Monday, December 29, 2014

Star Wars - Edge of the Empire - Entrepreneur Specialization Deck

Doing my best to keep blog posts going over the winter holidays...

Today I have for you a little update on one of my pieces making an encore appearance. Back in November I shared with you my contributions to Far Horizons for the Edge of the Empire RPG. My Chevin Entrepreneur has returned and is now on the front of the Entrepreneur Specialization Deck!

Entrepreneur Specialization Deck

Here is the how the original Career Entrepreneur appeared, though even in Far Horizons the background holo-feed was played down...

Career Entrepreneur
© 2014 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games

There are a total four new Specialization Decks based on the content from Far Horizons. If you are so inclined you can go check them all out over on the Fantasy Flight Website.

Far Horizon Specialization Decks

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

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

Wednesday, December 24, 2014

HO HO RAWR!

Happiest of holiday wishes from me to you. I hope that whichever winter festival or celebration you participate in that it brings you fulfillment, happiness, and time with family and loved ones. I hope the Trandoshans and Wookiees in your life can come together in the season... RAWR!

HO HO RAWR!
Happy Wookiee Life Day!
 
For more samples of my work or to contact me regarding my availability head over to my website: www.christopherburdett.com

Monday, December 15, 2014

Aberrant Stilter - The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia

Recently I have shared with you my Gray Wanderer, Corrupted Knight, Smokestack, and Belled Kreep monsters. Today, I have for you the fifth piece in this series. This piece was finished this past weekend and continues to be at the new larger scale. I present you with the Aberrant Stilter.

Aberrant Stilter
11 x 14 - Pencil on paper
Currently Available Grand Bazaar Originals
© 2014 Christopher Burdett

The Aberrant Stilter is one of three monsters I designed once returning home from Illuxcon this year and is the second to be completed. The Belled Kreep was the first of these new monsters. I allowed people on Facebook to vote on which I would draw, based on just the name. The Aberrant Stilter received the second most votes.

Here are all the other completed monsters for The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia: Aberrant Stilter, Belled Kreep, Corrupted Knight, Dight-Kin, Eau-de-nil Elder, Ethra VanDalia, Footman, Gray Wanderer, Gullet, Humgruffin Mother, Irritated Girasol, Judicator, Kiplorbic Animal Dealer, Lammergeier Transport, Myopic Riflemen, Nimsbane Curse Victim, Ophiomornous Bureaucrat, Petrous Blacksmith, Quincaillerie, Saint Marque, Smokestack, Thrice, Uncanny Scribe, Virulent Artificer, Xandrell Tree, Yote Arms Dealer, and Zombic Spore.

Further details on this piece, like all of these personal monsters on toned paper, will have to wait for another day and, hopefully, a different type of information interface. Fear naught, all will be revealed in the fullness of time. As a bonus, here are some images of the piece as I worked on it.

All images © 2014 Christopher Burdett

I have three videos of time-lapse drawing sessions over on YouTube if you want to see the image being actively worked on. If you have a chance check out VIDEO 1, VIDEO 2, and VIDEO 3.

That is all for another exciting Monday. 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

Friday, December 12, 2014

Star Wars: Age of Rebellion - Quarren Agitator PROCESS

Back in July, I shared with you my contribution to the most recent Fantasy Flight Games RPG, Age of Rebellion. Today I have for you the process that went into one of those pieces, Quarren Agitator. This is my first time having a chance to illustrate a Quarren for Star Wars, so it was a treat. First things first, here is how the final Quarren Agitator turned out...

Quarren Agitator
© 2014 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games

To get things started, I posed for some very angry Quarren reference. Nothing like standing around with a big silly knife threatening an unseen authority. With the reference in hand, I got to work on some thumbnails, and here is how they turned out...

Quarren Agitator - Thumbnails
© 2014 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games

I think the art order did call for the Quarren to actually be smashing the holo-screen with Imperial propaganda, but I wanted to try out some other options. "B" was the winner and the only one that had depicted holo-screen smashing action. With Thumbnail selected, it was time to get started with the final drawing, and here is how that turned out...

Quarren Agitator - Drawing
9 x 12
Pencil on paper
© 2014 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games

If you are wondering what the holo-screen says, let your curiosity be sated, it reads, "Make a Difference."  That is my contribution to propaganda without it being too creepy and over the top... make a difference and join the Stormtrooper corp! The drawing was approved without note, and I was all clear to get started on my painting.

At some point during my, I realized that the Quarren's left arm was a little too big or a little too long... or both. I fixed it, but due to the way my files are set up, it is now no longer part of the layered order of my painting - which is why it will be absent for most of the process steps and then suddenly appear. I had to cut it out, adjust it, and reattach it later in the process. With all that said, here is the making of a Quarren in 16 easy steps, or not...


Quarren Agitator - Process steps
© 2014 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games

Besides the arm adjustment, I decided to make the shards of the screen actively falling rather than gathered on the ground. This makes the image more in the moment with the sparks flying and pieces of plastic going in every direction. That Quarren JUST smashed that screen, and he is yelling about why the Empire must be stopped... which is right before a Stormtrooper shoots him in the face. That will show those Quarren they should not have backed the Separatists and the armies of Count Doku. Should have stayed unified with the Mon Calamari, but that political discussion is pointless now.

As an added bonus, here is an animated gif thing of the progression through the steps that made this piece. Right before your eyes, the Quarren takes shape...

Quarren Agitator animated thing...
This concludes my contribution to the Age of Rebellion core book, but don't worry, there will be plenty more where this came from. Here again, is how the final piece turned out...

Quarren Agitator
© 2014 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games

That is 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

Wednesday, December 10, 2014

Star Wars - Age of Rebellion - Stay on Target

Last week I had a new Star Wars pieces spoiled over on the Fantasy Flight Games website, so it, of course, is now showing up on the blog. The newest sourcebook for the Age of Rebellion RPG, Stay on Target, is about to release. I have one piece in this new book, Heated Tempers, and this is how it turned out...

Heated Tempers
© 2014 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games

A Bothan and a Chadra-Fan walk into a bar... well, not so much a bar as a Rebel hanger, and boy, are they angry. This piece was a lot of fun, and I never pictured myself having a chance to paint an A-Wing. Tha Chadra-Fan is not very happy with her mechanic, and he does not look too happy either! RAWR!

I think this is the last digitally painted Star Wars piece that I made. There are still some pieces in the ether that I can't share with you yet, but this was the last one that I worked on digitally. Kind of glad this was digital, there was a rather sizable edit that I had to make when I had finished the painting. The rest of the story will be saved for another day once the book is out.

Heated Tempers on the FFG website

 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

Monday, December 8, 2014

Belled Kreep - The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia

Recently I have shared with you my Gray Wanderer, Corrupted Knight, and Smokestack monsters. Today, I have for you the fourth piece in this series. This piece was finished very recently and is larger than its predecessors. I present you with the Belled Kreep.

Belled Kreep
11 x 14
Pencil on paper
Currently Available Grand Bazaar Originals
© 2014 Christopher Burdett

The Belled Kreep is one of three monsters I designed once returning home from Illuxcon this year and is the first to be completed. I allowed people on Facebook to vote on which I would draw first, based on just the name. It has taken a while to complete any of them since they are larger, and I am rather busy on client work, but they are slowly but surely taking shape.

The completion of the Belled Kreep lined up perfectly with me needing an image for our 2014 Holiday Card... and it was festively appropriate. Strangely enough, I was already making this monster without any thought to the card. I still have some sets of these Belled Kreep holiday cards available over on my STORE!

Belled Kreep Holiday Cards

Here are all the other completed monsters for The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia: Aberrant Stilter, Belled Kreep, Corrupted Knight, Dight-Kin, Eau-de-nil Elder, Ethra VanDalia, Footman, Gray Wanderer, Gullet, Humgruffin Mother, Irritated Girasol, Judicator, Kiplorbic Animal Dealer, Lammergeier Transport, Myopic Riflemen, Nimsbane Curse Victim, Ophiomornous Bureaucrat, Petrous Blacksmith, Quincaillerie, Saint Marque, Smokestack, Thrice, Uncanny Scribe, Virulent Artificer, Xandrell Tree, Yote Arms Dealer, and Zombic Spore.

Further details on this piece, like all of these personal monsters on toned paper, will have to wait for another day and, hopefully, a different type of information interface. Fear naught, all will be revealed in the fullness of time. As an added bonus, here are some images of the piece as I worked on it.


All images © 2014 Christopher Burdett

 That is all for another exciting Monday. 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

Friday, December 5, 2014

Infected By Art 3 and Gen Con 2015

I have a could more news items/updates to share with you today...
Infected By Art 3

I have submitted a group of pieces to be considered for inclusion in Infected By Art 3. Public voting on these pieces is now open and runs through December 9th. While the book is juried there are places reserved in the book for pieces voted on by the participating public. All I am asking is that if you have the time to head on over and vote on the pieces of work that you enjoy most. If that happens to include some of my pieces, even better! You can see all of my submission in one location by using this LINK. Thanks in advance for your time!

http://www.infectedbyart.com/contestgallery.asp?cid=21&gid=9217


Gen Con 2015

I am happy to announce that I have been selected for the Gen Con Art Show in 2015. They started a jury process as of this year and it looks like I made the cut. This will be my 5th year in the Gen Con Art Show and I am really looking forward to it! There should be a lot of new faces and some returning familiar one. I will also have a ton of originals with me and it will hopefully be the best looking booth I have set up yet. If you are attending Gen Con 2015 be sure to stop by the Art Show and say hello and check out all 88 artists appearing there next year!

That is all for another exciting Friday 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

Wednesday, December 3, 2014

Smokestack - The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia

Last week I shared with you my Gray Wanderer and Corrupted Knight. Today, I have for you the third piece in this series. This piece was finished just before Illuxcon but has not had a chance to get posted until now. I present you with the Smokestack.

Smokestack
9 x 12
Pencil on paper
© 2014 Christopher Burdett
Original - SOLD

I love me a monster mess, and Smokestack is sure a mess of a monster. I will be sharing my thought process for this piece and where I draw reference from, a kind of 'how I think' post, very soon. Hopefully, it will shed some light on how I go about making monsters.

Here are all the other completed monsters for The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia: Aberrant Stilter, Belled Kreep, Corrupted Knight, Dight-Kin, Eau-de-nil Elder, Ethra VanDalia, Footman, Gray Wanderer, Gullet, Humgruffin Mother, Irritated Girasol, Judicator, Kiplorbic Animal Dealer, Lammergeier Transport, Myopic Riflemen, Nimsbane Curse Victim, Ophiomornous Bureaucrat, Petrous Blacksmith, Quincaillerie, Saint Marque, Smokestack, Thrice, Uncanny Scribe, Virulent Artificer, Xandrell Tree, Yote Arms Dealer, and Zombic Spore.

Further details on this piece, like all of these personal monsters on toned paper, will have to wait for another day and, hopefully, a different type of information interface. Fear naught, for all will be revealed in the fullness of time. As a bonus here are some images of the piece as I worked on it.


All images © 2014 Christopher Burdett

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