Lungthief Beetle - Dreamblade

Today I have for you another blast from the past and an updated version of that distant memory. After doing the 3/5 challenge on Facebook, that is where you share three pieces of work for five days in a row, I go to thinking about Dreamblade again. For the first day of the Facebook challenge I posted three Dreamblade designs that I did as well as their updated redesign that I did in the past few years. This all got me thinking about Dreamblade again and I recently made some time to work up a redesign of a miniature I have never shared before. Which is crazy after 10 years I still have Dreamblade miniature still hiding in the art vault.

The Lungthief Beetle was designed back in 2005 for the third set of Dreamblade. It was a common and a straight forward piece... bug creature, skull like head, tattooed body, make it cool. So I came up with this...

Lungthief Beetle
© 2005 Wizards of the Coast LLC

Okay, it all seems to check out. I mostly nailed this piece on the first pass... mostly. Here is the original version of the Lungthief Beetle where the carapace was a little different...

Lungthief Beetle - Original Design
© 2005 Wizards of the Coast LLC

The final version was definitely an improvement. The production miniature was very faithful to the design and in many way, to me, really made the design way better. Here is how the final production miniature turned out...

Lungthief Beetle - miniature

Fast forward to 2015. Not actually 10 years later since I did the original in October or November of 2005 and the redesign was creature in January, but let's call it 10 for effect. Here is my redesign of the Lungthief Beetle...

Lungthief Beetle Redux

9 x 12

Pencil on paper
© 2015 Christopher Burdett

Original for sale over on my web store!

I never liked the squat posture of the original and while nice, the tattoos were crazy complex. Not sure if I every loved the handling of the face either, but this was one of my first jobs in the gaming industry and I was learning a lot and my skill sets were developing quickly. This time around I dropped the tattoos because I didn't want to do them, my redesign my rules. I know some of the antennae probably would be a molding issue, but I wanted them in there. Much happier with the solution for the head/face and the overall more upright sitting position. Here is a comparison for the two versions of the Lungthief Beetle...

Lungthief Beetle comparison

2005 vs. 2015

Not much else to say really. I think the comparison speaks for itself as well as there being a 10 year gap in the drawings. I would hope there was a pronounced difference in quality and maturity of the design. If not, I am not doing my job!

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

Exploring Froz / The Hunters - Star Wars - Process

On Monday and Wednesday I shared with you new work from the recently released deluxe expansion to the Star Wars card game, Between the Shadows. Today I have for you the third and final piece I have in the set, The Hunters. If The Hunters looks familiar that is because it is a return appearance of a piece I created for Edge of the Empire - Suns of Fortune, Exploring Froz, which I shared a year ago. Wait, it has been a year already?! Boy am I late in posting this process post! So that we are all familiar with Exploring Froz and The Hunters here is what the final piece looks like...

Exploring Froz

Edge of the Empire - Suns of Fortune

12 x 14 - Digital

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

Here is how the this piece was repurposed for The Hunters. It looks like the good folks at FFG had to do some cloning to fill out the right side of the card a little. I would have been happy to handle it if I was asked, but it looks good enough to me.

The Hunters (Exploring Froz) in handy dandy card form

Now for the process for this piece! As always, things started with some thumbnails to work out the over all composition and layout. Since this piece was for a book there needed to be a huge amount of bleed on two of the sides. If you look closely you will be black lines running through the piece, these were to make sure I worked in the live area and to show my Art Director as well. FOLLOW THOSE TEMPLATES! This piece was to depict a pair of explorers and their droid as they investigated the ruins of the planet Froz. Before the Deathstar the Empire would just level the surface with Star Destroyer orbital bombardment. Here are how the thumbnails turned out...

Exploring Froz - Thumbanils

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

Option "C" was the winner. I liked the overwhelmed expression of the Trandoshan in "A" but I guess that was not what production was looking for. With a thumbnail selected it was time to get started on the final drawing...

Exploring Froz

Edge of the Empire - Suns of Fortune

9 x 12 - Pencil on paper

Original - SOLD

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

The drawing was approved and it was time to get started on the painting. In just twelve steps I created a finished painting... or not. This one was straight forward, but required some edits and revisions along the way. There was some persistent issues with the elbow of that darn Trandoshan. Well, that Trandoshan was all kinds of problems since in the end I have to increase his over all size once the final was reviewed. Your favorites always turn against you. Here is the painting taking shape...

Exploring Froz - Process steps

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

Not all of the edits came from production. While I was working on this piece I revisited the head scales of the Trandoshan as well as added a more complicated rebreather. The original rebreather was more inline with what you see the Jedi use in The Phantom Menace, but spiced up. While painting I wasn't sure it read well or seemed enough for the situation that the characters were in. I added the additional plate over the Trandohan's nose for added protection and visual effect.

So that you can get a better feel for the piece coming together and the edits that took place on this piece here is another of those handy dandy animated gif thingy...

Exploring Froz - Animated progression thing

This concludes the process that went into creating Exploring Froz / The Hunters. This is not the last for this piece though, I have already seen a glimpse of this piece making an appearance in an upcoming supplement for Imperial Assault. Which is kinda cool. This will be my second piece that has shown up in the Star Wars RPG, card game, and board game. Here again is how the final piece turned out...

Exploring Froz

Edge of the Empire - Suns of Fortune

12 x 14 - Digital

© 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

Knobby White Spider - Star Wars: Between the Shadows

On Monday I shared with you the first of my contributions to Between the Shadows, the newest deluxe expansion to the Star Wars card game. Today brings the second new contribution to this set and it is a little more monstrous. The giant Knobby White Spider of Dagobah is here to keep an eye on Yoda and Luke...

Knobby White Spider

Star Wars: Between the Shadows

10 x 8.4 - Digital

© 2015 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games

I think is my first piece to directly be set during the Empire Strikes Back... because I put Luke's crashed X-Wing in the background. There was that Icetromper on Hoth a while back, but there is no direct tie in to the movie. I think most of my Star Wars work has been taking part in the Expanded Universe or in Return of the Jedi, so it was nice to do something from ESB. This was a weird one to work on but I will share some of that when the process post goes up in the coming weeks. Here is a look at how the final card turned out...

 Knobby White Spider in handy dandy card form

This piece was not my last digitally painted Star Wars piece (that would be my work on Stay on Target) but this is the last digitally painted Star Wars piece to be released. From this point forward, unless otherwise mentioned, my Star Wars work is traditionally painted. For me, this is kind of crazy to think about. Got some interesting stuff on the horizon.

 
I will be bringing you one more piece from Between the Shadows on Friday, but this is a piece that has already been used elsewhere. I will be sharing the process that went into that piece to make it a more interesting post.

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

Armed to the Teeth - Star Wars: Between the Shadows

Starting off a week of new Star Wars work! All of the new work was created for the newly released expansion to the Star Wars card game, Between the Shadows. I worked on this deluxe expansion last January and the set contains one of my favorite pieced created for the game, Armed to the Teeth, as well the last of my digitally painted Star Wars pieces. I present to you, Armed to the Teeth...

Armed to the Teeth

Star Wars: Between the Shadows

10.3 x 8.6 - Digital

© 2015 Lucasfilm, Ltd. TM Lucasfilm, Ltd. Under license to Fantasy Flight Games

What is better then a Besalisk wielding four blasters in a painting? How about a Besalisk, Rodian, obese Gungan, Bith, Twi'lek, Quarren, and Pa'lowick all in one painting! Of course for most of those species you only get a peek and they are cropped in the final card. I know they are there! I dug into my reference figures and pretty much randomly pulled out the aliens that ended up in the background. I will most likely have more to share about this piece when I share the process in the coming months. That bar sure has seen a lot of action... more on that another day real soon. Here is a look at how the final card turned out...

Armed to the Teeth in handy dandy card form

As an added bonus, just for you all since I like you so much, here is a look at some of the photo reference that went into the making of this piece.  RAWR! I am all the monsters...

But a glimpse of the reference fun that happened for Armed to the Teeth
Photos by Achsa Nute 

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

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

Jamaican Adventures and Reference Dump

A week ago I had the fortune to take a short trip to Jamaica with the wife and her parents, and boy was it a lovely and amazing respite from my routine. The monsters and I took a break and I wanted to share with you some of the images I captured from around Jamaica. While we did stay at a resort on the coast we made sure to leave the resort as much as possible. We wanted to see what Jamaica was really like and to see its people, animals, plants, and pretty much everything that was not an American resort in another country. Here is a whole mess of photos from our adventures in Jamaica...

After a very early morning and a full day of traveling our first day was a little low key and we did some relaxing and the monsters took in the view.

I spent A LOT of time in and under the water. I can not say enough about the snorkeling at Doctor's Cave beach. I grew up swimming and snorkeling in waters off of Florida and I was really impressed by what I saw at Doctor's Cave.

There was something to see everywhere I looked and it was all really close to the surface.

Diving down the view only improved.

Watch out for the spines on those urchins!

So many wonderful shapes, colors, and patterns everywhere I looked.

At the end of the one of the docks there was once a diving platform. The platform has long since collapsed and has been taken over by the sea life. Here is a massive brain coral growing on one of the hand rails.

While both invasive and venomous, it was really neat to see lionfish in the wild.

Look, but don't touch!

A lot of the sea life seemed rather unfazed by our presence and would only react once you got VERY close to it.

Down in Sam Sharpe square in Montego Bay.

Sam Sharpe began the slave rebellions of Jamaica in 1832 and it cost him his life, but because of what he started in 1834 England abandoned the act of slavery.

Some really excellent rust and paint texture on a metal sign near Doctor's Cave beach.

Rose Hall - one of a handful of surviving plantation houses on the island. It is said to be haunted. A former owner murdered three husbands and untold numbers of slaves and slave lovers. We took the haunted night tour. BEAUTIFUL house, fun tour.

Unknown side street in an unknown little town between Montego Bay and Black River.

On the Black River in search of crocodiles...

OH LOOK! A Crocodile in the Black River.

As our guide said repeatedly, the crocodiles love imported meat, stay in the boat.

On the road to YS Falls. Jamaica is a beautiful country.

But a glimpse of YS Falls.Very lush, very lovely.

There was an abandoned mill and aqueduct in the middle of the golf course at the resort. So thanks to my wife encouraging, we went and checked it out. (we also saw a mongoose, but no pictures of that)

A keystone on one of the window arches reads "1837".

No one seemed to care so we investigated and explored and took lots of photos.

One last image and I thought I should at least include one from the resort. This was our view for all of our meals that we ate at the resort. We ate outside and had a very nice view. The resort was nice, but I can not imagine going to another country and never getting to see what that country was really like.

That is all for another exciting week on the blog, see you back here next week for a whole week of Star Wars work! Until then...

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

Creative Arts Career Panel

I was invited to be a part of the Creative Arts Career Panel last night at Florida State University. Last night's panel is the first in a series of career panel the university has planned for the students to meet and talk to working professionals. I wish there were panels like this when I was a student at FSU! There were five of us on the panel and including Q&A the panel lasted  an hour and a half. I realize I should have mentioned this panel BEFORE it took place in the event someone in the Tallahassee area wanted to attend, but I was out of the country until late Monday night... and, well, REASONS.

All in all it was a lot of fun to be a part of the panel and to meet some of the other folks in the area working in the creative fields. There were some good questions and hopefully we passed on some helpful advice and shed some light on career opportunities. I would like to extend a big thanks to Emily Kennelly for inviting me out and including me in the panel. Here are some images if you are interested...

I sometime want to have Fantasy Illustrator in quotes.

A look at all those that were on the panel.

Makes me seem almost legit.

A table for all our panel needs.

We arrived early to get set up and to meet everyone, so I of course walked away to take pictures of everything to post on the blog like the good little antisocial artist that I am.

Students!

My undercover operative in the crowd took of all of us sharing our wisdom.

 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

Spectrum for me and you with volume 22

It is Spectrum submission time again, at least for another few hours. I have written about spectrum several times over the years here on the blog and you can read more HERE. I have very little new to add about Spectrum this year save that I did in fact submit some pieces for consideration in Spectrum 22. Or should I say, I made my annual tax deductible tithe to Spectrum.

If you are going to submit to Spectrum 22 you better hurry, the deadline is today!

I am submitting some personal work and some client work this year and have very little expectation of getting in. That is the way of things, they are "the best of the best". Ultimately, I can't get in if I do not submit, so I might as well submit and not make it for real, and get a tax deduction. I tried the digital submission process this year for the first time and it was preferable to sending in prints.

On the flip side, as I mentioned a couple of weeks ago I did make it into Infected By Art 3! Which is super cool and I am thrilled to be a part of this new and growing publication. I submitted some of the very same work to both publications so hopefully some of the mass appeal of my accepted work to IBA3 will rub off on my submitted work to Spectrum 22. We will see in the coming months when my ego is crushed once again.

Let's all think positively!

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