The DOODLES, DESIGNS, and aRT of CHRISTOPHER BURDETT: Star Wars Process

I have waited a long time to share the process for this painting. At times I considered never sharing it. Four years on, I am comfortable sharing it and talking a little more about this piece. I have talked a LOT about this piece over the past four years, and this will likely be the last time I mention it.

For those that know me, I have a particular love for Star Wars, specifically the monsters and aliens in the Star Wars universe. I watched the original Star Wars movie in the theaters when it was released, and it changed everything for me. I was only three years old, but it had a profound impact on my career and passion as an artist. The cantenna scene specifically had a significant effect on my young mind. I didn't know what I was seeing, but I wanted to make it. I have spent my life making monsters, I continue to make monsters. The work that I have done on the Star Wars games is some of my favorite client work and something I am still proud of to this day. Through the game art, I was able to be a part of Star Wars and create my own little corner of that universe. It is something I will also be thankful for FFG for giving me that opportunity.

Of the monsters and aliens in the Star Wars universe, my favorite character and alien is Bossk. The reptilian Trandoshan bounty hunter instantly caught my eye, and though he only was in the Empire Strikes Back for seconds, I was forever in love. The character has since been fleshed out in cartoons, books, comics, and games, and I have enjoyed every second of it. I perused the opportunity to work on a Bossk piece for some time, but the time was always off. FINALLY, it all came together, and I was able to create an official Bossk painting. Here is the final version of my Bossk painting.

Bossk - Final Version
X-Wing Nationals Tournament Alternate Art
16 x 12 - Traditional with digital edits and finish

The narrative of the painting is that Chewbacca was the prey that got away. Out of all of Bossk's successes, the hunt that never resulted in a kill was his pursuit of Chewbacca. You might think that this narrative is a little hollow in the image, well things have a way of changing along the way. With every piece of art I make, it starts out with reference. Such as this image.

Reference Photo

Photo by Achsa Nute

This is but one of the many images of me making my best Bossk impression. I wanted to make a connection between Bossk and the holo image of Chewbacca. Now that I had reference, it was time to work on some thumbnails.

Bossk - Thumbnails
Digital

These thumbnails were well received, but there were some requests and some issues with templates, cropping, and final card arrangement. I needed to move the composition around a little and make it a little more dynamic. Here is the revised thumbnail.

Bossk - Revised thumbnail
Digital

This updated thumbnail was approved, and I was given the go-ahead to move forward with the final drawing. To this day, this is one of my favorite drawings that I created for the Star Wars games, which is why it is the only drawing that I have kept. Here is the final drawing.

Bossk - Drawing
X-Wing Nationals Tournament Alternate Art
17 x 14 - Pencil on paper

Original - NFS

The drawing was approved, and it was time to paint. I created this piece a little larger than I usually worked at the time. I wanted to give it the size and attention is deserved now that I was finally painting Bossk. Here is an animated process of the painting coming together. As with most of my paintings, I work back to the front, leaving the main elements to the end. There is a rather pronounced jump in the image of the painting at the end, this is a result of the photos of the painting while working on compared to the final scan of the painting.

Bossk - Painting Process

Here is the final scan of my Bossk painting. I was pleased with it, and it was everything I had hoped to do with the painting and the character. The painting was approved, and I moved onto other work.

Bossk - Original
X-Wing Nationals Tournament Alternate Art
16 x 12 - Acrylic and pencil on board

Original - SOLD

Three months after the painting was approved, I was asked to make significant edits to the piece. As a professional, I made these changes. I do not need to agree with the changes, but I need to do the best job I am capable of to ensure that the edits and changes are made to the expectations of the client. This is just the way of things. Here is an image of the parts of the painting that were still approved.

Bossk - Approved elements

Since it was such a profound change to the painting, I started over with thumbnails to ensure that the client and I were on the same page and in agreement with what needed to be done. It was agreed that Bossk needed to be in an interior location, possible in a cantenna without figures in the background, or simply against a wall. Here are the new background thumbnails for the painting.

Bossk - New background thumbnails
Digital

Option C was chosen. While it was a little bland, I went with their choice and moved forward with having Bossk against a wall. Here is the process of the background being added digitally to the painting.

Bossk - Edits Painting Process

While it is far from where it began, I made the requested updates and presented the client with the edits and changes they wanted. Here is the updated Bossk painting with a sterilized background.

Bossk - Background Version 1
X-Wing Nationals Tournament Alternate Art
16 x 12 - Traditional with digital edits and finish

After submitting the new version of the painting, I was told that the background needed to be a spaceship interior with windows showing space in the background. This was news to me, but again, as a professional, I moved forward with making additional changes to this painting. Here is the painting process for turning the wall into a spaceship interior.

Bossk - Contuned Edits Painting Process

For a third time, I submitted a final for this painting, and for a second time, it was accepted.

Bossk - Final Version
X-Wing Nationals Tournament Alternate Art
16 x 12 - Traditional with digital edits and finish

After all of this work, changed, and edits here is the final card produced using the painting.

Final Bossk production card

During the painting of this piece, I stood back and took a photo of my workstation. I was excited about this piece and really happy with how it was turning out. I could not wait to share it when it came out.

The painting on my workstation nearing completion.

And this ends the journey of my Bossk painting. May it now be put to rest, and we can all move on. I have spoken.

That is all for another exciting Wednesday on the blog, see you back here on Friday! Until then...

For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com

Wednesday, April 29, 2020

Star Wars Process - Bossk

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