RAZIEL of NoSGoTH...

Let me start by saying that I love this game franchise... SOULREAVER WAS AWESOME!
It was a rare couple of video games where the voice acting, story, and overall mood of the content was harmoniously engaging for me....

These chapters of the game centered around RAZIEL, a vampire who is cast down from a seat of high power only to be reborn into a fit of vengeful retribution against his former brothers. The dialog of the game is rich; littered with subtext and a dizzying vocabulary, features the astounding voice talents of.. Michael Bell, Simon Templeman, Rene Auberjonois (if your a star trekkie) and the late great Tony Jay (who's voiced some notable villains in his long career, such as Shere Khan, Megabyte...

I'm not sure I did the game justice, But I tried...It was dark, errie, foreboding at times, and showed vampires as ghoulish monsters grown wise and physically altered by the passing eons..NO SPARKLY VAMPIRES HERE..

So I rendered Raziel, Consuming some SOULS, and holding the glowing energy blade (REAVER) which is his primary weapon in the gameplay...
I'm thinking of doing some more images in this style to show my love for this game...but those will have to wait...
As for this image...its on display for the month of October at BRAVE NEW WORLDS in Philadelphia... The whole show is focused around gory video games, and will have some very impressive work on display.

But, if your not in Philly, just scope out this post here, and lemme know what you think...

I hope you dig...

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GLOWING SKULLS!!...

Here's a snippet from an image that I'll have up at Brave New Worlds in Philly this Friday night. The show will be about VIDEO GAME GORE, and other creepy halloweeny type videogame fare....

I'll put up the final image after the show goes public on Friday....But I really love the game I referenced...In fact I'd like to do some more illustrations based on it and its characters in the future...
Will see...if I can get that going...

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M.O.D.O.K. with open arms...

I put together some M.O.D.O.K. fan art for a show at GreenBrainComics in Dearborn MI.
The work was just pencils. So, the gray scale image is the one I submitted....I slapped some colors on it for fun. Drop me a comment if your down with this image, and MODOK in general...

Hope you dig...

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ROSADO del ELEFANTE...

I don't speak very much spanish... Which is astoundingly sad, considering my ethnic background...and the fact that my name is PEDRO.
I read I little, and write a little, and have a few words in my vocab...But I really should be fluent...
Perhaps I should start making images like this that will teach me stuff...
Who Knows Maybe I'll learn more...

Hope you dig...
Feedback and Critique is welcome as always...

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Skull Studies

I sketched some skulls out during the past few days, I kinda caricatured the proportions but did work from reference images for these three skulls. I imagine that I'll be doing more in the coming posts because I'm in the process of ramping into some autumn type Halloween imagery...Plus It'd been a long long time since I sketched and studied the skeleton....So I figured...no time like the present.... Had fun doing the paints...

I'm also thinking about getting one of those skull figures that artists have handy to draw from....its been such a long time since college anatomy....I really have to get cracking again with the pencils and paper..

For now though I've gotta get back to some show pieces...Wish me luck...

Hope you dig...Lemme know what you think.

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Sharp Dresser

I sketched another one out today...
He's wearing his finest duds...

Hope you dig..
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Businessman...

Just a little digital scribble with some colors, Fun head shape of some ol' business dude...

Hope you dig...

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John SINGER SARGETN STUDY

More of a study here, not feeling the anatomy enough. But, analyzing old images is presenting lots of great challenges... I've loved Sargents work since college, when I saw this particular image of his at the D.I.A. in Detroit...
I'd heard lectures that the anatomy is all wonky...but, heck, maybe her neck was really long...I can't say. But, what I can say is John Singer Sargent is indeed a pleasure to study...I might revisit this one...Here's the REF..
comments and feedback are DEFINITELY WELCOME...Need fresh eyes on this...

Will paint more later
Tired now...
Thanks for stopping by...taker easy everyone, Hope you dig..

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101 THANK YOU'S and 373 posts later...

So, I just got back from a short trip back to my hometown near Detroit, MI and I've found myself with a hundred and ONE people FOLLOWING THIS BLOG....THATS AWESOME!...
I'd like to take a moment to thank all those who follow my artistic wanderings, and hope you'll continue to check back in the future...
I also got lots of Buzz about my recent involvement in the 3G show, for which I made these three original works based on three movies (ghostbusters, gremlins and, goonies respectively). I heard that the show went over very well and that my pen and marker drawings fit right in with some really fantastic work at gallery 1988 in L.A. I think I'm gonna force myself to do more show pieces in the coming months because the challenge of deadlines really seems to spur my activity and keep me productive..
If you'd like to see more amazing work from this show scope it out at...http://www.theautumnsociety.com/
AGAIN, I REALLY APPRECIATE THE SUPPORT!!! THANKS A BUNCH!!

Hope you dig, Comments always appreciated....
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KLIMT is a PIMP

Look at that sweet beard.... ITS NONE OTHER THAN, Austrian born Symbolist painter, GUSTAV KLIMT... I picked up a little book of his work a while back at Strand and read it over. Great Artist....So, with my recent kick for painting old artists I like I painted him...based off of this here Image... I actually saw "The Kiss" back when I was in Austria years back... Truly impressive work, and on a very large scale... I think I'm most keen on some of his color palettes...Like all the golds and yellows he plays with in his images seen here in ATHENA or images like THIS where the whites are implied (and describe forms real well) without being so harsh...

Please lemme know what you think...Comments always welcome, and a huge high five for anyone who will step up and be the 100th Beers and Bears follower...

More to come, and as always...I hope you dig...
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Rodin Study...

Hey all,

Since my most recent visit to Philadelphia at the beginning of last month I've kinda wanted to paint images of some of my artistic influences....Heck I'm even making one of those INFLUENCE MAPS for myself. But, in Philly I was treated to a visit to the RODIN museum. Its, a few modest rooms that boast the greatest volume of his work outside of France... VERY Beautiful stuff...I've always had a deep respect for Sculpting, and the craft and skill it calls for... So, I painted a few versions of Auguste, and didn't like any of them.... So, feeling like I needed to give it one more try...I found new reference... and took one more crack at it...which made....This....


I'm kinda happy with it, but would still call it a study rather then a caricature mainly because I feel that I fall short of the exaggerated features that most GOOD caricaturists seem to have... I focused more on my process and worked on a grey background. Building up the sketch and darks and then working on into highlights and details....CONSTANTLY NEED TO REMIND MYSELF TO FLOP that IMAGE....make sure its not looking too skewed or funky...


But, for now its a complete study and I have a few more on deck that I'll try to share with you all...Hopefully they're all making me a better artist, for the effort...
As always thanks for stopping in...I hope you dig...

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Salute the Flagg...

I was boucing around on the interwebs looking at american artists lately.... Lots of guys who worked in advertising, and who were in and around New York... I found a few images of James Montgomery Flagg in my wanderings and decided to try and sketch one out...since I haven't done much lately... But this weekend should be productive for me...

Hope you dig..
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FIddle-Dee-Dee

a Bear with a Beer or Three..Just like the blog says..
Hope you dig...
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GUNSMITHED

Hey all, I wanted to post up my full image from the recent "Turning Japanese" show I exhibited in with the AUTUMN SOCIETY...
I was a big fan of this show back in the day so I had lots of fun doing this wacky digital collage inspired by the show's extremely cool title sequence... Lots of graphic colors, Benday dots, and bright colors...a treat for the eyes...and the ears...
Perhaps one of the most striking things about this show for me was the fact that it was clearly Manga...but, it was set in the U.S. and it had a sorta 70's or 80's kinda crime, and cop drama thing going on with it... I personally liked a lot of the attention that the artists payed to they're sets and props for the show as well...
I remember going out of my way to purchase a special VHS cassette that only had the first Episode (of this three part 90 story) simply to get the special features content that it boasted... And, I was not disappointed with my purchase... It had an awesome interview with Kenichi Sonoda (the creator) and footage of the Japanese design team running around Chicago with camera's and sketchpads studying multiple facets of the show... They go to a gunshop and browse a massive array of firearms and then produce Frighteningly accurate and detailed drawings of them for the show, as well as the beautiful mechanical drawings 67 shelby cobra 500GT...
I also think they nailed a lot of the imagery of Chicago as a City, which goes a long way in overshadowing some of the plots more fanciful qualities.
It was all about Girls, Guns, Bombs, and Fast Cars...and it hooked me...

Hope you dig...

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Skribblets

Some Random sketches before heading out for the evening....
I got some awesome Chris Sanders artbooks in the mail today from some of my friends out at this years Comic Con....VERY VERY INSPIRATIONAL STUFF...

Makes me wanna bust out some pencils and pens and kick some butt..

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MPG: MODIFICATIONS PRESENTED GRAPHICALLY

So, I just stuck a new showpiece in the mail today....and its on its way out to Philly where it will hang in the "Japanese Pop Culture show" Held at Brave New World comic shop during the month of august. This is not the whole image...I'll share that in a few days... Instead I wanted to share a part of the image I though was extremely successful, in my eyes....
I don't usually use photoshop purely for photomanipulation. But, I tried to step out of my comfort zone and use these tools to make something that was Graphically appealing... This also gave me the chance to flex some of my newly acquired halftone and benday dot techniques, in an image...
I was a big fan of the Manga which this Car played a role in... (can you guess what it is?) and remember this being my dream car during my middle school and early high school year.. It was nice to reconnect with that when I was making this image...I don't draw car too often, for a guy who was born in Detroit....But sometimes you just gotta...

1967 Shelby Mustang Cobra GT500 FTW!!
Hope you dig it..Finished image in a few days!!!! WHOOOT!

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Colorful Claude....

he might be some kinda European action film star, least that's the vibe I had when I painted him out...But, I wanted it to be a little colorful too on this bright sunny Friday afternoon...

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3 short of 100....

So, in looking over my sadly neglected blog this evening I realized that roughly 97 people follow the posts, sketches, and other going on's that I put up here from time to time. I'm pretty honored, that people have been enjoying my work...leaving me comments and feedback...it keeps me connected to the art community in a way (both geographically and socially speaking) that I simply couldn't manage by myself in any other way...
I'm posting up a sketch I had laying about and then Polished up this afternoon with some halftone technique that I'm practicing for a showpiece I'm working on right now...


Thanks for all the awesome support...AND by all means, give me a shout...I'm always happy to hear from yah...
Hope you dig...

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Halftone Hester

BIG WEEKEND...
I hope all my friends out west are having a great time in San Diego, and that all my other friends across the US, and the world are looking forward to some great weekend activities... Sadly, I'm a little under the weather right now and will probably spend my weekend around the Apartment, working on some projects, forcing fluids, and sleeping a great deal... I've been lame with the posts lately but here is some pay I've been doing with digital halftoning on another project.... I found this demo that does really nice Benday Dots and such and I've been fiddling with it for days now...

Here's a girlie face with some halftone worked into it...
I'll share more work soon..
Hope you dig..

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All Hands On Deck Submission.

Hey all,
Well, UPS had a Severe blunder with my art delivery for ALL HANDS ON DECK (an ocean themed show I was participating in over in Philly).... It arrived a little late I think and I'm not completely sure if you be able to see it now, but I figured I'd take a minute to share it with you here..
Though its not entirely accurate to how a Norse burial would work...it is a romanticized concept mixing some Norse burial customs and a very flashy burial at sea....If I were to be cremated I'd opt for this.
Feedback is most appreciated and as always, Hope you dig...
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