Ninja Mountain Podcast - Episode 118

I am a little behind in posting this, but you should really head over and listen to the most recent episode of the Ninja Mountain Podcast, episode 118. You will hear all the usual Ninja Mountain audio gold that you have come to expect from them as well as some third party impressions of the talk that Jon Schindehette and I did at Illuxcon. Here real proof that I was not making the while thing up and that I may possibly done a horrible job of speaking to a room full of people.

 Ninja Mountain Podcast episode 118 - Taking fort making techniques to a whole new level!

Be sure to run on over and give a listen to the most recent episode of the Ninja Mountain Podcast! It is well worth your time and you just might learn a thing or two about making forts and being a better illustrator. RAWR!

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

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

Illuxcon 2012 - Wrap Up

I am back from Illuxcon 5 and getting back into the groove of work. First and foremost I would like to extent huge thanks to Patrick and Jeannie Wilshire for everything they do to make Illuxcon happen. Their hard work and effort allows us all to have an amazing and memorable 4 days of Illuxcon. Illuxcon is super amazing and awesome each year in its own different and unique ways. Hard to compare them all, I have gotten something new and different out of each one.

Next year it will be all shiny, new, and different in Allentown, Pa. I can't wait!

If you missed any of my Illuxcon 5 posts you can use these convenient links...

Illuxcon 2012 coverage Day 0

Illuxcon 2012 coverage Day 1

Illuxcon 2012 coverage Day 2

Illuxcon 2012 coverage Day 3

Illuxcon 2012 coverage Day 4

Here are some last images to conclude Illuxcon V...

 A better scan of the alien portrait that I drew in the workshop led by Lars Grant-West.

 The flight out of Altoona at 5:30 am was just for us Illuxcon attendees apparently.

 One last gratuitous images of a plane to conclude the trip.... RAWR!

That is all for Wednesday and for Illuxcon 2012, see you back here on Friday for usual blog stuff. Until then...

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

lluxcon 2012 - Day 4

All good things must come to an end and alas it is Day 4, the last day, of Illuxcon V. There is nothing scheduled today, so there is plenty of time to explore the main exhibit hall one last time to make sure you didn't miss anything. Even though I have been here all four days I was still discovering things I had overlooked the previous three. Plenty of people still to talk to and many delights for the eyes and spirit. Some people had to give their goodbyes the evening before due to early flights and departure times. Many others said their goodbyes throughout the day reluctant to leave until they could not stay any longer and still make it home that day.

As with previous years, I stayed to the end. I was transporting several artists and their work back to the hotel. After unloading we broke into groups, big and small, and went in search for food. Many of us had not eaten all day and there was a little over indulgence at dinner. But the company was stellar and the fun never ended. Due to may 5:30 am flight leaving Altoona I had to go back to my room after dinner to make sure I was all packed, but after that I made my rounds of the bar saying goodbye to those still around. Bittersweet as all the goodbyes are at Illuxcon, I am eager to get home and get to work, but many of these amazing and talented people only cross paths with me once a year.

It was strange to realize this was the last time many of us would be in the exhibit building let alone Altoona. Illuxcon will be moving to Allentown, Pa. next year to a much bigger home. I have grown to enjoy my time in Altoona with all its quirks. There has been something nice about having to share the drive from the hotel to the event building. Once in Allentown the hotel and exhibition space will be in walking distance. Granted, there will be more food options, nicer lodging, a bigger nicer exhibition space, and better access to airports and mass transit, for me at least, I will miss Altoona. I have a lot of amazing memories associated with the city and Illuxcon.

A big thanks as always goes out to Patrick and Jeannie Wilshire for all that they do to make Illuxcon the event that it is. Also, there are so many volunteers and helping hands that need to be thanked for what they do to contribute to the amazing and AWESOME event that is Illuxcon. I eagerly await what Illuxcon VI brings, there are MANY exciting changes and new opportunities ahead for Illuxcon and the artists attending. Here are some pictures from Day 4...

 More of Tom Kuebler's amazing work!

 The painting that Julie Bell was working on while attending Illuxcon.

 A look around the exhibit hall of Illuxcon V on Day 4.

  A look around the exhibit hall of Illuxcon V on Day 4.

  A look around the exhibit hall of Illuxcon V on Day 4.

 Down on the floor having a look around...

 Shadowcore at Illuxcon! Representing members: Myself, Mike Sass, and Chris Rahn.

 Say this out front of the exhibition hall after helping Chris Seaman with some reference photos. Apparently not everyone was not a fan of Shadowcore... :P

 The final end of Illuxcon at Altoona. Time to say goodbye and to look ahead to all that Illuxcon in Allentown will have to offer!

That is all for today... as I am still traveling home and wrote this at the airport. I will be back on Wednesday after some much needed rest. Until then...

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

lluxcon 2012 - Day 3

Day 3 of Illuxcon V! Today was the big day for me. Everything started off with my talk with Jon Schindehette at noon and I still did not know what to expect. I played it smart and went to bed as early as it is possible at Illuxcon and tried to rest in as long as I could. Several people mentioned to me at the Showcase the night before that they were attending the panel and that they heard it was going to be a packed room. Even though I arrived early there were already folks in the room waiting. As the noon approached the room continued to fill and I was still the only one standing at the front of an ever filling room. A mere 5 minutes late, Jon did finally show up and we got things going (he had a good excuse). I think it all went really well, the crowd seemed to enjoy it and Jon and I had a great time. There were many good questions and the two hours flew by. Unfortunately, I am pretty sure the panel was not recorded, but a dutiful follower of this blog can find a lot of what I talked about here, you just will have to do a bit of searching.

After the lecture I quickly relocated to the main auditorium to listen to Mike Sass, Randy Gallegos, Aaron Miller, Todd Lockwood, and Jim Pavelec talk about things to do to make the illustration industry better. This all centered around things we as artist can do and the repercussions of us not acting. The panel members had a lot of stories of their own lives to share and had many ideas of things to do to move forward. A lot of this centered around a rating website that artist could use to rate and check the rating of various gaming companies to see how they compare of rates and rights. This is still all in the early stages, but it sounds really exciting.

After this group talk I had to quickly move to the workshop I signed up for with Lars Grant-West. It was a workshop centered on creating your alien portrait. Lars shared a lot of excellent animal reference and resources and talked about his process and the things he looks to for inspiration and process. He provided us all with a mirror and we sketched out a rough self portrait and then turned ourselves into an alien or monster. It was a very full three and a half hours of animals, monsters, and drawing. Very glad I took part in it! I hope Lars does something similar next year.

Before I knew it the day was over and I had not been in the main show at all. I will have all day Sunday to take it in, so it all works out. The groups of folks all slit up as usual and went to dinner. The awards and jam sessions started up back at the Ramada in the evening and there was much fun and socializing. I found a comfy chair in the lobby and was surrounded by great and funny folks and the night just flew by. I excused myself very much past my bed time, but it was worth every moment. Here are some images from the day...

 A look at the Room 001 when I arrived.

 As the noon time hour approaches things begin to fill.

 The panel over, there was clapping! Which was, pretty cool to say the least.

 Panel buddies! A HUGE thanks to Jon for taking part and making the panel that much better!

 RAWR!

 Mike Sass, Randy Gallegos, Aaron Miller, Todd Lockwood, and Jim Pavelec at their talk.

 My alien monster from Lars' workshop... RAWR!

 Artists HUNGER! Demand Mexican food!

 A look at the ballroom during the jam session and after the awards.

 Omar took home the big award... RAWR!

 A look at the Ramada grotto from my comfy chair and all the fun and folks. Good times!

That is all for another amazingly awesome day at Illuxcon V! See you back here for a recap of the last day. Until then...

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

lluxcon 2012 - Day 2

Illuxcon V Day 2! The lectures, workshops, and demonstrations have begun and the level of awesome went up a notch! Due to a late night and an early I was dragging a little through the day, but I was making the best of it and there was plenty to tantalize the eyes and spirit. Illuxcon is a environment for very little sleep and a whole lot of things to do and see. But I digress from my my tales of sleep deprivation...

The day started off for me with a lecture by the always informative and entertaining Winona Nelson. She talked about how the creative mind works and how how best to use it and keep it rest and working well. It was a very informative lecture and I am looking forward to her second lecture on Saturday, hopefully I can make it. The next lecture I was not going to miss was the lecture by Jane Frank about the things that artists and collectors do that bug each other. Do not pass on a chance to listen to Jane speak or to have have a chance to talk to her. After the lectures I walked the main show floor taking everything in and talked shop with my peers. The hall closed at 5 today to allow enough time for everyone to get some food and to get ready for the the Showcase at the Ramada.

This was my third Showcase and it was nice to be back. There were a lot of old faces and a lot of new faces. I set up next to fellow Shadowcore member Mike Sass so we had a unified presence. It was a fun night of talking to folks and showing off my new work. At one point I looked to my phone to see how much time was left because it felt like it should be ending soon because so much had been going on... and it had only been an hour. That is the great thing about the Showcase, it is condensed and concentrated awesome, everyone attending Illuxcon has 4 hours to take it all in and they come over in mass.

Due to my exhaustion and my lecture at noon the following day I had to forgo any festivities after the Showcase and headed to bed to catchup on my rest. I need to be my best to for my lecture with Jon Schindehette. But there will be more on that tomorrow, for now, here are some pictures from the days events...

 A look around the main show at the beginning of Day 2.

 Winona Nelson giving her lecture.

 Jane Frank had some technical issues with her Power Point presentation but was a trooper and put on a great lecture from her notes.

 Another of Tom Kuebler's wonderful sculptures. RAWR!

 There was painting on the main show floor.

 Another look at the main show floor before everything closed for the day.

 My Showcase set up. Peddling my wears. Drawing monsters. RAWR!

 Shadowcore represent! Mike and I are ready to rock and roll! Mike had a ton of his gorgeous new oil painting with him and they are a feast for the eyes.

 Sketchbook monsters! RAWR!

 More sketchbook monsters!

 A look around the Showcase. This year it extended out into the hallways from the ball room.

 Even MORE sketchbook monsters! RAWR!

 Ditto... RAWR!

 Close to the end of the night at the Showcase. Things are just about to wrap up. A day well spent!

That is all for Day 2 of Illuxcon V! Day 3 is ahead of me and my lecture! More on all this tomorrow. Until then...

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

Illuxcon 2012 - Day 1

Day 1 of Illuxcon has come and gone and I am already exhausted... in a the best way possible. I did my best to rest up in the morning since the exhibit hall didn't open till noon. This was mildly accomplished. After a late breakfast / early lunch with Chris Rahn and Ralph Horsley we arrived at the exhibit hall and some folks we already hard at work making the magic that is Illuxcon happen.

This being my fourth Illuxcon I knew what to expect, through out the day a slow but steady tide of artist arrive through out the day and begin pulling gorgeous art from boxes, bins and suitcases. It should be said, even though this is my fourth year it has not lost any of the magic, wonder, and awe inspiring awesomeness. The aftermath of the storms in the north east played a roll in delaying some of the artists, but no one in the main show had to cancel. I heard that this was not the case for the Showcase event on Friday evening. I have gotten differing accounts, but it really felt like there was significantly MORE artist setting up in the main show. The isles have been shifted around a bit and it really seemed like there was just more of everything, and I am not complaining. There are many familiar faces this year and many more new faces.

The day moved one and things really began to come together, though there were a lot of empty stalls up to and after the show was officially opened to the public. I am not sure I remember a Thursday evening being so packed with people. Could be wrong, but it really felt like a record turnout and there were SO MANY students and young artists. I felt a little old looking around at tall the young faces, but I was not the only one feeling that way. Some folks 10 years my junior were also saying they felt old looking around... When 9 o'clock hit everyone but the main show artists were asked to leave to allow the artist some time together. We all broke into our small groups and went out into the cold to find a much needed late dinner. Everyone eventually regrouped in mass at the bar at the Ramada and there was much fun to be had catching up with everyone. I did my best to get some sleep but since I am rooming with Sam Flegal we were up way to late catching up and talking shop and it was time worth spent, we can sleep later, Illuxcon only happens once a year!

Here are images from the day...

 Early in the day, much more to happen!

 Another view of show floor long before most of the art goes up.

 Tom Kuebler has so much amazing work this year, this is just one of them.

 Chris Rahn brought his beauties.

 Ralph Horsley is getting everything set up. Ralph always brings so much amazing art.

 Things are really coming together!

 Slowly but surely the show is taking shape.

 Thanks to the new panorama mode on the iPhone it has really made capturing the look and feel of Illuxcon so much easier! 

 Chris Seaman is setting everything up. He brought a lot of his new amazing personal pieces!

 A look at the upper level. Tom Kuebler is directly behind me.

 The show is really taking shape, almost time!

 Just moment away before the show officially opens!

 The art party continues over into into the bar, fun times!

That is all for Day 1, Day 2 is gearing up and it will end in the Showcase event tonight, see you back here tomorrow! Until then...

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