EK HERALD GRAPHIC

Here is an EK piece created for use as a single colour graphic on EK "Herald" t-shirts. This graphic was created some time ago, but now that these shirts have finally been released, I figure I should also finally post about the artwork!

This piece is unique in the series, with its single colour graphic treatment, as almost all the other images in the EK Series are fully rendered, fully coloured pieces (except a couple silkscreen pieces done many years ago). I prefer my t-shirt graphics to be simple, 1/2 colour designs….as I like the bold, clean feel, so I felt that this was the right approach for this piece.

These t's were originally created to accompany prints of my work that were being exhibited and sold through the ARTISHOX gallery in Belgium, and through their online store, ARTISHOPIX. Unfortunately, in late 2013 right before the t's went into production, the ARTISHOX gallery had to be closed due to the owner's personal/health issues. At this point I figured I would sell the t's off my own website, but due to a busy schedule, I ended up sitting on the design for a year. By early 2015 I had found some time to open a shop on my own website and now the t-shirts are up on there for sale.

Most of the first batch of t's have sold, but there are a few of most sizes still available. I won't be re-stocking them for some time, as I am moving to France for a year (I'll post about that in the near future), but well see if I can get some going before I get back. So if you want to grab one before they are gone, they are available at the Shop here.

 

On a positive note, the owner of the ARTISHOX gallery has made a complete recovery, and is doing well, running a media company and is even in the early stages of opening a new gallery.

EK COSMONAUT 02 MASTER PRINT

Here is a sneak peak at the master sculpt/print for the next figure in the EK Cosmonaut Series. Expertly modelled by Gene Campbell and printed by Des at Ownage, this figure captures all the detail of the original painting.

In the final kit the visor will be clear, so the interior head will be visible.

These should be available from Industria Mechanika in late June/July, 2015.

I will post again when they are in the IMech shop!

THE JOURNEY

This one is a personal commission done recently for a client out in Toronto, Ontario. As a personal piece I won't go too much into the symbolism of the image, but it speaks to the clients respect for the pioneering spirit and the journey shared with one's partner. 

This is one of several "EK" commissions  I've done for clients over the past year (I will post the others in the future I hope). These pieces are interesting to create as the original EK work was so personal to me, involving my own feelings, struggles etc., so weaving the ideas and feelings of others into the EK Series is a different experience. These pieces are also a lot of fun to do because it gives me the chance to dive back into the EK "world".

All these commissions include a full size signed archival giclee print, along with supporting documents and a Certificate of Authenticity.

If anyone is interested in have their own personal EK piece, feel free to contact me for availability and rates!

SPECTRUM 21

I have a couple pieces in the latest edition of the fantastic art annual Spectrum. I would have posted this sooner but my complementary copy of the book was lost in the mail, and even though the guys at Flesk Publications sent me another copy right away (thanks John and Keith!), I have been too busy to post about it until now.

With a new editor and publisher, this edition of Spectrum has some minor layout differences, and what seems to me, a slightly different composition of content….although I guess this might just reflect the opinion of the judging panel of this edition. Anyways, and as usual, it is full of amazing work and it is worth picking up a copy.

Unfortunately since I was so busy with freelance work over the past year I didn't have the chance to put together a submission for the next edition of Spectrum…not to mention that even if I did, I would still have to be selected by the judges…..no guarantees there! But no submission definitely guarantees that I won't be included. So lets hope I can get off my ass and get some personal work done sometime this year! Time will tell.

Thanks again to John and Keith at Flesk Publications. Spectrum 21 cover art by Rebecca Guay.

RANDOMS

Here is a cover illustration I did for an upcoming young reader novel called Randoms.  Published by Simon & Schuster and written by author David Liss (The Day of Atonement, A Conspiracy Of Paper, Black Panther, The Spider, etc.), Randoms is a fast paced sci-fi adventure story centred around an awkward, nerdy, good-hearted kid, Zeke Reynolds. 

Having not read a lot of young fiction I didn't know what to expect when I read the manuscript to prep myself for creating the cover illustration. But I was pleasantly surprised how well written and how enjoyable the book was. I was also surprised how mature some of the themes were, but these were handled well by Liss, and they never felt inappropriate for the intended age range for the book (10+).

The cover itself was a lot of fun to create. Things flowed well with Simon & Schuster art director Lizzy Bromley and after several option comps we settled quite quickly on this cover idea. The illustration is a full dust jacket wrap around, including interior flaps and features the 6 major characters of the book. I also had the opportunity to create the Randoms title logo.

As you can see in my original versions of the cover the logo and the line elements were white, but Lizzy had a great idea to change them to a hot, neon orange on the final for additional "pop".  

Randoms is set to be published in August, 2015. Pre-order, addition info. and editorial reviews at Amazon here.

Thanks to Lizzy Bromley at Simon & Schuster.
 

 

THE EK SERIES ARTBOOK - JAPANESE VERSION

The Japanese language edition of my book, Born In Concrete: The EK Series, has been published by Born Digital Inc. in conjunction with Design Studio Press.

The content of this edition is the same as the original English language version that was published by Design Studio Press back at the end of 2013, but the book has been reformatted down to a new size of 9"x 10.5" (as opposed to the 11"x 13"of the original), bound with a soft cover, and fully translated into Japanese . While the images maybe don't have the same impact at this new smaller size, the book looks great, with the Japanese text giving the book an exotic feel and the coated paper stock (both inside and on the cover) giving the images a softer more satin finish. It even has that little title/price card folded into the book like all Japanese books seem to have. So cool!

I'm a big fan of Japanese art books (mainly animation production books), and it was great to see my book interpreted in this fashion. The book is available from Born Digital here, of Amazon.jp here.

The original, English language version is available here.

As for the original version of the book, due to it being featured (along with my Dystopic model kit) on the online show "Tested", it has spent the last 5 days as the #1 top seller on Amazon in the digital art category. Thanks to those that picked up a copy of the book….it is much appreciated!

Thanks to Scott Robertson and Tinti Dey at Design Studio Press and the guys at Born Digital Inc.

TESTED - ADAM SAVAGE'S ONE DAY BUILDS

My Dystopic model kit is featured on the latest episode of "Tested - One Day Builds", hosted by Adam Savage (Myth Busters). Check it out on You Tube here.

The Dystopic kit is currently sold out, but I think Industria Mechanika is planning on bringing it back for a fourth run next fall. Until then, my other 1/8th scale EK Cosmonaut kit is available and the next two will be released in the coming months.

Props to Gene Campbell and Industria Mechanika!

CHARACTERS ART BOOK

An expanded version of a character design walkthrough I did for 2D Artist magazine is included in the upcoming book: Beginner's Guide to Digital Painting in Photoshop: CHARACTERS. 

Other contributors include Charlie Bowater, Benita Winckler and Bram "Boco" Sels to name a few. From the samples I've seen so far it looks like a great book, and would be the perfect resource for the inspiring digital artist.

Beginner's Guide to Digital Painting in Photoshop: CHARACTERS is published by 3D Total Publishing and will hit the shelves late next month, and t is available for pre-order on Amazon and at the 3D Total Shop. Cover art by the talented Charlie Bowater.

Thanks to Jess Serjent-Tipping.

EK COSMONAUT SERIES: FIGURE 02

The second figure in the 1/8th scale, three piece EK Cosmonaut Series is complete and off for printing, casting, etc. Masterfully modeled again by Gene Campbell, this kit will have the same level of detail and quality as the last two kits. The packaging artwork is also complete so hopefully it will be be ready for pre-order and release fairly soon. I'll post again once the dates have been firmed up by Industria Mechanika.

Until then enjoy this sneak peek and go check out the other great kits at Industria Mechanika.

 

 

AMAZING FIGURE MODELER

A great build of the Dystopic Model Kit is featured on the cover of the latest issue of Amazing Figure Modeler (issue #58). An article detailing the build is also included within the issue.If you are interested in such things you can look for this to come to your magazine stand soon, or order directly from Amazing Figure Modeler. Speaking of great builds, here are a few pics of the first figure from the next line of kits based on work from the Entartete Kunst series, the 3 figure, 1/8th scale EK Cosmonaut Series, built up by French illustrator extraordinaire Manchu:

Check out more pics on his blog here.

The Dystopic Kit is currently sold out, but hopefully it will return for a forth edition in the future. In the meantime check out the other great kits at Industria Mechanika.

EK COSMONAUT #3 SHIPPING

The kits of the first figure in the EK Cosmonaut Series are being shipped out this week by Industria Mechanika. Thanks to everyone that bought one. They still have some in stock, so if you are interested in picking one up, head over to the IMech shop here.

I've previously posted pics of the master sculpt, but here is a first look at the bases. Each figure has it's own unique, etched, clear acrylic base. A 4th, "title base" that the other 3 bases can be set around for display purposes will be available to those that purchase all 3 figures.

The next figure in the series will be available in Feb. 2015 I believe, with the third following sometime in the spring. If you think you are interested in getting all 3 kits, you better pick this one up now!

Thanks again to Gene and Industria Mechanika.

AIRHOLE AVIATOR REDUX

A few years back I created a line of flight mask graphics for leading ski/snowboard face mask producer Airhole. This line of masks, titled the "Aviator Series", was only released in the 2010/2011 season and quickly sold out. Over the last few years I have received numerous emails from people looking for these facemasks. Well I'm happy to say that a new edition of one of the masks from the Aviator Series has been reproduced for Airhole's 2015 collection. So if you missed them before, here is a chance to get your hands on one!

The graphic is an updated version of one the pieces the from the original Aviator Series, the American MBU-20 flight mask. The original versions (2 American and 1 Russian flight mask) were faithful recreations of the actual flight masks, using the the subdued colours of the rubber, plastic and metal construction found on the actual masks. But on this new version, to change things up and to give the graphic a little more "pop", the inner shell of the mask was painted a bold gold/yellow colour.

If you are interested, get one before they are gone again….I don't think that there will be a third run! Go to the Airhole site to find the dealer nearest to you. 

Thanks to Max and the guys at Airhole.

ADVANCED PHOTOSHOP INTERVIEW

I have a 5 page spread in the latest issue of Advanced Photoshop Magazine (#127). The article is a "Portfolio Interview" and features a mix of personal work from my Entartete Kunst Series and a handful of freelance illustration pieces. 

The accompanying interview covers topics from how I got into concept art to the publication of my art book, Born In Concrete: The EK Series. Unfortunately, even though my job as a concept artist is central to the interview/feature (titled "Masterful Concepts"), the article is almost completely devoid of my concept work. It is next to impossible to obtain image publishing permissions from big companies like Nintendo, Microsoft, Sega, etc., so only one character design concept illustration is included in the whole piece. That being said, the feature turned out well (even though for some reason they classify me as an animator, and say that I work in the film industry?), and hopefully gives insight into my work, inspirations, etc.

This issue also features great work by Paul Scott Canavan, Jedd Chevrier and a host of others. Check it out at Advanced Photoshop.uk

Big thanks to Anna-lisa Saywell and April Madden at Advanced Photoshop for the interest and the opportunity.

TINY REALMS RELEASE

Tiny Realms, a playful combat strategy game I did some illustration work for, has been officially released globally for IOS platforms, and is available on the Apple App Store.

As I mentioned in previous posts, Tiny Realms is a casual combat strategy game developed by local Victoria, B.C. developer Tiny Mob Games. I'm not much of a gamer, but I find this game to be pretty fun, and it has a couple unique features that set it apart from other casual combat strategy games out there. First, it has individual unit control, which allows the user to have a more involved role in combat, as opposed to the standard "place and pray" model of most other similar games. The game also features a mode called "Battlegrounds" which allows users to participate in large faction wide battles for control of larger sections of the world map.

Give a Tiny Realms a try here at the App Store……it's free!

In case you aren't an Apple user, I believe Android and Facebook versions of the game are coming in the near future. 

Thanks to Jamie and Paul over at Tiny Mobs Games, and check out the latest work from Tiny Mob's Mike Deas!

EK COSMONAUT #3 RESIN MODEL PREORDER

The first model in the three figure "EK Cosmonaut Series" is now available for preorder from Industria Mechanika.

Visit the Industria Mechanika shop here,  for more info. or if you want to order one up!

Modeled by the talented Gene Campbell, this figure is of the same quality and features the same attention to detail as the Dystopic kit, but is slightly smaller at 1/8th scale, so it will have a smaller footprint and a smaller price tag!

Here are a few shots of the master sculpt, printed from Gene's original by Des at Ownage:

The next two figures in this series will be released sequentially starting early next year.

Industria Mechanika is offering a small discount on preorders made in the next two weeks so if you are interested in picking one of these kits up now is the time.

Visit the IMech shop here.

Thanks to Gene, Des and Michael for creating another great kit!