Miracles - Burned Body Concepts Twenty Plus Years Later

While at Pensacon last month, I had the chance to cross paths with an actor I worked with over twenty years ago. One of the first makeup effects projects I worked on in 2002 when I returned to LA was for a show called Miracles. It was short-lived, and I wonder how many people watched it or even remember it, but I do because I worked on it. And when I wanted up to Skeet Ulrich with my DVD set to sign, he remembered it too. When Skeet saw the DVDs, he laughed and said, "Oh man!" We had a little chat and parted ways. Getting the DVDs signed, of course, got me thinking about the work I did on the show, and in particular, the work done for the first episode. To start things off, here is that DVD set all signed and ready for the "shelf of things I worked on".

Miracles - Another project that I worked on and have never watched.

If I remember correctly, Skeet Ulrich played a young priest or similar religious figure that is having a crisis of faith as he investigates, you guessed it, MIRACLES. I have never watched a single episode, so I am going off what I remember from over twenty years ago. For the first episode, I was asked to design a burned body found on a flight. No other damage or casualties, just a lone woman's body that was very, very burned. There is a twist, but I will leave that for those who want to watch the series. My part in all this started with designing the body. Dear Wife got to pose for reference photos on this one. Here are the designs that I produced.

Burned Body Concepts

Digital - 2002

The body is only seen on an autopsy table (if I remember correctly), so the end product was mostly a prop rather than a makeup or prosthetic. But it is still fun to work on something where the constraints of a living human's body does not interfere with making an interesting visual. In addition to the body concepts, I also produced a series of concepts for a healing sequence that was removed during the concept phase of the process. Or maybe it wasn't. I don't really know. I know we didn't make anything practical for this effect, so if it was used, maybe it was digital. This is another reason for me to watch it. Here are the healing concepts that I produced.

Healing Concepts

Digital - 2002

I also was tasked with making some organs, namely a pair of lungs, which you can see in the following photos. These were made by manipulating foam, coating them with an excellent and highly toxic chemical, painting them, and finally sealing them with silicone. I sadly do not have any other photos of the lungs as I was not yet recording everything we did at the shop. But I do have two pictures we took on set, and that will have to suffice. The figure on the right is yours truly as I worked on the set, finalizing the appearance of the body before filming. An extra dressed as a medical examiner stands across from me.

On the set of the first episode of Miracles with the burned body.

As filming progressed, they eventually needed to film the medical examiner cutting on the body with a REAL bone saw. I am sure the extra was a great guy, but he didn't make the body, didn't know what it was made of, or how to work with it. So through a series of events, I found myself in costume on set being filmed cutting on the body for the close-up shots. It was a lot of fun, I got to use a bone saw, and the body was not damaged in the filming process. Again, I sadly have no photos of myself in costume on set or of me working on the body. Hopefully, some of those moments ended up in the episode. And this would be another good reason for me to watch the series. Here is another image of the medical examiner on set with the body, in all its blurry early 2000s digital camera goodness.

Again, on the set of the first episode of Miracles with the burned body.

I did other work for the series, but I am still on the fence if I want to share any of it. I am not sure those designs went anywhere except the circular file as the series ended abruptly. We did some excellent work on the show, but it was not documented well, at least by me, so I do not have any images to share. Maybe another day, I will share some other bits and pieces from Miracles.

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

From the Vaults - Toned Paper Sketches

I stumbled upon a folder of sketchbook scans from a decade ago. I believe these were done as warm-ups and breaks while at the Illustration Master Class in 2013. As far as I can tell, I have never shared these. I have scoured this blog and can find no trace of them, so I will consider them unseen for ten years. I have never been able to manage a sketchbook for long. I either lose interest or move on to larger pieces that need my full attention. For most of my life, I have felt that if I have time to sketch, then I have time to work on a finished project. Yes, you do gain a lot from sketching, but those experiences for me have been worked into my process for making art. Hopefully, this means that I am not losing out on too much by not keeping this type of thing going. I think that is all I can say about these, save that some of these drawings would be very much at home in the Grand Bazaar.

All images copyright 2013/2023 Christopher Burdett

 That's all for another exciting week 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

Pensacon 2023 Recap

Where to start? 2022 was the first full year of returning to the convention scene and getting The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia out in front of people. I was uncertain what that meant for my convention presence and sales, but this is the direction I am taking my career, so sink or swim, this is what I am doing. I braced for diminished sales and starting at Pensacon 2022, I was blown away with how the book was received and the dramatic increase in sales at conventions. Going into 2023, I knew that there was no way that I would hit last year's numbers, especially with only one final copy of the deluxe edition of the book left. I sold eight of them last year, which was a large part of what made the sales last year so good. I hoped for the best and knew it would be a slower year.

The Grand Bazaar returns to Pensacon!

I will be the first to say I am often wrong when predicting what will happen at conventions. Even with only having a single deluxe edition, we not only hit last year's numbers, but we did $75 more this year than last. This is a massive win in my book. I have yet to crunch all of the numbers, but we sold more across the board and had more individual sales compared to last year. I am getting better at talking about the book, which is an integral part of this, but we have been working on how we display things, we are offering incentives to upsell, and we have items at different price points. One of the new things we tried this year was to turn on tipping with our POS interface. It was suggested to me last year, and at first, I was resistant because it felt a little weird to me. I got over that very quickly. Everyone can ignore it, but others have been generous at having left me a tip, and it has been super humbling. It also has been covering the fees for accepting credit cards, so it is a win/win. I will be doing a post about the evolution of my booth shortly. Looking back at the past Pensacons, Gen Cons, and IX shows, has opened my eyes to how much the booth has evolved and how my artistic voice has coalesced in the booth.

Unlike past Pensacons, I was at my booth 99% of the time this year. I could only get one item signed, and I never was able to eat lunch - in the green room or elsewhere. I had bathroom breaks, and that was about it. The reason was this was twofold, the first being the con was EXTREMELY full (sold out on Saturday and Sunday), and it was very time-consuming to get anywhere other than the bathroom, and the second being that I was too busy at the booth to get away. I needed to be there, talking about my world and available for signatures and sales. And I had a blast doing it. I am used to getting out a little bit and looking around, maybe hanging out in the green room to see celebrities or going down to the floor to shop. I never got to the vendor floor, even before the con started. It feels like things have changed in several ways at conventions for me, all in a good way, but in ways that will change how I plan and prepare for them. I had to ramp back some of my after-hours fun with folks as I needed to stay rested and ready to take on the booth every morning. I am also getting older, and I can not do the late nights and early mornings like I once could. But I am doing much better at the shows, so I will gladly take an early night to keep this going. 

Lastly, it was truly remarkable to have so many come up to tell me how much they have been enjoying the Grand Bazaar, that they got the books from me last year, and how they have been telling others about it. There is something extraordinary to watch a person bring a friend up to the booth, and they point and say, "THIS was what I was talking about. You need to see it." I do not have words for it, but it moves me every time.

Here are images and thoughts from Pensacon 2023.

With better sales numbers from a year's worth of conventions, we got a smaller trailer. This saves money on the trailer and gas from towing a lighter, smaller trailer. It makes it easier to load, drive with, and move around for parking once the trailer is empty.

I had nothing but the best help when loading the trailer this year.

For those wondering, I hang all the art on the wall, then take them down, and Dear Wife hangs the red curtains. We make little cuts in the curtain and hang the art again.

While I miss the hotel that was adjacent to the convention center, the beach hotels really offer a lot visually.

All set up for day one. While I always try to have the booth completed the day before a con starts, I had to finish up several things before the con started.

This is the view of the vendor floor from my booth. This was also the closest I went to the vendor floor during the convention.

I knew the final deluxe edition would sell quickly. It took about forty minutes for the right person to come by and get it. Always lovely to hear they had planned to get one since last year, and it worked out perfectly.

While I hope for originals to sell, I never expect them to sell off the wall. Again, I like it when I am wrong.

The first of several Magic the Gathering artist proof drawings.

When I said the con was sold out... it was SOLD OUT. Every day the lines would wrap in front of the booths, and we would have a captive audience. Not the best for sales at the moment, but EVERYONE has to walk by the booth, and many return later in the day to make purchases.

The after-party Saturday night was Vison Video, and they rocked it!

A couple more artist proof drawings.

Got to get this fantastic human a drawing that means a great deal to me. Thanks, Lemmie!

The booth on the last day of the con with the hidden wife.

Being a guest at Pensacon offers many perks, like eating dinner with Vision Video and having a Doctor stop by.

Thank you, Penscon!

And there, on the door, was a face...

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

Even MORE Recent Artist Proof Drawings

Today I have for you even more recent artist proofs that I added drawings to their backs. If you want to get any of these, just head to my store. These are from January or earlier, as I am still slightly behind with things. I have more from February, and at this rate, I will be sharing them in March. These are going to a new collector I have enjoyed working with. He wants Star Wars, and I am MORE than happy to draw Star Wars. I have some exciting pieces to share soon that I have been working on. But that is for another day, today I have some Return of the Jedi goodness with a two-up Jabba scene and Ree-Yees. 

Jabba the Hutt on his dais has always been a favorite subject of mine, and I love depicting it.

While I don't generally do multicard images currently, the collector reached out ahead of time and we agreed to move forward with this one. Here are the two cards seperately so you can get a better look at them.

Jabba the Hutt, Salacious B. Crumb, a Gamorrean guard, and a Jawa for you Star Wars enjoyment.

 

Ree-Yees is my favorite Gran... though there have not been many others.

Lastly, here is a little bonus for you all. I have never shared how I build up the drawings on the back of the artist proofs. It all starts with layering grey markers up as I refine the drawing before inking it and putting in the black.

A rare look behind the curtain of the artist proofs being drawn. And yes, I do draw them at an angle.

That's all for another exciting Wednesday on the blog. See you back here after Pensacon! Until then...  

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

Pensacon 2023 Guest Announcement - AND IT STARTS FRIDAY!

I am THRILLED to announce that I will return as a guest to Pensacon this week! Pensacon starts this Friday afternoon, February 24th, and runs through Sunday the 26th! I will be bringing the Grand Bazaar back in all its glory as well as a few surprises. This is the TENTH Pensacon and my seventh appearance as a guest at Pensacon, and I could not be happier to return. We LOVE Pensacon, and we always have a fantastic time there. Last year was AMAZING, and I hope that this year is as good. I do not have enough good things to say about Pensacon, and I hope to see you there!

I will see you at Pensacon from February 24-26, 2023!

In addition to myself, there will be a TON of amazing artists, guests, and vendors at Pensacon 2023. It will be SO much fun, and there will be many amazing things to see and do. This is the year not to miss.

The panel list has yet to be announced, but I expect to be a part of a few panels - or not, we shall see in the coming days! I will update the schedule here on the blog once it is posted unless I am already headed to the con. Again, if you are in the gulf coast area and want to have a super fun con experience, then I highly recommend Pensacon!

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

BLOG-a-versary - And then there were Fourteen

Yesterday, fourteen years ago, on February 17th, 2009, I started this blog to chronicle my journey as a monster artist. My journey had already begun, of course. 2023 marks my twenty-fourth year of being a professional artist making monsters. In nearly a quarter of a century, I have checked a lot of goals off my list, but some still remain. The remaining ones may never get checked off, but that is okay. I have done so much more than I ever imagined possible. The creation of The Grand Bazaar of Ethra VanDalia has more than made up any dreams to work on a specific product line or with a particular artist. It has been a crazy journey, and I have shared nearly all of it on this blog. The ups, downs, successes, and most definitely the failures have been recorded and documented here to help others and to hopefully shed some light on the realities of being a working artist.

The current piece from book two of the Grand Bazaar is on the table in my studio.

Next year will be a big one for me, but there is plenty that I need and want to do before I can think about that. I hope you are enjoying the ride. It has been a labor of love to keep this going and posting as regularly as possible. I imagine there will be some lean times ahead, especially as book two gets closer to completion, but that is a few years out. I have some more meaty posts planned, and they will be along when I can make the time to write them. Thank you all for hanging around and digging through the archives of posts. And as always, if you would like me to speak about a particular topic or talk about something specific in a blog post, all you need to do is leave a comment on the blog or reach out to me on social media.

That is all the time I have today. I must get back to making art!

That is all for a surprise Saturday post 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