Recent Magic the Gathering Artist Proof Art

Today, I have recent Magic the Gathering artist proofs that I added art to their backs. All available artist proofs and art options can be found on my store. I present a selection of art on the back of Magic the Gathering cards.

Another fun tokin. This time around a pilot was required and Nien Numb reported for duty!

And the ever popular Ancient Carp. This time it is in black and white.

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

Yaurnish Portrait - The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia

I am thrilled to share another new piece from The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia. This illustration is for Book Two: The Completed Circle. This will be a character portrait accompanying one of the short blurbs at the beginning of a chapter. I shared more about these with the first post focused on these portraits. With most of these, I have an idea regarding their voice and placement in the book, but the fun part is that it is not set in stone and may turn into something very different from what I first planned. I present you with a Yaurnish (name to come later) on their way to something important and they can not be waylaid to answer silly questions about fairytales and stories.

Yaurnish
The Grand Bazaar of Ethra Dalia - The Completed Circle
5 x 5 - Pencil, ink, and acrylic paint on paper
Original - AVAILABLE!
© 2023 Christopher Burdett

 

Yaurnish - Drawing 

5 x 5 - Pencil on paper
© 2023 Christopher Burdett 

These are the smallest pieces created for the books. There is something charming about a 5 x 5 image, and I have already framed them up. Here is a look at the sketch for the Yaurnish to show where it started.

 

Yaurnish - Sketch

 Digital 

© 2023 Christopher Burdett 

 

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

NEW Spectator Miniature

I have another recently released miniature that is based on my designs that has also already been turned into multiple miniatures. Last week, it was the Hydroloth, but today is the return of the Spectator. Again, I am speaking loosely with the word 'new,' when this mini came out this past October. If you are curious about the first Spectator miniature or even the most recent 2D mini, I have you covered. Here is how the final concept design for the Spectator turned out.

Spectator (originally Gauth during the concept push)

5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons Monster concept

© 2014 Wizards of the Coast

Who can't love a floating ball with a single eye, teeth-filled mouth, and tentacled eye stalks? While I have been a fan of all of the Spectator miniatures, this one is particularly nice. The paintwork and detailing is great and really make this monster look cool. Here are some images of the new mini.

The NEW Spectator miniature for all your new Spectator miniature needs.

Lastly, here are some images of the original Spectator mini so you can see how it has evolved over the past eight years. While the color on the original mini is closer to my concept, I do like the lighter green in the new version. 

The original Spectator miniature from 2015.

That's all for another exciting week on the blog. See you back here on Monday! Until then... 

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

Convention Gudul Lurker with Color Art Available!

*UPDATE* - This piece has sold. Thank you!

As mentioned last month, I created color art on the back of several Magic the Gathering artist proofs for a convention. I can not make color pieces at cons, only black and white, so this was a test run to see how they are received. As I only have one remaining of these artist proofs after the con, I would say they were received very well, and I will bring these with me moving forward to all conventions. That said, I wanted to make the artist proof that didn't sell available on my store. For those interested, the Gudul Lurker with color art is now on my store!

Gudul Lurker color art on the back of a Gudul Lurker card.

There were others, but now there is only one... for now.

That's all for another exciting surprise Thursday 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

Cranium Rats in Disguise - Dungeons & Dragons - Process

Today, I am happy to share the process and steps for my favorite contribution to the Dungeons & Dragons supplement, Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse. As I mentioned before, I have never worked on anything Planescape related in the 19 years I have made monsters for Dungeons & Dragons, so it was a real treat to finally stick my tow into this realm. Last time I shared a pointy walking plant, today, I smelled a rat. Here is the final painting for the Cranium Rats in Disguise.

Cranium Rats in Disguise

Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse

11 x 14 - Digital

Art Director - Emi Tamji

© 2023 Wizards of the Coast LLC

I was asked to design and illustrate the Cranium Rats in Disguise. I knew instantly that this would be a fun one. It is just so silly and cool at the same time that I needed to make it special. The Cranium Rats in Disguise was described as:

A mysterious figure surrounded by cranium rats walks down an alley toward the viewer.
Figure: The figure is covered in a ragged cloak and wrappings and walks awkwardly. We can't see any of the figure's features. It's suggested that the figure is actually all cranium rats wearing clothes, but we can't be sure.
Alley: The alley is a creepy alley in Sigil's Hive Ward. It's filled with trash and razor vine.

After reading that, I was ready to get to work on some thumbnails. As I have stated countless times here before, I start nearly all of my projects with a photo shoot as I act out the monster and get my head around the physicality of it. Once I feel like I have enough reference, I start scribbling. Here are the thumbnails that I submitted. 

Cranium Rats in Disguise - Thumbnails

 © 2023 Wizards of the Coast LLC

 

These were well received, but the hat on top of the cloak in option 'C' was, of course, the best one. I was asked to make the background doorway arch more similar to option 'B,' but the figure was perfect as it was. I was happy to make the updates and got to work. Here is the updated thumbnail that I submitted.

Cranium Rats in Disguise - Revised thumbnail

 © 2023 Wizards of the Coast LLC

 

The revised thumbnail was approved without additional notes or revisions. It was now time for my favorite part, the drawing! I always create a final traditional drawing for every project to work out the details and to give myself a tangible product from the assignment. Here is the Cranium Rats in Disguise drawing.

Cranium Rats in Disguise

Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse

11 x 14 -Colored pencil on paper

Original - SOLD

Art Director - Emi Tamji

© 2023 Wizards of the Coast LLC

The drawing was approved without comment, and it was time to start on the final painting. Here is the painting of the Cranium Rats in Disguise taking shape.

Cranium Rats in Disguise - Process

 © 2023 Wizards of the Coast LLC

As with most of my D&D work these days, the painting goes quickly. I am thankful that I have been doing these long enough that I can sit down and knock out the painting in one sitting. It was not always this way, but after 25 years, I am glad to finally have this luxery of having done this work countless times. Practice does pay off. The biggest challenge for this piece was to get the contrast right for the figure and the limited background. It needed to be readable and fleshed out, but not to the point that it overwhelmed the figure. I believe I hit the right balance with it. This is likely one of my favorite recent works, and it is getting a miniature! Here, again, is the final painting of the Cranium Rats in Disguise.

Cranium Rats in Disguise

Planescape: Adventures in the Multiverse

© 2023 Wizards of the Coast LLC

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

The Book of Many Things - Dungeons & Dragons

I feel like I am WAY behind on sharing these, but that is due to the book being delayed due to a printing issue. But now, after a bit of a wait, I have my comp copies, and I can now share my contribution to the recent Dungeons & Dragons release of The Book of Many Things (Which comes with the Deck of Many Things set). Here is said book that, in fact, contains many things!

The Book of Many Things!

You will find two of my illustrations in The Book of Many Things, one being a monster and the other being a man with some issues. The long and the short of it is that I made three pieces for this book, but due to travel, I was unable to see to some very late revision notes, and that third piece was replaced by another artist. At a later date, I hope to share that piece with you all, but that is for another day.

First up, we clearly have my favorite piece for the book, and likely for some time. It is Wanewort the Night Hag, and she has a pair of kitties. Not just any kitties, but she is holding my Mietze, and my wife's little Zemo is sniffing around Wanewort's dress. She was described as having two cats, and I asked if one of them could be changed in the final piece to be a little bitey orange kitty. Production gave their blessing, and so Mietze and Zemo are now in a D&D book! The second piece for the book is Boss Augustus, and he is struggling with an internal conflict. The weird thing about this one is that, while the entire thing was based on me, the drawing looks like someone I know, and the painting looks like another person I know. I'm not sure how this happened, but here we are all the same. Here are the final paintings for Wanewort and Boss Augustus.

Wanewort

The Book of Many Things

11 x 14 - Digital

Art Director - Bree Heiss

© 2023 Wizards of the Coast LLC

Boss Augustus

The Book of Many Things

11 x 14 - Digital

Art Director - Bree Heiss

© 2023 Wizards of the Coast LLC

As with all my D&D pieces, even though the final is digital, there are original drawings available. These are no exception, and I was pleased with how the drawings turned out. Here are the drawings for Wanewort and Boss Augustus. A word of advice: if there are any D&D pieces of mine that are coming out that you want the drawings for, you need to reach out to me as soon as possible.

Wanewort

The Book of Many Things

11 x 14 -Colored pencil on paper

Original - NFS (I am keeping this one!)

Art Director - Bree Heiss

© 2023 Wizards of the Coast LLC

 

Boss Augustus

The Book of Many Things

11 x 14 -Colored pencil on paper

Original - SOLD

Art Director - Bree Heiss

© 2023 Wizards of the Coast LLC

Lastly, I have some photos of how the work looks in the book. I think they printed great, and now Mietze and Zemo are forever a part of D&D!

Wanewort and Boss Augustus in handy dandy book form!

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

NEW Hydroloth Miniature

I am always surprised with a Dungeons & Dragons monsters recieves a new miniature when one was released for it reletively recently. Mind you, I am not complaining. I love seeing minis based on my work, I am just surpeised. For clarity, when I say new, I mean October of 2023 - I am still a little behind on things and having to Shade and Glaze everything does slow me down. This time around the Hydroloth that I redesigned and illustrated for Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes has recieveda new prepainted 3D miniature. The first Hydroloth mini based on my work was released in 2022. To start things off, here is my painting of the Hydroloth.

Hydroloth

Mordenkainen's Tome of Foes

11 x 14 - Digital

Art Director - Kate Irwin

© 2018 Wizards of the Coast LLC

While the first mini had a unique pose, this new version is based directly on my painintg with the crouch and out stretched clawed hand. I think it looks great and is a more faithful interupitation of my work in plastic. Both are great, but I am definitely in love with this new version. Here is a look at the new mini.

The NEW Hydroloth miniature for all your new Hydroloth miniature needs.

Lastly, here again is the original Hydroloth miniature from two years ago so that you can compare the two minis and the illustration. I will have some more new minis for you in the coming weeks.

The original Hydroloth miniature from 2022.

That's all for another exciting week on the blog. See you back here on Monday! Until then... 

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