Exit Within: the Gallegos Blog

Magic: the Gathering, Dark Ascension

2012-02-09T13:07:00.001-05:00

The second of the Innistrad block is out, titled "Dark Ascension." This set features one card of mine, Alpha Brawl. There'll be more on this art in coming weeks, but for now I just wanted to let you know this set was available, that I have some art in it, and that you can also grab white-backed artist proofs of it now!

Spectrum Live, Kansas City 5/18-20

2012-01-31T14:24:00.000-05:00

Another event to announce, although those with their pulse on these things have seen me on the exhibitors list there for months now.

The Spectrum series of books began when I was towards my end of art school. This means I saw it begin, and have never known a career in which it didn't exist. For a few years I didn't submit at all. I got in pretty early on with a piece I did collaboratively with Quinton Hoover, but we failed to get a transparency of it to them in time for print. A transparency. That's how long ago it was.

I got in a few times along the way since I started submitting more regularly. It's done a lot to raise the awareness of fantasy art in general, for which I'm thankful. It's a great overview of the genre, and the place I'd take someone to first who doesn't understand what fantastic art is. Well, I suppose I'd take them to my own website first, and then Spectrum.

In any case, after spending a few years at places like San Diego Comic-Con and seeing how a convention that once celebrated the creators transformed into a giant behemoth that pushes the product instead, the Fenners who are behind Spectrum decided to put together a show that goes back to the roots. Spectrum Fantastic Art Live is something like IlluXCon, only bigger and broader. It's the Spectrum book, in person. Painters, digital guys, comics, related gallery artists, concept art guys. IlluXCon, by contrast, is very much about fantastic art done traditionally, appreciation of the physical art.

The list of exhibitors is large at Spectrum, and I'm among them. I'll be traveling to Kansas City, MO then in May to put on a display. Frightening is that each artist will be given a 10'x10' booth to do with as we please. That's a lot of space. I've never been asked to fill that much space. It will mean framing more stuff, shipping a ton of stuff, and so on. It's a little worrisome, I admit. It'll also be probably the largest exhibit of my original paintings I've put up yet, with roughly 30x5 feet of wall space covered, if all goes well.

That's where you come in. The main reason I or any artist would travel across the country and go through the hassle and expenses is so that folks like you can get face-to-face with us and our art. Getting our art out there on the interwebz is fine, but nothing beats seeing people's reactions to paintings, watching them get their noses right up close, being able to talk and answer questions. And yes, the wonderful warm fuzzies I get when someone enjoys a physical painting so much, having seen it in person, that they part with their own hard-earned income to take a piece home. The income I live on, but the sense of validation that transaction gives is beyond words. To me, it's the ultimate sign that I've communicated something significant with another person by my art, to know it will hang on their walls and be appreciated there. That someone treasured it enough to actually part with their treasure.

Because there is nothing like an original painting. No book, no hi-res scan can compare to the sheen, the depth, the richness of the pigment, the archaeological record (in a sense) of a creative mind at work. Heck, I'll have to maintain discipline to not disappear from my booth constantly to go soak up others' art!

So, if you can make it, I hope to see you there. Stop by and say hello.

Attila the Hun

2012-01-26T13:38:00.000-05:00

Art, right? Been awhile since I posted some. Stuff is in the pipe to be published, is all. One company however, Imagine Ltd., a small publisher out of France, has been very kind in allowing me to publish some art done for them before their product gets released. Such is the case with today's image. In those other two instances, the pieces were straight-up fantasy. This time, it's kinda historical fantasy. I can't tell you why, as I don't know a ton about the product. I'll be interested to see the context, too!

I had begun work on this a bit before going to IlluXCon in November. I had done most of the charcoal study that underlies the study at left, and gotten approval. The study at left is a composite of that charcoal drawing, a second pencil drawing, and some digital. While at Illux, I had a little time away and realized I didn't like the original torso pose of the figure, so when I came home I redrew it and Frankensteined it in. So you can see the upper body is not like the lower half in texture. The Art Director had approved an earlier version, so I emailed these changes to them and got them approved, too.

I then passed it around to a couple of trusted artist buddies, among whom we sometimes swap critiques. I was pretty happy and it had been approved, so I was looking for some polish ideas. I tweaked the drawing a bit more here and there, based on comments, prepared a few other elements, and went to work.

Hitting the Books

From there it was a straightforward paint job. Really a lot of the fun of doing historical fantasy is doing some of the research part. With the Huns, it's problematic because many military history works barely touch on them. As they were nomadic, it's not like we have a lot of remnants of their culture in archaeological town digs or anything. As well, they trafficked in and among other tribes of the Russian steppes like the Scythians, Alani and other Sarmatians. Not only traveled among, but intermarried as well, Attila himself having many wives, including among the Scythians.

When doing historical works, an illustrator runs into a problem. Within gaming and the like, it's not like historical stuff necessarily pays any more than usual. But the prep-work for a historical piece is considerable, before one even begins thumbnailing. And it all depends of course on how detailed one wants to get. If this were National Geographic, it'd have a whole other caliber of research on top of this, but their budgets are bigger, too. The go-to for illustrators are Osprey Books' Men at Arms series, many illustrated by the late Angus McBride. And yeah, they covered these groups, too. It's decent, but I was finding info and small details slightly at odds with it through other research. When I did, I favored the research I had done. I took for granted the intermingling of cultures, the ransacking of enemies and so on, so there's a hodgepodge of sources, some of which might be stretching it here and there. But then, this is also a fantasy illustration. The pose itself was requested to hearken back to David's famous portrait of Napoleon, which dictated the overall mood.

Research notes chickenscratched on the back of another job's brief

Though a few ancient historians wrote about the Huns, I favored Priscus of Panium, who actually met Attila and wrote the only known first-hand account of him. It was a fascinating read, from which I learned about his inter-tribal polygamy, his hairstyle (which I would have loved to have portrayed--sounded like a bowl cut), also that he had a dignified quality about him (as opposed to savage), and dressed very simply, preferring a lack of ornamentation both on himself and his horse. Those last two points were critical for me, since the temptation is to lay it on. I supplemented this with other folks' second-hand accounts.

(L): "Attila the Hun" 18x24" Oils on Masonite

For his horse, I sought out some native breeds and settled on Przewalskis, which have lovely coloring and a slightly unusual shape. As Attila was known as "The Scourge of God" in his time for his army's fierce combating and destruction, I placed him within the ruins of a church or cathedral of some kind. Crows added a bit more narrative and doom to the image.

The image, when finally printed, will probably have a few tweaks to it, which I added digitally. I gave it to the publisher layered to give them some options, and we'll see what they go with, but this is the painted version here. You can see it more up-close if you'd like here.

The thing with historical fantasy is you want to do some diligence in researching, but you've often got considerable budget and deadline constraints to worry about as well. And no matter what you do, real history buffs will come around and point out your errors. That's a shame, too, since if I had my way I'd have done even more research than I did. As it stood, I ate through the budget so fast on this one, given the detail and all, that it became something of a labor of love by the end, out of pride for one's work.

Magic Grand Prix: Kuala Lumpur Mar.24-25

2012-01-18T14:52:00.000-05:00

I first visited Kuala Lumpur 10 years ago in 2001, for a Magic Grand Prix. Had a great time (but man was it hot). My wife came along and we had a great time seeing some sights off-hours--we stayed a couple days extra beyond the event and did some touring. Oddly, we didn't get up the Petronas Towers. Well, I shall remedy that!

I've been invited to be the Artist Guest at 2012's Grand Prix in KL once again, this March 24-25th. Ok, so 11 years ago.

Get all the info you need on Wizards' website here. I'm looking forward to seeing some folks there, and will be curious to see if anyone in the scene 11 years ago is still in it. Shoot, by now some of their small children then could be players now. :-|

Howard Pyle: American Master Rediscovered

2012-01-17T09:47:00.000-05:00

Last week, I was a bit audacious in critiquing an acknowledged master. Part of why it was audacious is because Pyle was truly a wonderful illustrator, and a powerhouse of a paint slinger.

Howard Pyle's "So the Treasure Was Divided" 19x29" oils on canvas

The Delaware Art Museum has the largest collection of original Pyle artwork anywhere, Pyle having lived, taught and worked in Wilmington, where the museum resides. It was already on my list of museums to visit, for its Pyle collection, before this show. Learning that such a retrospective was going up, however, popped this up the list of things-to-do immediately. The show runs through March 4, 2012, so you have a couple of months left to get out there. And if it's in any way reasonable to do so, and you love this stuff, do so.

Pyle was known as a remarkable historical-fantasy painter, illustrating stories and writing and illustrating others. The above shows a bit of that: multi-figured, costumed narrative. Pyle is one illustrator that definitely benefits from seeing the originals: his work is incredibly subtly colored, tending towards mid-to-low color saturation, with an astounding sensitivity to grayscale value. I often go on about the importance of value, even over color. Pyle was one of those who mastered both.

His work is mainly tied to two main genres: pirates and colonial history painting. The more you look, the more you realize that movies like Pirates of the Caribbean drew heavy inspiration from Pyle's work. His pirate work has therefore remained popular, even as pirates themselves are a perennial subject of fascination in the culture. But his Revolutionary War era work is wonderful in equal measures.

Pyle's "The Fight on Lexington Common" (detail)

Is that John Kerry at left?

Pyle had a wonderful ability to be both loose and tight at the same time, thick and yet detailed. The scumbling of smoke at right reveals a heavy impasto from either the priming or from under layers.

Interestingly, these two pieces shown so far aren't even from the retrospective show! They are part of the museum's collection and currently hung in a separate show which runs all of 2012. Visiting now gives you a double helping of Pyle!

The show itself features a number of Pyle's masterpieces, ones you will have seen posted everywhere else. And if you don't know Pyle's work well, then these should simply be considered appetizers for that stuff. What struck me most was the size variation of his work, from these roughly 24x36 -range pieces, which are typical sizes for illustrations even today, to ~40x60" for some of his more popular pieces, which benefited more from space than detail, since those largest pieces are often much simpler than the above. There are also a number of smaller paintings, even down to maybe 10x10" or so.

Back in the day, it was common to find black-and-white reproductions in publications. Often, these were simply painted in black-and-white, and the show highlights a few of these. I haven't worked much in that format, but every time I see it it looks like fun.

These black and white (or limited palette pieces) are lessons in value structure. At left, the values are stuctured so as to make you work a little, the opposite of much illustration these days, which needs to be instant-impact. And yet, the piece does have instant impact due to strong contrasts, filigree, and a halo/sun framing the head. Added to the billowy drapery, it immediately resonates as an "angel" painting, which makes you wonder where the wings are, and then you see it. It then dawns on you that it is neither a sun nor a halo behind the head, as such, but simply the shape of a bright light or sky that is peeking through the gap between two spread wings. Lovely, a trick I'm likely to steal at some point.

The great thing about good monochrome art is that you can imagine the color palette as almost anything, and it still works. The painting below, for instance, could just as easily be a moody deep night scene, lit by moonlight, or an early morning light, bright yellows and purple in the shadows. Or evening, with oranges and blues. Or whatever, it doesn't matter.

Perhaps equal to his reputation as an illustrator, possibly even greater--certainly of even greater lasting influence--was the private school he ran, bringing in students, teaching them, sending them out. The lineage here is astounding. Artists such as Frank Schoonover and Maxfield Parrish studied with Pyle. Other entire branches of lineage were launched through training N.C. Wyeth, father of Andrew, who became one of America's most celebrated fine artists. Student Harvey Dunn went on to train other celbrated illustrators as well, including Dean Cornwell, both of whom ended up training Mead Schaeffer. The cascading effects of Pyle's influence on contemporary illustration are astounding, and this is without naming the many talented illustrators who worked in their day after training with Pyle or his students, but whose names have not become so well-known.

That influence has not ended, to this day. Whether directly influenced by Pyle, or by one of his artistic progeny, today's illustrators working within this genre are direct inheritors of this genius. No one denies it, and all celebrate it. The amount to which I or another directly embody the influence varies, but it's inescapable. You cannot see a painting like the one at top, and then see Mark Zug's work and not see Pyle and Wyeth all over. The Hildebrandts, too, in their earlier fantasy years.

Sometimes the influence is subtle, sometimes overt, other times it's direct homage, as with the late Darrell Sweet below:

Howard Pyle (L), Darrell Sweet (R) Not a coincidence.

"But I live far away, Randy, and can't get to Wilmington DE!" Well, the show catalog will have to suffice. It's good, overall, although Pyle's work in particular always suffers a bit from skewing to dark, or being overexposed. Many of the color plates however are good enough, a few excelllent. If possible, I'd like to take another 3-hour drive down myself to see it again before it ends.

Calling Out a Master

2012-01-11T11:04:00.000-05:00

I recently had the wonderful opportunity of heading down to the Delaware Art Museum to see the "Howard Pyle: American Master Rediscovered" exhibition, in honor of the 100 year anniversary of the famed illustrator's death. I of course chuckle at the "Rediscovered" part of the title--who lost track of Pyle? Not I! But, I know what they mean--despite being the grandfather of American Illustration and the fountainhead from which poured forth some of this country's greatest painters directly or indirectly, he's not someone you run across in Art History courses. No, you'll spend much more time on any number of -isms of the period but you'll never hear Pyle or his school discussed. But illustrators know. Particularly, fantasy and children's illustrators know. We're inheritors of his school, after all.

I'll be doing another post that gushes about Pyle's work, with more photos--because no book yet does the paintings justice. But this week, I'm going to do something unusual--I'm going to call out the Master on a blunder. That's pretty brazen, right? I mean, I could only hope to be as good, can only dream of having a fraction of the impact of Pyle. But, while there are some painters who seemingly can do no wrong (at least, technically), perhaps because Pyle was an illustrator, there are a few pieces that evidence some surprising oversights. I can only blame them on his being an illustrator with deadlines. Still, though, they did leave me scratching my head a bit, amid all the awesome.

Here's today's exhibit:

This was not part of the show mentioned, but part of another exhibit featuring his work in another context (the museum is the chief repository of Pyle's work). Already, this piece exhibits a lot of Pyle's excellent qualities. The composition is gorgeous, with the massed darks being relieved from claustrophobia through wonderful use of filigree in the upper left, which the composition launches upwards toward. The foliage rises from lower left to upper right. Just at the woman's bosom, and again above her left shoulder, the branches jut left. This new angle is picked up by the branches behind her, leading out of the image in the direction she's rising. The intense red and green contrast works because while he's chosen colors that are exactly complimentary to where they at times exhibit visual vibration--usually a bad thing--he's limited the amount of red. Had the piece been equally both, it would have been visual chaos. The peppering of red down the image, through the leaves, is wonderfully done--it's enough so the figure continues to read, it keeps the foliage from becoming an impenetrable wall, but doesn't distract from the top half.

So after admiring it from a distance, something started calling out to me as odd. I began to walk closer.

Despite all the lovely painting, composition, and color, this piece, right in the heart of it, in the woman's face, exhibited some really funky drawing. Have you caught it yet? It's not a hard mistake to make, if one is rushed. But Pyle? What you're looking at is the woman's eye--it's completely off. It's too low and too far to the right, towards the outside of her head. At an angle, the features should all be on the same horizontal axis (in this case, now a diagonal due to the tilt of the head). Now, unless this particular story describes such a woman (doubtful), this is one of those pieces that could've easily been repaired. But it was not. Probably after delivering it and receiving it back, he simply tossed it in his closet and moved on, busy with things. Let's fix it up to show what I mean:

L: Photoshopped adjustment R: Original painting

By repositioning the eye, it now basically matches the same diagonal axis that runs across the lips and the nostrils, and headband about the forehead.

I will say that despite being overwhelmed by the exhibit, there were a couple other places in other paintings where some figure--usually a small background figure--was just poorly drawn. No two ways about it. Sometimes not even poorly as in wrong, but just lazily drawn in for someone of so mighty an ability, who in other multi-figure pieces could work with complete authority.

The important thing to remember is that the Masters are not gods. Most had off days here and there. Because something is hanging in a museum does not mean you should look at it uncritically. And to point out an error is not hubris on your part, rather to not notice errors in your own work but to see them in others' is the dangerous trap. I hope I catch many of my errors after the fact, even if I miss them immediately. I know I have a long list of them that I hope no one else notices, some of which I've gone back and fixed either before handing them in, or sometimes even after getting a painting back.

Whiteback Sketches, pt.8

2011-12-16T09:19:00.001-05:00

Have a happy Christmas and New Year everyone! I'm taking a break from the blog as I tend to this time of year, and will see you on the other side. As I pre-blogged this particular post months ago, I can only hope I actually made it this far, otherwise this will have auto-posted as a creepy message from the grave or something....

(Update 12/16: I made it!)

It's been a busy year for sketched whitebacks. Raising my fee on them a bit did allow me the freedom to stretch out and get a little more involved. It's too late in the year to get any in time for Christmas, but as always you can get your own done here.

Be well, and hopefully we'll see each other in 2012!

Magus of the Tabernacle / Uba Mask

Caretaker Mooncrier / Jaedan Sunshot

Goodbye, Darrell

2011-12-05T20:23:00.001-05:00

© Darrell K. Sweet

I was saddened to hear that Darrell K. Sweet passed away yesterday. As I have done from time to time, when a particularly influential illustrator dies, I like to sit and reflect on their work and how it moved me.

I spoke a little about Darrell's work a year ago, when I had the pleasure of seeing something of a retrospective show of his at the World Fantasy Convention, and also purchased a small color study acrylic painting. I am of course doubly glad I bought that piece, and only wish I could've picked up more of these studies when I had my two chances. The first was at SiliCon in San Jose in the 90s sometime. I'm also very glad I got to hear Darrell's career-retrospective talk last year, in which he went through a slideshow of artwork and discussed aspects of his long career. For some reason, though I had opportunities to meet him twice, I didn't ever introduce myself.

Despite having done something like 3,000 illustrations over the course of his long career (a number I'm not likely to meet if I live to 77, at my current pace), it was always amazing to me that he never won any of the three main professional awards for this genre (Hugo, World Fantasy, Chesley). Rather, Darrell's work was simply always just in the atmosphere, perhaps taken for granted a bit. I don't know if this ever bothered him, but one could only hope to live as long, have that kind of career, and in the end have even the amount of influence he exerted.

And though he didn't really spawn any followers that I'm aware of, as some superstars do, he certainly was influential. Most of the fantasy guys in my generation grew up with his covers. For me, that dates back to High School, when I first started really reading a lot of fantasy and science fiction. And though I read multiple books with covers by Sweet, it was his work on Piers Anthony's Xanth series that really got me interested in his work. I think I stopped reading about book 13 or so, but he managed to retain Xanth as a perennial gig up through today (book 35 just released). Darrell's work had a quality that even in the late 80's/early 90's felt...not dated...but more like from another era. More classic, somehow.

I've always felt a kinship between what he did and many of the late 19c. German Romantic school of painters. Perhaps it was the architecture, which was generally so solidly rooted in European medieval, something which has fallen out of favor these days, being increasingly replaced by European medieval + dark gothic, raised to the power of "badass." As well, his costuming retained that same historical flair, which by and large is frowned upon in many quarters of the industry now.

Beyond all that, Darrell was a fantastic landscape painter. I always got the feeling that Darrell could have gone many directions for a career, and found success in all of them. He could have easily focused on landscape work. He could have turned to wildlife art (which he did do some pieces in), or western / native american (also worked in). He could have done a lot of things, but he spent the bulk of his career in fantasy and science fiction. In so doing, he helped shape a lot of today's illustrators. He also inspired me quite a lot, and for that I'm very thankful.

I Haz Cat pt.9

2011-12-02T11:45:00.000-05:00

Aaaand, the last of the studies done in '00. Will there be others? Who knows. I'm sure he's overstayed his welcome already. He's like that.

"Let's Jam," Revisited

2011-11-29T09:30:00.000-05:00

This article was originally published 7 years ago right at this time of the year. At the time I was "winging it" on a piece. If I could remember what piece it was, I'd post it here for reference. Currently, I'm in the complete opposite mode--a little unsure about how to tackle a piece which was very successful as a sketch. So rather than dive in I'm doing way more preparation, underpainting and so on than usual. Making distinct palette decisions before laying the first dab of color down. Using the analogy below, I'm trying to write out the sheet music entirely ahead of time, to minimize the worry that I'll mess something up along the way. Leaving nothing to chance, as it were. Here, then, is the original article:

When I used to play bass guitar, having begun late and without the level of commitment I had for my painting and drawing, I was never really able to jam. You know, pick a key, start a beat and just let the music flow spontaneously. This was no surprise--I lacked a lot of music theory and the chops, to boot. What I played I played by ear, it sounded right so I played it. But I had to sit there working out my lines, and then put it to music. Towards the end there I was learning theory and the concepts that allow one to jam were becoming clear to me. But I never got to that point.

With painting, however, I am able to jam. I'm not the painting equivalent of a "guitar god" by any stretch, but I can hold my own, I guess. What I mean is that I can attack a canvas with very little pre-conceived structure and usually work my way through it to a satisfying end. usually. As an illustrator who often works rapid-fire either due to deadline or payment constraints, I've had to do my share of jamming. It's always a little scary to start a painting sometimes without even a color theme in mind. I'll decide something on the fly, lay it down and the rest of the painting must then be constructed in the key of, say, yellow. From there I usually attack it without much more thought, and my hands take over like a guitarist's must--my brain being taxed but not in a particularly deliberate way--sort of reacting and adjusting to the visual music happening spontaneously before me.

Some artists I know are excellent at jamming; in fact I'd say it's their forte. There are guys like my buddy Scott Fischer who kick ass. His ability to jam on a piece is incredible, as are his chops. Some guys like myself are more into constructing music, I mean, paintings. I listen to a lot of constructed music and not so much to jazz or jamming rock bands. If it were up to me I'd plan out and be very deliberate about each painting, trying to maximize what I'm trying to communicate by bending my skills towards a pre-determined end. I can jam some, and like it to an extent, but I identify better with more "constructing" artists like Michael Whelan or, classically, Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema. of course I don't compare to either of them either.

Currently I am in jamming-mode, which is full of surprise on the one hand but full of anxiety on the other. Less anxiety than I used to have--that's the product of practice. But I'm 2/3 through a piece and I still have no idea how it'll turn out.

I make a lot of analogies in my mind between music and painting, so don't be surprised if you see that cropping up in these entries. These analogies helped me do what I was able to do when I did dabble in music, even if my education was lacking. I would "see" the music and mood I was trying to accomplish and would be fairly successful in squeezing it out of my amateur fingers. I believe this phenomenon is called synesthesia, and it's one that's interested me in general since then.

Some aspects that will never be analagous are the muli-million dollar rock star mansion and the ladies throwing themselves at me. That's a shame.

From the Collection of...pt.5

2011-11-22T11:18:00.000-05:00

Back in High School, when I used to play D&D and read Dragon Magazine regularly, I began to see work by a young buck by the name of Tom Baxa. He was doing, among other things, interior black-and-white illustrations and I was enjoying them quite a lot, enough to take notice of this guy's name and remember it. It's also a catchy name on its own: Baxa. Looks nice, even. This was while I was still on the other side of the fence: fan and aspiring artist.

Within a few years, however, I'd hopped the fence and was a journeyman artist (but still a fan). I was attending my first GenCon (in Milwaukee), probably in 1995 when Magic's Ice Age had released. I went with my portfolio in arms, not with art in the art show or anything. I just floated around and saw stuff. I walked into the art show as Tom was setting up and kinda stood back and watched. It was a fun moment, as I stood there straddled between fan and colleague. I'm not sure I bothered introducing myself, as I was still a newbie whose work Tom would not possibly know. Also, 16 years ago....

Later on, I came back and picked up a piece he had on his wall. It was nice on its own, reasonably priced, and done in a method I hadn't used before. Done on illustration board, it has an Acrylic or ink underpainting, and overlaid on it is a transparency with what appears to be a photostat of the original ink drawing. It creates a nice effect, one which has been rendered utterly obsolete in a digital age, unfortunately. I've scanned it in three pieces for you to check out:

What I love best is how on the watercolor layer, knowing which parts of the overlay are pure black, he didn't bother to paint in the darks so that the painted layer would be "complete" on its own. He never meant it to be shown or displayed apart from by this method. If it were me, I could not resist at least putting in the same color used on the creature's knee-cap. But that's why I'm slower than I need to be. I actually have no idea what this was used for. Never really cared to find out. I'm not even sure Tom knows that I own this.

As time goes on, in this small industry you get to know almost everyone eventually, and I've been honored to count Tom as a friend in the years since then. We don't see each other often, being on opposite coasts now. As well, I haven't attended any West Coast shows in some years. To see more of what he has, click on over to his website.

10 Questions with The Art Order

2011-11-21T09:12:00.001-05:00

Many of those who read this blog are already familiar with The Art Order. A community / blog begun by Jon Schindehette, Wizards of the Coast's Senior Creative Director, it's a great place to learn about fantasy illustration as a business, and see a group of dedicated illustrators of all levels pushing each other forward through various directed projects he proposes.

At IlluXCon, Jon asked the participating artists if they'd like to answer 10 questions, which were asked by other aspiring and emerging illustrators. As such, they cover more of the ins-and-outs of life as an illustrator, and so have a different flavor than some other basics. For instance, there's no interest in biography, it's straight to the meat.

I was happy to participate, and so you can read the candid answers to my 10 Questions here.

Thanks to Jon for the opportunity to share, and for making a powerhouse community during his non-existent spare time.

Networking, and Social Rings

2011-11-16T09:17:00.000-05:00

I recently attended the amazing IlluXCon again, and my second Racebrook retreat, within a few weeks of each other. More on both in coming weeks, most likely. New York Comic-Con fell between both, but I was too wrapped up in work to make it down this time. It has all put me in mind again of an essay I read some 10 years ago by C.S. Lewis called, "The Inner Ring." Particularly if you are in a profession where networking of any kind goes down, I highly recommend the read.

I agree with Lewis in that such things as Rings are inherently neutral, often good, and potentially quite injurious to self or others' in often very subtle ways. Lewis, after all, was a member of a small, elite Ring of writers known as "The Inklings," a Ring many writers today would've loved to have been a part of. Being that I'm pretty sensitive to my own motives, I find that I perhaps spend a lot of energy contemplating the states of the Rings I am in and not in. Auditing my motives for being in each or desiring to be...or not be...part of others.

And nine...nine Rings were gifted to the race of Men who, above all else, desire power.....

Let me explain: freelance illustration is inherently a Ring-based profession. One works alone, largely. But the moment the illustrator engages with others in the field, the Rings arise. These days, the internet has allowed for all sorts of other Rings that wouldn't have existed before. Nowadays you can be part of a small Ring of email confidants, a private listserv or two, maybe a group blog. Those are new ways of participating in Rings from home. Your Social Media circles form others, and Google+ has just embraced the concept of "circles" rather explicitly so that you literally drag people into actual circles you consider them "in." A little yucky, although eminently practical. I also find I use Google+ the least....

Socially, there are the genuine friends you've made in the field. There are others who you don't know well yet, but whom you find interesting and would love to get to know better to see if they can't become genuine friends, too. There are events you get invited to, or not--some you wish you could go to, some you don't care for as much. Illustrators who've worked on projects you have. Digital artists. Traditional artists. Realistic. Stylized. The Rings are many.

An event like Illuxcon is a strange concentration of overlapping Rings. With so many artists present, it can be strange navigating the social structures. For instance, one of the main things I do at conventions is to try to spend as much time as I can with those few people I've become the best friends with. I like this best, even as I recognize it might not be the smartest use of the time, business-wise. Screw that, though. But that Ring in itself, and the way I jealously guard the limited time I get to spend with some of them can also become a bad thing.

The bad thing begins with the increasing realization that I've been illustrating quite awhile now. I should state that I *never* assume that someone knows who I am, my name, or my work, even in the field. Maybe that's weird, but it still surprises me when someone who I've never introduced myself to knows me or my work. I've not yet cracked the upper echelons of skill and prestige, but there are younger illustrators around now, making their way, who potentially might remember my work from as early as grade school. Frightening, I know. These younger illustrators are around, establishing themselves, forming Rings with like-minded people and friends they've made who are coming up alongside, quite often. Awesome. And here I am trafficking among them, trying to maintain my own Ring priorities at a small event. What can happen is that it's entirely possible that I come off as aloof, disinterested, or otherwise (expletive-adjective). I might appear self-important or harboring any number of unpleasant motives. I know because it has at times seemed that some of those ahead of me were like that with me on occasion. It's really easy to misread motives, and I've had to backtrack and eat crow (privately) upon learning that I had read far too much into someone else's behaviors at these events.

I've sort of made it a rule that if the primary reason I would want to be at some social function is business or linked to ambition, I stay home. It's not the only reason I might not attend something, surely (movie night with the wife? Yeah that's won out many a time). Maybe that's not very wise--ambition itself is not bad either, after all. Maybe that explains some of my career trajectory over time. I don't know. I suppose I've decided that it's more important that I attend a thing for genuinely positive, productive, constructive or otherwise peace-of-mind maintaining motives. If my main emotion is genuine excitement or interest, that's a good sign. If I'm motivated more by strategy than emotion, it's a sign that I should stay home. It's totally possible to be a strategic networker and still be gracious to others, and I think I've managed it, too. I just don't feel great. More than once I've realized that I misread my motives in the middle of being somewhere. I've often taken that opportunity to simply exit stage left and go home.

It's all a bit odd because networking is one of those generally unspoken-of aspects of some businesses. Perhaps in more pure business settings, networking can be more explicit, with networking functions being held unapologetically. But in art circles, I've seen that it becomes the sort of thing most of us do without wanting to admit we're doing it. We certainly don't want to seem like it's what we're doing, explicitly, and those who do come off that way are liable to be judged a bit. So, I try as much as possible to ensure that I have another honestly primary motive, and let the rest fall where it may. I often make the point of not bringing up work with Art Directors in social situations, often because I genuinely want to just spend time with the person, sometimes because I don't want to have business, again, forefront in my mind when I'm dealing with people. I can contact them during business hours, after all, regarding business. Again, perhaps I'm just overly sensitive (probably). I've seen plenty of artists do both, and even get work by bringing up work in social environments. I don't begrudge them that.

Regardless, if I've ever come off poorly to any other illustrator or professional--not even necessarily younger ones, but peers who are just not part of the Rings I'm focusing on at a given function, even unconsciously, I apologize. Not my intention. Every friend I've really made I've not made in big groups, but usually through much smaller interactions.

Coming back from a convention like this can be a little overwhelming. There's the practical side of unpacking, getting the studio back in order, and getting back in the flow of work. There's the part where you've had your aesthetic kicked in the groin by the killer art presented by others, and you're wondering how to apply the things you've learned. But I find it always takes some days to just process the social side of things--the conversations, the interactions, the communication that happened or didn't happen among different Rings simultaneously. I arrive home and my wife usually says something like, "Well, tell me about it!" I find more often than not I just say, "I can't. I'll process the stories and dole them out in time."

Holiday Sale: World of Warcraft Original Art

2011-11-09T22:13:00.000-05:00

(If all you need to know is that art is on sale, then click here to see the list!)

It's been some months since I've played World of Warcraft--my main exists in suspended animation at level 80, wondering if I'll ever pick up the Cataclysm expansion and continue on...not any time soon, anyway.

The World of Warcraft Trading Card Game probably has a lifespan that is tied to the videogame. And most videogames do not have a long lifespan, though WoW's has been longer than most. So I know that some years from now, art based on the game will be a quaint artifact, a fond memory of a bygone era. For me, art is about the art--whenever I've collected original art, I've rarely asked where the art was published. But for those of you who might like some World of Warcraft art in particular (or just like my art in general), now is a great time--through the end of the year, I've marked down all my World of Warcraft original paintings. I don't put original art on sale very often, so it's a great opportunity.

There are only a few World of Warcraft pieces that remain in my Artwork galleries. So where are the rest? Welcome to update #2 this week: I've added a World of Warcraft section to my Back Catalog of Original Art. So, check it out and remember--when you finally leave Azeroth forever, the artwork will remain! Sale prices are indicated on each painting's page.

Not a fan of the WoW imagery? Well, that same Back Catalog has a listing of older Magic: the Gathering artwork as well...though it's not on sale....

This post will self-destruct on 1/1/12, but the art will remain at the Back Catalog link, located in the upper-left of the blog for easy access.

7 Years of Exits

2011-11-03T15:50:00.000-04:00

Greetings from Altoona, PA where I am attending 2011's Illuxcon show.

Oh dear, we've just crossed the seven-year mark for Exit Within. My, my, how time flies.

So, a sort of State of the Blog address seems to be in order. Here are a few thoughts:

1.) I would say that readership this past year, in particular, has been higher than ever. For a long time I didn't care to let the world know this blog existed. These days, I've pushed it out there a bit more. Many of you come from posts on Facebook or Google Plus, for instance.

2.) I expect that no one should want to go back and read 7 years of blog posts. If there are 3 people on this planet who have read every single post (including myself), I'll be incredibly surprised.

3.) That said, there's a lot of stuff buried in seven years of blog posts. I mean, a certain percentage of what I've written has to have some legs, some shelf-life. It might not be a high percentage, but there's gotta be some. Starting this year, I'm going to make a regular series out of reprinting some old blog posts for the benefit of the many new visitors we've gotten this past year or so. Not often--not to worry, mostly it'll be fresh stuff still. I'm thinking once every other month or something. I will take the opportunity to update each post a little, as needed (and will append updates separately so those who have read the posts before can just read the update, if they like). Also, I will repair the annoying habit I had of never capitalizing anything those first few years. As it is, I've begun making amends on that awhile back--when I've linked back to an older post, I've tried to make sure the post was corrected. I might still dislike capitalization (namely, out of laziness), but I'm sure you disliked the fruits of that laziness more.

4.) I've made a habit of posting regular series of things. I hope they are somewhat interesting. Creating blog content while managing the rest of life does take effort, and I've never pretended I was up for more than once a week. I try to balance out wordy, thoughtful posts, with art-centered stuff. Somewhere along the way I also stopped posting more random things. I suppose I value your time and readership much more now that I'm seeking it out.

5.) I once again renew my promise to keep politics off this blog. I admit there have been momentary, resisted temptations, but I still maintain that you do not need a fantasy illustrator telling you what's what in the area of politics. I'm sure you get an overwhelming number of opinions from equally random persons, often without you asking. I will not add to the chorus. So you can continue to rest assured that you will be able to exit within this blog when the political avalanche is getting you down, and know that I'll provide some artwork escape or some hopefully stimulating conversation about the loftier realms of art.

However you found me, thank you for stopping by to visit, as often as you do. My efforts cannot demand your time or interest, and so I am greatly appreciative of both in a world with nearly infinite choices.

Onward to year 8!

Magic: "Innistrad" Artist Proofs

2011-10-12T11:43:00.000-04:00

Typically, for odd-sized cards or promo cards, Wizards of the Coast does not issue white-backed artist proofs. Therefore, I did not expect to receive any for the double-sided flip card Grizzled Outcasts / Krallenhorde Wantons. So I was surprised to see that they did indeed issue them--as two separate white-backed cards!

Therefore I've linked up the cards here. As usual, you can add a drawing to the back of any card(s) you order for a few bucks more, if you're willing to wait about a month to receive them.

Magic Innistrad: "Dead Weight"

2011-10-06T10:01:00.000-04:00

A prisoner is trying to escape his captors, but is weighted down and unable to get away easily. Simple enough. My first ideas went immediately to the ball-and-chain, a well-used implement of imprisonment, going back centuries, and certainly during the period Innistrad is roughly mirroring in its fantasy world.

Early thumbnails had him dragging his leg, limping along, with long cast shadows of approaching captors. These thumbnails, however, all had awkward poses. This was hard to avoid, since awkward limps look...awkward. And awkward is something you generally want to avoid in artwork. So after trying a couple other approaches, I came back to the ball-and-chain idea and expanded it.

By making the ball very large, it became something that in reality would probably be immoveable by a single person, unless it was slowly rolled perhaps. So, to make the whole thing a bit nastier, I added giant curved spikes to it. Now it wouldn't roll easily, and would have to be pulled again. I tossed aside the reality of the likely weight of this ball, but loved the idea of dragging this thing, and it clawing tracks in the dirt of the dungeon or whatever.

The thumbnails that resulted from this change (left) were much better. To get any leverage, I imagine you'd have to really get down and try to pull by leaning back and digging in. So that defined the final composition.

I was pretty happy with the resulting study:

"Dead Weight" study, purchase information here

I'm not sure what the setting is exactly, but it seems to be some sort of building that has long been abandoned, or just outside of one. While living in Italy a few years ago, I loved seeing some walls on really old buildings with multiple and deep layers of differently-colored plaster, which were cracked away revealing deeper strata, all the way down to the core stonework underneath. I wasn't at this stage particularly keen on the dirt path or road. I mentioned last week that a thumbnail for "Ghoulcaller's Chant" was influential elsewhere. That thumbnail (left), came into play here, since that sort of pattern was in mind for that composition, which I didn't use.

I've talked in past posts about some things which are very easy to do digitally versus by hand, and I hope I didn't come off as dismissive. This is illustration, and both traditional and digital illustration result in printed dots on a product. My painting is not on display in the end, only the image created in it, and if an illustrator wants to use digital shortcuts to help speed up his work, who am I to complain really? I can choose to use them, too. And quite frequently I do employ them. Especially at this early stage, I frequently do use digital tools to fix, tweak or alter studies a bit. In this case, I hunted out images of this kind of stonework I'm talking about, posterized portions a bit to just dark and light shapes, then used the distortion tools in Photoshop to map it to the perspective being shown. I then blended it with my drawing such that the layer of dirt was irregularly obscuring the walkway beneath (above), which helped considerably. It did save considerable time versus drawing out the pattern by hand. Cheating? Absolutely. However, to spend half a day or more mapping out the perspective to draw that detail was not feasible. Without digital tools, I likely would have either done the image as the charcoal study, or would have used a stonework in a typical grid at most. It's a difficult equation, but balancing time spent against a flat fee paid is always an issue.

Our captive is meant to look as if he was fairly well-to-do. In styling him, I gave him a bit of the look of 19c art critic and thinker John Ruskin (right, by Millais). I don't think I'm trying to actually, you know, place Ruskin as the character. I'm not that conniving. But I wouldn't have given him that hair without referencing this image. I'm sure Ruskin had enough detractors who would've loved him locked up. He was an art critic, after all.

The painting itself was done on Bristol paper, treated to accept oils. I actually began it in acrylic, working while away, ostensibly on vacation, last year. It's almost impossible for a freelance illustrator to plan a vacation more than like two or three weeks ahead of time. I mean, we do because we have to, but 3 months out or whatever it's impossible to know what your schedule will be when the vacation arrives. Frequently I end up pulling crazy shifts trying to get ahead of planned days off, and/or bringing work with me, which I don't prefer doing. In this case, the stonework and other bits are still acrylic showing through. When I got home, I concluded it in oil, as usual.

"Dead Weight" final illustration, purchase information here

As always, retrospect reveals things I might have done differently, some 11 months later. Small things. The whitish underlayer of plaster I would have made a darker painted plaster. I darkened the receding background a bit, but this negated some of the value structure created by the figure's head in the study. I might've left that. Things like that.

Magic: the Gathering "Innistrad"

2011-09-30T11:20:00.000-04:00

Blog readers have been reading background information on some of my artwork on this set, but this post is primarily for my homepage readers, who'll see this announcement of a new product using my illustrations.

Indeed, my work can be seen in the new Magic: the Gathering release, "Innistrad." White-backed artist proof cards are available now, as well (including the flip-card I illustrated, which was issued as 2 separate proof cards).

As well, I did process write-ups of most of the art, Grizzled Outcasts in two parts (1 | 2), Krallenhorde Wantons, Ghoulcaller's Chant, and Dead Weight.

Magic Innistrad: "Ghoulcaller's Chant"

2011-09-29T10:05:00.000-04:00

A crypt. Something undead emerging from a coffin or whatever. That was basically all I had to go on, and it was enough.

I've certainly visited enough old graveyards to have a pre-existing attraction to old crypts. And, having visited a number of old European cathedrals and even the Cloisters Museum in my neighborhood, I've seen enough old stone coffins. I've always loved how thick they are, how nicely carved. Those were my starting points.

Innistrad had a couple of art direction rules, one of which was that there were to be no "helicopter shots." Meaning, shots from so high up that it detaches the viewer from what's happening. All camera angles were to be composed so that the viewer is himself in the world. A subtle thing, perhaps. One of my thumbnails had a top-view (left), in which you would be standing above the coffin as its lid is being slid away. I kinda liked it, though I would have eventually changed the arms to either both be over the lip of the coffin, or both pushing the lid, as it's awkward like this. Not impossible--I pantomimed it first, but just awkward. Technically this isn't a helicopter-shot, but it wasn't worth me sketching it out to be rejected, given it was on the line, so I left it alone. I did return to a part of it, which I'll get to in the next Innistrad post.

Most images still start with some kind of photo-reference, in which I or others I can rope in get to pose and look ridiculous. I'm just vain enough to not show them here, but others love this bit of cheese. The incredible comic artist Paolo Rivera, for instance, has a weekly installment on his blog, over 100 posts long already, showing off just this sort of thing (here's a link to just that series, but see the rest of his blog, too).

Using the self-timer on my camera, I played with a few hand poses based on the thumbnail I eventually chose. Good times. Much as you can eventually learn to fake lighting, there's nothing like the real thing to show you contours and shadows you would never have thought up on your own. With the real thing in place, you can often fake extra bits and have a nice convincing mix. Once I choose my reference photo, I always knock it to grayscale. After all, I don't use colored gels or anything when I take photographs, and don't use costuming I actually intend to use in the final, so there is little need for color reference. Additionally, having it will often subconsciously make me want to use it in the painting. For something like a traditional portrait or landscape, it might be helpful to have it, but for fantasy illustration, I just drop it entirely.

"Ghoulcaller's Chant" study, purchase information here

Shortly before doing the actual study (but after I'd decided which composition to pursue), I attended a concert here in NYC with a good friend, to see Interpol. The concert was held at the United Palace Theater, an old historic venue, which now occasionally hosts concerts, and within walking distance from home, which was a bonus. I'd never been inside before, and was blown away by the...generous amount of decoration encrusted all over everything. It was a good thing to see at just this moment, and I took some photos for inspiration later. Without having gone to that show, the decoration here would undoubtedly have not been as interesting. So, fortuitous timing.

I was to also indicate some sort of magical smoke or wisps of whatever, which, coupled with the lighting, would clue you in that there be magic afoot. Having lovingly rendered the coffin and all that, I was hesitant to wipe it out with an eraser and white charcoal, at least without knowing exactly what I was doing. So I added that in digitally (left) and also lightened the value of the crypt's gate, so it wouldn't compete as much with the fingers, while blowing out the light a bit more from the coffin. As you can see, once again I am using a very light value for the area outside, though in the end it would be night time.

I needed to make my own healthy hands into the dessicated flesh of the dead. A little anatomy was helpful here, and a sort of imagining what the sinews would look like minus the fat and fluid, for instance around the tendons on the thumb, and so on. A ring worn that once fit is now totally loose. From there, off to paint.

"Ghoulcaller's Chant" final painting, purchase information here

I toned down the magic smoke stuff a bit, primarily to not obscure the decoration too much. You'll also note that I changed the doorway a bit once more--going dark above to obscured and light below, as a creeping fog enters. The fog allowed me to push the wrought iron back to not compete with the fingers, and darkening the top a bit means you don't look primarily at the highest pointing index finger, but a little lower than that.

Magic Innistrad: "Krallenhorde Wantons"

2011-09-22T09:02:00.000-04:00

Look, I don't name these things. The flip side to last week's "Grizzled Outcasts" was not called this when it was assigned. I don't remember exactly, but it was something like "Grizzled Pack." And actually, the word "Grizzled" wasn't in the original title, either. It's just how these things work. I don't know what it is to be Krallen, or what makes the horde feel wanton, an apt word for sure, but in modern parlance Merriam-Webster's definition #2 is the most often used....

...So in the age of the interwebz, I think it is a crime to allow oneself to go ignorant of facts for very long when the Incredible Answer Machine is right at your fingertips. So Krallen is deutsch for Claws. Don't say I never taught you anything. Unless you're German or speak German, in which case it's possible I still may never have taught you anything. I'll teach you something yet!

Two entries ago, I mentioned there were cues I needed to maintain from human-to-werewolves to make sure you knew who was who. One thing I decided to do was to spread the range of human types. The other thing I hinted at last week but didn't get to.

When I did the study for "Grizzled Outcasts" I mentioned that it was done in charcoal, and it was. There weren't any branches yet, though. Just the figures. From there I moved to the study for "Krallenhorde Wantons." Having established that the now-werewolves were going to pop into town to borrow a cup of sugar or whatever, I decided that what I'd have them doing would be ripping apart a set of thick lead glass windows. Apparently there was no sugar, and now they are wanton.

"Krallenhorde Wantons" study, purchase information here

Whereas the first painting was to be quite light-toned, this one would be dark, night. I don't often paint night as black, even though in reality it kinda is. No, I usually illuminate the sky a bit, and simply through color temperature and saturation you can usually sell the night aspect. You'd be surprised how light a sky you can paint and sell it as night. I've seen night skies that are basically 50% dark on the value scale (or lighter)--a completely middle value--the actual value of a blue sky during daytime when you look up, for instance, and it can read as night simply by controlling color and temperature. In this case, the sky goes to about 60% dark at its brightest.

In the study above, it's not quite that dark. Before submitting it, I decided to darken it more because the window frame was making the piece too busy in the upper corners, and the piece was not focusing your eyes anywhere in particular. That was just added in digitally (left), and you can see that you look much more to the middle of the image now. I didn't go back into the study and darken it, too. Maybe I will yet.

I cheated a little, really, with the werewolves. I used color-coding to do a lot of the work, varying the color of the fur a bit to help translate the figures. In the case of the female at right, I used the fur she's wearing as the cue for making her werewolf form white. I also bunched a sort of mane of fur around her throat as a werewolf, too. It's cheating because that's not really part of her as a human, of course. But it reads. I also made her eyes quite dark. The black fellow has dark colored fur. Left-most guy has longer-than-usual tufts at his jaw. In the study he still has his eye scar, which I had to remove as I explained previously. And main dude has more of a goatee and sideburns, and "freckles." Here in the study, his mane starts farther back on his cranium, giving him the appearance of balding, which his human form is not. So you'll see that I changed this for the final. I swapped the positioning of the leftmost two characters simply for variety, since their left-to-right positioning was enough.

I was pretty excited to paint the effect of the thick lead glass, the way it would obscure and blur out what appears behind it.

So the last cue, one which is admittedly probably too subtle, was in the framing. As the window is being demolished, the wooden frame of the window has been bent and cracked and broken up. Having established this, I went back to the sketch for the Outcasts and sought to replicate the shapes created by the window frame in the branches themselves. This I drew with my ink brush, to emphasize their blackness, as I did on this study. I credit this to my Museum Studies, where I started using my ink brush quite a bit for different applications. So if you look at them, the general angles, verticals and horizontals of the branches are basically the same. I even went so far as to crack one branch on the right to create what otherwise would've been a rather unnatural descending vertical. I also bunched the complexity of the smaller branches into the areas where the glass is unbroken on this illustration (mostly). I didn't talk it up or anything, it was really something to please myself, so I was gratified that my Art Director Jeremy Jarvis noted it immediately with a thumbs-up in the sketch approvals. He's a super-sharp fellow though, so I wasn't surprised.

On to painting. Though the fog has lifted, to help sell night, one thing you can do is to mix a bit of gray into every color, and this is what I did. I mixed up the blue I generally wanted in the sky, then added a dollop of gray to it, and painted it. And so on for the rest of the painting. And though not as extreme as in the Outcasts piece, I also continued to use a bit of the value restraint on the further figures.

"Krallenhorde Wantons" final painting, purchase information here.

Painting the glass was fun, and time-consuming again, and something else that would've been a breeze digitally. Glass is often dirty, and when painting it, you want it to always be dirty if you can. I learned this when working on my Rorschach piece 3 years ago. By making it dirty, it has the properties of making everything behind it that is dark, lighter, and everything that is light, darker. It actually works a little like a fog layer, actually, and the dirtier the glass, the more the effect (shower or frosted glass pulls off the same trick by having the glass etched through sandblasting or some other treatment to scuff the glass significantly; the light going through it is greatly dispersed and reduced). So you can see that the darks get lighter, the lights get generally darker where the werewolves are concerned, and where the glass sits in front of the bright, white moon, it gets darker. Another helpful tidbit is that glass, if shabbily cleaned, accumulates more dirt around the frame than the bulk of the middle, which is usually wiped well. This also helps to sell the effect. Both of these lessons were learned in the aforementioned piece. The concentric-circle pattern was just me mentally mapping out the light and shadow--I had no reference for it, except for a lot of old decorative lead glass I saw in my travels in England.

As an illustrator, you have to please yourself. The overwhelming majority of those who see these pieces in print will not read this post. A select few will notice a couple of these things I've discussed. The rare few will note them all, or even figure out other things I did, some of which may have been entirely accidental. But they're not necessarily meant to be itemized by the viewer--rather these things are meant to come together and make a successful piece that is simply enjoyed. The little things, the tricks or clever bits are part of the problem-solving that makes spending many hours on each piece enjoyable on my end. If they please others, so much the better!

Tips & Techniques: Grizzled Outcasts and Value

2011-09-20T08:27:00.000-04:00

I was all set to talk about "Krallenhorde Wantons" this week, and as I did I began to segue back to "Grizzled Outcasts," which segue turned into another post fully of the technical sort. I'll try to break it down so non-painters can make sense of it.

One thing from last week, which was kind of important but was left out...two things, actually. Thing One: Apart from having a light background, I also wanted a misty or foggy look. So while there's some distant foliage in the background, to help sell this I went about first graying out the entire palette, so that the overall color saturation is fairly low. Next, I staggered the characters in terms of distance from the viewer. Doing so in fog means that things further from you become grayer, and also lose their value range, collapsing to the value of the fog itself. This was somewhat evident in the study, but was something I worked at more for the painting.

A scan of my actual value scale, paint-stained and everything

In painting, one might work with a value scale either in their head or actually a physical value scale nearby. I eyeball a lot, but also have two printed out. One of them is my standard go-to and is actually broken into 6 steps: 0, 20, 40, 60, 80, and 100% where 0 is white and 100 is black. When needed, I'll hold it next to colors mixed on my palette, or next to an item being painted, to ensure I'm staying close to my grayscale/value study done in the preparatory phase.

Here's the image in grayscale / value, for reference

So, recognizing that the nearest figure should have the areas of darkest shadow, I basically moved up the scale a bit for each receding figure, such that if the closest character has a black point of about 90%, the next further character registers a darkest value of about 80%, and the outermost two have black points of about 70% of black. Simple enough of a formula. The problem was I painted it back-to-front to create good overlaps. This means that the first figure I painted was the leftmost. When you try to paint a figure whose darkest shadows are only about 70% black, it can play with your head without context. I probably swiped some darker pigment into the shadows of the foreground figures to reassure myself that it would look ok as I proceeded forward, but I don't remember. That's what I'd recommend, anyway. Nevertheless, I recall it being a leap of faith to paint the two back figures with that limited value range--asian hair is often raven black, after all! This is part of where having a definite grayscale formula in mind or next to you is very helpful. As I moved forward, each figure helped to set the context for the next one, and I think it worked out ok. It was a matter of pure restraint to keep from darkening the shadows more than I did.

Even in Photoshop 7, this is a piece of cake vs. real paint

I should pause and note that what I'm describing here is simply a piece of cake, digitally. Digitally I might've just painted each figure with a full, normal value and color range, since that's easiest to do--you're not compensating for value, which can come out wrong. You're also not constantly keeping your color saturation level in mind while you're painting. I would have just painted everything fairly normally. The background would've had its gray tone across the entire digital canvas. Each figure would be its own layer, and using perhaps a Levels and a Saturation Adjustment Layer in Photoshop (one set per figure) I could've tightly controlled the graying out of color on a per-figure basis, and also adjusted the value levels exactly how I wanted them. It would've taken a couple of minutes to tweak, tops, and the digital painting would have gone much faster.

Instead, I made great use of my value scale, holding it up as I worked, tweaking color mixtures appropriately, and so on, testing dabs of paint, wiping them off, adjusting the mix, then painting. A challenge and a bit of a pain in the rear at the same time. This sort of composition was made for digital.

Lastly, the foremost figure itself does not have its shadows sink quite to 100% black, simply because there were still the branches to do. Being the foremost object, and wanting that moist autumn darkness to their bark, I saved pure black for that "layer," and having restrained my hand all the way through, managed to create a fairly convincing set of overlaps and atmospheric depth, without getting all scientific about it. I mean, there were some other rules I could have or should have kept in mind to really sell it even more, but a man has to eat and further refinements to the scheme would have set me back even longer. To have suddenly flipped the scheme in the foreground and used light-colored branches like birch would have required the figures be dressed in dark colors, otherwise it would have flattened the composition completely.

The topic just discussed is something that comes into play to some extent or other in a lot of paintings, really. But, being that this piece was such a great example of it in a rather clear way, it made sense to bring it up here.

I mentioned there were two things left to discuss. Thing Two I'll postpone til the next installment, when I actually cover the flip side, "Krallenhorde Wantons."

Magic Innistrad: "Grizzled Outcasts"

2011-09-15T16:40:00.000-04:00

It's always a fantastic surprise to be a part of the first wave of a new Magic: the Gathering block. For the uninitiated, each year, 3 sets of cards (one large, two small) are released that explore a storyline and theme set somewhere in Magic's Multiverse. Essentially, this allows for a yearly reboot of the story and visual style of a phenomenally creative game. Occasionally I've been given inside hints as to the genre or theme of a coming story arc, but I've never been privy to concept art beforehand, for instance--even when I've known the illustrators involved. It's a responsibility I wouldn't want, as leaking this information is deadly serious business, and I wouldn't even want to accidentally mumble a secret in my sleep and have a neighbor hear through an open window.

But when I've had the privilege of being on the first set of a new block, checking out the style guide for it is always a ton of fun. Not only is there great art in it, but great possibilities, and the knowledge that if I am able to participate in more of the block, I'll be living in the world for a good nine months or so. It's just enough time to marinade in it and absorb it, but not enough to get bored before the game is off to the next thing.

So, for this year's set we have something which one might sum up as Magic's take on Gothic Horror. Given how far Magic has stretched the notions of what fantasy art is, it's always fun to see it move closer to home, as it were. New to the game are werewolf cards, wherein characters are featured in their normal form on one side, and werewolf form on the other. I think Rage did something like this years back, also with werewolves, but I didn't work on that game.

I was assigned one such card, and will discuss the flip-card design components in this and next week's installment. For this week, we have, "Grizzled Outcasts."

In this case, we had four, well, grizzled outcasts, who have banded together and live outside the towns. They were to appear united, and suspicious of those who might encounter them. Though this was essentially a "line-up" of characters, I figured I'd use some branches or foliage in the foreground to create a barrier between the viewer and our crew. On the flip-side, I was to portray the same four, who by night head back into town to sort of say hi to those who cast them out. Very neighborly.

Though I often do digital thumbnails, in this case I did a group the old-fashioned way.

In all the werewolf art, you'll see that the artists were instructed to create visual cues from front-to-back so that the characters could be understood to be the same on both sides. The werewolves themselves were to also have identifying characteristics. So, for single figures, many artists went for mirror-image compositions, for instance. For four figures, it was a little tougher. I sought two ways of fulfilling this goal, and one of them was just to create a wider-than-usual gamut of physical types to transform into werewolves. This allowed me a great excuse to introduce more ethnicities into the illustration, which Magic is always grateful for. What we westerners know as fantasy art has a long history of being primarily of a Western/European template, and with Innistrad itself moving back to a more European-inspired approach in terms of setting, I figured this variety would also just make a nice visual treat.

So, I picked one asian woman and one black male character. I gave another guy an eye patch and a hunch, and there's default dude there, too. I didn't want to go all United Nations and overkill it.

"Grizzled Outcasts" study, purchase information here

I busted out my charcoals and did this "sketch" (the term is losing its meaning a bit the more I develop these, shall we say "study" instead?). One can see a couple of changes that were already being made. Intentionally: the patch on the leftmost character was boring. Instead, I gashed his entire right eye shut, and intended to replicate this on the flipside. The walking stick the next guy is holding no longer appears at the top of the composition--as I went from thumbnail to study, I had to compress the figures in more, and there just wasn't room at the top of the frame anymore. I initially thought he might have some fish or something hanging off it. Would've been a nice touch, but had to go. Unintentionally: the leftmost character had a high collar and a kerchief or something blocking most of his face. By the time the study rolled around this was gone, and I'm not sure why. In retrospect, I might've left this detail.

Innistrad has a lot of costuming, and the goal of making it look worn, particularly for these grizzled outcasts. They shouldn't look completely threadbare and impoverished--after all these were people outcast from the local town--who knows what sorts of lives they led before being infected with lycanthropy? So some of them have rather nice clothing, even nice furs. Modified tricorn hats feature prominently on the humans in this society. But with my black character I opted against it, just to break it up. But then again, what hair style to give him? Surely African tribal hairdos, which might otherwise rock Magic's world just fine, were out of the question. But blacks aren't going to be found in most European art going back to that era either, to see what they were wearing. I went to the civil war and looked at photos a bit, but most men seemed to simply wear a simple afro of varying length, usually fairly short. Hmm. So instead I went Frederick Douglass. One of Magic's keywords, with regards to artwork, is the word, "Badass." Well, Frederick Douglass was a badass if ever there was one. Granted, he was primarily an intellectual badass, but still. And he had a rockin' hairdo. I don't pretend he was the only fellow wearing his hair like that, necessarily, but being famous in his day, we have the luxury of having lots of photos of him. So, Frederick Douglass. Badass.

I was told to lose the eye scar, as another artist had already done that fairly prominently. Shoot. So, I simply emphasized the corners of his beard near his jaw. That would be one cue.

"Grizzled Outcasts" final painting, detail view and purchase information here

There are two other tweaks that I made along the way. First off, the walking stick was anemic in the sketch, so I made it a nice branch with character. Second, the spacing of the characters had the main guy's elbow tangenting with our female's bosom, which was a bad idea. So I brought that figure in a touch.

The last thing of note is the environment, which is foggy and lighter in tone than my usual. First, with a composition featuring four figures, simplifying shapes was going to be key. Also, empty or negative space was going to be necessary. It was for this reason that I varied the heights and positioning of the characters to a triangle leading to the main guy, and why I opted for there being a nice negative space to his right, so he still has visual supremacy. The werewolves were obviously going to be shown at night, so I wanted the contrast with day to be clear. I also changed the manner of patching on the sleeve of main guy and added a clasp to the overcoat on the leftmost figure. Little changes like these often happen throughout the process.

And next week, we'll discuss the flipside of this image.

Art as a Valid Hobby

2011-08-30T01:11:00.000-04:00

"I can barely draw a stick figure."

This is a comment I've heard many a time over the years. I've also discussed the comment before in another context. This time I'd like to approach it from a different angle.

So, why can the person who says this not even draw a proper stick figure? Why not significantly more than that? They're not likely to make this apologetic remark with other things. I mean I know it's meant to be a form of compliment to me, but it also seems to reflect a little on one's own history of drawing, and the disappointment that probably led to one stopping, probably as a child.

It's pretty rare that I've heard someone say to a musician, "I can barely play a scale." If they can't, they just know they can't play an instrument and leave it at that. If they can play an instrument at all, invariably they are able to play more than a scale. They may have learned some basic chords, enough to play a favorite song on a guitar. They may have learned a bar or two of Für Elise...though I hope they don't play it anywhere near me.

That bit of Für Elise or that folky song isn't much. You're not calling yourself a musician, but you are happy to be even that good, to be able to play a few songs, a little awkwardly but through to the end. If you grab some tablature, you're able to learn something new. You've sung in the shower for years and aren't overly afraid of karaoke. And you know what--that's fantastic. No one ever said you must be an excellent musician before you deign to pick up and enjoy an instrument.

(L) Learn a few of these and you're well on your way to rock stardom

Many of you get this, intuitively. A musical instrument is something anyone can pick up, play a bit with, learn a few songs, and get a lifetime of enjoyment out of without progressing very far past that, or even caring to. It's enough to liven up a campfire, and that's fine by you.

So why can so few draw much more than stick figures? Look, most of you reading this blog at one time or another would also draw. You didn't draw a ton, perhaps, but as with most kids (especially so among those who are now a bit older, like myself), you learned to play an instrument or two in school, played some music, and didn't get much further than that. You've probably forgotten how to read notation already. Similarly, you probably used to draw. Maybe you'd draw a favorite cartoon or comic character. Flowers. I don't know. The point is at one time you drew, and sometime during school, probably mid-to-late elementary, you just stopped, and probably for good.

Whether one has forgotten how to play a trumpet, or never learned to play even Chopsticks on the piano, many still pick up an instrument as an adult and learn this basic amount I'm talking about. Why is it then that so few people pick up drawing as adults? I've only met a couple of adults who are not professional or even aspiring artists, who actually spend free time drawing or painting. It was something that simply enriched their lives.

I find this very strange. Where do folks get the idea that unless they draw very well, they shouldn't bother, and since they aren't willing to put in effort to get as good as they think they need to be, therefore they never will draw that well, and so they never draw?

Can I give you some advice, from a professional to you? Don't think that.

(R) You will probably never draw this well. You will probably also never wear a beard like this either. So, see, my point is made. (Art by John Everett Millais)

If you ever liked to draw, and wondered if you should try again, or if you never really did and would like to give it a go, then you know what? Draw. Paint. You'll probably never be Vibert, but you'll never be Andrea Bocelli either. That doesn't stop you from singing in traffic and feeling great.

Drawing for pleasure has many benefits, as does playing music for fun. And anyone, with just a few weekend seminar classes or even a few good books, can get well past stickmen. Yes, if you'd like to make a hobbyist's go of it, it may require some drawing exercises only a little more fun than playing scales. That's the nature of anything you really want to make a hobby out of, though. If you take up gardening, you inevitably spend time reading about plants and flowers, learning about soil types and minerals, growing seasons and pests. Knowledge is a necessary foundation of anything worth doing.

So, if you'd like, leave it to the professionals to wrestle, sweat and strain over reaching the heights of visual art. As for you, draw. You have an advantage a professional does not--you can draw 100% for enjoyment. Your income isn't based on it, your reputation is not tied to it, you don't have to show anyone if you don't want. You can gain all of the good, with none of the risks involved. No anxiety, no punishing self-criticism. No second-guessing yourself.

So what are you waiting for? Grab that #2 pencil, that ballpoint pen, and get at it!

From the Collection of...pt.4

2011-08-23T10:54:00.006-04:00

I've been coveting the paintings of Steve Prescott for a long time now. Well, his drawings, too, but he's got a standing offer to trade paintings with me that I hope he'll one day condescend to take me up on.

He used to bring a big box of art with him to GenCon. Steve's incredibly prolific, and so there were all sorts of pieces in that box for all manner of projects, and often budget-priced. Which is perfect for a cheap-ass like me. So, a couple years back I rifled through and picked up this little pencil piece. I have no idea what it was for. As someone who just likes art, I usually don't care:

5x5" pencil on paper

$15. I mean, really, the price of a cd or a pizza. I regret not picking up a couple more. I don't think he's been bringing the big box of stuff to events more recently, so these steals aren't likely to come your way anymore. This is an older piece, and Steve's unending lead has turned out so many great drawings since doing this piece years ago that he's quickly become one of my favorite lead-pushers around. Go pick up his book, "Aggregate" and find out why this guy puts me in a depressive funk on a regular basis. His Draw Blog is another excellent source of awesomeness.

Whiteback Sketches Pt.7

2011-08-18T09:05:00.001-04:00

It occurred to me that I hadn't posted this 2x2 sketch here yet. Every once in awhile, I get to the bottom of a stack of cards. I'll take the last 2 or 4, and do a single sketch across the back, and then maybe pop them up on eBay or something. This was the case with Accumulated Knowledge, and here was its sketch:

As always, you can get your own 2x2 (or larger, or smaller) drawing by ordering multiple whitebacks with the sketch option--current stock and more info can be found here

Catalogs now shipping!

2011-08-15T09:55:00.001-04:00

I've begun packing up some of the catalogs for shipping, as they've arrived and look great. As mentioned previously, the initial run is small, a little over 50. I'll probably order another batch before the end of the year, but as it stands the total run will probably be somewhere around 100 and that'll be it for the 2011 catalog. So, grab yours now!

For those who've ordered a sketch in theirs, it may take a couple of weeks to get through those; books without sketches will ship much faster than that.

Museum Studies, Pt.12

2011-08-01T08:37:00.081-04:00

T-Rex 5.5x8" Ink and pastel on paper

I finally wandered into the dinosaur hall to draw. I think I mentioned before that it is always very crowded, being a favorite area for adults and kids alike. I made the mistake of going in the summer, too. It was a little warm and there were tons of families on vacation. I wouldn't have bothered if I hadn't found this little nook near the Archaeopteryx. I didn't actually draw at the museum last summer, and I definitely think summer is a bad time of year to do so, at least in the busier halls. You'll notice this sketch has some weird color marks on the top. When I set to draw this, I wanted to do it on gray paper. I bring a little bag with different colored pieces of paper to work on, so I can pick as whim strikes. This time, the only gray paper I had left had test markings on it from an older piece. I think they were even done in Acrylics for some reason. In any case, a little of them still remain. That's why this piece isn't exactly 6x8"....

Sioux Headdress 6x8" pastel on paper

Since beginning this series, I've slowly been accumulating new things to draw with, even if it's just a new pastel pencil color. I've been favoring Faber-Castell Pitt Pastel pencils lately, all the while working through backlog of conte pencils, which I don't prefer but are fine. For black, I prefer plain ol' charcoal, even if the conte is a bit blacker. In the end, my blackest blacks usually involve ink now, even with the rest being in pastels. This headdress (and I'm guessing it's Sioux, I didn't take notes that day--feel free to correct me if I'm wrong) was rendered in 5 colors plus the paper: white, gray, a light beige, a dark brown, and black. Makes for some nice effects, but the more tools I add, the longer the drawings take and the more involved I get! You can see this progression, going back through the series.

And with this, we arrive at the 12th monthly installment of this series. As with my Figure Drawing posts before it, since these are extra-curricular pursuits that involve me leaving my home to do, they are a little difficult to do. First off, they are outside of my work, which means it isn't time I'm paid for unless I can sell the art later. Secondly, there are periods where work is quite busy, and/or I'm traveling, and so I just can't get to it.

So I'm proud to hit the one year milestone, although truthfully it took about 18 months or so to do all the works posted in this series since, knowing the above-stated difficulties, I built up a few months' worth of posts ahead of starting, to pad my efforts. As well, not everything was posted, as there were a few clunkers. Bad choice of medium for the thing chosen for drawing, being tired of standing for a few hours, feeling rushed as the museum was about to close...there are numerous reasons for producing a bad piece, live on the spot.

I've stated before that this sort of work is important to me as an artist. It pushes me to consider things I hadn't before, gives me a venue for experimenting with media if I feel like doing so, and is at its most base level, training. Leveling-up. Whatever you want to call it.

But I think monthly installments of this are over for now. As with Figure Drawing, there will inevitably be times where I partake of it again, and I'll add to it as that happens, but my self-imposed 1st of the month deadline will for now end. Something more like quarterly might be best, schedule-wise. What's next then? Stay tuned.

The Art of Gallegos 2011 Catalog

2011-07-28T13:57:00.001-04:00

Maybe you were one of those who picked up a copy of my 64-page sketchbook, Dreaming in Black and White. If so, thank you very much! If not, perhaps you didn't know there are still some available.

Well, one of the things I've been asked from time to time is, "When will there be a book of paintings?" I've thought about it on and off over the years. My sketchbook was an attempt to test the waters--to get a taste for what's required in terms of design, production, distribution and the like. The waters having been tested, the answer is: not any time soon.

Chiefly, since I live in tiny locations, I simply have no place to warehouse books until they are sold. Another artist friend of mine did a run of 1,000 hardcover books, which easily took 4x the amount of space that my sketchbooks took. That friend had a garage, however. I do not. So, there's the question of storage.

Cost is another issue, of course. Big bookstore chains are closing, and it remains to be seen what the industry will look like 5 years from now. My sketchbook enjoyed limited distribution in places like comic shops and specialty booksellers, but a color book I'd ideally want distributed more widely. There'd also be the multi-thousand dollar outlay required even if I printed in China (I printed my sketchbooks in the good ol' US of A, not that I think anyone cared). You gotta have a plan in place to recoup costs. My friend, illustrator Tom Baxa crowdsourced his book, which was wonderful to watch.

Format is another question. Art books will probably be the last thing to convert to eBooks successfully, but who knows? And if eBooks are successful for art books, who's to say that they'll remain static books? Is the future of Art Books the Art App? I've thought about what such a thing would look like. A buy-once "subscription" to an artbook-style application, with more dynamic content, that gets updated regularly with hi-res images, video or whatever? A lot is in flux, and so I'm happy to wait it out for now. I don't have the money to be an early adopter, though I do like to be at least towards the front of a technological change. I definitely don't want to be a straggler, even though I might not embrace every bit of tech that comes. In the meantime, I keep on painting and creating images so that when a compilation does get released, it's even better than it might have been.

However, for those of you who'd like something to hold you over until whenever, I am happy to provide.

Behold, The Art of Gallegos 2011 Catalog:

It's a small booklet (8.5x5.5") with 14 pages of artwork, reproduced in color. Minus wordy discourses on the art (which a book of mine might have), this is just art, highlighting some of my favorite pieces over the past few years. Ok, the back cover in particular has a little text on it. Couldn't help myself. It features 16 color works and a few small sketches, none of which were in my sketchbook. They've all been on my Portfolio gallery in the past couple of years, so you have an idea of what's included, and it includes a new piece that hasn't been revealed quite yet.

The main purpose of producing this is for promotional client use, in trying to procure assignments from folks in other companies or markets I haven't reached yet. As such, this isn't likely to be an annual production. And if it were, each year would basically have some of the prior year's content recycled, with each year's new highlights added in. Who knows? I'll focus on this one first.

There aren't a ton of the aforementioned potential clients I'll be using this to reach, so the other thing about it is that it's going to be a very small run. Also, the fact that the cover has "2011 Catalog" on it will limit its print run, and that's by intent. So, I figured that this little collectible might be something folks would appreciate until the year the Big One comes, especially those tired of looking at my art on a screen, or who like printed art like I do.

So, I'm also going to make these available for sale. How does $9.99 sound? Short runs are more expensive than big ones, so consider this a boutique item. How about if I sign it for ya? Done! If you really would like a drawing on the inside cover (where I conveniently left over half of it blank in the middle), I could be convinced to do that, too.

I'll basically print as many as I can sell through the year, then carry over a dozen or two beyond for stragglers at events early next year. And then that'll be it, and you'll have to get it on eBay or something. But why be that person? Order one now!

Magic 2012 Artist Proof Cards, and Site Updates

2011-07-20T13:43:00.003-04:00

First for the fun part: I now have white-backed artist proof cards for all 3 of my Magic 2012 releases. The cards from this set can be picked up here, and a listing of all Magic: the Gathering proofs here.

And now for the less-exciting part. I made a number of changes to my site back in early May, as I extracted it from within Daydream Graphics. Since then I've made a number of tweaks to the site which in software terms would result in a new version number. Some of them are minor (tweaked logo), some of them are functional, and some are design-related. A few highlights:

• Reduced shipping costs: Finally I have a good, accurate postal scale, and the ability to print 1st class shipping postage. This means I have dropped the rate for lightweight items from $5 down to $3, so you should be able to pick up multiple prints or proof cards and not go over a pound. This also reduced the cost of shipping lightweight items internationally.

• +1: If you have a Gmail or other Google account (which is a lot of you), and you like anything anywhere on the site, consider clicking the +1 button I've added to the social bar at the bottom. It's a free and quick way you can show your support for the site or my work, which will help folks find their way here easier. More about Google's +1 button here. You can always Tweet or FB Share anything on the site, too, and they're all great ways to say, "Thanks Randy, that was pretty cool."

• Pretty font: The biggest of the cosmetic updates, the entire site now renders in Myriad, which I've used in my logo text, and on my prints and other promotional materials for a long time. Unified branding FTW. Thanks to Typekit for getting the web out of Arial/Verdana/Times hell.

• Sidebar: Being that this blog page is fairly long, I've tried to make good use of the sidebar, putting useful or interesting things. I've added and removed items over time as I've found them more or less useful. You may notice that I've begun a list of frequently-visited or referred to pages. Posts on the site are only "fresh" for a month or so and then they dip onto Page 2 and beyond, and who ever goes back to read old blog posts anyway? So I've dug up some posts that were meant to have a longer shelf-life and put them on the left there.

That's all the nuts-and-bolts for today. Thanks for caring to read it!

Gideon's Avenger

2011-07-18T09:59:00.001-04:00

Magic 2012 has just released, and in it you'll find a new illustration of mine, called "Gideon's Avenger." And here it is:

Gideon's Avenger 16x20" Acrylic and oil

Usually, these posts will include a sketch, and then a grayscale study in which I've scanned the piece and applied gray tones using digital tools. Not long before starting this piece, I had a gander at The Art of Drew Struzan, at New York Comic-Con 2010. I still haven't actually bought it yet, but I will. Going through it, I fell in love again with Drew's preparatory studies, all wonderfully drawn, largely in charcoal. They really made me ask myself why I wasn't doing the same. I've already established that I enjoy detailed sketches.

The reason I went the digital grayscale route was for time's sake. I spent years doing my sketches in pencil--doing grayscale images in pencil takes a lot more time. But that's the problem--in illustration, it's very easy to get a system down for doing things, and to stick to it for so long that you can start to forget the other ways you can or used to do something. Years ago, I used charcoal more often. Primarily in college, but there were a number of studies and things done professionally, even some interior illustrations, which I rendered entirely in charcoal. The downside is storage--you have to be more careful storing charcoal drawings and handling them, since they smudge easier. That was the primary reason why I put them aside. Plus, early on in my career I did much quicker, sloppier sketches.

The other thing that impacted me was the fun I was having using charcoal and conte again in my museum drawing series. Put these two things together and I decided I'd go back to it for a bit. And so I did. For this piece, I produced two sketches, which after scanning I only had to do minimal tweaking to:

(L) Alternate concept (R) Preliminary for final illustration

Shortly after that NY Comic-Con, I was in Columbus OH for the World Fantasy Convention 2010. For that particular trip I was a guest at Steve Prescott's house, where I completely overstayed my welcome and enjoyed every minute of it, all while putting them out something awful, I'm sure. Nevertheless, I had work to do, since my October had been insane with lots of events. I had done thumbnails and shot reference for these sketches, and my goal was to do the two drawings while there, among socializing, convention-attending, and trick-or-treating with Steve's lovely wife and darling little girl. Well, watching his daughter trick-or-treat anyway.

And so I had the pleasure of sitting in Steve's studio and working on both of these drawings from start to finish. Steve came in a few times to work on his own projects too, at other times he just went about his home life while I worked--as I said, I was there so long I had practically asserted squatter's rights anyway. It was great, and I greatly enjoyed the company and inspiration.

Since leaving San Jose 6 years ago now (!!), I have taken to marking each image with the location where it was done. This is because for awhile, we were moving fairly often, and even when not moving, I found myself doing art while traveling a lot, out of necessity. I've been in NYC for 3 years now, so it's a little less relevant to add that info. But you'll see both sketches marked with "Dublin, OH." So for anyone who picks up these sketches eventually, they'll get art done by me, in the studio of another talented illustrator. Doubleplusgood!

New Magic: M2012, Duel Decks, Commander

2011-07-18T09:32:00.000-04:00

Here is another opportunity to play catch up with some recent (or not-so-recent) Magic releases with cards featuring my artwork.

Magic 2012 is first up, being the annual Core Set for the game.This year, three of my cards are included. Though much of the art in the Core Set is reprinted, there are new cards and new artwork mixed in. I have one new piece of artwork included, commissioned for the set: Gideon's Avenger. The other two are reprints. Mesa Enchantress makes her return, after having been reprinted a couple of times now.

The last is Giant Spider. This card has probably become my single most-reproduced artwork ever by now, beating out the illustration for Shock, which was eventually replaced by newer art after a number of reprints. Giant Spider, however, just keeps on rolling. I painted that thing back in...1997? For the Portal set. In Acrylics. Before I was married ('98). While I was still living with my parents (!). For some reason, when commissioning new art, WotC seems to have an internal policy for not asking the same artist to do another take on it. I suppose it's because they want a new look or approach to it. But when the original has existed for that long, even the same artist is bound to approach it from a totally new angle, eventually. I know I would!

Next up is a roundup of reprints which have appeared recently in the various smaller products put out. The Duel Decks and Commander series of products consist of pre-constructed decks. These might be a great way to get started playing if you never have. Of course, it requires a friend (preferably one who can help show you the ropes). Duel Decks: Elspeth vs. Tezzeret includes reprints of Mosquito Guard and Trip Noose.

The Commander Deck "Mirror Mastery" includes my illustration for Call the Sky Breaker. And lastly, The Commander Deck "Counterpunch" has in it Hour of Reckoning.

Card Signing How-To and Tips!

2011-07-11T09:19:00.003-04:00

This article resided for many years at Daydream Graphics, and as it has still proven helpful, I have decided to update and reprint it here now that DDG is gone.

Many Collectible Card Game players enjoy collecting and showing off cards signed by the artist who painted its image. Over the years that I signed by mail I had a very open card signing policy and encountered what I feel are typical mistakes made by card owners in sending their cards to be signed. It is for helping everyone involved that this how-to is written. These mistakes are often innocent, but sometimes quite annoying, and who likes feeling annoyed? Read on and increase your chances of getting your cards back in a timely fashion.

The short message here is: 1.) I am not currently signing by mail, but this article is to help you with those artists that do. 2.) Your #1 goal is to make sure the artist can sign and return the cards to you with the absolute minimum of hassle 3.) Be considerate with an artist's time, as these are usually done for free.

Now for the longer article.

SENDING CARDS THROUGH THE MAIL

Start small - Some artists don't mind signing 70 cards in one go, but often it'll mean your cards will take longer to return, if they return at all--an artist may get a bit upset at huge stacks of cards sent on a first attempt--especially if the faux pas is compounded by other mistakes. Start with up to, say, a dozen of your favorite cards. And please, until you know how a chosen artist deals with card requests do not send cards you couldn't stand losing the first time around! Perhaps include a little returnable card where the artist can fill in whether they sign repeat card requests and if so how many per request--this would be a very considerate, helpful gesture. Once you know how long an artist takes and that they will sign more cards, you can risk more expensive cards. If you can get a hold of the artist via email, ask them ahead of time if they sign, and how many cards per batch.

Packaging - Thick stacks of cards in plastic box cases, in standard letter envelopes have a habit of sticking in mail sorting machines. I received a few badly damaged packages of this type. Small amounts of cards in standard envelopes work fine overall, and for larger stacks those bubble pack envelopes are wonderful. Never had a problem with them. And please, please, please--don't sleeve each card individually. Nothing makes me put off a signing request like 30 cards, each in their own little sleeve. If you're worried about getting your cards wet, try one of those little plastic boxes in a bubble pack envelope. Or, stuff a few sleeves with multiple cards. Better yet, don't sleeve 'em at all and put the cards in a folded, taped piece of paper.

Addressing - There is really only one thing to say about this--include a Self-Addressed, Stamped Envelope (SASE) and write on it legibly. Do not put the artist's address as the return address on your SASE- if you didn't put enough postage or something else goes wrong, it'll go to you and you'll have to pick up the tab on the postage--otherwise we get the letter back and have to deal with it. If I get letters returned it takes a long time to run it down to the post office, if I ever do. Your goal is to allow the artist to send your cards back from home. Artists aren't usually happy to run down to the post office just to buy postage for your cards. Not to mention some artists don't live very close to a post office!

Other niceties - We both know what an envelope of cards is for. Let me tell you though, most artists I've met (and that's a lot) don't mind signing cards, and others actually get a kick from it. But nothing annoys artists almost across the board than just an envelope of cards and an SASE (and sometimes we don't even get that). We're going to spend a bit of time signing your cards, repackaging them and making sure they get home. You'll get a nice collectible that you can enjoy or trade. At least include a post-it note *asking* for the cards to be signed. Tell the artist something about yourself, offer some praise about their art. Just be polite. Artists want to like fans, and learning a little about you is nice. We can't help but feel a bit used at impersonal stacks of cards. If an artist regularly signs stacks of cards for you, include a little more info about yourself or what your friends/family thought of your signed collection. One guy had sent me maybe a dozen card sign requests, and each one had a handwritten note, exact to the word each time which said "I'm ___, from ___, please sign my cards," like I wouldn't remember who he is. And then there were the ones who printed out a generic request line multiple times on a page. You could tell, because it was a thin slip of paper torn off a standard sheet. You could tell they were just accompanying multiple mailings to different artists.

Be patient and understand the risks - Card signing requests can take from a few weeks to a year or more to be returned. Really. Things that can influence this time--popularity/schedule of the artist, number of cards sent, was an SASE enclosed for the proper postage, international requests (see below), special requests, and more. This is partly why you want to start small. If you send a ton of power cards, you may be out of power cards for a loooong time if not permanently. Even if an artist has returned cards to you in the past never assume you'll get the cards back. Unless you have some business deal set with the artist there is no guarantee the artist will return the cards within any period of time. Most try to get them back, but I can think of a dozen reasons why an artist may forget a card signing to the point where the envelope simply disappears, never to be found. Again, the easier you make it to sign your cards the better your chances of them getting returned quickly.

SENDING CARDS THROUGH THE MAIL - INTERNATIONALLY

Postal considerations - Postage for you international types is going to make returning your cards more difficult. Don't despair--here are some postage tips. CANADA--your postage is useless in the USA, so do not put Canadian postage or stamps in or on your SASE. Sorry, but you have the same problems as people from Singapore. Your best bet (especially for those who send out lots of card requests to lots of artists) is to send standard numbers of cards, find out what one packet costs in US postage when an artist returns one, and try to acquire US stamps in that exact amount. You can use the USPS Shipping Calculator--get an accurate weigh of a sealed envelope (with SASE inside) as a test, and use it to figure out the Airmail rate from their ZIP code to your country. If you have any friends or family in the States, try to get them to send you lots of stamps, or try to buy what you need online. I guarantee you'll get your cards back sooner and more often if you can accomplish having your SASE pre-stamped in US postage. Remember the goal above about keeping us from having to go to the post office! Barring that, here are some other options, remembering that these are all less favorable options because they probably require a trip to the post office. That's always going to be a big issue.

Cash - I can't really recommend sending cash as it has the usual dangers but a dozen cards sent internationally costs about a buck to send, and I've had some people include a dollar in their envelope. This works, but I'd hate to have someone accuse me of ripping them off--especially if their cards actually cost $3 to send and they only sent $1. You see? I might not have gotten around to sending it off and it seems I ripped you off. Additionally, I may never have gotten your cards, or may have any number of legitimate reasons for not returning them, none of which mean I was out to scam you for your dollar bill. It also puts the onus on the artist to figure out the postage, usually requiring a trip to the post office.

International Reply Coupons (IRC) - The most confusing way, but perhaps your only option. Even some US post offices don't know what to make of them, as they aren't that commonly used. Basically, these are coupons you buy on your end and have your post office stamp in the appropriate box. If done correctly, my post office will give me postage enough for 1oz. of weight per IRC. You see the problem--1oz. Some int'l card requests weigh more to send back. So the artist loses money by sending your cards back. Again, find out what a standard number of cards take to return, and send the correct number of IRCs. Please see this article for more information on IRCs.

Now then, your local post office MUST stamp the IRC--I've gotten unstamped ones and they are worthless. One more tip--the left-hand box has your country's name in it perhaps. Your country's stamp goes in the box with your country's name in it. If your country's stamp goes in the wrong box, they are worthless on our end. So while the IRC could prove to be a solution for you, they are complicated. It would be wise to ask an artist if they accept them.

Remember - Often, if you're from another country, your address names make no sense to us stupid Americans. It is very important that international requesters write as legibly as possible. The French are the worst (best?) offenders in my experience--they have beautiful handwriting that I can't read. If I have to rewrite your address because you didn't send an SASE with it on it I'm likely to mess it up. So I have to clip the part of the letter you wrote on with your address and tape it to an envelope. You see how these things can make a simple request difficult?

HAVING CARDS SIGNED IN PERSON

Rotterdam, 2009

Sometimes artists are fortunate enough to be able to travel to a tournament, convention, store, or wherever to sign cards. There are still etiquette issues here, primarily in keeping your fellow players/fans from getting annoyed! Remember--we've been flown or driven out, often from far away, specifically to sign your cards and chat, perhaps doodle. So, a list of do's and don'ts for you all:

Do check the posted signing schedules. We'd hate for you to miss us.
Do pick out one to two dozen cards to sign, and please take them out of your binder and sleeves ahead of time.
Do ask us to dedicate cards or write little messages on them. Just only pick a couple for this kind of treatment.
It's ok to make a mistake and accidentally give us a card that was illustrated by someone else. Most of us will not, however, sign that card on the front. Don't be upset if we don't. If you have none of our cards, most events have vendors that can provide you with some. Barring that, we usually have some White-Backed Artist Proof cards with us.
Don't take a huge pile of cards and toss them casually on the table without a word. We're people like you, so at least say hello or acknowledge us. Say more--we're all chatty, even the more physically intimidating of us! Don't be embarrassed by language barriers, we're patient if your English isn't so good, and some of us speak other languages ourselves.
Do ask if the artist would mind signing more than 1-2 dozen cards. Most will be happy to, but in consideration for those that wouldn't, start with this smaller amount. Don't assume that we're mean for not signing your pile of cards--you don't know if we maybe have arthritic conditions or Repetitive Stress Injuries. We'll sign what we can gladly, but we ultimately need our hands for making art. If you have a lot of cards and the artist has accepted to sign them all, do maybe 20 at a time, then get back in line if there is one behind you. It can take 10 minutes or more to plow through some large stacks, and if the line behind is full of people with 2-3 cards each, that's a little unfair to them.
Don't toss your binder/box/backpack on the table without looking. Often artists will have valuable prints and sometimes more valuable original artwork on the table for display, and the nicest of us can get awfully upset when you toss your pizza box-sized card container on our $500 painting because you weren't even looking at us, but were talking to your friend the whole time.
Do ask the artist about their work. Do also be warned that we may talk your ear off.
If an artist has been particularly kind and helpful, do find the event coordinators and let them know--they'll enjoy hearing it and it may influence their future choices of who to bring along for events. If an artist is difficult or very rude, first try to resolve the matter with the artist and see why they are refusing to draw/sign/whatever for you. If the artist is just being horrible, shows up drunk or high, or something similar, do find the event coordinators and let them know this as well. We're supposed to be there to help you have a fun time, and terrible behavior isn't really acceptable from anyone. Oh and when you find those event coordinators, don't bother them if they are judging a tournament, or look particularly confused or overwhelmed. These people work insane hours at events and often there isn't much left in them when an event starts if they've been working long hours just setting up!
As a favor to all my artist friends, can I recommend that if you like an artist's work and they've been kind to you, that you buy something from them? Here's a secret many don't know--by and large we are not paid to appear at signings. We are flown out, yes, and in many cases get a small per diem so we can eat and buy travel incidentals. But a trip to sign, especially overseas, is often at least a Thursday-Monday commitment away from our studios and our ability to earn income by working (we get no vacation pay). While at an event, therefore, do have a look at the prints, drawings, paintings, cards, books, whatever an artist has and if you can, consider buying something. Most artists count on earning some income at these events. Some artists have failed to sell enough and so have stopped going to them because they end up losing money vs. staying home.

A WORD OR THREE ABOUT SKETCHES

By all means ask if we can draw on your whatever. Don't assume that we will. Signatures are free, but some artists consider their artwork something they make a living off of and don't feel it is something they can give away. By and large more artists will draw for you than not, it's just a question of whether it's for free. However, don't ask us to draw when there are large lines of people behind you! We need to sign everyone's cards first. After the line dies down, sometimes near the end of a shift we're relatively lonely and that's a great time to ask for your drawing. Please don't ask us to hold on to your T-shirt, binder, or whatever until we can get around to drawing on it. We may give it to the wrong person, we may be asked to do something special by staff instead of a shift, or we may have our times moved and then you'll never get it back. It's happened.

"Make it Funny" / Alterations: Many players have taken to asking for what they might call, "Alterations." I have literally also had this requested as, "Make it funny." What you're typically asking for is a small drawing that changes the printed art in some way (a sword becomes a fishing pole, add a hamster on a character's shoulder, that sort of thing). Can I tell you another secret? Almost to a one, no illustrator I know likes doing these. In fact, most really dislike them and some will deny you. The others may say yes, but because they don't want to seem mean. There are many, many reasons for this. Your best bet is to just not ask, or at least don't be surprised or hurt if the artist either doesn't want to do this, or just does one or two.

Be respectful. At one particular signing, people were asking for sketches quite a lot from the artists present (none of us were charging at the time). Because the sketches were free, the people got ridiculous, to the point where one guy asked us to draw on the dirty, greasy empty pizza box he'd just finished eating his lunch out of. Look, we're no precious artistes, but at some point everyone feels devalued. That was the worst offender, but I've had other disrespectful requests of the sort over the years. So, I and many others have stopped sketching for free. It cuts down on silliness and requests for sketches from people who don't really want them.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. I shelled out a lot of money for fans who didn't send postage or enough postage during the years that I signed by mail, which along with the time, were part of what prompted me to stop doing so. And that's just me--many artists are much more famous and likely have much more mail. Also, I enjoy signing your cards in person and often I enjoy drawing for you, as do many of my colleagues, but our opinions on these subjects vary wildly--some artists get very mad and verbal when they feel disrespected, even if most of their fellow artists would disagree with them! The suggestions I've given should help save you time and money, and should help your in-person meetings be even more fun. I look forward to seeing or hearing from you!

DO feel free to pass this article along to others! The links below will help you do so.

Semhyr

2011-07-06T10:54:00.000-04:00

Along with Winter's Grip, shown recently, I also painted this other image for the same project, and once again, am happy to be able to show it to you, even before it has been released.

(L): Semhyr, 18x24" Oils on masonite

Semhyr is the character's name. I know very little about him, except that apparently he can control the waters, and has these particular physical characteristics.

When you see it in print, it'll be cropped a bit, shown mostly horizontally. There are also some digital enhancements. Nothing major, though.

In coming to this image, I had another sketch ready to go, but this was chosen instead. I'd like the opportunity at some point to revisit the other composition as well, whether for this character, or re-used in another illustration. Having just pulled it out, I still like it. But I can't show it for now, since my publisher was gracious enough to let me show this piece again before publication.

I've had the opportunity to paint winged creatures a few times now. I don't know if it's pigeon-holing or just the luck of the draw, but it's been fun at any rate. I always like finding new colors and patterns for wings. The water was also particularly fun to paint. I feel like I had a good warm-up for it in painting Undertow a few years ago.

As with other large paintings of this sort, you can see a zoomable view on its details page.

Museum Studies, Pt.11

2011-07-01T09:11:00.060-04:00

(L): Moai Statue, 6x9" Conte on paper

Tucked way at the back of the American Museum of Natural History, easily missed on a floor that doesn't get as much traffic as others, through some quiet "filler" spaces with birds of NY state, you end up in a hall which ends at...Dum-Dum. He of "Night at the Museum" fame. As a result, this hall--which I wandered into one time, lost--has become quite a popular destination, with kids running the full length of the room to see him, and with people constantly posing for photographs with the massive moai statue.

The day I went to draw him, too late in the year for many class field trips and right before school let out for summer, was comparably tame. Still, the number of people who posed, standing and sticking their arms up to put their finger/hand in his nostril (because he's that tall), was humorous. And most of these were solidly in the adult demographic.

I must say, that it took reminding by my wife to remember that this statue was even featured in that film (I only watched the first one, and that was before coming to NYC). That's how quickly details from movies flee my small brain. Movies are largely like pleasant breezes that pass over me. Little retained.

As a kid raised in the NES-era, however, this was my context for being excited about Dum-Dum:

I have no idea why this player didn't choose 'Laser' over 'Double'

Next up, while wandering the same room, which features displays from the island peoples scattered throughout east Asia, I came across this incredible mask:

Sepik Region Mask, 6x9" Ink, conte on paper

I said last time that every culture seems to have found expression for its "fantasy artists." This was no less true in the region of Papua New Guinea. This particular mask I found to be incredibly contemporary from a concept art perspective. It has this heavy black/white contrast, the face markings evoke asian stylings without being typically anything, and those long, terrible barbs appeal to modern pokey sensibilities. I wish I'd designed it, but confess that it never would have occurred to me. Still, I instantly appreciated it and set to drawing it.

I lightly laid it out in pencil, then, since much of it was graphic black shapes, used a new brush pen to draw all the solid black areas, including the barbs and the face markings. Then I went in with white conte pencil and laid in the mask. Since the markings were in ink, I was then able to smudge the white right over the pen lines to lighten them without smudging them. This was an accident, by the way, it hadn't occurred to me that I could do that, but I'll remember from now on! Then I went in with black conte to establish the mid-tones, then lastly reinforced the forward/overlapping barbs with the brush pen and some final highlights. Fun.

I Haz Cat pt.8

2011-06-21T12:05:00.000-04:00

It was 12 years ago this month that we brought our little hairball factory home.

These are still from that set of watercolors done back in '00, when he was not quite 1 year old.

Free RPG Day: Count Artius of Histaven

2011-06-17T09:03:00.004-04:00

Really, making up fantasy names for characters and places must be half the fun of writing fantasy. This one was a spot illustration. Typically, especially if there is no background and this is just a character portrait, these move fairly quickly. Not so, this one.
The description had him as one who had seen too much war in his days. He was to have a haunted or weary look to him, while looking strong. It took 3 sketches to nail it, and by the time approval came, the comments had basically removed this psychological aspect from his visage and demeanor. All the better, as this hero-style image is more attractive in the end than earlier iterations.

It reproduces slightly different in the book, as after turning it in I was asked to change his stance to a more wide-legged pose. I printed out the scan in color, slapped some matte medium on the heavy paper, and repainted the legs. I rescanned that, got approval, then tossed it.

The painting, however, and its sketch, remain.

Commissioned together with the other Shadowfell illustrations recently posted, this one appears in a supplement available Saturday 6/18 for Free RPG Day, entitled, "Domain of Dread: Histaven." It's a supplement for the Shadowfell release from last month. Free stuff, gotta like that. I don't know what all is required to actually get the free stuff, but check the link right above and find out. It seems to have worked for Free Comic Book Day. Can we get Free Video Game Day, and Free Pizza Day, too?

Winter's Grip

2011-06-14T08:27:00.005-04:00

It's always a little difficult to wait months to show you new work, but when that timeline stretches to a year or longer, it gets really hard. Mainly, it's because I paint work to be seen, and so having it go unseen for long periods of time is counter to my interests. Also, if it goes on too long, then when it is shown, it may not be as relevant. But often that isn't really anyone's fault--a project may get delayed or cancelled or whatever.

In this case, a project for which I did a couple of pieces got delayed, and having passed a year since doing them, the publisher (Imagine Ltd.) was very gracious in allowing me to show the work here. They'd previously allowed me to take the paintings to IlluXCon last year, so a few of you might've seen glimpses when I posted the photo here. So, today I'm happy to bring out the first of these.

I can't of course talk too much about the context for the illustrations, since the project is still in production, even though it's on a temporary hiatus of sorts. So, I'll just show some art!

Winter's Grip, 18x24" Oils on masonite

I painted it in the grip of winter last year, which certainly put me in the mood, though it meant I couldn't escape winter in or out of doors for awhile. As well, if and when the piece finally prints, there'll be some significant changes. There were a few elements in the final illustration that I didn't really want on the painting. Sometimes a painting can be harmed by what an illustration requires and benefits from. What I mean is, suppose the illustration had called for something gruesome besides what's here--that might be helpful in terms of illustrative narration, but as a painting might make it distasteful to hang on one's wall. So, since I paint, if something is requested these days that will make the painting unpalatable, I'll try to leave it out and then add it in digitally. This allows me to not need to pull back in paint in some sort of compromise. Thank you, digital tools.

I always begin the concepting with the full idea in mind, and designing the piece with all the elements in mind. As an illustration, the illustration must come first. Then, if necessary and if it's even possible, I'll think of how I can separate out the elements. Sometimes it's purely digital after scanning. Other times, I can paint a separate piece and composite them. Sometimes, there's no good need or reason, and I just paint the whole thing. Flexibility is key.

Realms of Fantasy Reader's Choice Award!

2011-06-08T08:47:00.001-04:00

Realms of Fantasy magazine has just hit the Issue 100 milestone, an amazing feat given the difficulties the magazine has had. It's a survivor, that's for sure. Revealed therein are the results of the Reader's Poll for stories and art that were published in 2010. As it turns out, my illustration/cover art for Ann Leckie's story, "The Unknown God," has won the honors!

Thanks for all who voted, art director Doug Cohen, and Ann for her story which inspired the artwork.

If you like fantasy short fiction, from a very wide definition of the word "fantasy," and appreciate a nice glossy mag with full-color original illustration, then check it out. As with everything, it's also available for reading on-the-go in a PDF edition.

Update (6/16): Besides the kudos, the publisher also mailed me this nifty and substantial commemorative plaque! They printed the artwork onto the plate itself. Nifty!

Lightspeed Magazine #12, Cover and Interview

2011-06-06T08:39:00.000-04:00

This month's Lightspeed Magazine features a cover by yours truly, as well as an Artist Spotlight. It also has featured stories worthy of being Hugo and Nebula-nominated, but for our purposes, there's art!

They licensed my painting "Embryonic" for use as their cover. I wondered how they might design the cover, but should not have been surprised to see the art flipped vertical; after all, I hung it upright myself for awhile!

The Artist Spotlight features a short interview, primarily on the subject of this painting, with a few other questions tossed in. They asked me for a selection of images to add for the article. I felt a little bad, since it was going to be primarily pieces already in my portfolio. That's great for new folks just discovering my work, but for you, dear readers, who have been following along, I was hoping to give you reason to look through as well.

I think I found how to do it. First off, the images are decently-sized so you can get some better views without my zoomified detail views. I'm loath to put larger images online simply due to rampant reposting and piracy, but I'm also not so naive to think it won't happen anyway. So, some bigger scans.

But then, I decided to contact a publisher about a couple of images, to see if I could get permission to show them before the product released. So, courtesy of Imagine, Ltd., I was able to give them 2 images to show that aren't on my site yet. Preview images! They were shown in the background of a photo a few months back, but here they are. So if you wanna check out two new paintings before they're even on my own website, go check it out! I'll post more details on the both of them here this month, so stay tuned.

The magazine releases serially over the course of the month, but if you'd like to purchase an eReader format, you can get the entire magazine at once. It'd be a nice $3 show of support, and you get some short fiction and articles as well.

Museum Studies, Pt.10

2011-06-01T14:52:00.002-04:00

(L) Leopard Mask 6x9" pastel pencil on paper

My first visit to the Natural History Museum was not to draw, it was a quick run-through with my wife to get the lay of the land, intending to return later to various sections to see them more in-depth. While these visits have certainly given me that opportunity, the missus hasn't made it back yet!

On that first visit, the Hall of African Peoples stood out. Within that section, ceremonial costumes of the most fantastic sorts are displayed. It's rather amazing, and you will often see people taken by surprise at the extremely odd and fascinating designs of some of these costumes. Surely, the concept designers and fantasy artists of the past, in Africa, still found expression. I told myself I'd come back and draw here sometime, but it only just recently happened.

This fella wears a leopard-skin hat much like our Davy Crockett's 'coonskin cap. The mask worn has this very explicit frown painted on, emoticon-like. And hanging from his mouth/chin is a loose young leopard skin, which just flows down. Very odd. Add in a grass skirt, grass arm decoration, and painted stars and you get a very interesting design.

It's great that the AMNH chose to display the "masks" as part of full costumes. Masks on their own are certainly interesting, as they are often meant to transform the identity of the wearer for purposes of ceremony. Yet, masks rarely were worn alone--it's not like masks wearers were naked otherwise. Rather, the aspect of the mask's personality was carried through the rest of the costume, and seeing the whole thing together gives a much more unusual picture. Imagine, for instance, if the following mask were displayed alone, divorced from the rest of the outfit:

(R) Zoe-Ba, 6x9" ink on paper

This tall carved mask, fascinating and alien-like on its own, if displayed by itself, would never suggest that it was worn with this giant shaggy outfit of various dried grasses.

There are a few other very interesting costumes that I hope to get back to sketch. It also happens that this hall is not one of the central ones, where summer crowds pack in and make it near impossible to sketch...which explains why I've yet to draw any dinosaur bones!

From the Collection of...pt.3

2011-05-24T10:18:00.013-04:00

Having recently shut down Daydream Graphics, I thought it appropriate that this installment feature a piece of art I acquired through it, myself.

Drew Tucker is one whose art polarizes audiences. For my own, I felt firmly in the middle, loving quite a lot of his work while sometimes being left on the sidelines occasionally myself. Naturally, the stuff I liked I really liked, as evidenced by having him aboard Daydream. He was always very nice and friendly to work with, though we didn't develop a deep friendship or anything in the years we worked together. We tended to communicate mainly for business purposes.

At one point, he delivered to me a stack of original art for the purposes of scanning and putting up on his site. It was a little terrifying, since I typically didn't handle original art. Rather, each artist would usually send me scans. I preferred it that way. Still, I did love having a handful of his watercolors in my possession for awhile. I particularly enjoyed one piece, and when I had an opportunity, picked it up myself!

This one, then, is ~7.5x6" Watercolor on paper

I've rarely worked in watercolor, but it was neat to see how much gum arabic he uses, particularly to push his darks back. At least, I think that's what he was doing. Watercolor dries fairly matte, and it's hard to get penetrating blacks when they dry to a dark charcoal color. And you can't varnish watercolor since it runs. So those darkest areas around his neck have copious amounts of this medium which I'm assuming is gum arabic. It even has a little surface texture to it, which is slightly puckered from contraction during drying.

The art was painted for White Wolf's Rage card game, for the Legacy of the Tribes set. I can't find a scan of the card to include here, unfortunately.

Entering Shadowfell

2011-05-17T08:20:00.000-04:00

The 1.5-page chapter start I painted for this book was an exercise in masochism. Briefly, it's a piece in which some "pre-rolled" characters (ie., fully described in terms of race/class) enter into the Shadowfell. Throughout my Shadowfell illustrations, I tried to squeeze in some sunlight. The descriptions made it sound like this was going to be a set of all-gray skies, which can be monotonous as well as monochromatic, as well as sitting side-by-side dozens of other illustrators' gray skies. I asked if there was any way to get sunlight in--perhaps perpetual evening light, or always with oppressive skies, and was given the go-ahead. In this case, I had fewer clouds as I wanted the impression of them leaving what daylight there was, entering into the foreboding realm which the book explores.

The landscape was generally described as gloomy, swampy. They also asked for skulls to be hanging from trees. Here is where the masochism began. Skulls hanging from trees are an ages-old fantasy device used to indicate, "Abandon hope, ye who enter in." I wasn't feeling the skulls this time, but they were indicated in the brief. So, I decided I'd one-up the concept, and have suspended in this swamp formations of giant skulls...made of a ton of skulls. Skulls made of skulls! A great idea, in theory. And so I did my sketch and value study to submit it:

Skulls made of skulls!!

Not long into the pencil drawing, I had the sneaking suspicion that I had just consigned myself to the poor house. I have a knack for doing that. I had already established that the size of the figures was going to require a larger than usual painting. This meant the individual skulls would be large enough to require them to have attention paid to them. The ones in shadow I could shortcut a bit, but by and large where I might've gotten by with a dozen or so well-placed individual skulls, I had just volunteered to paint a few dozen. Oh dear. Some tweaks were requested, which would include adding mist. And so I went to work.

I ordered a miniature ~3" skull off eBay, which helped considerably. As I painted, I'd just hold the skull in front of me and paint, then rotate it and move on to the next one. It was a little painful.

About to begin painting skulls

I'd forgotten about this photo I snapped part-way through. The top and right are completely washed out due to my overhead lamp reflecting off the surface, but you can get a sense of what's happening. Some things to note: The marsh is completely painted to match the value study above. Mist will go in on top of it (and has already been indicated in the background). The figure, who is wearing a red padded robe, is simply blocked in in red. You'll notice that red just extends into his flesh too. No particular reason, I wasn't intending to leave any of it showing.

And, the finish:

"Entering Shadowfell" 24x30 Oils on canvas

In this case, with the painting so large, I sent in a scan as I didn't want to risk damage en route or on return. I was asked for a couple more tweaks. First, to reduce the dappled light hitting the main gnarly tree. Second, to add in some heavy clouds, as the sky was lighter than they preferred. The dappled light I reduced in Photoshop. The sky, however, was a large enough swath that I decided that doing a digital paintover would look too obvious, since the canvas has a light texture to it that I wouldn't be able to match. So, I grabbed a 12x16" piece of canvas and simply painted a sky:

This will be recycled one day into another painting, you watch.

This 12x16" canvas was basically the same size as the patch on the big painting, so I was able to scan it, and keep it at 100% size on the composite, which meant that there weren't issues with texture variance (where the texture looks larger or smaller than the rest of the area). I then masked out the figures and skulls, so the sky remains only in the bits between. It's a little hard to explain, so here's the printed final. I added in some rim-light on the figures digitally, too, since now the sun was lower. And anyway, it pulled the figures apart a bit more:

Whew, well it was a big piece with a few twists and turns, so it required a bit of dissection! The original painting is here, where you can zoom in to look at skulls, and the sketch is also here.

D&D Shadowfell: Gloomwrought and Beyond

2011-05-17T08:13:00.002-04:00

I've been highlighting a few illustrations of mine from this book, which released today. This one is a pretty large release: a box set with the book, maps, tokens, cards, all kinds of stuff. It's been a long, long time since my last D&D game, so I admit I've lost the plot on all the rules upgrades and such. All I know is it's D&D, and it's got cool art in and on it. And hey, I even did a few pieces!

I'll have one more smaller piece to talk about here soon, besides the two posted so far as of today.

Exit Within, When You've Exited Without

2011-05-13T23:33:00.000-04:00

I'm no Luddite, but I am very, very slow and reluctant to enter the world of mobile phones. Partially, because they're crazy expensive. I don't know how you people afford those plans. So, my wife and I share a quite old Treo 650. On a pay-as-you-go plan. That we basically never use. Yeah.

I have however surfed my website using an iThing or two. Happily, my site renders just fine on everything I've tried it on (minus the zoom feature, which is the only Flash bit I use). You could even browse and shop successfully on a Nintendo DSi web browser (!). Not so fun, though.

However, for those of you always on the go, which is like all of you now, when you visit this blog (as you might have just done), you will now be greeted by a mobile version, which means no more pinching and zooming. Just read and go. You can always switch to the web version at the bottom of the page.

If for some reason your not-so-smartphone doesn't auto-direct you, you can always bookmark the mobile site:

http://blog.gallegosart.com/?m=1

You could also browse that way on your actual computer. But that would be not so fun in the opposite direction. However you read, thanks for doing so!

The Shadowfell: Thyrin Gol

2011-05-10T14:49:00.000-04:00

I might have posted on this piece earlier, if I'd known that it had been shown on the D&D website a couple months ago! Nevertheless, here we go:

Thyrin Gol 11x14" Oils on Watercolor Board

This piece was as much about the place as the narrative (bad guys spying on passersby). I was to show the ne'er-do-wells perched high up in some rocky area, overlooking the travelers down below. Therefore, my early thumbnails were essentially location scouting--looking for interesting landscape compositions:

As you can see, I ended up coming back to #2 above. I went through another 8 or so of these, but these were the most presentable. Also of note--these are not digital thumbnails. I've been doing digital thumbnails for years now, but lately have been needing to get back to pencil for some reason (or ink brush and pencil, as above). No particular reason, just for a change of pace I guess--I certainly haven't abandoned them on other projects. Also of note on the bottom two is a grid system the sketches were built with. The lower-left one had the landscape built around it. The lower right doesn't look like it adhered to it as much--I may have put it in after, thinking I'd sketch the figures in using it. I don't remember. In this case, it's Loomis' grid system outlined in his "Creative Illustration" book, which I've discussed ad nauseum here, which has served me well when I need to squeeze out a few more concepts and am coming up with blanks.

Museum Studies, Pt.9

2011-05-04T13:57:00.005-04:00

(L) Statue Color Study 6x8" Acrylic and oil on canvas

These Museum Studies have comprised a number of things, from stuffed animals to carved images, to artifacts. This month, I confess, I didn't do any studies at the museum. I do however, have these studies which it seems appropriate to insert here. After all, this series includes things like statues. I figured it wouldn't be such a stretch to add these here. They serve the same purposes as the series, generally.

Gold objects are interesting things, and usually their palettes are quite straightforward. However, when a gold object is reflecting blue sky, and is in shadow to boot, well I wanted to investigate this a little. You'll have places where the sky color reflects almost exactly, large areas of dull gray, even a little green here and there. It's odd. So, to experiment, I just grabbed some photos in Google Images and did some small quick studies. I didn't want the blue of the sky to bleed into the alla prima application of paint, because if there was going to be green, I wanted to be intentional about it. So I dropped in the blue shapes in Acrylic, then quickly moved to oils on top. I was surprised to see how dull the color goes in many areas, only to be cued by the strong self-reflected light here and there.

(R) Statue Color Study 6x8" Acrylic and oil on canvas

You may notice that these pieces are pretty brushy and loose. And they are--there was no drawing done done underneath, I just hit the ground running. In truth, though built on the foundation of much tighter drawings, basically all my illustrations are handled this roughly at first. The main difference is that I'll inevitably bring out the blender brushes and knock down and reshape the strokes into mostly smoothness, leaving a few juicy bits here and there.

I've often considered bringing in this much looser and thicker style in my illustration work, wed to much tighter drawing than used here. However, it's really quite a bit different than my usual work, and surprising art directors is not good. As well, I'm just not sure that's the kind of painter I really want to be. I like detail. I mean, it can get tiring painting little things no one will see or care about, but there's a certain pride in my work that I have that I'd be missing out on to make looser work my bread-and-butter. But, I'll admit it's fun, and so I find times to engage in it.

Don't Be Confused

2011-05-02T11:20:00.002-04:00

As mentioned recently, Daydream Graphics is closing. Long-time visitors may notice that my site no longer has that grey navigation bar up top. No more notice about Daydream Graphics.

That's because today I've pulled the plug on the website. There was some warning ahead of time of the closure. You're here either because you're just casually reading my blog, or because you tried to go to daydream-graphics.com and were redirected here for a bit of explanation.

Daydream Graphics having closed, artists have moved or are in the process of perhaps building new websites. Terese Nielsen has begun rebuilding a new site. Jim Nelson and Matt Cavotta, too. Ben Thompson's had a promised site up for a bit. As for the others, I have no news to report.

Beginning today, visiting daydream-graphics.com will simply point you to my website, Gallegosart.com, as just happened.

So, welcome! Having run Daydream for 15 years, I am remaining here, flying solo. You can still browse and buy stuff as you always have. PayPal keeps your shopping cart details and when you're ready to checkout, most pages on my site have a little black "Checkout" button you can click to do so (my blog is the only exception, for now). As always, you do not need a PayPal account to complete a purchase--you can also use any major credit card or even an eCheck. Just look for that link on the checkout page. It's easier, faster, and more functional than it used to be.

Thanks for visiting. If you were interested in visiting another artists' works, I hope my links above are helpful. Have a stroll through my blog or check out my art before you move on, though. Either way, have a good day!

Goodbye, Doug

2011-04-27T15:58:00.001-04:00

Doug Chaffee was a seasoned pro before I was born. I learned about his work when I was like 15, at a local science-fiction convention. He had mailed-in prints to the print show.The piece at left, an illustration of Bradbury's "The Martian Chronicles," was among the pieces I saw. This was about 1990 or so when I saw it. I immediately noted the name and the work. As this was pre-internet, that's as far as it went, but I did see his work from time-to-time in years following. I had no idea how old he was at the time. Turns out, he'd been at this illustration game for a long time, in a variety of venues. Doug passed away yesterday at the age of 75.

I met him very briefly at a convention some years ago. Not much more than a handshake at the time. Over the years, I had the privilege of getting to know him a little through some discussion lists we were both members of. When I was living in Asheville, we talked about me going down to Greenville SC for a visit but I didn't manage it, and of course I regret that now. He was also a gentleman, and this is perhaps a rarer quality than good artist, these days. He was creating art basically to the end. Many of my readers will know him from his work on Magic: the Gathering and other card games, especially through the late 90s and early 2000s. But he'd done so much more over the years, in so many corners of the illustration and art world. He'll be missed.

The Odds

2011-04-27T08:22:00.005-04:00

Many years ago now, I wrote a little about the comic, "Art School Confidential." It was on my mind again after a recent post, so here we are.

A Prophetic Comic
Allow me to begin by posting this panel from the comic, which will be the basis for this post. Frankly, I could write an article on every panel of that comic, but that'd be wholesale cannibalism. And Clowes has no website. He should be raking in a mint on this. C'mon Clowes, publish it as a standalone eReader comic or something for $.99 or whatever. Heck, I'll buy one and I own no compatible device. But, back to the post:

I could stop there, this panel being worth a thousand words. But let's see if I can unpack a thousand words' worth myself. In that recent post, I talked a little about the financial prospects of a freelance illustrator. And I was dead honest--I have made annual incomes that fall into that spectrum, though it varies widely year-to-year. Yes, even including that last bar: so if you think I was being facetious, think again. And that wasn't even at the beginning of my career--my first couple of years out the gate were decent, actually. It was smack dab in the midst of being a working professional. So if you didn't take that last post seriously, and are considering a career in the arts, please reconsider it. If it can happen to me, it can happen to you. Now then.

Quite apart from the income potential, which is poor, you must understand that I was laying out the income of folks who might conceivably call themselves full-time freelancers. That chart had nothing to say about the likelihood that you even ever get to be a full-time freelancer. Or, that the effort required to even try to be a moonlighting illustrator with a day job will be worthwhile to continue on. When I read this panel, not quite 17 years old at the time, I chuckled. Naturally, I was the kid with the thought bubble. At the same time, I'd just gone from a decent sized fish in my local pool to a passable but panicked fish in a much larger one. In my first weeks of art school I learned how ill-prepared I really was, how many kids had had superior educations to mine to that point. So, it was starting to sink in that this comic panel might actually be prophetic.

Stalking
I mentioned in that last post that I keep a folder with a few names in it, which I check from time to time. I actually don't know how big the illustration department was, because I was a drawing major who spent his time on the fine arts campus (design is in San Francisco vs. fine art in Oakland). Most illustrators took their drawing/painting and other technical classes on the fine art campus, so I'd get to know them there. But it's safe to say I got to know most of them at least by face. I knew plenty by name, but only remembered a handful by the time I started keeping this folder. It was a small school, though.

I also mentioned that I have a longer memory than most, and so the odds of anyone remembering me are probably slim, especially because I ditched college after 3 years and so didn't finish my degree. In retrospect, I'm ambivalent as to whether that was a good idea or not. It went well enough, so I can't complain, but there were downsides.

I further mentioned that I could never find info on Alexi. As of today, I still can't. And my memory may be hazed by almost 2 decades since I met him, but I will say that at the time he was waaay ahead of me. Ok, I was still 16, that wasn't hard to be. But I'm pretty sure his work the year I met him was still ahead of mine when I left. He should have been phenomenal by now...but he's MIA.

One fellow who did do quite well, seemingly, is Patrick Arrasmith. He moved to NYC right after school, apparently, and has had a regular and what appears to be strong career. His work is stylistically very much as it was in our college classes together, and he was obviously good even then. I'm in NYC, too. I'm pretty sure I saw him at a Society of Illustrators event at one point, but we didn't get a chance to talk, and frankly, I didn't want to have to explain who I was to someone staring at me blankly. If he Googles himself and finds this, maybe it'll facilitate a conversation later. We weren't close buds or anything, but his work and name were noteworthy then, so I remembered. We had a few classes together, but were mostly listen-intently and work-hard types. These qualities often preclude people from being very social in college.

Around 2000 or so, I was really enjoying the occasional webisode of Happy Tree Friends. This online cartoon went on to be a bit of a cult favorite, along with others like Homestarrunner. Then one day I realized that one of the creators was a fellow by the name of Rhode Montijo, another once-classmate. I had him primarily in figure drawing/anatomy classes. During the years I was at San Diego Comic-Con, Happy Tree Friends had a big booth presence, selling all sorts of merch. I was really happy to see someone do well with their own property, and Rhode has continued developing such, including a children's book, more recently. One Comic-Con, I went to go get in line for something or other and saw him there, so I went up and introduced myself. I'd known Rhode a little better. After shaking up his memory a bit, we had a pleasant short conversation, I wished him well and congratulated him on his successes and we parted ways.

And...that's it. Well, there are other folks I follow, but it's difficult for me to assess their careers. I might add myself to the mix as having managed to scrape and claw my way to maintaining a career (as I mentioned last time, with incredible support).

And one guy named Eddie Schantz, probably the one who I was most good pals with, died tragically within 4 years of my leaving school. We were similar--he was a fantasy-oriented guy. He had a great ability to draw the figure without reference, but hadn't really engaged color work. He had begun to approach me about trying to hook him up with some of my clients. I told him he really needed some strong color work. I don't pass along names easily, since my own reputation is on the line, but had he put that color portfolio together, I would have and who knows if he wouldn't have been another you might've known.

The Rest
Of those who remain, a couple have definitely continued with art in some capacity. That they are really hard to track down speaks volumes though, to me. Art is one of those things where its producers have a strong interest in being found. If an artist isn't easy to find, then they are either extremely reclusive or there isn't much to find, most likely. And if an illustrator and reclusive, that's going to be a career killer.

Others, I know, transitioned into other fields, as I suggested might happen last time. Fantastic--I really respect those who think it the better part of wisdom to move on, who don't cling so tightly to art that it cripples their future if they can't find the means to use it. It might have been difficult to accept a move onward, or may have been a very organic and natural process. Either way, there's a high chance they are as or more fulfilled than they might have been sticking with art and all of its headaches.

Takeaway
Art school, as I've mentioned before, is damned expensive. Right about Ivy-League expensive, and you are probably never going to make Ivy-League incomes with your degree. You may find that your actual illustration income doesn't allow you to eat and pay your school loans on a monthly basis, if you have a difficult first few years. Nevermind rent. I entered college pre-interwebz and so had to make do with a lot less information than students have now. So, I guess what I'm saying is that Clowes' 1-in-100 statistic was a little off. A little. Let's assume 3 others of us did well, but I've forgotten their names or hadn't gotten to know them. That'd be like 6 out of, say, 100 or so. Forget that, let's assume I'm totally out to lunch and 3 times that amount of illustrators did that well and are still sustaining themselves with their art to this day. I'll let you decide if 18% or so are good odds for freelance "success" (however that's defined, I've been pretty loose about it).

Magic Duel Decks: Knights vs. Dragons

2011-04-25T08:28:00.000-04:00

Another small reprint alert, this time in the form of Magic the Gathering Duel Decks: Knights vs. Dragons. This one, as all of these do, features two pre-constructed themed decks, ready to play with. In this case, they also include my Lorwyn illustration for Fire-Belly Changeling in its first reprint.

As with all of these, they are produced in rather limited numbers, so grab one while you can. Meanwhile, I'll be back in a couple of days with a lengthier post.

Whiteback Sketches Pt.6

2011-04-20T08:48:00.010-04:00

I've had a good time doing these whiteback sketches for folks. What's happened is that I've begun to work more and longer on these, and while the drawings done have gotten more involved over time, so has the time commitment. I had initially asked for 30 days for me to do the drawings and get them out, but there have been occasions where I have been backlogged and unable to meet my own personal commitments, partially because I'm spending more time on each.

So, I've raised the price for these whiteback sketches this past weekend, with the re-jiggered shopping cart, from $10 to $15 per card. I'm afraid that by doing so I'll simply be giving myself more permission to spend even more time on them, and I'm aware that there's a ceiling for pricing on these small drawings. I'm not sure where, and I don't want to hit it.

Drawings that span multiple cards can be rendered in almost any configuration and orientation. Here is a 1x2 drawing based on Soul Warden:

I also have done some World of Warcraft card sketches:

(L)Retainer Kai (R)Slay or Stay

It is Possible, But Very Difficult

2011-04-15T10:38:00.001-04:00

The Scenario
A few times over the years, usually at San Diego Comic-Con, I have had a parent or two accompany a child, perhaps in middle-school or so, to my table. Sometimes the child knows who I am, sometimes not--Comic-Con is notorious for being populated by people with sketchbooks who will wander the floor looking for artist types who they will ask to sign or draw in their books simply because they look artsy. (Note: I do not look artsy)

In this scenario, whether they know me or not is not important. The parents will then proceed to scope out my work, their eyes moving across my table of prints, some small originals, drawings and the like, to behind me where I might have a larger work or two on an easel. Then one will say to me that their child likes to draw and ask would I mind looking at their work. Naturally I'm happy to, so the child will sheepishly (or with parental goading) pass me a sketchbook or binder or whatever. I'll have a flip-through, trying to think of what this budding artist might need to hear at this time. While doing so, the parent will then casually ask me the real question:

"So, can you really make a living doing this?"

The Dilemma
Suddenly the whole scenario takes on a different tone. No longer am I looking at a youngster's work thinking how I might encourage them or point them in a better direction simply to improve their work. This parent has come to some independent assessment that their child is perhaps getting unusually good, or obsessively interested in art, and is struggling with conflicting desires they have regarding validation and stability. Suddenly the scenario has become such that the parent is looking for evidence that their child has a chance at a stable future, if they pursue art. Or, perhaps they are looking for the proof they need that they should cease encouraging these artistic pursuits, and should instead enroll them in more college prep X courses or whatever. No longer do I hold the innocent art of a kid's free time in my hand. Now I hold their future.

It's a rather awkward situation to be in, but I understand. How should I answer? It's not for me to say it doesn't matter, that the child should do what they love--my values have no sway or influence there, and I'm not sure that's my answer anyway. At the same time, I don't want to crush the aspirations of a young artist. I myself, by Jr. High, was already contemplating a career in the arts, after all--inchoate as the path forward was.

Chief in this is now going to be my estimation of the youth's work. Perhaps I give a confident answer to their first question, that making a living at illustration is a reasonable expectation. However, their particular child may not yet show signs that they would be able to attain it.

The Answer
I've taken to answering in the following way, and this answer holds true for anyone looking to enter this field, regardless of how old (at least in this genre, though many illustrator friends in other genres might agree): "Yes, it is possible, but very difficult." I can't lie to them--it is likely that their child would earn a better living doing almost anything else. And I really mean that. I know illustrators who earn comfortable livings through their art--these tend to be artists at the top of their game, however. Ones you all know by name already. But they are not the majority, or even a sizable minority. I usually go on to say a second true thing: "I've been at this now for (15+ or whatever) years. Some years I have done alright, other years have been very difficult. Overall, if I didn't have a supportive wife with a regular paycheck most years, I couldn't have maintained a freelance career this long." They've scoped out my work and have judged it at this point. I leave it to them to consider whether that's surprising or not.

Life as a freelance illustrator, compared to everyone else

From there I'll move forward with my thoughts for their kid. Here I'll speak to their child directly. My advice will always be to encourage them in what they are doing right, to give them 1-2 very specific things they should do, or projects to try, and warn them away from a bad habit or two.

The parents are usually appreciative of my advice and candor, and go on their way. I then sit back and wonder what I might've just done. Will this child be allowed to continue pursuing art? Will they naturally move on to other interests anyway? Have I foreclosed on the possibilities for this kid? Have I introduced a rift that'll plague their relationship forevermore, as a growing-in-seriousness artist is not supported by parents who have their best interests at heart? Will this person be made to pursue another field, only to regret it years later, retrain and try to reclaim their passion after years of therapy and a marriage ruined by unhappiness from their other career? Ok, perhaps some of this is a little overblown. Perhaps.

Or, is it possible that they'll be steered away from illustration as a career, live a happy life doing something else for which they will be paid comfortably, and that I might have just saved them from years of personal and financial difficulty? Perhaps I'll never know. Perhaps one day one of them will approach me again and let me know.

It's odd how a 5-minute conversation has the chance for becoming the turning point in a person's life. I'm guessing/hoping those parents will ask the same question of other artists. I know some folks will want to put the best face forward for the industry, or perhaps avoid admitting their own financial situation and feeling judged as a result. I can only hope that my counsel is weighed against others'.

End of an Era

2011-04-05T08:47:00.007-04:00

Back in 1996, I picked up a book on HTML at a local bookstore. Now, some of you may have been born around that time, so let me paint the picture a little: Firefox's grandfather, Netscape Navigator, was in version 2.0. The internet on Netscape's father, Mosaic, was so poor and difficult to get around on on my 28.8 modem, that I went to a store and purchased the browser in a box.

I then learned the bulk of basic HTML, played around a lot, and created my first website, mostly by hand-coding. That website, hosted on my dial-up internet provider account, was called Daydream Graphics. That I created it showed a certain technological impatience on my part. I wanted a website for my own work, and I was frustrated that so few artists had websites back then. In 1996. In retrospect, given the state of the internet and my own efforts to get one up, it made complete sense why no one wanted to bother. As it is, many artists don't want to bother even now, or to maintain one that's been put up. So, I reached out to some friends and said, "Look, I'm doing the work already. Why don't I do it for all of us?" It was harder back then to find your way to various artists websites, so having us all grouped together, in theory, would mean more people would find us, and then find the others. Cross-pollination.

The business model was based on a couple of key goals, which were and remain important to me, having been on the butt-end of so many deals illustrators get handed:

I would take a modest commission on sales and facilitate everything. A real gallery can easily take up to 50% of sales. Granted, they have rents and the like. Still, that means that the price of art increases significantly, since if an artist wants to eat, they either raise their prices to account for some of that, or they suffer for the benefit of getting their work out there. I took as low a commission as I could.
Pay artists reliably and on time. I've been stiffed on payments plenty of times as an illustrator, so I promised I would never, ever, stiff an artist. I paid quarterly, and in 15 years have never once stiffed an artist. There were a couple of times when expenses had fallen past income. In those cases, I wrote a check out of my personal account. At worst I was late a few days, usually due to deadlines...in an industry when months-long delays can be common.

Beyond that, customer service is always a huge goal for any business. Because I was working with illustrators who sometimes disappeared under deadlines, the bulk of my issues ended up being trying to keep a customer informed on the status of an occasionally late order.

Over the 15 years I've worked on DDG, I have greatly enjoyed getting to know many of the artists who came and went, and when I was able to write a large check to any of them from time to time, I felt warm fuzzies knowing I was contributing to the careers of an illustrator whose work I admired. Some artists eventually moved on, but never with any acrimony. Sometimes an illustrator was just ready to take control of their web presence. Sometimes their career changed to where they had other web presence needs. Whatever the case, there was never any ill will at all among any of us.

Because of all that, I do have a little sadness in saying that as of May 1, 2011, or near enough, Daydream Graphics will close up shop.

I say a little sadness, because it just feels right, it's the right time. Had I been forced to close up earlier, I would've been much more sad about it. But, the world has moved on, and probably had moved on awhile back. The writing has been on the wall for a couple of years now. I spent a good amount of time thinking and deciding whether it was worth my time to overhaul the whole thing again for a new era, what that would entail; I did some research and crunched some numbers and decided against it. All the factors were properly aligned, and so I'm letting it go.

All the artists were told about this 6 months ago or so, so they could make plans to migrate their sites elsewhere. Whether they do or not is up to them. Any custom URLs they have should point you to their sites, as they become available.

Some changes, moving forward:

We will cease taking orders via DDG April 15th. That may include my own site, temporarily, although I am close to having changes done that would mitigate any loss of service on my site. We will continue to honor all customer support for outstanding orders until they are cleared out.
About May 1, the artists' sites will be pulled down. My own site should stay up during that time.
Shortly after May 1, my own site (http://gallegosart.com), will migrate to the home page. As you know, currently the site lives at gallegosart.com/artists/gallegos/whatever. After that, it'll simply move up two folders to gallegosart.com/whatever. I plan to keep all existing links working, with code that will redirect old links to their new homes, invisibly.
At that time, visiting daydream-graphics.com will simply take you to gallegosart.com. The DDG header bar on my site will disappear.
Hopefully with no break, the store aspect of my site will resume. I'm working on it now. At that time, it will be completely integrated with PayPal checkout, bypassing DDG's now-cumbersome checkout process and its rusty errors.

So, for those of you who visit my blog and my site, it should remain up the whole time, with only a few bumps. In the end, you'll get a better gallegosart.com and this page as a memory of DDG.

Thanks to all the artists who have called DDG their home over the years: Matt Wilson, Bryon Wackwitz, Drew Tucker, Ben Thompson, Jean-Pierre Targete, Brian Snoddy, Adam Rex, RK Post, Terese Nielsen, Jim Nelson, Jeff Miracola, Quinton Hoover, Liz Danforth, Matt Cavotta, and Jason Behnke. Many apologies if I've forgotten someone.

And thanks to you for your support of DDG over the years. Your patronage made a real impact in the lives of the artists you've supported. You literally helped put roofs over our heads and food in our bellies.

Those of you who continue to follow my work--thanks for doing so. We'll continue riding this track without the other box cars. See you next week!

Museum Studies, Pt.8

2011-04-01T08:26:00.007-04:00

LIONS!

African Lion 5.5x8" Conte on paper

The Hall of African Mammals at the American Museum of Natural History is a main attraction, being the first thing you might enter if you walk in the main hall and head straight down the central aisle. It has some amazing dioramas, on two levels, including a pack of Elephants in the middle of it. I'm particularly happy to see that a large reason why these dioramas are so impressive is that they are backed by incredibly well-done and large paintings, which form panoramic backdrops, and more often than not blend convincingly with the foreground rock and plant elements. Honestly, as a painter, the backgrounds of many of the dioramas at the AMNH are worth a visit to see on their own. Fantastic landscape and wildlife work.

Chief among the dioramas is the African Lion, for obvious reasons--he's the King of Beasts. Everyone loves a lion, and lions are among the first animals children learn about due to their legendary ferocity. This means that drawing in front of this diorama is very difficult. Drawing in this particular hall is very difficult, actually.

First off, the entire hall is very dimly lit, so as to allow the lighting in each diorama to reign, it seems. This isn't the case in other equally-effective areas (like the bird dioramas), so I've avoided drawing in this hall due to the very dim light.

Secondly, as I said, this hall is popular. People are coming by to look, and they often take flash photos in front of it. All the kids yell, "Look! Lion," and drag parents over to see. I can't very well stand right in the center of it and draw for an hour or so. So, I chose a spot off to one edge, and tried to stay out of the way of the informational placard. Being near to it also gave me a little more light, from the diorama itself.

African Lion 5.5x7" Conte on paper

True to life, there is only one maned male in the scene, and a few females. So to draw him again, I changed my angle and height. This angle would have required that I stand right in the center. As I said, I couldn't do that, so I backed up and sat down on a bench under the elephants. After standing for the first drawing, this was a relief anyway. However, now it meant that this drawing took a lot longer than it should have. A constant stream of folks came by to stand at the glass, and so my view was obscured constantly. I had to wait, get a few-seconds glimpse, and draw while waiting for folks to enjoy and move on.

Before I venture into this hall again in the future, I'll remember to bring my wife's mini book-lamp. I draw on a standard office clipboard, and it would've solved the lighting issue and helped the drawing. Of course, it would also draw attention, which I'm not too big on.

Banned in Turkey!

2011-03-30T15:10:00.001-04:00

I'm almost a little proud, my blog has been banned in Turkey! Doesn't being banned confer fame and honor to artists of every stripe?

I've received two contacts from readers in Turkey the past week or so, letting me know that my blog was "down." Naturally, it was working for me, so I did a little legwork (about 5 seconds) and discovered that actually all of Google's Blogger service is in fact banned in Turkey!

"But Mr. Gallegos," you say, "You aren't on blogspot.com anymore! You used to be, but I see right up top it says 'blog.gallegosart.com'." Very observant! The first 4 years or so of Exit Within, indeed I published on a blogspot domain. However, when I redesigned the blog awhile ago, I created a domain CNAME (name.domain.com)...but it still points to Blogger. So, this is still a Blogger blog, and so I am down with all the other blogs in Turkey.

Apparently this was due to copyright infringement on one particular blog. Just one? There have to be lots and lots of infringing blogs. It seems a little harsh to pull down hundreds of thousands of blogs. Might there be other motivations? I don't know, and anyway I have a no-politics stance on this blog, which remains in full effect.

I did look into importing this blog to another service not long ago, but it didn't import very well. Plus, it would break all the links to individual pages. Messy. I'm not displeased with the Blogger service really, but there are better ones out there.

In any case, sorry to my Turkish friends (who even now, are not reading this).

IlluXCon 2011 Scholarship Auction

2011-03-24T08:39:00.003-04:00

Lots and lots of these

As much as I've discussed IlluXCon as a place to go for collectors and fans of original fantasy and science-fiction paintings, it's actually much more than that. The past couple of shows have had an increased emphasis on also trying to bring in students to come, be inspired, and begin networking. In essence, the show has begun supporting the next generation of visual magicians. During the show, many artists volunteer time away from their sales to put on demonstrations or participate in panel discussions. As well, a few prominent art directors have made their way down and also join in these, while also scheduling lots of portfolio reviews. Add to this all the art that is around and you have an event that I might've sold a kidney to attend back when I was in school.

But, the show is not exactly centrally located, and a little expensive for a broke student. So, there is once again this year an auction to sponsor in a few select students. The artists kick in some stuff, IlluXCon auctions them off on eBay, and the proceeds go to offset the costs for these students, to the extent that money is raised. Those young artists get a head-full of inspiration and some opportunities for networking and portfolio reviews. Pretty cool.

For my own contribution, I offer this big ol' stack of signed whiteback artist proof Magic: the Gathering cards. This represents just about everything that's available, from 1995's Ice Age (only available in foreign-language proofs now) through to the present. Granted, a number of proofs have sold out over the years, but this is a great way to kickstart your collection.

You like Magic? You collect stuff like this? You want to support tomorrow's artists? If you answered 'yes' to even one of those questions, then ~~head on over to eBay and bid generously~~. I make zero, zilch, nada.

Update: Thanks for bidding on this auction, and congrats to the winner!

"The Sacrifice" a Pre-nomination for 2011 Chesley Awards

2011-03-18T14:30:00.002-04:00

Some good news lately. My painting, "The Sacrifice," has been getting some good notice this past year. I showed it last fall at the World Fantasy Convention, where it proceeded to receive a Judges' Choice Award. Then, recently, I learned that it made the long-list for a Chesley Award nomination in the Unpublished category.

The Chesleys, bestowed by the Association of Science-Fiction and Fantasy Artists (ASFA), have been around awhile now and have been a constant fixture in my own experience, along with other "big" awards like the Hugo. Most of my favorite genre artists have been nominated for or won one or more of those two awards, and naturally it's been a long-term goal of mine to be good enough to win one. Heck, to even be nominated would be pretty wonderful. Well, this isn't quite there, but it's as close as I've ever been, to this point.

The way the awards are decided is that ASFA members put forward potential nominees from what they've seen through the year. Those are gathered into a long list of suggestions. Nominations-for-the-nominations, if you will. From here, ASFA members will vote on their nominees in the various categories. Those votes narrow the field to 4-5 official nominees per category. Members will vote once more, and the winners will be announced at this year's WorldCon, in Reno NV. That's a lot of noms.

Any chance I get, I tell ya!

The list is pretty long to start, but I'm happy to be among such a stellar lists of artists. I also have the misfortune of being surnamed such that I will probably always appear next to Donato Giancola in any list we're both on. I love Donato, but I'm working on getting to the point where that proximity bothers him, instead! (Not holding breath)

"How can I help, then?" Why, I'm glad you asked. As mentioned, this award is wholly given by ASFA members. If you're a member, then consider me for your nominations list. No, let me cease being humble for a moment--if you're a member, add "The Sacrifice" as a nominee in the Unpublished Category!

If you're not a member, then the only thing I can say is you have to be one to help. You could of course become a member of ASFA this year so you could vote. It wouldn't just be for me, of course, as there are other categories and other worthy artists who deserve awards in other categories. That Giancola guy is up in 2 other categories, after all. ASFA is an organization that supports genre artists in various ways, and one I've been a member of on-and-off myself over the years, when not lazy or broke. So it's a worthy organization, at any rate.

A little too much to ask? Well, there are those handy Facebook Share and Tweet buttons at the end of this (and every) post. You could always spread the word!

Star Wars Galaxy Series 6 Trading Cards

2011-03-17T15:29:00.000-04:00

Recently released are Topps' Star Wars Galaxy Series 6 Trading Cards. Topps are to be commended for being one of the few companies left who issues trading cards which are, basically, just art! No game the art is supporting, no small boxes for the art which leaves room for text and so on. Hey, I love trading card games--they've made the bulk of my career, but it's nice to actually have a card full of art for its own sake! So, if you dig Star Wars and SW art, go grab some packs and support Topps' efforts!

Cards come randomly packed, and the set is made of reprinted art from a long history of SW art, as well as newly commissioned pieces (aka "New Visions"). My contribution to the set was an illustration of Ahsoka (card #33 I believe). I had a second image that we were really excited to include, but time ran out before Lucasfilm had approved the sketch! Hopefully we'll get a chance to continue it on the next set. Which brings me to this: Topps has now earned the record for fastest turnaround on a product among large clients I've worked with. I handed in my illustration at the beginning of December and it's on the shelves now. That's fast!

I mentioned before that the cards are all about the art. This holds true even on the backside. They reprint a portion of the sketch, and even have a snazzy soundbite quote from yours truly printed there. Since only a portion of the sketch reproduced on the back, I'll go ahead and put next to it a full-version of the sketch, which was largely digital this time (over a very minimal sketch):

I made a few changes after this point. In drawing, obviously, since it was sketchier than usual. But also, I removed the pure-night sky peeking behind the clouds, and the subesequent darkness the buildings were plunged into below. In both cases, I thought the sentinels were getting confused into the background. Also, the dark night sky might've read as smoke, reproduced small, which I didn't want either. When it comes to drawing, reference helps a lot. I took screen shots from the Clone Wars movie, and most helpfully, bought a toy off eBay. I'm really glad they made an action figure of this guy.

Given that Star Wars was one of the key influences to me as a child, in determining my future artistic interests, and that I spent countless days playing with action figures, you might think that this was simply an opportunity to play with toys again. Let's just say hardwood floors are not as easy to play on as the carpet I grew up with.

Purchase info for this painting can be found here.

The Wife Test

2011-03-09T10:40:00.000-05:00

I don't talk about her often here, but I've been blessed to be married to an awesome woman for many years now. We started dating in 1990. So, there is no one on this planet who has a more intimate knowledge of my art than she does. For better or for worse, she's known me as a starry-eyed dreamer back in high school art class. She watched me copy the work of TSR artists in my sketchbook, saw my epic failures, and listened patiently as I discussed the merits of so-and-so's professional work and so on. When I went to college, she watched me pour myself into study, putting up with me constantly complaining about my modern art history class, and when I would disappear for periods of time to get stuff done.

She was there when I got my first commissions. There when I failed professionally, and during my greatest successes. She knows what I'm after, what I'm aiming for. She's internalized my aesthetic as much as someone else can. Doesn't this all sound just peachy? Well it is--certainly it's as wonderful as it sounds. And yet....

There are few things that have been the cause of as much disharmony as her critiques. Being one who understands me, while not being me, no one is more qualified to call me on my work, and, she does. There is nothing that can bring me down, artistically, like a critique from her. Especially the past few years, in the tiny apartments we've shared, I simply cannot get away. I can't escape her reactions. She sees the work all the time. This has resulted in something I like to call The Wife Test.

The Wife Test is simply the effect my work has on her. For the majority of my work, it's a normal and healthy neutrality. When a piece is going well, I can tell by her reactions, even without a word. And without a doubt, if she thinks I'm rockin' a particular image, then that piece will inevitably be proven a winner out in the world. Likewise, if she sees something...off...then I'm in trouble. She has a very good record for calling the winners and losers over the years.

Naturally, I shoot for her approval as I'm working. It's not like I consciously design my work to elicit her praise--I have to fulfill my client's needs first, after all, and my own. But living this close, it can't be helped--whether she wants to communicate it or not, if she doesn't like a piece, I'll know. Either she'll say so directly or I'll just feel it. Nothing sinks my boat like criticism from her. The reason The Wife Test is so useful for me is that I cannot escape it or justify it away. I have to live with it. If I show another artist a piece and get some criticism, hopefully I'll take it. However, the temptation will also be there to think that the person just didn't get what I was after, or something equally lame, and since I don't live with that person I can just go about my business and write off their opinion, if I really want. It doesn't follow me around.

Not so, with my wife. The next day, she's still there. If I ignore her and turn the piece in, months later when I get it back or take it out again, she's still there. I cannot tell you how many times I have regretted not responding to her critique and changing something much later, when the initial glow of the finished piece has subsided. Yet to request additional critiques would be crushing. Nothing would ever get finished. Bad enough that I have to quash my own inner critic as deadlines approach.

We've had our share of heated conversations at these times, usually because I'm so frustrated at the time put in that has to be undone, so I project anger felt at my own inadequacies as an artist onto her critique. Other times, it's because these critiques come too late to effect a change--so now I lose confidence in the piece with no opportunity to improve it before it's due. It's tough, but she's made me a better artist. Quite apart from all her other excellent qualities, I simply cannot imagine the artist I'd be without having had her there all those years.

Museum Studies, Pt.7

2011-03-01T08:51:00.013-05:00

L: Huastec Figurine 6x8" pencil

The Huastec people were an unusual pre-Columbian people of ancient Mexico. What made them stand out was that they spoke a language descended from ancient Mayan, far from the Mayan geographical distribution. Well, I should say they speak, since there are still people who speak some derivative of this tribal tongue. I didn't know much about them prior to this visit to the AMNH, but their Mesoamerican room is very useful in that it breaks out artifacts by people group, and separates the groups out by region. My family on my mother's side is from the state of Tamaulipas, so I wandered over to that area and learned a little about the Huastec, who inhabited the region near Tampico (her specific city), though the Huastec flourished primarily in Veracruz. I found this particular figurine shard to be very delicately carved, and set about drawing it in pencil. The sheet is 8" tall, but the figure was drawn at near to actual size--it's a really tiny little carving, maybe 3" tall.

10 years ago, on our last trip to visit family in Mexico, a few of my cousins there offered to drive us down to Veracruz to see some old ruins. It sounded like a great idea, so we packed into two cars and headed down. Maybe half way, one of the cars broke down on a lonely 2-lane country road. We were a few miles from the nearest town and there aren't exactly call-boxes out that way. So we waited, until a jeep packed with the equivalent of State Troopers saw us and pulled over. Worried, my cousins urged us Americans to lay low and not speak while they tried to get some assistance. They were indeed helpful, but we were never able to go see the ruins, which would have probably been Huastec. It was sad, however, to see common Mexican civilians fearful of their own police, but I've spoken to others who've related stories that make real these fears. And that was 10 years ago, before the current crop of trouble you hear so much about. Sigh.

And with that I present, incongruously, this Musk Ox:

Musk Ox 8x10" pastel on paper

My last visit to the AMNH of 2010 yielded this drawing. It was right before Christmas, and the very next morning I woke up with a cold that stuck with me through New Years and beyond. Thanks a lot, tourists!

From the Collection of...pt.2

2011-02-22T08:56:00.002-05:00

It's now a series!

When I was in Jr. High, Topps released their infamous and long-running "Garbage Pail Kids" series of spoof cards/stickers. Beyond being funny and gross (publishing gold for Jr. High-aged products aimed at boys), I also appreciated the paintings being done for them, and began collecting them because I liked the art. I was 11, ok?

But no, they were actually pretty fun pieces. Some 20 years later and, ever nostalgic, the wonders of the interwebs caused me, one bleary-eyed late night, to come upon the website of John Pound, one of GPK's chief illustrators from the beginning! It was a nice flashback, and pretty cool to learn that some original GPK art still existed. Topps then (as now) purchased the final art for many of its art cards, so final art for most GPK cards won't be found. However, John was making available at the time a number of color studies, which were used in preparation for his final paintings. These are Acrylic paint over a copy of his pencils, and 25 years later have held up great.

As usual, I was kinda broke at the time. Thankfully, I have generous friends. Well, friend. This one then was a Christmas gift back in 2004.

The art itself is ~7x4.75" Interestingly, I note that John seems to no longer be offering GPK studies. There weren't a ton left, 6-7 years ago, so it seems that perhaps they've all been snatched up. Lucky me, in that case!

The Value of Information: Wisdom and Strategy

2011-02-16T08:47:00.000-05:00

After friendly partial-disagreement with my fellow illustrator about the monetary or whatever value of technical knowledge, I brought forth what I felt was the more valuable realm of information: wisdom and strategy. I kind of count them as one thing, strategy being the physical channel for wisdom within illustration.

Why does one artist have a career that excels and another's, perhaps equally talented, flounders? How did artist X land that job, when that industry is impossible to crack? How did this other artist make that important person's acquaintance?

These, aspiring artist, are the real questions. Technical knowledge is available and ancient, it has value insofar as individuals store it up and can dole it out. It's also incumbent on you to learn it, somehow. Wisdom, however, is very difficult to teach, and how one plays it out in their career is unique to their era and circumstance. It is extremely valuable, and fugitive.

(L): Please, won't someone reprint this book?

One can read Andrew Loomis, for instance, and gain all sorts of great technical knowledge. But were you to read a book where he discussed his career: the choices he made, how he networked, negotiated, weighed opportunities and passed on others... if you did that you'd simply have interesting non-fiction. Most of it would not be useful anymore--industries change, markets change, personnel change, technologies change. Yet if you were a less successful illustrator in Loomis' day, which body of knowledge would you really want him to open up about? The technical stuff Loomis taught, while excellent, was itself a re-presentation and explanation of things that were already known and could have been learned elsewhere. Loomis compiled and added his own trial-and-error. But the little, secret moves that he made from client to client, job to job...at the time, that stuff was gold. After all, wouldn't Loomis have really loved to learn those things from Leyendecker and Rockwell, both of whom as contemporaries had vastly more successful careers, but who probably had also mastered the technical stuff Loomis taught? I think so.

By strategy I do not mean manipulation--that's one strategy, sure, but not one I'd ever recommend you use; it's an aggressive short game, likely to burn you. Deservedly. Still, in any given year there are all sorts of opportunities one can create or participate in, all sorts of decisions that can turn a career, leaps of faith that can revolutionize, and so on.

(L:) Interesting non-fiction.

This is a little vague. I know. It covers all sorts of things though from self-promotion, to what jobs one takes and why. It factors into what sacrifices you're willing to make, financially or otherwise, for the sake of larger goals. It includes the habit or practice of even having larger goals, and what to include in them. In one sense, it's everything you do when you're not making marks. When you're making marks, you're using your technique. The rest of the time, and underneath it all, you're operating on some strategy. If you have no strategy, well that's your strategy. Good luck.

Occasionally, I've known illustrators who will open up privately on this front, and I always feel privileged. Some of them are open about this stuff in general, and they are a rare breed. The closer I am with my artist friends, the more we share this kind of information with each other. The more we respect each other and genuinely want each other to excel, the more we talk at this level. Yet, inevitably, we all hold some cards close to our chests, even among each other.

Yet, among those same illustrator friends, we easily and openly talk all matter of technique. There are very few, if any, technical secrets among us. Instinctively, I think we know what body of knowledge is really valuable. The choices we make in our lives are context and time-sensitive. If I hold them close, I stand to gain from this real hard-earned wisdom. Some years down the road, it'll be less important, less relevant, and I'll find it easier to discuss those things openly. If I teach you to use a product or technique, I may save you many headaches and even many hours. If I teach you some hard-earned life-lesson or philosophy, I could save you years.

I'm not even saying I'm a sage in this matter. I'm not. But I know that I have learned many things. These are the things I would go back in time and teach myself, because it took years to learn them, and I was intentional in trying to make sense of these sorts of issues. Others are wiser than myself, and in most cases are reaping the harvest of that wisdom, coupled with excellent technique.

So when I give portfolio reviews to artists, I'll often give some nuts-and-bolts, but I'll often slide in a little wisdom--some strategy, some way of thinking about the big picture, or life. I often think the artist will take mental note of the technical and be excited to try it, but here's my advice: take to heart the bit of wisdom more. It may ring hollow because you're looking for some nut or bolt to add to your toolbox, but really think about it first. This stuff you can't learn in any book, any degree program (unless you have talented instructors who teach openly from their wisdom, not just technique), but only by years of success, failure, and time spent reflecting on it all. If an artist discusses something more philosophical with you, treasure it.

The Value of Information: Tips and Techniques

2011-02-09T14:39:00.003-05:00

Recently I was having a discussion with a couple of fellow illustrators. An interesting topic came up, regarding the value of information. Specifically, the value an illustrator does or should place on years of technique learned. In the age of the interwebz, much information has been freed, to the benefit of all. It has also created a culture of entitlement to basically all information. However, this is not a post about copyrights, where such conversations typically go.

Over the course of a career, an artist begins (usually) by paying often hefty amounts of money to attain a decent art education. That's no different than any other field. The basic knowledge an artist will need to build his craft has been arrived at through centuries of teachers building upon prior generations' stores of knowledge. We add to this, forget some, other bits become irrelevant, and pass it on. But rarely do we do it for free. Should this information be free?

Of course, if you are in the business of running an art school, this answer is no--information, delivered by talented teachers, is an extremely valuable commodity. In teaching techniques, an artist is in essence training his competition to graduate and try to take his clients. So every art teacher is in one sense working against his own best interests. This then becomes a great motivation to give this precious knowledge away only at a price.

As well, a good teacher will edit. They will sift the knowledge for what is appropriate at the right time, and find new ways of communicating it. These are skills which, when done well, can greatly aid a student.

However, most of what an artist needs to know can be gotten for free. Books, some centuries old, are still around. Their lessons are mostly timeless. You can learn color theory from books. You can learn perspective from books (though it may be very dry). You can learn anatomy that way, about painting mediums, alternate tools and methods to try and so on. What you won't get are an artist's judgment calls, arrived at through years of practical experience. You won't get valuable critique, and you may not even learn what you're doing right.

Some artists give this technical knowledge away freely. But it isn't something that gains the artist nothing--an artist who gives away knowledge regularly, or even develops a reputation for it often gains in other ways--popularity rises, they become a valued source of information. You spend time looking at their art, and so on.

The conversation I had centered around whether this was smart to do. My friends were of the opinion that this stuff was too valuable to give away. I think that if they can gain from it, they should, however I don't think this form of information is as valuable as they do--not value-less, but not something to be super-secretive about, or to demand large sums of money for (unless you're really giving away the store). The reason is that there is a perennial need for it: if I give it away to a group now, in a year or two a new crop of folks will be available, and the knowledge becomes valuable again. Plus, much of what I'd say can be found elsewhere anyway. I argued that there is another body of knowledge that is much more valuable than technical, and I'll cover that next week.

(L): Many artists, myself included, have used Galkyd to "varnish" oil paintings. I no longer do so. Why? Pay up!

So, I do give away some tips and techniques. I don't do very technical treatises, because there are plenty of places to get such. Rather, I talk about what I do in a more organic way. My thought process, and some of the philosophical underpinnings. It's not too big a deal to film a YouTube video showing how I wet-mount a board for painting on, for instance. Other folk do it and you could learn it from them. It's no silver-bullet solution anyway, and I'm actually doing it a lot less myself now. I don't give away the store, and partially that is because it's just not that interesting for me to discuss here, point-by-point. Also, it's because I've sometimes added something to the methods which required work, which I'm not inclined to always give away. I've added trial-and-error, and experience that results in preference. In the video, I mention that Hardbord is the least prone to warping of all the masonites I've tried. You might've learned that elsewhere, but now I've given you freedom from many hours of unhappy warped boards. That's great for you, but what do I gain? Well maybe you'll come back another week and see what I have to say. I can't say the desire to save others from headaches is necessarily driving me to blog, though I'm honestly glad if I just saved you a headache or two.

Other examples: no two artists prime a board the exact same way. That's an overstatement, but really if you've ever tried working on a board another artist prepared, you know what I mean, so it's no huge deal for me to talk about how I prime boards. I have no problem telling you what brushes I use (mostly, inexpensive sablette filberts, and rarely anything smaller than a #2 round for details). Why I rarely use smaller than a #2 round, or why filberts over flats is the more important thing--also not that big a deal, but interesting enough that I don't feel inclined to add it to this post. Maybe it's worth its own post and bringing you back another day to read about it. Maybe not. Yet, many (usually younger) artists want to hear nuts and bolts from artists most of all in their blogs. For my own, that's sort of the last thing I care about when reading others' blogs. I'm more interested in the choices an artist makes along the way. Given a body of technical knowledge, why does an artist use this subset of the toolbox for one painting, and another at another time? That's much more interesting, I find.

Do I compose based on Fibonacci spirals? Golden means? Rule of Thirds? Some other system? None? The systems themselves I have little interest in discussing--they are talked about widely elsewhere. And if I did, I'd gladly discuss them for free. Considering my methods change over time, why I do what I do you might say required 2 decades now of messing with to arrive at. That's not something I'm necessarily going to just give away now!

Yet, if I did, 2 years from now the information would be buried in deep-blog-time. I could probably repost it again fresh and get the same response and interest. I mean, for those with leisure time, there is now quite a lot of information in the archives of this blog that can be gleaned from posts, even many of those not specifically about tips and techniques. Or, you could just ask another artist who is even less secretive and hear their take. This other kind of information, though....

Museum Studies, Pt.6

2011-02-01T08:49:00.000-05:00

Close Helmet, Germany 16c., 8x8" Pastel on paper

The helmet above was drawn at the Met. They have a fantastic assortment of western arms and armor, and I think I'll be drawing in those halls a few more times, as armor is always something that requires reference.

(L): Brown Skua, 8x6" Ink on paper

As if to prove that these drawings aren't posted in any particular order, I believe this Skua was drawn on my first trip to the museum, which would've been right about a year ago.

I'm happy that I picked up the brush pen a couple years ago. It's a fun tool to use once you get the hang of it, and particularly for a painter, feels more like painting in many ways. I've often toyed with the idea of taking wet media to the museum, particularly watercolor or gouache. However, I don't know what their policy is--considering the priceless artifacts which they sometimes have on display without cases, I'm not sure they'd be keen on having paint around, even if watercolors and gouache would be easily removable. It'd be little work to ask. However, the second issue is that I simply have none of either at the moment, with both of those media being stuck in storage. I never used either very much, so I put them away before leaving CA some years ago, and they remain there.

The Rise and Fall of Digital

2011-01-27T09:26:00.002-05:00

Somewhere in this studio, it's 2011. I'm not sure where, though.

Despite the title of this post, I am not here going to begin a war on digital art. This is not about that. Rather, I'm going to talk about myself, because that's what people with blogs tend to do. Which makes people dislike blogs, but then they aren't reading this, are they? Ok, so maybe some folks have blogs to talk about other people. Whatever. This is about the rise and fall of digital in my own studio.

Around the time this blog started, before Web 2.0 or wherever we're at now took hold, I started picking up digital tools quite a bit more. I wanted to be able to use them, exploit them when needed, maybe even transition a portion of my work to digital to speed things up (read: make more money). I entered a phase where for a few years I did turn out a number of final illustrations digitally. My goal was to simply do what I was doing, but on the computer. I didn't try to embrace a new style or anything. It did speed things up, but I also took a couple of steps back in quality as I worked to become proficient with the medium. As a result, I tended to use the tool for smaller illustrations, things that were less-involved, that I could handle still.

I also picked up taking my pencil drawings and doing grayscale studies digitally. I've shown a number of those here over the years. I would call that the high point of my overall digital usage. What happened next was quite opposite to what I've seen happen for most of my illustrator friends. I started to pull back.

Most seem to fall in love with the time-saving, with the way you can destroy, cut, recombine, tweak, adjust everything with sliders, all non-destructively so that you can go back in an instant if something doesn't work out. Some change their style as a result of this freedom and do excellent, excellent work. They never look back. Let's be clear: I did not do enough final digital art to approach my proficiency with paint. Had I continued, by now I might have done so. Who knows. I did not master the medium by any stretch, only to turn my back to it. But I started to simply lose a lot of the joy of making art. Making art has two distinct joys attached--the joy of conceptualizing an image and the joy of producing what was conceived. Digital takes the first, and replaces the second with a totally different experience. Simply put, it didn't appeal to me. So, I started using it less often, and eventually dropped it almost altogether as a tool for final image creation.

What remained were grayscale studies and post-paint tweaks. Recently, I showed two World of Warcraft pieces from just a year or so ago now which featured considerable digital modifications to the painting. That still happens, and I value having that tool available to me. I'll never leave it, most likely, nor will a changing industry allow me to. That's fine, I'm ok with having a painting for me and a tweaked illustration that fulfills my client's needs, if necessary.

I also thought that the grayscale thing would be a permanent change. But a few months back, I started getting excited at the idea of developing my sketches further. I don't have the time to do grayscale or color studies in paint, as many old masters did, but I started picking up charcoals again. I honestly think this was as a result of me using them a bit more recently in my Museum Studies Series. This would then be the result of my extracurricular experiments eventually spilling into my professional work. So a number of months back, I started removing the value study/grayscale portion of my work from the digital realm again, in favor of charcoal drawing, which can of course establish the complete value range. Slowly but surely I seem to be, counter-intuitively, pulling away from the digital realm. I'll still scan those charcoal drawings in and tweak them if need be; tweaking being infinitely easier digitally, and sometimes impossible in real media. Some of these museum drawings have combined pencil or charcoal with brush pen, and after many months of playing with that, it's popping up in my illustration studies now, too.

Art careers are unpredictable rivers, at the best of times. It's 2011 and I find myself more old-school than ever in some senses. But I'm enjoying the work more, and hopefully this kick-starts other areas of growth as well.

Magic: The Gathering special releases update

2011-01-25T10:16:00.006-05:00

It can be difficult to keep track of reprints, particulary in some of the smaller decks and promotional things Wizards of the Coast produces for Magic: the Gathering. There are a few, however, which I haven't made mention of here, so I'll put them into one post.

Magic: the Gathering Premium Deck Series: Slivers is a 60-card deck, which reprints one of the Island illustrations I did way back for Tempest. I'm not sure if it's ever been reprinted, and anyway they are the only basic land cards I've illustrated. Now you can have one with the new border sets. Nifty!

Duel Decks: Elspeth vs. Tezzeret reprints two of my Lorwyn/Shadowmoor block illustrations for the first time, "Mosquito Guard" and "Trip Noose."

None of these cards will be available as white-backed artist proof cards, as per the publisher's policy of not issuing them for smaller product lines like this. So if you want 'em , it'll have to be through these packages or scouring the singles-market.

I am now caught up again. There have been a good number of reprints in the past couple of years, but new art has been few and far between lately. Don't fret, there's some fresh stuff on the way in 2011.

Boskone 48 Feb.18-20, Boston MA

2011-01-24T09:28:00.002-05:00

Since moving to NYC, I've been interested in this show but have not gotten around to it yet. Well, this year is the year! Those who've been know that Boskone is a legendary (48 years!) Science-Fiction and Fantasy convention, which leans heavily towards the literary side of things. Being that it's in commute-range from NYC and in a cool town of its own means that lots of publishing types make their way there. The art show has also always been a highlight, and this year's guest of honor, Greg Manchess, is reason enough to go.

This is a hanging show, which means that the art show is set up in gallery-format, with art hanging but not in such a way that artists sit at tables with their art. This means that I'll have original art hanging and available to take home, including the Gray Mouser and the Sacrifice, but it means that if you'd like to find me, that might be a little more difficult. These shows always have an artists' reception on one evening, and I always attend those. So, if you'd like to say hello or have me sign stuff, there's your chance! Apart from that, you can sometimes find me at art-related panels. The artist Guest of Honor's retrospective talk is usually a good bet.

I hope to see you there!

I Haz Cat pt.7

2011-01-17T09:52:00.000-05:00

Just one study this time, because the others are in pairs. One had to stand alone. Also from the 2000 set.

World of Warcraft: Head and Shoulders

2011-01-12T09:11:00.003-05:00

Though commissioned with the art mentioned last time, I think this one was released in some other manner, though also through a mail-in redemption program, as these are listed as "Icecrown Crafted" vs. the other one which was "Badge of Redemption." If those are meaningless to you, sit here next to me, my friend. We're in the same boat.

Last time, I discussed some of the issues with doing art for illustrations whose entire purpose are to highlight a single piece of equipment. In this case, I was asked to illustrate some shoulder guards, or spaulders, unique to the World of Warcraft game. While fun to look at, some fantasy buffs scoff at the design of WoW armor since it makes very little sense many times, and would be completely unworkable in "real life," nevermind that it is worn by walking bulls, wolfmen, the undead, and other denizens of the imagination not likely found in the real world.

It's helpful, when illustrating a specific item, if that item is normally worn on the upper torso. A necklace, helmet, or in this case, spaulders, can be portrayed on a character in a way that still shows the character's head and such. It can make for an interesting image on its own.

To emphasize the spaulders, I decided to raise the camera up and point it down on this crouching Troll. I was thus able to get a good deal of the figure in. It's a tight crop, and sometimes card art frames are not a standard art/frame proportion. Increasingly, I have favored painting at sizes where the art can slip into prefabricated frames, so this one is 11x14" which allowed me to also add a little more.

An interesting art direction note on this one. Sometimes, the art descriptions specify a location where the art should take place. In both these recent images, the location was Dalaran, which most WoW players know as a city of perpetual night. This sort of detail will affect the palette, the background elements shown (in this case, the type and color of cobblestone) and so on. When I turned this one in, the Art Director asked me to pump up the color. After talking with him, it was decided to add in an evening-light touch to the palette, noticeable on the card. It's fine either way, and wasn't hard to change digitally. It wasn't, however, Dalaran. It's a good example of "The customer is always right." I didn't quibble at all. If the Art Director wants warm light thrown in, then that's what I'll do.

Original art details, and a link to the sketch, can be seen here.

World of Warcraft: Art and the Artifact Illustration

2011-01-05T09:14:00.008-05:00

This week, behold the Belt of the Singing Blade!

The advent of the card game has introduced what has been called "Artifact Art," stemming from its introduction in Magic: the Gathering. Artifact art illustrates equipment, basically. A card represents an item: a weapon, some bit of armor, a charm, maybe a pair of boots (seriously) and your job as an illustrator is to portray said item. In the past, these have sometimes been seen by some artists as a Quick Buck, since you could paint a knife on a plain table and call it a day, versus some crazy multi-figure battle scene, which would pay you roughly the same money. After some time, the way to do these has shifted somewhat. Sometimes you're still asked to just paint a pair of boots, but sometimes you'll be asked to go ahead and paint someone wearing the boots, but focus on the boots. That means no big heroic shots--maybe paint someone running in the boots, but crop the composition mid-shin or a little above the knees. This takes more work, is a little less ridiculous-looking that just a pair of boots with dramatic lighting, but now can often just be kinda...blah.

Thankfully, I haven't been asked to do too much Artifact Art. Still, you can't easily escape it. So a year ago I was asked to do a couple of item portrayals for the World of Warcraft card game. I wasn't told that they had released like 6 months ago, and I was getting antsy just to put them on my website. Oh well, I'll put them up now!

This card was released in some special Badge of Justice Redemption program, or so I've Googled. I don't know what this means, but it's something like saving up some special redemption coupons and then sending them in to get ultra-rare lootz. I am familiar with this sort of thing from my youth, when my brother and I cut out the Robot Points from our Transformers toy packaging and sent away to receive a not-available-in-stores model, whose quality was, in reality, not fit for store shelves. Not so, this card!

Back to illustration. Here, I used the narrow band of light effect to dunk the rest of the detailed armor into shadow, so that you kinda look at her belt. But you know there's more going on--there's an arm holding a sword, a shield, and so on. Naturally, I had little intent on just painting a belt/waist area and calling it a day. The pay is nice, but it would kind of be an artistic hole in which to sink my efforts--rendered like this, it might do service on the card, but it's not something I'm likely to ever show anywhere else again because it's just...a belt. Had that been it, I might've just turned down the commission.

Rather, I did quite a bit more. Here's the full painted image.

As you can see, I never intended the art to just be about the belt. Now by doing this it probably took twice as long to paint, but I have an image that will actually hang on my website, one I can look at and think more than...it's a belt....

As it turns out, when I cropped the image and sent it in, the Art Director asked me to pump up the light/dark even further, to make it idiot-proof that this card is about a belt. That's fine--having a piece of art on my end that I was pleased with, it was easy to monkey with the image digitally and not feel abused. My art director could have his belt as he wanted it, I would have the real deal. Win, and win.

(Update 2/22/2011): I actually went in and repainted large portions of this after originally blogging this image. I completely repainted the background, lightening the image. Since her armor is dark, it creates a nice spiky silhouette that I thought would be better served with a lighter background. Additionally, I think the lighting on her face interfered with some of the charm of the original drawing. So, I repainted her face, staying truer to the drawing. This version has replaced the original image.

Original art details and a link to the original drawing can be found here.

Museum Studies, Pt.5

2011-01-01T12:20:00.040-05:00

Happy 2011! Ok, it's hard to be festive, since I wrote this up months earlier. It's odd pre-writing blog posts, since I'm wishing you a Happy New Year and there's no guarantee I'll even live to see it. For all I know, this will get auto-posted and I'll be 6 feet under.... (edit: I made it alive! Woo! -RG)

(L): Bull Goat, 8x6.5" Pastel on paper

The Bull Goat shown here is mounted high up on a wall, and was viewable directly to the left of where I drew last month's bison skull. While the AMNH has some benches here and there, most of the time I have to stand up and draw, with a clipboard in hand. After a couple hours of standing unmoving, that gets awfully tiring. So after finishing the skull I sat down where there was a bench a few feet away. While putting the drawing away, I saw this lovely animal hanging up there and decided to stay seated this time!

The textured paper here is some Strathmore charcoal paper, I think, which was leftover from a pad I did figure drawing in maybe 10 years ago. It's more textured than I prefer, but it can still have its uses.

(L):Leopard, 7.5x6" Pencil and ink on paper

I think before drawing this Leopard, I always thought that their spots were sort of all-over but hapharzardly placed. It was interesting learning how they definitely fall into patterns.
Certain areas of the museum are incredibly well-trafficked. For this reason, I've tended to avoid the Dinosaur bones area, and the central animal dioramas. Armies of kids parade through the museum on any day--either with tour groups or on field trips from local schools. They're kids, so they're loud and generally don't watch where they are going. So it can be hard to draw where they are in high concentration. I'm guessing that to draw in those popular areas, I may have to wait until right about now, when the weather plummets, the tourists are gone, and perhaps field trips are ill-advised since you never know when you'll get snowed-in.

Whiteback Sketches pt.5

2010-12-20T20:14:00.003-05:00

A few new whitebacks--the recent free shipping sale I had on sketched cards seemed to generate a backlog I'm still going through. Ok, 2 of these are holdovers from '09.

Top Row: Baleful Stare, Counsel of the Soratami

Bottom Row: Steeling Stance, Soul Warden

As always, you can get your own custom sketch on any whiteback card I'm offering.

And that's all for 2010! Have a great Christmas and a safe New Year celebration. Hope to see you on the other side!

Illuxcon 2011: Already?

2010-12-16T17:59:00.000-05:00

Photo by Jeannie Zaengle Wilshire

I haven't had many moments to stop and process last month's Illuxcon. Just over one month ago I was still unpacking from returning, dizzy from a weekend of inspiration, challenge and fun and with no time to consider what had just happened as deadlines were pulling me by the ear, directing me straight back to work. In fact, I think all the last month's blog posts were pre-written some weeks before. So let me take a moment here to talk about Illuxcon 2011.

Yes, 2011. Barely one month out and plans have begun rolling out for next year's show. If you are a collector of original fantasy artwork or are one of those who buys product primarily for the artwork, this is the show you need to go to. If you're an illustrator looking to get onto the main floor, one of the best ways seems to be through the "Spotlight" overflow-sideshow, whose tables are already more than half sold-out as I write this. And, tickets are already on sale for the show itself. The reason I'm goading you now about it is because the tickets are quite limited and will sell out well before the show starts.

It's an honor to be part of this show, limited in space and packed to the gills with talent. Additionally, starting with 2011, the spots for the main floor were juried, which means that it was that much harder to secure space. I am pleased to announce that I will once again be at Illuxcon 2011, which is Nov. 3-6. That's a long ways away, but you'd be surprised how fast it creeps up.

12/10: Last Day to Save!

2010-12-10T00:16:00.005-05:00

Update: Offers 1 and 2 have expired!

Today is the last day to take advantage of a few special deals I've got going on for the holidays. If you've been itching to save money, I can help you with that by taking a little of it...just less than I might normally. Or something.

Offer 1: Free shipping on all prints and white-backed artist proof cards. That's a biggie, and it covers any country and any number of prints and/or cards. Get those cards sketched on for $10 more each while you're at it!

Offer 2: $5 off and free shipping on my artbook, "Dreaming in Black and White". Wait, that'll save you even more money, and you can combine it with the above! This one is only accessible using this ~~special link~~, which you can only find on this blog because it's super secret.

Offer 3: Playmats! Ok this isn't really an offer in the sense of saving loot, rather, I'm simply offering playmats. However, since the shipping is included in the price, it won't trigger any shipping calculators, which again means that combined with above you can get free shipping even if you live in San Quirico Italy, Takayama in Japan, or yes, even Syde in England. Even Syde.

Museum Studies, Pt.4

2010-12-01T12:17:00.003-05:00

Wood Stork, 5.75x8" Pencil and ink on paper

To most people, the idea of mixing ink with pencil is no big thing. Most artists play more with their media than I do. I have never been much of a mixed-medium guy, tending to prefer uniformity of handling. But when I set to drawing this gorgeously-posed wood stork, with those wonderful markings, I knew that there was no way to really make them sing except to use my brush pen, a tool I first picked up while experimenting on figure drawing, and which is now always in my drawing kit. But the softness of the bird I did not want to render in pen. So I decided to--gasp--mix my media! I was really happy with the result.

Bison Latifrons Skull, 7.5x11.25" Ink and pastel on paper

For the skull of this extinct and massive bison, I used a worn brush pen, whose tip had softened and which had a nice variety of gray depending on how lightly you pressed. When new, a brush pen only registers black no matter how lightly you press, but like any marker, as the ink runs out, black is no longer an option, but soft grays are. So I always keep old pens for this purpose.

From the Collection of

2010-11-22T14:03:00.054-05:00

As an illustrator, I don't buy a lot of original art myself. Gotta save money for all that Ramen, I suppose. But over the years I have gathered a small collection of original art. Much of it has been gotten through trades, with an occasional piece purchased if I can find a good deal or happen to have just made a nice paycheck.

While at the World Fantasy Convention a few weeks back, the legendary Darrell K. Sweet was the Guest of Honor. He put on an incredible retrospective show, featuring pieces from the 1970's through now, with paintings from some of his highlights: early Tolkien work, Xanth covers, Wheel of Time, and lots of good stuff in-between. I first saw his paintings in the mid-90s at a local convention back in CA when I was still young and impressionable, probably my first year of art school, or around there. I knew his work well already, as it had graced the covers of many of the books I'd read. I'd always assumed he used oils, as his handling and color had a very turn of the century (*that* century, 20c) classical look about it. I was floored to learn he was using acrylics, exclusively. So much the fan was I that I did a landscape study based on one of his paintings (in storage somewhere), in acrylic, to try to learn what his secrets were.

This guy has been illustrating longer than I've been alive, is now in his mid-70s and still working hard. You simply cannot as an illustrator ask for more.

He also had on show, and also for sale, a number of small color studies. Hardly anyone does painted color studies anymore, but Darrell still does. They are in acrylic, too, and are great little gems--detailed while remaining very loose at the same time. A great schooling in acrylic handling. They go for very modest prices, and though while I was a poor student I could not afford to get one (I tried), I am slightly less poor than I was then, so I plunked down a little money and picked up this 8.5x12" painting:

Due to my tiny living space, I won't be able to hang this one any time soon, but I look forward to the day when I live in more than 500sq' again and can start to hang my collection. It may also be interesting to see that not only do I make and sell and encourage people to buy original art, but when I can I do so myself!

The Freedom to Fail

2010-11-15T12:20:00.002-05:00

I suppose I could be ok doing the same thing over and over. It's a rather easy situation to fall into in illustration. Art descriptions may get repetitive, you might get pigeonholed into doing certain types of illustration, and so on. Most folk didn't get into illustration to do the same thing over and over, however. A certain desire to grow, learn and evolve exists in probably every artist. But one thing can easily get in the way of all this:

Not having the freedom to fail.

Illustrators, like most folks, do not have the freedom to fail in their jobs. When you try something new--some new medium, some new approach, manner of composing an image, very different color scheme, and so on, you risk LOLcat levels of fail.

Failing as a professional by trying things out is a bad idea--you can lose a client in a heartbeat by pulling these shenanigans. I should know, I made these same horrible lapses of judgment myself throughout the 90s in my first years as an illustrator. You don't head in *thinking* you're going to fail, or you wouldn't do it. But when you do, all you can do is facepalm and tell yourself you should've known better.

So, for the past 10 years or so I've tried to give myself outlets for fail. Whether that be something simple like figure drawing, or these museum studies, plein-air painting, or other art experiments you maybe never see here, I've made an effort to experiment only off-stage. By doing so, I've been able to practice new methods, refine certain techniques, explore new media, and so on. If I fail (and it happens), I can bury it outside public view. If it goes well, I share it and then roll it into my assignment-based work, where it improves my professional art. My clients, therefore, never have to worry that I'm going to suddenly pull some Jeckyl/Hyde routine on them. And, honestly, by regularly injecting my illustration work with the positive results of these experiments, it keeps illustration work fresh and exciting, and predictable for clients at the same time. That's important for them.

But, being able to fail spectacularly, in private, is important for me.

The Gray Mouser

2010-11-10T11:48:00.013-05:00

"You are more tempted by the hot lips of black magic than the chaste slim fingers of white, no matter to how pretty a misling the latter belong--no, do not deny it! You are more drawn to the beguiling sinuosities of the left-hand path than the straight deep road of the right. I fear me you will never be mouse in the end but mouser. And never white but gray--oh well, that's better than black." --Fritz Leiber, "The Unholy Grail"

When I began reading Leiber's classic series of sword-and-sorcery earlier this year, it was with an eye towards finding something to paint. There hasn't been a lot of attention devoted to Lankhmar these past few years, and I prefer to play in quiet corners. This description, from The Gray Mouser's introduction story, was perfect. In that story, some of his past was discussed which left a lot of hope that some of the psychological turmoil of trying to ride between dark and light would be a feature of the stories as they went on. It became the basis of designing this illustration, supplementing it with other details from the first two books.

Nevertheless, it was with disappointment that I found that after this story, Mouser simply appears as a fairly standard rogue character. This was of course hinted in the same paragraph as above: "You are a middling dutiful scholar, but secretly you favor swords over wands." Still, I'm surprised Leiber left such fertile ground behind. Perhaps Mouser picks up magic again later? I don't know, and I'll probably move on to other things and maybe never find out.

This was the piece I worked on while at the Racebrook Retreat a few weeks back (you can see me working on it). The study was previously posted here, as well. It's rather large, as my work goes, at 24x30". Once a figure gets to about 50% life-scale, I find it very enjoyable to paint, requiring different brushes and approach. Though I basically use the same methods, there's just a little more room to play.

By the end of the week (Mon-Thursday, really--Friday wasn't really a work day for me), I had gotten this far, which may be educational to see, in terms of seeing how fast/slow I work. This was with 4 fairly long workdays:

At this point his belt/bag, tunic, and flesh were basically done. I touched up the head and hands a bit more, but everything else still had work to do. I glazed and then textured his cloak, finished his dagger/sword, and added in the "beguiling sinuosities" again at the end.

Detail-view and image information is available over here.

WFC: Judge's Choice

2010-11-08T12:09:00.002-05:00

I attended the World Fantasy Convention in Columbus, OH over the Halloween weekend. I had a 2-panel display on which I showed original art for Embryonic, The Unknown God, The Balance of Power, Mosquito Guard, Anne Bonny, my new piece (the Gray Mouser, which I'll add on Wednesday), and The Sacrifice.

Saturday night was the Artist's Reception, and I was thrilled to see that while I was away, the jury had passed through and given out some awards. Guest of Honor Darrell K. Sweet took Best In Show (deservedly), but I was happy to see that The Sacrifice had received a Judge's Choice!

The Last Enemy Playmats

2010-11-05T15:16:00.003-04:00

For years now, various companies have produced these soft playmats, which are used by players the world over to keep their cards from getting scratched up on tables. A wise move for those with expensive cards, in particular. Usually, these have been produced just completely plain, and so they have become a new form of canvas for us illustrators. At conventions and appearances, players often walk up with these and ask us to draw on them. I usually do (for a small fee). One of the most common things I'll draw is a reaper of some kind, hearkening back to my Dance of the Dead illustration from my first Magic set in 1994. So, it seemed appropriate that when there was an actual full-color playmat made of my work, that it feature a reaper on it. As it turns out, I painted such an image just a year or so ago, though not for this purpose. By making the image wider, I was able to get it to fit on a playmat, and so have done just that.

These were produced by CCGStuff.com, and look fantastic. I have a small stock of these which I can sell, and so I've made them available until they are gone. They'll come signed. I've added in a flat shipping price for them, so that if you happen to order any of the other goods offered in my other free shipping sales running currently, no additional shipping will be added.

So, go get 'em!

Sketchbook Sale!

2010-11-03T11:12:00.013-04:00

Update: This offer has ended!

Today is the 6th year anniversary of Exit Within. In light of that, a sale for my blog readers in particular, whether you come here direct or from links elsewhere.

Perhaps you don't have a copy of Dreaming in Black and White yet. That's possible. Not advisable, but possible! Well, whether you've been waiting a bit to pick it up, or forgot it existed, or maybe didn't know that I published a 64-page book full of drawings, consider yourself on notice! I mean, those can be the only rational reasons for not owning one. I suppose the $19.95+shipping retail price could be a barrier for a few--well, now you have no excuse either!!

<--Look at that! Inside, I crammed it full of art made in preparation for illustrations created for Magic: the Gathering, Dungeons & Dragons, the World of Warcraft CCG, and lots of other stuff from mostly ~2003-2007. Alternate versions, story illustrations, a self-portrait on the Introduction page...this book has all of that, and still more. It's also, for now, the only book collection of my work. I have dreams of someday issuing a color book, but that won't happen before I sell through the remaining stock of this. But you're not motivated by guilt, I can tell.

So, there's a special sale going on now through Dec.10, and it's only available through this blog, to thank you for visiting Exit Within. If you access the book from within my website, you'll get the retail price. Boo!

However, by using this ~~super-secret link~~, you can access the sale page where I've knocked $5 off the price, and am offering it with free shipping--for a total of $10 off for US customers (or more for Int'l folk). The book will be shipped Media Mail (or Airmail for Int'l), so it may take a little longer to arrive, but you'll have saved $10+, and it's signed. And awesome.

Once you're recovered from the shock of processing this great deal, you may wonder what would happen if you also wanted to add prints or some white-backed artist proofs to your order--wouldn't that add shipping again? Normally it would, but yesterday I started a not-so-secret sale adding Free Shipping to all prints and proofs. I've got you covered.

So, use the ~~super-secret link~~ and right a wrong. And if you want to share the ~~super-secret link~~ by posting it elsewhere, maybe using the links below, I can tell you confidently that I'll be looking the other way....

Whether you're new to this blog or are the one guy out there who has read every post for 6 years, thank you for helping Exit Within remain worthwhile far longer than I thought I might keep it up.

Holiday Sale: Free Shipping on Prints and Artist Proofs!

2010-11-02T11:57:00.034-04:00

Update: this offer has ended! Links will expire in time.

Through Dec. 10, all prints and white-backed artist proofs on my site have been marked for Free Shipping, so it's a great time to save yourself $5 (or more). Shipping will be via 1st class or Airmail as appropriate. I can't guarantee Christmas shipping for International Orders past around Dec.1, so get those in early. Otherwise, everything should arrive in time. The full list of prints in particular can be found here.

"Really? You're going to make me click over and browse? My finger is tired." Well, ok, here are some popular print favorites (click image to jump straight there):

"But, Mr. Gallegos, I've got a lot of things on my mind during the holidays, maybe I'll just wait until after the New Year and stop in to get some prints, but thanks for the reminder!" Unwise, my friend. You see, for the New Year I'm going to be reducing the prints I'm making available on my website by maybe 8 images. Not sure which, yet. So, you may not be able to find what you're looking for by then!

As for white-backed artist proof cards, perhaps you've been stymied when wanting a single card, being charged $5 for Priority Mail shipping, and so walked away? Well, now you can grab what you need with impunity. Do you like Magic cards? World of Warcraft? Doesn't matter, I love you both.

"Thank you Mr. Gallegos! This is going to be the best Chrismahanukwanzakah ever!" I know, I know, and you're welcome. So again, check it all out here.

(Disclaimer: cards with sketches on them are still subject to up to 30 days shipping time. I'll try to get them all out by Dec.10, but can't guarantee it)

Museum Studies, Pt.3

2010-11-01T11:27:00.000-04:00

(R): Chukchee Armor, 19c. 7.75x6" Pencil on paper

The Chukchee (or Chukchi) are a tundra-dwelling folk, who for centuries resisted the Russians' attempts to conquer them. I don't normally associate snow-dwelling tribes with war or armor, but the Chukchee armor on display at the AMNH was very interesting in its construction. The whole thing was interesting, but the helmet stood out to me, both as an interesting shape and as a clever design.

It's probably irrelevant to you, but these studies are not indicative of the order in which they were done, neither in most cases were the pieces shown together done the same day. Rather, I've tried to mix them up for variety. Also, since I created a decent backlog before starting to ensure I would actually be able to sustain the monthly-pace, don't be surprised to see 2010 pieces appearing well into '11.

As with the Society of Illustrators, where I did figure drawing, getting to the AMNH is about 45 minutes by subway. So going to the museum to draw inevitably takes up more than half a day. For this reason, I really wish the museum had later hours. It closes at 5:45pm every day. So if I'm going to get in 4 hours or so of drawing, I have to leave by 1pm. That means that museum days are things I fit in typically between assignments, or at the front-end, when I need reference and am not in 4th gear on a painting. Sometimes, I'll go on the weekend.

Komodo Dragon, 6x8" Pastel on paper

Dirty Brushes, How I Hate You

2010-10-25T12:54:00.001-04:00

I have never served as a studio assistant to another artist, neither have I had a studio assistant. However, there is one part of my job that I hate more than probably any other:

Washing my brushes.

I cannot explain the disdain I have for this most mundane of chores. Maybe it's that it is the most mundane of chores. After a long day of painting, the last thing I ever want to do is clean up brushes. So I often don't. And that's bad. Oils dry slowly, so the next morning I can often swish them in mineral spirits and get back to work. But brushes start to pile up as the week goes on. If on day 3 I don't use a brush I used on day 1 or 2, by day 4 that brush may be toast. Sometimes, I have the good sense to at least rub some Walnut Oil into them each night, which generally keeps them soft for a day or two extra. But inevitably, I'll paint until the last moment before having to do something on a Friday, be busy all weekend, and wake up Monday with a taboret full of stiff brushes.

That's when I break out the brush cleaner whether I like it or not:

THE MASTERS

It may be that this stuff is so good that I get so lazy. Time and again I've seen this soap revive brushes from rigor mortis, so I must subconsciously count on it to save my butt. But one way or another the dreaded day comes. Usually Saturday night, or perhaps at the completion of a painting, I have to gather them all up and clean them.

It took 25 minutes to wash these

I may be a whiner, but I'm not the only one. Note the following, from the opening of the opera "Tosca" by Puccini, wherein the Sexton of the church where Cavaradossi is painting complains:

"E sempre lava!... Ogni pennello è sozzo

peggio d'un collarin d'uno scagnozzo."
("Always washing!...Each brush is dirtier than a workman's collar!")

What A Week

2010-10-18T11:00:00.004-04:00

Concentrated squee

Two weeks ago I was out of town. I spent a week out in the Berkshires painting in a big converted barn which was transformed into a shared art studio. I recently ruminated about being at Illuxcon last year and this one coming, and the wonder of sitting alongside such a select echelon of illustrators. That was dialed up a few notches in what I experienced at the Racebrook Retreat, where I was invited to join a dozen or so illustrators for a week of painting, talking, laughing and sharing. It was amazing.

I mean, it's one thing to be at Illuxcon, sitting among some of these artists, but to then be working side-by-side with them as colleagues was...wow. Granted, though we're all professionals, the group ranged from mid-career artists like myself to masters like Boris Vallejo and Michael Whelan. So it's not like these were all my peers, exactly, yet there was an air of mutual respect and fascination as we all worked on various projects, personal or for clients, and shared illustration war-stories.

I was, after all, one who owned not one but three Boris Vallejo T-shirts during my high school years. Yes, I was That Guy. Boris' "Fantasy Art Techniques" and Whelan's "Works of Wonder" were instrumental in making me pick up paints in high school at all, after years of pencil and colored pencil. So, some 20 years later, to be sitting alongside these two--painting, chatting about art and life was like some kid's dream come true...this kid's.

I was anxious going in because the last time I painted in the presence of other artists was probably art school (I've spent plenty of time drawing among other folk). Yet, as we set up our easels on Monday and I set out to work, the inspiring mood had me off and running, and there was never an awkward moment. And it's not like the rest of my company was made up of slouches:

(L-R): Winona Nelson, Lars Grant-West, Anthony Palumbo, Scott Brundage, Michael Whelan, Justin Gerard, Jordu Schell, Dan Dos Santos, Some Slouch, Chris Moeller, Julie Bell and Boris Vallejo, Ryan Pancoast (visiting), Dave Seeley

There's nothing like feeling like you need a fresh pair of eyes and having Dos Santos, Moeller and Whelan all available to bounce an idea off of (which I did, all to my painting's betterment). Earlier, I posted a study here for what I was working on, and the week went productively (the rain all week kept us focused). But that didn't stop us all getting up for a stretch on occasion. I made a point to spend some time watching everyone else work, asking questions and just absorbing the amazing array of approaches to painting. Every single one of us worked so differently from one another--even among us oil painters, who made up the bulk of the group.

L: My Guerilla Art Studio made it so I was as comfortable as I am at home.

When not painting, we were probably eating, but the talking never ceased. I've gotten to know many of the artists present over the years, but even those of us who didn't know each other well quickly and comfortably took to forming easy friendships. And when we stumbled to our rooms at 3 am after a late-night painting session, my roomies and I just kept talking like boys at a sleep-over for another half hour or so. Not quite 6 hours of sleep later we were up and at breakfast, ready to get going again. I normally can't function well on that amount of sleep after a couple of nights, but the atmosphere was such that I sprang out of bed each morning eager to get back to it, and energized. It was a revitalizing week, and I hope its positive effects have lasting results, as I regained a sharpened sense of focus and drive. I arrived home from the retreat and within 3 hours was joining the madness at New York Comic-Con, where I got to catch up with another group of incredible illustrators and friends. Monday after the convention, I collapsed from exhaustion and slept like a (insert simile).

Occasions such as these catch me by surprise. It's not that I feel totally unworthy or whatever of being among these folk, even though some of them are obviously far ahead of me in every respect (Boris and Whelan have been professional illustrators as long or longer than I've been alive, after all). It's just that when you spend your months and years working in isolation, going from job to job, it's sometimes a little surprising when you look up and find yourself in certain positions. It's like running--sometimes you have your head down and just concentrate on breathing and before you know it you've gone 10 miles.

I'll be debuting the painting I worked on at the World Fantasy Convention, which I finished this past Saturday.

Thanks to Dave Seeley for the photos!

Theft: The Risk of Conventions

2010-10-12T11:46:00.007-04:00

(L, © Scott Altmann)

My buddy, illustrator Scott Altmann, shared a booth this past weekend with Dave Palumbo where they hung paintings and had available prints and books and stuff and generally did their best to have a good presence at a very, very noisy and crowded New York Comic-Con. It's one thing when an artist has a humble table at Artist Alley, as I've done many a year, but to spring for a booth adds a couple thousand dollars to your tab. It's not easy to pull off, and not even easy to get--I've tried to get a paid booth at San Diego Comic-con twice to split with other artists, and it's never worked.

Sunday, as the show wrapped up and they were beginning to tear down, Scott noticed that a large ~18x24" or so portfolio had disappeared from his table. At this point, most folk have been shooed out of the hall, but perhaps in the business of hauling out packing boxes and stuff, someone must've walked by and snagged that portfolio. Not easy to do--it was located in the booth, on a table that butted up to the display. Perhaps he'd already closed it (making it easier), I don't know. I do know that I had been chatting with them both up to about 15 minutes before the close of the show, and the portfolio was still there at the time. In that portfolio are pages of large and small drawings and preparatory works, all originals. A lot of money and effort was wrapped up in them. He's begun a post where he's showing some of what was in there, in case any of you see the stuff on eBay or elsewhere. It's a long-shot, but you never know--tweet or Facebook post it enough and it might get scared out of the brush.

Folks probably steal from the big companies at these shows--that's bad, too, but I'm not going to shed too many tears for those with annual profits larger than I'll earn in my entire life, cumulatively. Almost every illustrator I know, however, fights and struggles to maintain their existence. So, this hits home for me. Further, I've had the same happen to me. Let me explain:

I mentioned recently that conventions and my birthday don't mix. There, I mentioned Lucca. This Italian comics and games festival is a highlight of Europe's scene, and I bought a small booth in 2005 while I was living in Italy. It was a week before leaving to England, and the show was fantastic--or would've been. I had a medical emergency that weekend, and missed half the show and my birthday. Further, when we arrived on Sunday morning, I'd had stuff stolen.

Most conventions have pretty good security and so each night, people move their items off their tables and underneath, or to the back of their booths in boxes. Big companies have locked cases or areas for storing stock, but the plebes have to make do with storing stuff in less secure ways. It had never been a problem--shows like San Diego have armies of bouncers that systematically clear each row with arms linked like a human chain. Lucca--not so much apparently, and overnight someone had snuck into my booth, under my table, and grabbed what seemed like two handfuls of artwork in a pile. In that pile were all my original drawings (no bigger than 8.5x11", individually bagged), most of my prints (same size), and about 10 small original paintings (same size). The feeling was horrible--I'd just had stolen from me more money than I'd earned, and more than the costs associated with the convention itself. We'd already missed half the show, and with a day left I had lost most of what was going to sell in the way of small items, not to mention some paintings which I quite liked. Despite the security lapse, which I hope was remedied in subsequent years, the staff were helpful. I filed a police report on-site, which was all I could do. I told them there was no point in me staying since I couldn't sell anything anymore--I only had left to me large items, which you're lucky to sell one of in a convention if at all. Thank God they didn't steal any of those. They offered up a volunteer to drive us home (a couple of hours, which was nice of them, though we spent it silently brooding) and we retreated.

The convention reported it (I think) to the local paper, and a small article was printed in the Lucca paper within days. Then, the impossible happened. Within a few days, just as we were leaving to England, the show's organizer called me on the phone. A package had been mailed or left at the office's door. It seems the thief had had his conscience pricked and decided to return all the original art. They kept the prints, which was fine by me, but within a week or two I had them mailed to me. It was a stunning turn of events after a nightmare weekend.

So, I don't know if Scott's situation will prove as positive, but crazier things have happened.

On the Board

2010-10-07T16:00:00.002-04:00

I'm away this week, so I prewrote this last week, but I'm working still. If all is going according to plan, there is a 24x30" board in front of me and I'm in good company. On that board, in some state of unfinished, is this:

Once again, the benefit of being able to show you stuff while it's still hot or even still baking is quite nice. That may not happen again for a few months after this.

Museum Studies, Pt.2

2010-10-01T12:10:00.012-04:00

(R): Indian Lion, 8x5.75" Pastel pencil on paper

I've mentioned elsewhere that I use Canson paper a lot, glued to masonite for painting. Incidentally, around the time I mentioned that, I've mainly stopped using it. Regardless, over time I've accumulated odds and ends, which I trimmed down into mostly ~6x8" sheets, and these have been my primary paper for doing these studies. It's a good size, and insures I won't be there all day working on one thing. I've sometimes used them to do preliminary sketches for illustrations.

Not long ago, as I was running out of these extras, I picked up a pad of Canson sheets, in multiple colors, all of which were ones I'd use anyway. Canson comes in two textures--smoother and orange-peel. Since 8th grade, whenever I've used Canson, I used the smoother side, which still has a nice tooth. The orange-peel side was way too textured, it seemed, to do any detailed work on. So imagine my surprise when the Canson pad had the orange-peel side face-up in the pad. It seems that's the side they think I should be working on! Needless to say, I've taken to tearing pages off and drawing on what I now know is the "back side."

I usually carry a selection of papers with me, and a bag full of drawing tools. As I consider what I'm about to draw, I'll pull out paper and tools I feel are appropriate for capturing whatever it is. Since I'm working on toned paper (vs. always white of the Figure Drawing stuff) some of the time, I've included pastel pencils in my kit. I've been using Faber-Castell's Pitt Pastel line, which come in a full palette range and can hold a point decently well. They're smudgeable, but not so much that you are afraid to breathe on them.

Andean Condor, 6x7.75" Pencil on paper

The Andean Condor is massive, its wingspan could easily have warranted a page thrice the width. My main purpose for drawing it, however, was to practice the wing portion pictured here, in preparation for an illustration. For things which I want to study in more detail, I still often default to pencil, since it has the finest point of my dry media and is still the thing I'm most accustomed to, having used it since before kindergarten.

The Sacrifice

2010-09-22T15:39:00.005-04:00

Over the years I have put old paintings to new use in a few ways. This may be the first time I have done it in this way.

Before / After

This painting began life in quite another form. Well, half of it did. It appeared as a 1.5 page spread in the Dungeons & Dragons Player's Handbook 3. In that illustration, there were three tightly described characters who were to be attacking the dragon, with a gutter running 1/3 from the left. There was a cleric casting a spell at it, a githzerai monk doing some karate chop (I just had him leaping with incredible acrobat powers), and a halfling rogue sneaking up on it in some way...!!!

The dragon and overall environment I was especially happy with. The publisher was too--they put it on the back cover of the book. When I got back, without gutter constraints, I wondered if there was something I could do differently with the painting which might appeal to my sensibilities in some greater way. I cast about for ideas for awhile, tossing out some of the more trite ones--battling dragons, for instance. At one point I'd done a digital sketch where I left but altered the cleric, removed the two others, and had a much larger army charging in.

I took the scan into Painter, and quickly painted out the figures, so I would have a "clean" canvas to imagine upon. While video-chatting with my friend Steven Belledin (two posts in a row he's been mentioned in--this can't be good for his reputation!), I sent him that study (he having not seen the published version) and asked what sorts of things he might imagine. We talked about what I wasn't going to do, and after awhile he offered up, "...I'm thinking maybe a child...." I was intrigued and within moments had begun to string out the idea in my head. Ends up we had very different ideas for what kind of portrayal that would result in, but it was a valuable brainstorming session.

In-progress: in this poor photo (the sky is totally washed out), you can see the wing portion blocked in for repainting, the old tail and extra perch still showing through the first layer of sky repaint, the new tail still penciled-in, and the ground fully-painted before figures are placed on it

Reworking it meant all sorts of changes. I approached it with the malleability of a digital painting. In digital art, you're free to wreck and repaint anything with impunity. I've sort of taken up that spirit in paint. I had to remove the cleric's spell and repaint everything underneath. I re-staged the environment, for instance, making the arch the cleric was standing on a very distant rock outcropping. I had to repaint the dragon's head since it was no longer being hit by a spell. All sorts of changes. It was almost as much work as starting over!

In-progress 2

In the end, it was a fun experiment, and I'm happy with the entirely new painting that resulted. There were lots of places where I could've failed along the way.

A zoomed-in view and purchase information can be found on the gallery page for this painting.

Fall 2010 Appearances

2010-09-17T21:24:00.001-04:00

After a quiet summer, event-wise, I am pleased to announce two places where you can catch my art this autumn. Unfortunately for many of you, they happen to be a commuter-flight from each other, leaving the bulk of the country under-served.

First up is the World Fantasy Convention, held this year in Columbus OH October 28-31. This show moves around year by year. I last exhibited work when it was in Saratoga Springs NY in 2007. What a debacle that was. I thought I might show at last year's WFC, which was held in my hometown of San Jose, CA. But that didn't happen. I have, however, worked up the guts to face the harsh memories of WFC and attempt it again. I have friends in Columbus, so it's looking brighter already. This convention also always falls the same weekend as my birthday, so I shall spend it in Columbus. Saratoga Springs put a bad taste in my mouth regarding my own birthday, added to a horrible birthday/convention experience in Lucca, Italy, just 2 years prior. It seems that pairing my birthday with a convention is just bad news. I'm not superstitious, really, but it's hard to get out from under the weight of bad memories, isn't it?

World Fantasy is a hanging show, which means I'll have work in the Art Show framed nicely for people to take home, but I won't be around my display. I'll be present for the reception, and here and there throughout the convention. I'll be showing the originals of The Balance of Power, Embryonic, The Unknown God, and a few other surprises. There'll also be prints available to pick up.

Next up is IlluxCon 3, November 11-14 in Altoona PA (!!). Last year, I showed up and hoped to be able to show my art somehow. I ended up finding myself splitting a table with Steven Belledin (we went together and he likewise went livin' on a prayer hoping to show) when there was extra space. IlluxCon is Mecca for fantasy art. A who's-who list of mind-boggling talent, in a small show, not competing with movie studios or large videogame company displays. Just one intimate showroom with display after display of amazing art, and access to the artists all weekend. A collector's dream. There's more to it than that, of benefit to students and aspiring professionals. But if you love yourself some fantasy art, this convention is incredible. Last year I was like,"Oh look, I get to stare at Brom all weekend as he sits across from me. And hey, World Fantasy Award winner John Picacio is asking me to watch his stuff one spot over while he gets a drink. Maybe I'll walk 100 feet and watch Boris Vallejo paint. That's if I don't stop to talk to Dan Dos Santos, Donato Giancola and Michael Whelan on the way....and wait, what the hell am I doing here again??"

Yeah, amazingly I was invited back for a full spot this year (Belledin was, too!). So now that I'm officially there I gotta stop being the fanboy and act the professional...which is impossible, since one of the amazing things about the show is watching all the artists involved become fanboys again. So yeah, come on down. I'll have my usual spread of items to purchase, and a selection of originals, which as of this moment I hope to be comrprised entirely of paintings you haven't seen yet, since I showed stuff there last year. 3 are done, and we'll see what I can accomplish in the next 2 months!

So yeah, stuff! I hope to see you this fall!

P.S.--did I mention that Steven Belledin also started a blog recently, which attempts to compete with mine for verbosity? *shakes fist*...it's good, you should bookmark it.

Lest I Leave You Unattended

2010-09-09T12:07:00.000-04:00

One advantage of the information age is the speed with which creators can share creations with the public. Dissemination can be almost instantaneous. So whereas this isn't instantaneous, it is a drawing that I did last Thursday, for a painting in-progress. I hope to have the painting up in a week or two. But with Labor Day and a busy week this week, this is as much as I can manage to blog for now. Still, it's nice to be able to get something up quick. I'll add further details when the painting is up.

I don't like missing weeks here, so if at all possible I'd rather give you something substantial, even just a little, rather than nothing.

Because of its tall format, this also means I have the option of filling this space with an excess of words....

...or leaving it blank and making you scroll down to the next post.

So I've chosen a middle way.

Talk to you next week!

Museum Studies, Pt.1

2010-09-01T11:35:00.019-04:00

At the beginning of the year, I wrapped up a period of Figure Drawing, and moved on to the next flower, busy-bee like. Living in NYC, and having just a few months prior finally made it to the American Museum of Natural History, it struck me that it was a gold mine for any illustrator. Together with collections at the Met and a couple other smaller museums, there is such a variety of stuff for an artist to study that I could probably go once a week the rest of my life, draw 2-3 things, and never draw every artifact on display in this town.

One thing I've been wanting to work on is to increase my overall visual vocabulary. By that, I mean my facility to draw a wide range of things. In creating creatures, or designing characters, a fantasy artist has to draw from a wide pool of reference. Animal anatomy in the case of the former, and costume, decoration, jewelry, and etc., in the latter case. I could easily just focus on animals for awhile, or artifacts. But here with the AMNH, I have access to all of it. The animals on display are gorgeous, and they don't move--something I hate about drawings at zoos.

Grizzly Bear, 5.75x8" Pastel pencil on paper

And so, I bought a year membership, and have gone down from time to time this year to draw. A few times, it was seeking specific reference, the other times, just to draw interesting things. So, in this series, I'll be posting those drawings and maybe talking a little about them or the museum or whatever. Mainly, they will be from the AMNH, occasionally, the Met, which has a great collection of armor, among other things. It'll depend on what reference I needed that day, or what whim drove me to.

Whereas I kept my Figure Drawing series to one every 8 posts, so that only one would appear on the front page at once (so that people wouldn't think you were weird looking at a blog with all kinds of nekkid people on it), I'm going to be putting one of these up on the first of the month, every month. I have 6 months' worth of drawings ready to go already, and intend this series to last at least one year, probably two.

(L): Helmet, Iran 19c. It is Ramadan, after all. 7.75x5.5" ink on paper

I've also kvetched about how or whether to sell my Figure Drawings, which were bound in a book. Not an issue this time, as I've learned my lesson. All of these drawings are done separately, and all of them will be made available for sale. You won't find them on my main galleries, since they aren't portfolio-related images, but their titles will be linked and you blog readers will get exclusive access to them.

And so, here we go! I hope you enjoy these, as I've certainly enjoyed doing them. There's also a tag for these, if you want to keep up with them in particular.

Whiteback Sketches pt.4

2010-08-26T11:05:00.006-04:00

Been awhile since I posted some Magic card whiteback sketches, but here are a couple I just did. Somewhere along the way, I discovered that 4B pencils work really well on the slick backsides. I didn't feel like I was fighting the card stock this time.

L: another "Magus of the Tabernacle" and R: Curfew

I quite liked the little Curfew sketch. It could probably make a nice, more developed color piece, especially as I enjoy painting light effects.

As happens maybe once a year or so, another stack of whitebacks is about to sell out. I've been taking the last 4, if I remember to do so, and making a 2x2 drawing on the backs, then putting them on eBay. This time, I'm out of Hungry Hungry Heifer, from the Magic: Unglued "joke" set from way back. It's been a fairly popular image, and I've been asked to draw him a few times over the years.

So, for his send-off, we have here our bovine gourmand, upon being informed of what his beloved cheeseburger is made of....

This auction has now ended. For information on getting sketches on whiteback cards (including larger 2x2 sketches and the like), you can go here.

Embryonic, Director's Cut

2010-08-18T17:29:00.000-04:00

I first finished Embryonic last fall, right before heading down to Illuxcon, where lo and behold, I ended up with a table where I could show it. During that weekend, I had a lot of time to look at it, and I think I was ok with it, but not entirely happy. Then life got busy and it sat for awhile. I put it up on my site in January of this year.

A month ago or so, I pulled it off the shelf and got back to work on it. The changes needed were clear now, and it was the equivalent of a day and a half to polish it up. I had originally painted the nebula freeform, before placing the figure on the board. I sort of knew where the figure was going, but wanted the freedom to paint without worrying about obscuring my drawing at all. As a result, when the figure went on, in retrospect there were a couple of places where it didn't gel as well as it should have. So I went in and painted out parts of the nebula again, mainly to kick the figure forward in a couple of places.

I added a few more broken-up areas to her suit, simply to break up the space and balance the value structure a bit more. Most importantly, however, I totally repainted her face. When I photo-referenced the original, it ended up that the face was indeed in shadow as it was in the first go. But that just wasn't aesthetically pleasing in the end. Though the lighting on her face is now technically incorrect by a few degrees, it reads much better and looks much nicer overall. A couple of little bits here and there rounded it out.

A coat of final varnish, and this one has been put to bed for good. The new version replaces the old elsewhere on my site, where you can get a zoomed-in view if you'd like. Below you can see the transition:

Yes, an animated GIF in the year 2010.

Though originally designed to hang in this orientation, for some reason upon initially completing it, I hung it vertically. Upon doing these changes, I feel compelled to hang it this way again. I think that means I hit my initial vision more successfully. I'm thinking that the way its earlier incarnation was weighted in terms of light/dark and color caused me to prefer a vertical orientation. No longer!

Minis

2010-08-10T17:48:00.003-04:00

A few years back I did a few turnaround designs for D&D Minis. The unfortunate thing with designs for miniatures is that the manufacturing process takes a long time, and so it was awhile before they released, and then it took maybe a year or so until I received samples--they come randomly packaged, so someone had to sit there and collate them, probably. Then I moved to New York and forgot where I'd left them (back in CA). Then I forgot to get around to blogging about it....So, 4 years later here we are.

I have a friend who for many years collected, customized and painted miniatures. Now, these were mostly Games Workshop minis, and mostly the nice lead-alloy ones, until they got really hard to find due to eating miniatures containing lead being found to be harmful (nevermind the pokey bits). I always enjoyed looking at his work on them, and appreciated the detail possible at such a small scale. It hadn't occurred to me back then that the design process probably started with drawings. I guess I thought the sculptor would just hack into a chunk of material like Michelangelo might do to marble.

In any case, I had to learn a little about mold processes, which was interesting, as when you mass-produce miniatures, the complexity of the shapes can easily mean you have to create multiple molds, meaning an increase in production costs. D&D Minis are mass-produced in China, and made from plastic, so they don't have nearly the level of detail possible in the medium. They also are sorta...bendy...which means you may get a sword bent when it comes out of the box. They are also assembly-line painted, for those who don't have the patience or interest in priming and painting their own, but don't want plain pewter-colored figures. I had nothing to do with the painting choices.

For these figures, my drawings were all far more detailed than necessary, and I knew they were. Part of this was because the drawings themselves were to be reproduced on accompanying cards which would have stats on them. But even for that, this was overkill. Subsequent designs, including for other product lines (TBA) have had much less-rendered drawings. They also include an important detail I hadn't learned yet--the figure should always be drawn without perspective. Here, the stance clearly indicates the relative position of the legs, but typically you would want to draw the feet on a flat linear plane (as if you were eye-level with each part of the figure). Like a cartoon of someone standing on a wall. As I said, it was a valuable education I've been able to put to use. In any case, it wasn't impossible for the lead sculptor to use this.

You'll also note that the figure, in the back pose, has seemingly switched arms. To do the back, I laid vellum over the front and traced the contour, knowing I'd flip it digitally for submission. Of course, since from the back view the rear foot would now be "lower" on the plane than the front foot, I realized I would not be able to trace the legs, and had to redraw them. That's how I learned that lesson.

In the end, while I knew the details would disappear, I must say that seeing the designs sculpted in less-than-ideal materials, at 1.25" tall, was still a bit of a surprise:

They definitely got the spirit of the thing, and some of the details in. In retrospect, I might've expected that the material may require the limbs be thicker for durability. The sword, as you can see is bending a bit. They also tucked that shield elbow way in, so as to not deal with a pit in the mold.

It was fun nevertheless. I think these were for set 14. The production drawings are available as a set here.

Sketch Dump, and Bigger Thumbs!

2010-08-10T16:53:00.001-04:00

I've added a few drawings to the Sketches gallery of my website, none of which are particularly new, but since I didn't have a sketch gallery back when they were done, they're here now! They are a mix of stuff from Magic, D&D, D&D Minis, and Star Wars Roleplaying. You can check them out here.

Aside from that, you'll notice that I've increased the size of all my thumbnail images. I've wavered in doing these for awhile. Screen resolutions vary wildly, and the range seems to only get greater and greater over time. I browse on a 1920x1200 laptop, personally, and so I am first in line to complain about the size of my own thumbnails, which appear so tiny. It wasn't always so of course--you may remember browsing the interwebs at 800x600 (!). Well, it turns out that the % of users who browse at those lower resolutions has fallen well into the single digit percentile. Yay.

There is still, however, a minimum percentage of 20% of users who browse at 1024x768. The rest browse at higher resolutions. I've always tried to keep my site viewable by the masses. So I waited a long time before redesigning for 1024x768, disenfranchising those with lower resolutions. I think it was just over a year ago in fact. Eventually, I'll do the same for 1024. However, with the majority of users having to squint as much as I do, I've resized all my thumbnails finally, going from 80x80 to 120x120. It doesn't seem like a huge difference, but seemed to get them to a reasonable on-screen real estate size again. Whether that spreads throughout Daydream Graphics is an open question at this point.

I'm also happy to see that Firefox is being used by about 40% of users, and that Chrome is doing well, too. Ok, enough statistics. Go look at some art!

I Haz Cat pt.6

2010-08-05T22:30:00.005-04:00

Because it's been a very, very busy few weeks here. Which for an illustrator is a good thing. So, I'll let my cat take center stage again this week. This was part of those watercolor studies done when he was 1 or maybe 2 years old. I think this was my favorite of them.

If you somehow like this series, there's a tag for it now....

~4.5" x 4.5" watercolor on paper

Weighing My Legal Options

2010-07-28T09:51:00.002-04:00

Like Vanilla Ice to Bowie/Mercury, or The Verve to The Rolling Stones, so it is that I find some designer somewhere lifting my riff. I'm tempted to send in the army of lawyers I have on retainer for just such an occasion, being that people are constantly lifting my artistic stylings. Right? After all, with the dozens upon dozens of readers this blog gets every week, one must expect this sort of thing!

So one of my minions slithered up and wrote to inform me of the latest. Thinking that I might show up at San Diego Comic-Con, Warner Bros. avoided showing new teaser posters for its upcoming film The Green Lantern there. But they did release them to CHUD.

You see, my first year at Comic-Con, back in '03, I took with me a little painting called "Eclosion," which was painted in 2002, and had it on display there. Doubtless, some aspiring ad agency designer was walking the floor, and probably snapped a photo of it when I wasn't looking, probably on his hi-tech 2-megapixel camera. Maybe even *3* megapixels! Evidently thinking enough time had passed, this person decided to reference it when designing these posters.

You be the jury, as I excerpt the relevant portion:

I'm just not sure what exactly I should seek--should I ask for a cut of box office gross? Perhaps it'd be enough to force them to remove that lame eyebrow? I don't know, but someone must pay!!