Book cover: Elder's Pride - Part 1

August 2016 sketches drawn in preparation for my friend Robert's book cover! His novel, Elder's Pride, focuses on a group of Smilodon fatalis in the California Pleistocene. It's a fantastic read, and if you're familiar with Robert T. Bakker's Raptor Red, you're going to want to keep your eyes peeled.

INKvember 2016, #3: Imprisonment

INKvember 2016, #3: BRAINSICK : Imprisonment

Trussed in ropes that span the night

and threads that cover day,

We each hang victim to delight

in seeing others fray.

Initial rough sketch of Paranoid; adjusted proportions. 

Decay's markings penciled in.

Marking's filled with tightly-spaced scribbles. 

Drawing board setup!

Nothing triggers my astigmatism like inking fine lines...

Working at my aunt and uncle's Rockaway Beach home.

At 22.5" high and 15" wide, this is my largest ink drawing to date!

Goofy self-portrait for reference. 

I wasn't happy with how I'd inked Lily's face; I removed the line with an X-Acto knife and redrew it.

First-pass outlines on Paranoid.

I worked at the kitchen table for a few hours. Good to change it up sometimes!

Diluted FW Acrylic ink.

First-pass ink wash on Lily.

Tying the comp together... almost literally.

Lily's markings brushed in with diluted acrylic.

Due to its size, I can't scan this from home. I made nineteen scans earlier this week and they still won't piece together properly in Photoshop. If I want to scan this, I'm going to have to take it in!

INKvember 2016, #2: You Know Who Forever Belong To

INKvember 2016, #2: You Know Who Forever Belong To
9x12 technical pen, white gel pen, and gouache on Canson XL watercolor paper

Digital draft drawn December 6th, 2012.

Rough pencil sketch made to 'feel' the composition.

Poorly-lit reference selfies GO.

Fixed both Paranoid and Human Paranoid's faces.

Fixed Human Paranoid's legs using photos of people and sculptures as reference. 

Inking always begins with eyes and faces.

I wasn't satisfied with Human Paranoid's hand. Cut out faulty line with an X-Acto knife and lifted it from paper surface. One of the advantages of working on watercolor paper!

Hand looks better, though now it's too large.

DONE!

This illustration is inspired by the song "I Against I" by Massive Attack featuring Mos Def. It's long been a part of Paranoid's inspiration playlist.

I love using my technical pens on watercolor paper; its absorbency ensures rich, solid inks and high detail retention. After the craziness of Inktober, it was nice to spend four days finishing this piece!