The DOODLES, DESIGNS, and aRT of CHRISTOPHER BURDETT: July 2018

Monday, July 30, 2018

Gen Con Update - Artist Panel!

Gen Con 2018 is this week! August 2-5 will be the best four day in gaming and I hope to see you there! As a reminder, I am having a HUGE sale on my original drawings, specially marked drawings will be 50% off and all the rest of my drawings (except Magic the Gathering drawings) will be 20% off! Now is your chance to get your hands on some of my original art. But that's not all...

Gen Con is this week! Hope to see you at table 7 in the Art Show!

I will be part of a panel discussion about working as an artist in table top games this coming Thursday at 5:00 at Gen Con. I hope to see you in the Lucas Oil : Mtg Rm 12 where "Professional industry artists will discuss the art-making side of games: how we started, jobs we've had, fun & not-so-fun stories, & advice for aspiring artists". A HUGE thanks to Kezrek Laczin for inviting me to be a part of the panel. More information about the panel and how to get tickets are available on the Gen Con website.

"Becoming a Tabletop Illustrator"

5pm in the Lucas Oil : Mtg Rm 12

I have a lot to do before the doors open on Thursday to mark the start of Gen Con 2018. If this year is half as great as last year it will be an amazing time. I hope to see you at table 7 in the Art Show!

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

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

Friday, July 27, 2018

Portent - MtG - Commander 2018

It is spoiler season for Commander 2018, the newest expansion to Magic the Gathering. With it came a huge surprise for me. Not only do I have a card in Commander 2018, something I was unaware of until 24 hours ago, but the art used was created in 2013, which until now, had never been used. To add to the excitement, the art has ended up on a reprint of a card from the 1995 set, Ice Age (the last set I ever actively collected and played). It is a good card, and I am really excited to see my art on it. If I have to wait five years to see my art released, I could not think of a better situation! I present you with Portent...

Portent

Magic the Gathering - Commander 2018

12 x 8.7- Digital

Art Director - Dawn Murin
© 2018 Wizards of the Coast
PRINTS available at OMA!

ARTIST PROOFS available over on my web store!

Not sure how to talk about this piece. The art was created for another card altogether, which I don't feel comfortable discussing since that information has not been released. What I can say is that I REALLY got into working on this piece. I shot TONS of reference... like, seriously, a LOT. I will be sharing some when I do the process post for this piece. I wanted this piece to be just right, and I was really excited about it and pleased with how it turned out. Which means I was obviously somewhat crestfallen when the art did not appear in the initially planned set. I was patient. I hoped it was only a matter of time. It looks like my patients have paid off, and I can now share this piece!

While the piece was finished digitally, I do have an original drawing, which will be available starting next week at Gen Con 2018 - August 2-5 (I am at table 7 in the Art Show!). I have the line art/sketch and the tonal study for this piece, and since they have been stored away in a dark closet for five years, they are looking for a good home. I actually had trouble finding them. Since I created them five years ago and stored them away, they ended up buried underneath several years of other drawings. Here is a look at the drawing and tonal study that I did for Portent...

Portent - Drawing
Magic the Gathering - Commander 2018
12 x 9 -Pencil on paper
Original - SOLD

Portent - Tonal Study
Magic the Gathering - Commander 2018
12 x 9 -Pencil on paper
Original - SOLD

A HUGE thanks go out to Dawn Murin for the original assignment that eventually became Portent! I will have prints available as soon as I can, and once I receive the artist proofs, I will make them available as well. Here is a look at the Spanish version of the Portent card which was spoiled yesterday...

Portent in handy dandy (Spanish) card form

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, July 25, 2018

Scribbling Intensifies - Grand Bazaar WIP

My days continue to bu full and I am my environmental pieces for The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia continue to take shape. The one I am currently working on is really kicking my butt. Not really sure why, but it has been a tough one. There is a lot of detail in the dark areas and it has been a struggle to push and pull things so that it is not lost. Once the white render and cleanup goes in the piece will really take shape, but for now it is a sea of varying values of black on the tan paper. I had hoped to complete this one before leaving for Gen Con but that is seeming more an more like an impossibility, but you never know. I might be able to pull it off with some concentrated effort over the next week. Here are some process crops that you may have seen on social media and one image I have not show anywhere...

Just chill'n in my hole.

Still chill'n in my hole, I am just more rendered.

Always watchful and ready for a scrap or two.

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

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

Monday, July 23, 2018

Gen Con Art Show Map & Drawing Sale UPDATE!

Gen Con is next week and I hope you are getting excited, I know I am! If you are attending it will be easier than ever to find me at the Gen Con Art Show. I am at table 7 which in along the outer edge of the art show and faces row 600. Can't ask for an easier spot to find in the show. After you come see me make sure to visit the rest of the art show because there are a TON of amazing artist attending this year. Here is a handy dandy map to give you an idea of where I am and how easy it is to find me...

Come see me at table 7 in the Gen Con Art Show!

Find row 600 and head to the art show!

DRAWING SALE UPDATE!

As I mentioned last week I am having a HUGE sale on all of my original drawings at Gen Con this year. All drawings with a red topped bag are 50% off! If that was not enough, all of the rest of my drawings (except for Magic the Gathering drawings) are now 20% off! That's right, all of my non Magic the Gathering drawings are 20-50% off at Gen Con this year. This includes Star Wars, Dungeons & Dragons, and so much more. There has not been a better time to pick up some of my original drawings.

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

Wednesday, July 18, 2018

Tools for the Job - Star Wars - Process

Today on the blog I have for you the process and steps that went into a not so recent Star Wars character illustration produced for the Imperial Assault expansion, Jabba's Realm. The assignment called for an Aqualish to be selecting the right weapons for a pending mission. This was my first chance to illustrate an Aqualish and I had a blast doing it. Before we have a look at the process, here is how the final illustration turned out...

Tools for the Job

Star Wars Imperial Assault - Jabba's Realm

14 x 11 - Acrylic and pencil on board

Art Director - Deb Freytag

Original - SOLD

As always I started with reference photos and thumbnails. I wanted to do the bird's eye view composition from the beginning, but decided to do some more straight forward compositions too. It does not hurt to cover your bases. The size and limitations of the final card did have an effect on what I was going to do. The Imperial Assault cards tend to be VERY tiny. Here is how the thumbnails turned out...

Tools for the Job - Thumbnails

Speaking of photo reference, here for your enjoyment are some of the images I was working with to create this illustration...

Tools for the Job - Reference photos

Photos by Achsa Nute

Thankfully thumbnail "C" was the winner since, as I said before, it was the one I wanted to do from the beginning. It was now time to get started on the final drawing. Not much to share about the drawing, I drew it, scanned it, and turned it in. If I remember correctly, there were no notes or changes needed. Here is how the final approved drawing turned out...

Tools for the Job - Drawing

Star Wars Imperial Assault - Jabba's Realm

17 x 14 - Pencil on paper

Art Director - Deb Freytag

Original - Available soon

Time for painting! This one came together fairly quickly. Not drama or issues that I recall. The focus is all on the figure an the weapons, so the rest is kind of loose with all the detail on the subject. A quick and straight forward painting does not make for an exciting story on the blog. Hopefully the images can tell a better story of how this being created. Here are some images of the painting coming together in ten easy steps...

Tools for the Job - Process steps

Please understand that the image looks more like the final image throughout the process, the photos I take during the process just do not do the painting any favors. Here is an animated progression of the painting so that you can better see the steps coming together...

Tools for the Job - Animated process

If you may or may not have noticed I made sure to put this Aqualish in some orange. Because Aqualish always look great in orange. Ponda Baba now and forever! Here again is how the final Tools for the Job illustration turned out as well as the final production card. If you missed it last year, the art was used on a different card which allowed it a bit more room to breath and show itself off. Always nice when that happens,

Tools for the Job

Star Wars Imperial Assault - Jabba's Realm

14 x 11 - Acrylic and pencil on board

Art Director - Deb Freytag

Original - SOLD

Tools for the Job 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

Monday, July 16, 2018

Gen Con 2018 - 50% OFF DRAWING SALE!

Gen Con is just fifteen days away and I am slowly but surely getting everything ready for the best four days in gaming, August 2-5 in Indianapolis. One of the big things I am doing this year at Gen Con is having a HUGE sale on my original drawings! It is time to thin the herd and I will be offering up select drawings both old and new, both large and small at 50% off. If that is not enough, ALL of my other drawings (except Magic the Gathering drawings) are 20% off! If the top of the drawing's page is marked with red then it is a discounted drawing. If you wanted to own some of my original art, then make sure you get to the Gen Con art show, I will be at table 7 along the outer edge of the Art Show. Hope to see you there!

Mighty stacks of drawings that may very soon be marked way way down!

The mighty marker of discounting.

If the drawing's bag has a red on it then it will be 50% off!
ALL other drawings (except Magic the Gathering drawings) are 20% off!

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

Monday, July 9, 2018

The Seated Dead - The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia

I have a new piece from The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia! With all the monsters complete, it is now time to begin exploring the Grand Bazaar itself. The fourth stop is a visit to The Seated Dead. There are as many death practices as there are beings in The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia. Sometimes Death comes to a being while they are alone, and sometimes a being will seek out Death when they are ready. No matter the details, when the time comes, there are shires all around the Grand Bazaar to act as a resting place for those that have nowhere else to go...

Due to the complexity of these larger full environment pieces I am now working on, I have needed to do value studies to make sure I know where I am going and don't lose my way. Doing these value studies has been one of the best course of action on this project and have saved me a lot of headaches. Here is the value study for The Seated Dead...