The Helot and the Duke's Phantom

The Duke's Ghost is basically bitching about...well, everything... and good ol' Helot-guy has nothing better to do than sit an listen. (Get a job!)

I never knew what to make of this no-name Waith peasant despite him sacrificing himself to save his people he did try to kill you after you saved his life after all (not to mention both fighting against the same enemy)... he's a prick, in other words.
The Duke, whom we never see in the flesh (literally), peaks my curiosity more so. An aristocrat that showed kindness to the helot class, that enough is to set him apart. Its a shame we only got to see his ghost and bones, he would have been quite an interesting character, I imagine.

Empusa and Raum

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I think Raum is more interested with how his 'tush' looks in an off-screen mirror than posing for a portrait.

My favourite couple! And what rich-basterds don't delve into acts of Vampirism... ... Raum should make a cameo appearance in Twilight, to show Edmund (or whatever his name is) how to be a good blood drinker.

Raum: "No! HBO's True Blood! Gore and Sex, wooo!"
Empusa: *slap*

.... annnyywaayy, a little off topic...

Empusa was a pain to do. I only just realised that she has swords (fricking swords!!!!) in her head-wear! Does she have shoes made out of axes as well?

Elizabeth ... and Claude

Yep, more of those little Primal sketches.

Omg Claude! Run for your life!… literally! Hooray for Elizabeth. A typical modern girl, she likes dancing, dead pets and trying to get people to kill her parents… yeah! Such a normal little girl!Here, have a lolly-pop!

Wait! Why are there Rats in Aetha! Its a separate universe! Oh those crafty little buggers get everywhere, don’t they!

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Melodies of Astral

Another CD cover for Phoenix Rise. Woo hoo!
This time it was something a little different.
I must admit I thought this would be quite a simple painting, no anatomy to get right, no landscape to think through... but that piano... *rolls eyes* My lord did that vex me for a while.

Art Prints Now Available

CLICK HERE

I've been pretty slack with uploading anything to the website after they so nicely mailed me saying they would like some of my work on their site. Manely because of money-based confusion and the website tools playing up on me. But I finally got some up there. They'll be more in the future, I imagine, but for there are six selected paintings that I deem good enough.

Ninetails Approaches ( 1 hour painting)

I was feeling uninspired one night so I thought I'd do a quick painting using only one layer with a textured brush. I originally had in mind of a rat/snake thing in a cave (as you can see in this video) but as I was painting the coils I found they looked more like eight tails...so I added one more and -poof- Ninetails. No surprise as I was playing Okami and I had just defeated this boss on Oki Island. Third time playing that game, by the way, its that good! I wonder what the Nintendo DS sequal, Okamiden, is like?

A Werewolf's Fishing Trip

Lucky piranha’s don’t like the taste of supernatural flesh. This gang of nippers much prefer the fresh swamp fish he has caught. But luckily Aaron is up to the battle. Can you get more badass than punching a piranha in the belly? O! Watch out, Aaron! You might loose a bit more than your dinner if you are not careful *points to sneaky piranha between his legs.*

I wanted something different for this werewolf painting, to break a few clichés of snarling barbaric beasts, and brain stormed some rather domestic things for him to do. Then I watched one of those David Attenborough nature documentaries and the footage of baboons wading through water peaked my interest. After all, baboons look like a hybrid of man and beast, so I thought they’re awkward pose would look interested transferred onto a werewolf (who are often depicted as strong sturdy beasts). However, the first sketch I did didn’t work for me. It was pretty static and dull.
So I thought a story behind it might liven up the painting. Don’t ask how piranha’s got into it (haha) because I simply don’t know. It was an impulsive move. I think it was the red of their bellies that drew me to that idea, because it would contrast nicely with the dull de-saturated cold world of the swamp. They also provided a good comic relief tool, with their near cartoony expressions.

Special thanks to:
*The late Frank Frazetta and Lucas Graciano for inspiration on the pose. They taught me strong angles give a character more strength and aggressiveness.
* Andrea Brunner for her Bull Terrier portrait that helped me improve the anatomy of this guy’s face.
* Sebastien Larroude for his Green Swamp painting and James Gurney for his book “Colour and Light: A guide for the realist painter” that helped me figure out the lighting and colour in a foggy atmosphere, such as a swamp.