up by subject matter rather than chronologically; each room is a different theme, like Gods and Goddesses, War, Portraits of Women, etc.
In keeping with the Heroes theme, I did this quick-study of the Landsdowne Herakles. Herakles (or Hercules) the greatest Greek and Roman hero, known for killing or collecting any weird beast or object that needed killing or collecting. One of the exhibits pointed out that, just like today's fictional heroes, Herakles had a set canon of stories, but many artists made up new ones when depicting him in sculpture or pottery.
This particular sculpture was a favorite of J. Paul Getty's collection and supposedly inspired him to build the Villa Museum.
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Olivia Dunham -Fringe-
Nov. 13th, 2008 | 05:26 pm
Here's my go at portraying Anna Torv, aka Olivia Dunham... the heroine of Fringe, my favorite show of the season.
Fringe has a great mix of sci-fi intrigue and lightheartedness that makes it a lot of fun, but then again, I am a fan of most anything J.J. Abrams and crew have done to date.
Once again he has cast a female lead with a signature quirkiness; Sidney (Jennifer Garner) had that angry, I'm about to either cry and/or kill you look, and Anna's got this weird uncomfortable smirking and awkward posture that she somehow manages to pull off and still be attractive. I'm sure it will go into full force once her father shows up, or Walter turns bad, or whatever they've got waiting for us.
Anyway, hopefully I caught a little of the quirky smirk here. This is kind of where I'd like my illustrations to go, adding more levels of tone but ultimately still cartoony shapes. Whatcha think?
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Wolverine
Nov. 10th, 2008 | 11:21 pm
Looks like the winning suggestions from yesterday are, in this order:
1. Plasticman
2. Tick
3. Harry Potter
4. Link
5. Hellboy
6. Rorshack
7. Robin
Since Deviantart post as "18 hours ago" backwards-time, I'll double check my math in the morning. :)
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Heroes/Graphic Spidey
Nov. 10th, 2008 | 01:36 am
If I get to December with any consistency, I'll switch to a new theme then.
Will I make it that far? Only time can tell, but I thought a little interactivity would help...
For now I'm just picking my favorites, but for the last week of November, I want some suggestions. The first seven people to comment the name of a hero character on my blogger, livejournal, or deviantart, I'll use those characters for the last seven days of the month. It can be from any medium, just follow this definition:
"a male or female character, (fictional or historical) that, in the face of danger and adversity or from a position of weakness, display courage and the will for self-sacrifice – that is, heroism – for some greater good, originally of martial courage or excellence but extended to more general moral excellence."
Get to commentin'!
.....All that being said, I had to "cheat" today... I was really busy, so I'm posting something drawn about a year ago, but new to the blog at least! See ya tomorrow! ~
This is a 'graphic' version of Spider-Man I created for The Spectacular Spider-Man. You can catch him whiz by in the show main titles!
This came about because the director, Victor Cook, wanted to use a few shots with a graphic look, to fit with the hip, flashy feel of the theme song... sort of like the end credits on The Incredibles. I also did some graphic backgrounds which I'll post another day.
I feel very fortunate to get the chance to do this design-- it's a little weird for a show painter to contribute something like this, but Vic fought for me and Sean was cool with the idea. My goal was to create something very flat and gestural, while honoring the incredible design Sean came up with for the show... his take on Spidey was an instant classic, and definitely the best Spidey to hit the networks!
This design is also a bit of history for me; other than a game I had worked on last year, this was my first full leap into the line-less look! This design took me quite a while to pare down to the essentials, but it quickly got me hooked on the style that I'm playing with now.
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Master Shifu
Nov. 9th, 2008 | 04:38 am
A quick one today, in honor of Kung Fu Panda, which just came out on video; and Master Shifu, my favorite of the designs by master designer Nicolas Marlet.
This film is really solid after a second viewing, and is one of my favorite animated movies... there are just so many cool things they did with it, alternating from broad comedy to drama and really pulling it off as an action film.
The 2-D openers and closers are incredible, and had an influence on what I'm doing with my work now... a big part of me wished the whole 88 minutes had looked like that! I'm really hoping it is a sign of things to come-- painting became more expressive after photography was invented, so hopefully 3-D animation gives 2-D a chance to breathe and explore new ground.
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A Brave Samurai Warrior
Nov. 7th, 2008 | 01:56 am
These were done at a drawing workshop I've been visiting called The Drawing Club. The theme was "Samurai".
If you are an artist in the LA area this is a great weekly break to do some fun drawing... check out thedrawingclub.com There's three hours of short poses every week with a new theme, a costumed model and props... they even have music and movie footage playing that go along with the theme! Great for people in animation or comics, or anyone who would like to incorporate a story sense into your figure practice.
I have a few more of these posted at my deviantart page.
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History in the Making
Nov. 6th, 2008 | 04:45 am
"This victory alone is not the change we seek - it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you, without a new spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice." - President-Elect Barack Obama
These two guys (and their team) just finished what has to be one of the most amazing campaigns ever. Not only was Obama's very candidacy historic with great implications of opportunity and equality-- but from day one, the campaign was run with outstanding efficiency, interactivity, not to mention honesty and humility. Under a barrage of attacks that centered on minute details, took policy or statements out of context, and solicited falsehoods, the Obama campaign remained tactful and level-headed. When their opponents dwelled on non-issues, or won people over with impish winking, folksy shout-outs and handyman mascots, they remained on-message with the sobriety a Presidential race deserves.
I've never been that interested in politics-- but for me, and I think a lot of other people, this time was different. Barack Obama has inspired us to think big, he dared to present common sense goals like ambition and service, and maybe most importantly, invited people to get involved; a spirit I wanted to capture here. Obama's the headliner (and should be) but Biden also impressed me with his candor, grasp of policy, and ability to take an outlandish question (or an opponent who wouldn't answer one) and return a blend of frustration and humor that got the point across in a friendly way. They strike you as two guys who don't play around with politics, but are willing to work with you, no matter where you're coming from.
The message of responsibility and optimism worked... we woke up Wednesday with the hope that soon, if all goes well-- we will approach the world as neighbors again -- government will be more accessible and sensible -- students can get a tax break for college by volunteering for peaceful service -- migrating to new energy will not topple the economy but bolster it -- and we'll have a president who tackles the issues of the day AND honors equality, community, and innovation.
Of course, the race was close, and there are a lot of people that woke up unhappy today... I'm praying that they remember this country is built on the freedom for all people to be represented-- and that they don't forget that just reading a quote, hearing a sound bite, or getting an enthusiastic warning from a trusted leader or a radio host, should never completely define your opinion of a man. We all have the ability, and the responsibility, to seek out the facts on our own, and let those unaltered truths shape our mindset.
It's going to be a tough road ahead, but hopefully the challenges will be healthy ones in the long run.
Congratulations gentlemen... we were all proud Americans, you just reminded us we could be excited to be Americans. too.
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The Scarlet Speedster
Nov. 2nd, 2008 | 02:36 am
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Vehicular
Oct. 30th, 2008 | 01:06 am
Here are a couple of sketches that I decided to add some color to.
These were pretty quick, so they're more train-of-throught than accurate. On the truck, I'm trying out some markers, which is pretty fun. Some of the shading there is part of the sketch, some of it is digital. The Honda is just pencil contours with digital paint.























