Way back in 2016, a card that I painted in 2015 was released in the Star Wars LCG expansion, Meditation, and Mastery. Jump ahead to 2020, and I now have the time and energy to look back at this piece and talk about what went into making it. This assignment for Hunter in the Night was to depict a scared Chadra-Fan fleeing from a cloaked figure on the moonlit streets of Mos Eisley or some other city on Tatooine. Since this was an objective card, the final image would be a long narrow sliver of a scene. I have painted one of those before, and since that one was digital, it was not an issue. Since I was painting this one traditionally, I didn't want to paint a strangely sized painting that would be hard to frame and scan. I reached out to production to check that it would not be an issue if I painted the image to the dimensions I wanted, as long as everything they needed was within the cropping area that would be on the card. In the scheme of things, as long as the client is getting what they need and want, the actual size and area of the painting really does not matter, but it is good to have open communication so that they are not surprised at the end. First, here is the final full version of Hunter in the Night.
Hunter in the Night
Star Wars LCG - Meditation and Mastery
11 x 14 - Acrylic and pencil on board
Art Director - Taylor Ingvarsson
© 2016 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games
I, of course, started things off with a reference shoot and thumbnails. This was an enjoyable piece since I could dig deep into my collection of Episode One toys and use several Star Wars Micro Machines pieces as environmental references. Star Wars toys turned into a Star Wars painting for the Star Wars card game. Here are the thumbnails that I submitted for this assignment.
Hunter in the Night - Thumbnails
© 2016 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games
While we are on the subject of reference and photoshoots, here are some of the images that I took and made to use in the creation of this painting. This first image is of the Star Wars playset I used as a reference for the nameless city on Tatooine depicted in the painting (it is TOTALLY not Mos Eisley, *wink wink*). These playsets were invaluable since they are based directly on the background seen in Episode One, and they help address perspective and lighting. I took many of these images with several playsets and merged them together for the final reference collages.
Hunter in the Night - Reference image
Speaking of reference collages, here are the three final reference images used to create the thumbnails and eventually, the drawing and painting. These are a combination of still from Star Wars, playset images, photos of myself acting out the aliens, and action figure reference. I created something like this for nearly all of my Star Wars assignments, and to one degree or another, I use this technique for all of my work. At this point in my career, since I have done so much of this, I often work up the ideas and forms while I freehand the thumbnails from my head. The environmental pieces for The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia were all created from scribbling and sketching in my head. This is only possible after years of working with loads of reference and observing the world around us.
Hunter in the Night - Reference collage
Hunter in the Night
Star Wars LCG - Meditation and Mastery
© 2016 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games
The drawing was approved without notes, and it was time to start painting. Here is an animated process for this painting coming together. While it was a straightforward piece, some was pushing and pulling along the way to hit the right tone and to get the color where it needed to be for a night scene.
Hunter in the Night - Process
The painting was approved, and another one was wrapped up. I submitted two versions of the file to the client; one was the image at full size, and the second of the cropped version for the card. I believe that I could have simply submitted the cropped version, but I was being generous and allowed them access to the entire painting that I painted. Here again, is the whole painting for Hunter in the Night.
Hunter in the Night
© 2016 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games
As you can see, the final crop for the card omits much of the painting. While I could have painted what you see on the card, I didn't want to create an image with these dimensions, and some of my favorite aspects of the painting are not visible on the card.
Hunter in the Night with intense cropping action in handy dandy card form
That's 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
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