The 20-Year Quest for Uyné's Color Palette

 Okay, okay--18 years, not 20. I've been drawing Uyné since 2006. I never thought it would take me so long to settle on its coloration! I gave it mandrill-like facial markings around 2010; the rest of its body was a mystery.

UNTIL NOW!! :D

Uyné's skin is covered in chromatophores; think chameleon or squid! It has a dense, translucent coat of fur, keeping color shifts visible. Its upper lip can fold over its jaw like a gelada baboon's.

 

The new and improved Uyné compared to last year's study.

Uyné's nicknames include The Mouth / Maw and The Devourer of Wrongful Souls; its full name, Uyné'Zhat-no-ej'Mophest, means "One Feared for its Mouth." With its newfound coloration, a new name sparked my imagination: The Sunsetter.

The Mouth takes no pride in its designation as Soul Devourer. Ages ago, it attacked and killed one of its siblings, maimed another; Tretzanis had poisoned it, thinking The Mouth could destroy all of its siblings. With the Faélbè--"The Five" lesser gods--gone, Tretzanis could assume power over his own siblings and sow chaos in their absence. He would have succeeded had Uyné not torn his throat.

Ezthlitofett--a vigilante--stepped in to stop The Mouth from harming anyone else. A lengthy chase and fierce battle ensued. Ez managed to strike The Mouth across the neck with his sword, negating the effects of Tretzanis' poison. As the poison wore off, Uyné, horrorstruck, beseeched Ez to kill it. Ez refused, talking the godling down instead.

With time, they become intimate. It's not a physical relationship until years later. Ez teaches Uyné the Common Tongue (like Esperanto or some kind of pidgin); Uyné offers Ez gentle paralytic bites to ease his chronic pain.

I love them. ;__;

Uyné shares an intimate relationship with Ezthlitofett. <3

(this is facing the right direction!)

I used my little Uyné puppet to keep its proportions consistent.

(this draft made from an older drawing)

Once these lovebirds are properly drafted, I wanna go to town with my markers. I had never attempted stippling with them until this color study! Chromatophores, here I come!!

It's nice to visit my fantasy babies again. Brainsick gets the bulk of my attention, but Fáèlborn is equally precious to me.

TL;DR lololol long time no post :U

INKtober 2016, Day 14!

INKtober 2016, Day 14: The Ever-Grinning Maw
9x12 technical pen and ink wash on Stonehenge paper

Referencing several older sketches before choosing a pose.

Ignore the opposing up-down head counts.

Chose a good pose!

Ezthlitofett, the Ever-Grinning Maw, is a vigilante marked by congenital deformities and scars from grievous wounds. He is quiet by nature and out of necessity; it's hard to speak with retained and overgrown deciduous teeth. He is one of my oldest characters, and someone I need to draw more often.

INKtober, Day 8!

Stand down, Uyné
9 x 12 pen and ink / ink wash on smooth bristol

Left: sketchbook page from late last year. Right: tracing paper draft.

Finished pencil draft.

I start inking with the Hiro 45. It yields well to varying pressures.

The Hiro 60-1/2 is excellent for inking very fine lines.

Ezthlitofett's head and neck were inked with a Hunt 107 nib.

Uyné (the larger of the two) and Ezthlitofett hail from my fantasy story, (working title) Legacy. Uyné is a godling tasked with devouring the souls of the wicked. When it is poisoned by a vengeful rival, Uyné attacks and kills one of its siblings. Ezthlitofett takes it upon himself to calm the distraught godling - easier said than done. 

I haven't drawn backgrounds in ages, and I think it shows. Nonetheless, I wanted to push myself with this piece; I'm happy with it overall. I miss my ol' fantasy critters something fierce and this was a lot of fun to create. 

This is supposed to be a bloody scene. Somehow that slipped my mind! Ezthlitofett is also missing his sword and scabbard. He's not crazy enough to take on a godling with only his bare hands...

Working on Day 8's piece would not have been nearly as engaging without the following epic background music (damn you, Attack on Titan, for being so beautiful).

Sketchbook_Brain Drain 11 Pages 58 - 73!

Drawn to "Synesthesia" by Porcupine Tree.

Twitch, one of Brainsick's antagonists.
He is cannibalistic and sadomasochistic.

Above, left: a rough sketch of Rant based off an earlier sketch.

Above, right: an adapted sketch using marker paper over the original (not pictured). 

Dane, a harlequin Great Dane.
He is bigoted, standoffish, and stubborn, but ultimately a good guy.

Trochilidae Oddballs, 2005

New Trochilidae oddballs!

Vixec (FEE'kess), one of my hummingbird-hound critters.

Vixec revamped. Fun pose! I should animate this guy...

Giraffes and "Girummingbirds" or "Trochiliraffes."

2005 and 2006 Girummingbirds.

The Clawguard are vicious villains from Tad Williams's Tailchaser's Song.

I first read the book my junior year of high school, and it's one of my favorite fantasy novels.

Dremmenenthreareh (dare you to pronounce it!), your run-of-the-mill demon hybrid.

She is Ezthlitofett's adopted daughter.

Ezthlitofett has been with me since seventh grade.

Above left sketch is from 2004.

"Equino Mystiquea," crazy name for a spontaneous set of drawings (both from 2004).

Equino Mystiquea sketched anew.
Anatomy still needs tinkering, but I think it's quite an improvement.

Facing pages featuring Paranoid, The Black Mass, Lily, Ginger, Vex, Char, and Celeste.

Above left: an abstract kitty from 1993.

Above right: a quick reimagining I want to take to a finish on nicer paper.

Above left: more critter from 1993, and some of my favorite bits of nostalgia.

Above right: updated versions - this is one of my favorite current sketch pages!