Chow 157 :: VOTING :: The ENDLESS

[Aly Fell]

FINALS ONLY
-=ROUND 157=-
-=The ENDLESS=-

-------------
http://i267.photobucket.com/albums/ii293/chowarchive/CHOW-LINES/CHOW-LINES-MEDUSA.jpg
NOT SURE ABOUT THE GUIDELINES? CLICK HERE! (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=117390)
-------------------

ROUND #157 :: The ENDLESS

DESCRIPTION

The Endless

Destiny, Death, Dream, Destruction, Despair, Desire and Delirium

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Endless

The Endless are brothers and sisters created by the British writer Neil Gaiman (with the exception of Destiny – Marv Wolfman and Bernie Wrightson) for the DC/Vertigo Comics series ‘Sandman’ (Dream). Each one is a personification of a natural force and has very distinctive characteristics.

Destiny: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destiny_(DC_Comics))

Death: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_(DC_Comics))

Dream: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dream_(comics))

Destruction: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destruction_(DC_Comics))

Despair: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Despair_(DC_Comics))

Desire: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desire_(DC_Comics))

Delirium: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delirium_(DC_Comics))

DC/Vertigo: http://www.dccomics.com/vertigo/

Your job, should you choose to accept it, is to design one of The Endless, or if you are feeling industrious as many as you like, but that is up to you, there is no bonus for producing more than one. Avoid designing them as previously presented in the comic, stick to gender, although bear in mind each one has very individual motifs and sigils (example, Death’s Ankh, or Desire’s Heart) and provide your own interpretation.

And please follow the submission rules. Thank you.
------------

ACCEPTANCE TO POLL WILL BE BASED ON THREE CRITERIA:
1: DID THE ARTIST FOLLOW THE BRIEF? (allowance for creative takes will be made).
2: IS THE PIECE ARTISTICALLY SOUND? (Is the illustration "finished?" - did the artist pay attention to anatomy, perspective, other fundamentals?).
3: IS THIS ILLUSTRATION THE BEST ONE?

--------------------

SUBMITTING YOUR ENTRY:
1: You must submit ONE full sized image.
2: Make sure your name and CHOW # are EASILY READABLE on your entry.
3: Use the Standard format (Below);

http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i222/ChowPics/frame.jpg
:right: PLACE THE IMAGE IN A FRAME WITH YOUR NAME/TOPIC
:right: SAVE YOUR FILE IN THE FOLLOWING FORMAT:
Chow##_Nickname
example: "CHOW#100_Oregano.jpg"

THE REST IS EASY:
1: No comments before poll is set. They WILL be deleted with utmost malice and petty grumbling. >:{
2: Sit back and enjoy the show. BYOPC (Bring your own popcorn)
3: Good luck to all.


Please review these helpful reminders if you have not done so already.

:right:ON GETTING TO POLL (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showpost.php?p=1891823&postcount=15)
-------------------------
:right:NEW ROUND RULE: WIPS PLEASE! (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showpost.php?p=1910999&postcount=27)
-------------------------
:right:SUBMISSION FORMAT REMINDER (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showpost.php?p=1911002&postcount=28)



PLEASE REMEMBER TO WRITE YOUR COPYRIGHT INFORMATION UNDER THE IMAGE IN THE FINAL BURNING THREAD SO I DON'T HAVE TO HUNT YOU DOWN LATER!

---

Quick Check: Have You Submitted Your Chow Properly?

- is it named correctly? (ie, "CHOW#100_Oregano.jpg")
- has it been uploaded using the attachment editor?
- have you also uploaded or linked to your wips?
- have you followed the brief?

Good luck!

[fersteger]

Delirium and her dog Barnabus just chillin' with their new shades.

Alex Kosakowski/Conceptart/Characters/Fantasy/Photoshop

[curly]

Dream in love
http://img2.pict.com/fa/26/2e/b2a02bc6e4938fca013dc65ebc/FowsH/1.jpg

[Amber Alexander]

The Endless: Death

Copyright: Amber Alexander, ConceptArt, Characters, Fantasy, Photoshop

Death is someone who is there when you die and when you're born so I wanted to put a subtle duality in her outfit; The right side of the picture is covered and untouched (birth) vs. the tattoo'd half of her (death & eternity). I wanted her to look mystical and yet have pieces on her from some of the various cultures she has been around for.

I really enjoyed doing this and can't wait to make more!

[scottmcd]

Delirium was once Delight. We don't know why she changed, but some think it has to do with the dissolution of her engagement long ago. This is Delight sitting for her wedding portrait, but the change has already begun.

Progress is visible in the other thread and below.

[Windsrock]

Sorry, no wips of early sketches. Didn't remember to take photos. Hope this is enough :asskisser:

[Gothique]

Here is my final - Despair, twisted and...desperate

[Dan!]

sweet round- Dream

[agnostes]

Final. Dream in protective garb, ready to visit Lucifer.

[elliste]

666788

666786 666787

I had a lot of fun doing this character creation. This is my depiction of Delerium. :)

-and thank you for the heads up on how to upload the pictures correctly!

[Buckster]

Great round.
This is Dream and Death.
Info:
Johan Wahlbäck - Concept Art - Fantasy - Photoshop

[LM.]

LM-conceptart-delirium-painter/photoshop

http://img222.imageshack.us/img222/3283/chow157finalpetit.jpg
http://img142.imageshack.us/img142/7140/chow157wip.jpg

[KleeWyck]

death.

Copyright Information:
KleeWyck
ConceptArt, Character, Fantasy, Photoshop

[Aly Fell]

We are bubbles. Death breathes life into us, we soar on the air, and... pop! We are gone...

Death goes Emo.

[FridayEve]

I imagined Delirium a little on the crazy side.
Steve James/conceptart/characters/other/painter
http://fridayeve.com/gallery/dsg/CHOW157_fridayeve.jpg

http://fridayeve.com/gallery/dsg/chow_157_fridayeve_wip.jpg

[quickreaver]

"Give me my robe, put on my crown; I have immortal longings in me." ~Willie the Shakes

(Christine Griffin/ConceptArt/Characters/Fantasy/Mixed Digital)

[S.C. Watson]

General Reminder: No chatter before poll. Posts will be deleted.

Best of luck to all.

~S

[Tommoy]

This is promising to be a great round again.
My dream/nightmare.

[psantha]

Hi Guys, here comes my Destiny. Great job everyone!

[Ramza]

Very inspiring round!

If Michael Bay did a movie on Despair, it would kinda look like this:

[Rodimus25]

Dream a Little Dream of Me.

[KayOnim]

Little girl is more than meets the eye.

[wheezy]

I did not get to finish coloring as much as I would have liked because I have to go home for mother's day. But great job everyone. Great round.

http://charlieharper.net/gallery/digital/chow157_wheezy.jpg

http://charlieharper.net/gallery/wip/theendless_death_wip.jpg

http://charlieharper.net/gallery/wip/death_inks.jpg

[Eric Young]

Destruction is timeless.

Eric Young / Concept Art / Character / Photoshop

[AvisNocturna]

avisnocturna/conceptart/characters/other/photoshop
here's my Desire

[Nightblue]

Delirium.

nightblue/conceptart/characters/other/photoshop

[darthmarsh]

Would have liked more time, but work is a hard master.

[Franna]

Never underestimate its cruelty...

wg olivier/concept art/characters/other/photoshop
good luck everyone...

667553667557

[csteingart]

667558

[Chance.]

Goldfish...

Chance Godwin/concept art/characters/other/photoshop

[Sekino]

667630

667631
Celeste Agnes/ Concept art/ Characters/ Fantasy/ Ink-Photoshop

[jpedro]

Desire:

[bluefooted]

667653

e.kelso/illustration/entertainment/fantasy/photoshop

link to wips: http://conceptart.org/forums/showpost.php?p=2249975&postcount=289

[Tenno]

Copyright: M.Dearden, ConceptArt, Characters, Fantasy, Photoshop

[NicHolS]

...and heres old candle man himself... the finger feathered fantasy known as destiny!

[Hideyoshi]

Arrgh, just realized I forgot to save WIPs... :/
Well, nevermind if it's not in the poll.

DREAM:

[Jie Kageshinzo]

Well, here's my entry. Regardless if it gets in the poll or not, I'm just glad my first ever participation in any CA community activity is with this. Huge Sandman fan. :D

Jerico Gamotin II/Concept art/Characters/Other/Photoshop

[Majenkus]

Thanks for the activity and to everyone that participated.

You can find the WIPs here (http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=668265&stc=1&d=1242019369)

Majenkus/conceptart/character/fantasy/painter

[Ronpower]

So, here it is my first entry. Not as polished as I'd like, but I was having Cintiq issues all weekend.

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y147/RogueXMan/CHOW157_Ronpower.jpg


WIPS:

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=665662&stc=1&d=1241753704 http://www.conceptart.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=666930&stc=1&d=1241906498

[spaztastic]

Oh to despair over a lost love.....

hoping i didn't slaughter the calligraphy to badly for the kanji :bashful:

M:Krajnak/concept art/character/other/painter

[♦♦Jackdaw♦♦]

Dream getting his nightmare on.

[RichLyons]

my finals for Destruction.

[IIKII]

Delirium

668464
WIP
668465

668466

668467

[MichaelNoel]

Wow, a ton of amazing stuff!

Death.. I didn't realize her bracelet thingy is way too bright, but I'll collapse if I don't get sleep now. T_T I'll be up when the voting is underway...

[ryuloulou]

death, always happy, collecting souls.

[Adi.]

heya all.. :lineart:

[hungryan]

668521
668527
This is terrible, but at least I did something for Chow before running out of time. I hope the next one will work out better.

[audit]

sweet round all!
hope this is acceptable - it's Destiny:
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/86audit19/cgforums/Chow157_audit.jpg

original linework:
http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b141/86audit19/cgforums/destiny_1_th.jpg

[Oxide-0]

Delirium.

michael richard roche/conceptart/characters/urban/painter

668539
668540

[~baxter]

Nice round everyone!

Finally done with my Greek/Roman deity themed Destruction and Despair.

Copyright Info: Erik Dolphin/Concept Art/Characters/Fantasy/Photoshop.

[Mercuralis]

Wasn't sure I was going to finish in time.

Dream ©2009 Melissa Findley

[Jefita]

I haven't been here in ages, but I couldn't resist a Sandman themed ChoW when I wandered through. I decided to try Despair. I can't believe I actually finished.

So many great entries!


Copyright Info: Amy Goodman (Jefita)/Concept Art/Characters/Fantasy/Photoshop.

[Mythmaker]

What a great round! :yum:

I was really drawn in by this. I'd never read any Sandman, but I've now gone through the first issue and plan to continue!

I nearly abandoned this piece early on as I thought I was being too literal. I hope I've made it interesting enough.

This is my interpretation of Dream/Morpheus.

[MJ_Alcazar]

Here's my final.

Mashea Johnson - conceptart - character - other - other

[dose]

Final for Delirium.

Tim Dose/Concept Art/Characters/Fantasy/Photoshop

[Sean McClain]

Copyright sean mcclain
character
fantasy
painter x
668649
668651668652

[kurios]

Steampunk Death

[pepps]

Giuseppe Lacapra / concept art / character / fantasy / photoshop

[threeeyesworm]

Everyone who told me about the 3/4 rule thank you! Hopefully now my entry will be accepted.

Copyright: Wei Li/Concept Art/Fantasy/Character/Photoshop

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3626/3522515977_7489b1bdde_o.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3267/3523324424_36aaeeed5a_o.jpg

[Viridis]

Looks like I finished just in time.

I went with the second incarnation of Dream (which I'm a little surprised nobody else did). The comic implies somewhere that Morpheus started out all in white too, and then sort of "faded" to black over time. I wanted to show the second Dream as going in rather the opposite direction, gathering more and more subtle colors to his robes as time goes on. I don't think I got to play with that quite as much as I wanted due to time constraints, but I'm pretty happy with it anyway.

Copyright info: Beth Zyglowicz/Concept Art/Characters/Fantasy/Photoshop

EDIT: Noticed at the last minute that one of his arms was too short. >_>; Should be fixed now.

[ianthegeek]

Here's my Delirium. I think I'm out of steam for tonight:)
Good luck everyone.

[keith eager]

Just squeaked it in there. Time to go to Dr. Sketchy's.

[Markito]

Despair and Delirium..whisking off into the night:)

[longshao]

Death
WIP
http://i630.photobucket.com/albums/uu22/hspg/WIP.jpg
Final
http://i630.photobucket.com/albums/uu22/hspg/CHOW125_longshao.jpg

[daestwen]

NO ENTRIES PAST THIS POINT.

15 minute grace period.

longshao: gonna get rid of your first post, but I'll just soft delete it in case there's a difference between the images or something.

[daestwen]

A Few Cuts Today:

Format Cuts:

curly: No WIPs, Not attached, named incorrectly
LM.: Not attached, named incorrectly
FridayEve: Not attached
wheezy: not attached
csteingart: not attached
Hideyoshi: no WIPs
Ronpower: not attached
audit: not attached
threeeyesworm: not attached, named incorrectly
keith eager: named incorrectly


Quality Control / Rough / Unfinished

Because we had 50 + entries after the format cuts were made, I had to made some quality control cuts. If you are included in the following, please PM me for a more in-depth critique.
elliste
MR Roche
darknight
majenkus

other notes:

agnostes: your's is named incorrectly - this isn't round 100! ;) But I let it pass.

[Eric Young]

hurray! I'm happy I made the poll for the first time.
Good round everyone!

[audit]

*facepalm*

[Majenkus]

fersteger - I love it. I can't stop looking at it.

RichLyons - This and the last two activities have been standouts. They all have so much character ;) The facial expression have been exceptionally good. The accessories on Destruction are really nice and add a lot.

Nichols - That's sweet!

[Gothique]

HOORAY....ehm...yes...

So many entries, so I chose 7 of them....

Buckster - godlike mysterious...
Mythmaker - like the empty eyes look. You don´t know if it is statue or not...
Fersteger - have to say, that this would be my vote if I have to chose only 1!!! it is simply beautifull and funny...CLAP CLAP!!!!! :-)
Psantha - nice weight of the book. You can say, its the memory of all mankind in it...
Dream Sear - like the presence of your character and the idea of frame - brilantly made. It looks like saint from the church :-)
Nichols - being from the ancient times. I like the idea od candle man
Dan - from the deepest space I came, made of stars...

[Sean McClain]

I voted for
Dan Awesome, love it.

Mikenoel I really like that style, it kind of reminds me of edmund dulac,

yeah, I always get to ambitious and try to do something that I cant do in a week,
to do what I was planning I think I would need two, but I will figure it out, Thats why I do these, to push myself to get better.:)

[longshao]

NO ENTRIES PAST THIS POINT.
longshao: gonna get rid of your first post, but I'll just soft delete it in case there's a difference between the images or something.
I don't see either post of mine.
I didn't know we need to get approval from the mod, and I forgot to post the WIPs in the first post. But the final image should be the same.

Anyways, I voted for:
mercuralis--I like your idea, and I think it's a well rendered image.
markito--fun image, good to see two of them working together as a team.
richlyons--great character, a lot of personality.
sekino--I like your interpretation of death, something different.
posh--good as always.

[agnostes]

agnostes: your's is named incorrectly - this isn't round 100! ;) But I let it pass.

Thanks :) Simple copy+paste error, sorry (too lazy to type the filename - poor excuse, I know).

Voted for three, on the basis of my favourite redesigns:

Darthmarsh, Arthur 'Two Sheds', and RichLyons.

Cheers all for the fun ;)

[Amber Alexander]

This was my first CHOW that I finished so i'm very delighted that I made it to the polls and I definately learned alot. I'm open to any comments about what I could have done to improve mine, I think I need to work on making the background more interesting and a better pose, something that bring more life to the character.

Here's my votes:
Agnostes - I love the look and the flowing cape, great lighting, reminds me of The Spawn but better. I think you made some good choices after seeing your sketches progress.

JPedro - After seeing all the finals this is my absolute favorite, she is sexy but in an adorable way and I really like the movement in her pose, really brings her to life.

Psantha - Very illustrative, I love it. Its so over the top but still believable, great work!

Franna - Everything about it is gorgeous and very well painted, the background, the clothing, the expression, damn nice job!

Dan! - I love the glowing tattoos and how you did the shading on his skin, looks awesome.

Nightblue - I really like your style of painting and the colors you picked go with it perfectly.

Some other questions/comments:

Dreamsear: Maybe this is too much to ask but would it be possible to explain how you made the gold in the background and on his clothes actually look like gold? that's something i've struggled with on past works.

Franna: I've noticed many others use the same technique in their WIPS, they are all black&white then final is in color, why do you do that? Do you actually paint over it all and does it make coloring easier?

-thanks

[keith eager]

Daetswen: "keith eager: named incorrectly"
Are we talking about file name here?

[JailHouseRock2]

Voted for:

AvisNocturna

longshao

Adi

DAN!

and spaztastic!

Sorry if that's to many votes, but everyone did such a great job this round!
Well done all!

[Mythmaker]

So much awesomeness! Had a hard time limiting my favourites...

There are more, but these grabbed me the most:

Buckster - Really liked the styling
Fersteger - Very energetic, nice pose
Dream Sear - Love the style and the gold-leaf effect
Markito - Really enjoyable image - love it!
Nichols - This was my favourite - great idea, well composed and nicely rendered
Rich Lyons - Loads of character - nice design, and really well expressed
Poshspice - Very stylish, very sexy - business as usual then!

Well done to everyone else - and thanks for sharing! :hugsmile:

[NicHolS]

my top 3 went to (in no order)

tommoy - damn scary! love the vibe
dream_sear - although part of me feels discomfort in viewing this image i could never take my eyes off of it, and the frame was an awesome touch!
buckster - just a great spooky idea, nuff said... very original and simple!

close but no cigars:
richlyons - always good attitude but just wasn't feeling destruction from him, more smug lol
markito - great simple composition just needed something extra to push you over the line
pepps - like... wicked haha
Arthur two sheds - nailed the nightmare but felt like he was more destruction, i think i already mentioned it to ya
blue footed - great illustration but felt it wasn't a full body shot
poshspice - way too similar to chris bachalo's death in joe chiodo colors... amazing polish tho mate! just not original enough for me...

thanks for those who voted for me too, much appreciated! see you next round! good luck all!

Adam

[Jie Kageshinzo]

This is the first community activity that I took part in and I'm just glad I got in on the poll. That was fun; I'll prolly do it again. :D

As for my votes:

pepps - Alto I don't really dig the afro look, the overall picture complemented it. I love how I'm getting a subdued but royal feel from it.

Dan! - I just love the style. Made Dream look much more foreboding. Great redesign, too.

[PixelFish]

Loved Bluefooted's take on Desire. That seemed to be one of the closer-to-canon-but-still-original entries. Lovely style.

I particularly liked the colours on Nightblue's Delirium.

The twist on RLyon's Destruction took it a nice route--still maintaining the weird dichotomy of a guy who is supposed to treat Destruction like a job, but is really too much of a mellow teddy bear to be into it.

Markito's made me smile.

Dan's Dream is fairly cool too. The neat designs and the concept...just wow.

I wanted to vote for Psantha and Ramza but didn't because their pictures didn't show up when my poll did. Weird. (I think not all of the pics loaded because my connection is cranky, and there were so many.)

[elliste]

I voted for:

Fersteger I thought your picture of Delirium showed the choatic nature in her. I loved all the vibrant colors and the little details like the sunglasses having the color of her eyes.

Rlyons I thought this was just a fun picture. Big gruff guy and his little pooch. I liked the arsenal on his belt.

Poshspice I enjoyed the idea with the bubbles and the easy way the character looked to be sitting at ease, blowing her bubbles.

There were a ton of them that I thought were fantastic, but I tried to narrow it down for the vote. Once again, you guys have awesome talent and I've had a blast participating.

[Jefita]

I voted for fersteger, bluefooted, and Rlyons. I thought they were all really good personifications, and enough original. There were a lot of entries this week that I really liked. I thought most of them were pretty true to character and beautifully designed, but I decided to limit myself to just three votes. If I could only vote for one though, I would have voted for fersteger's Delirium. I thought she was just fantastic.

[quickreaver]

Okay guys, I'm gonna try to say something constructive to everyone, since I continue to get great comments and it's why we do this junk, eh? :D (My apologies if I mispell some of the names; I need new glasses. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.)

~Agnostes: Very crips and intense. Little too Spawn-y for my tastes, but a solid offering.
~AmberAlexander: Nice lighting, cute design, but you 'lost' your drawing at some point. The top of her head got a bit skewed. With practice, you'll nip that in the bud, though.
~AvisNocturna: I really dig this design. The heart in the smoke is a clever touch. Great composition. The clothing could use just a teensy bit more accuracy, but it's painted with nice, buttery strokes.
~Buckster: Super cool! Love the vibe between the characters. Not crazy about Death's near-hand...I think there may have been a better resolution to it...but hey, it works in the composition.
~Gothique: She comes off a little too aggressive for Despair, but it's got a great horror factor. And I likes me some gore!
~Hungryan: Very original. Could stand a bit more polish.
~jpedro: She's cute and colorful, though I think you missed the vibe of Desire; she's kinda mild, and the androgyny aspect seemed to be important to the character, but the piece is well drafted and rendered.
~KleeWyck: I REALLY liked your first drawing; why did you opt for a different design? This has some great ideas, and I do NOT, for the record, think it looks like feathers are sticking out of her ass!
~Mercuralis: What can I say; you KNOW the character, and caught all his nuances. Sucks that it lost a lot of detail in the reduction of the image for the poll. Very cool design.
~MichaelNoel: The ankh staff and moon really makes this piece. Too bad it's so dark. Can't see much.
~Mythmaker: Benignly macabre, mysterious, has the feel of a Grecian statue. One of my faves.
~pepps: Man, I LOVE the 'fro! Face needed to be bigger to compete with that hair. ;)
~Ramza: Your rendering is juicy, and yes, that chick has VOLUME.
~DarthMarsh: Great symbolism. The lotus is lovely. I think the purple was a bit much, though; maybe a thoughtful, dream-like palette would have been more fitting.
~Dose: Interesting take. I can't decide if I like the stained glass colors all over, or not. Hmmm! One thing I might explore in the future is varying line weight. Give yourself a greater visual repertoire.
~fersteger: Sassy, electric, textural, tasty!
~Tikii: Nice idea. Not sure the background does it much good, though. You've got a lot going on with the fig, maybe something simpler would've been a better choice.
~KayOnim: Great viewpoint and clean, graphic style.
~psantha: But that's one...big...book! War And Peace?
~longshao: There's a lot of nuance in this piece that's getting lost by the darkness. I love the prone figure...really tragic!
~baxter: Clean, simple. Maybe a little too simple. Not a lot of surprise or 'thinking out of the box' here, but you were very industrious to do two figs.
~tenno: Gotta say, great work on the coat!
~Adi: Spiffy colors, interesting take on Death, very competently painted.
~Chance: I wish the character was better arranged on the page. Feels a tad rushed.
~FlameRaven: Albino love! The raven gets kinda lost in the dark, but this has a nice texture to it.
~Franna: Fiendish sneer, cool boots! Maybe you should've grounded the character, though, instead of having him/her hover over the background. Just a thought!
~IantheGeek: Has an almost Aztec feel. Novel.
~Jefita: This one sneaks up on you. Great details, and I appreciate the subtle palette. Not sure what's going on with the far eye, though.
~Markito: Yeeeehaw! Love it!
~Nichols: Original and cleverly designed. Faboo.
~ArthurTwoSheds: Long live grunge! His arm is large compared to his spindly legs; was there a reason for this? Dig the texture.
~NadiaMogilev: Nice proportions, but the colors are a bit chalky.
~Kurios: I dunno, just doesn't feel finished yet. Maybe if you'd had more time, you could've done more with it.
~RLyons: Lurv 'im. Is he single?
~Rodimus: The anatomy could use some finessing, but I like the narrative, the floating.
~Sekino: I really admire these pieces. Sometimes less IS more! Delicate and classic.
~Tommoy: Sweet character, kinda muddled background. Cool colors. I heart grey and orange.
~The Original E: Kinda stiff. Maybe if he wasn't in profile?
~Windsrock: Very Despair'y! Not sure what the background's supposed to be doing, though.
~Bluefooted: Da bomb.
~Jie: I like the inky explosion from his/her head.
~Posh: She's a little fluffy for Death; maybe it's the Pepto Bismol pink. ;) But the design is charming as always! I like your darker pieces better. (This said, knowing you could kick my artistic ass any day...)
~Ryuloulou: Very clever concept! Love the little souls.
~ScottMcD: Original, stylized, idiosyncratic.
~Dan: is the man. Got my vote.
~Nightblue: Just wacky enough! Like the fish balloons. I mean, who doesn't like fish balloons?
~MJAlcazar: The body turned out nice, but her face is sadly wonky. I think it's the lips...might be something to practice.
~Spaztastic: Last but not least! You caught the vibe. More blowing snow next time! You almost miss it here.

PHEW! Next time, I really should use a thesaurus. But hopefully, you'll just look for your name and ignore the other blather. Now that I've blown an hour of my life, I'm off to get a cookie!

[Franna]

So:

pepps: Seriously, how did you come up with that? What a character! Love the crazy proportions. My favourite Dream.

fersteger: This is just so awesomely crazy. The shades, the perspective, the greenness by her leg. Just brilliant.

Markito: Total and utter exaggeration. This is the coolest Despair i've seen. Lovely.

RichLyons: This just has so much attitude. And that breastplate is the best. The number of votes speaks for itself.

Poshspice: Artistically speaking it doesn't get s lot sweeter than this. Well done.

@Amber Alexander: Thank you so much for your vote. To answer your question, when I do grayscale first, it helps me focus on the levels and lighting first without worrying about the colourscheme yet, and then later I can focus on just that. It's just a matter preference, and it happens to work well for me.

[Viridis]

Okay, I wanted to do as many critiques as possible, and I actually wrote enough that I'm going to split this into two posts.

The ones I voted for:

Mercuralis - Very similar to the comic, enough that I could see this being a cover of one of the issues or even a fan tribute, but still nicely handled. I really like the symbols of the other Endless in each of the floating balls.

Ramza: The rendering style is not the kind I usually like, but you nailed the idea of Despair very well.

MichaelNoel - A very different take on Death, and yet this one actually works for me, unlike some of the others. Was the subtle nod to the scythe with the ankh and the moon deliberate? If so, it's a clever touch, alluding to the traditional death without being obvious.

DarthMarsh[b]: A solid rendering of Dream, and I quite like the lotus petals and space theme, although I would say this version is pretty close to what we see in the comics.

[b]Dose - Simple, clean, colorful style. Perfect for Delirium.

fersteger - I am digging the crazy shades and the absolutely chaotic background. The mixture of colors and textures here are really perfect for Delirium, and the feather boa and shades keep the sense of whimsy she always seems to have about her. One point- I'm pretty sure that's a sundial by her left foot, but at this angle it almost looks like, well, the Enterprise. Or maybe I've just seen too many Star Trek trailers lately. ;)

baxter - Smooth, clean designs. I particularly like Destruction in his war regalia, although the almost serene quality of Despair is very nice too.

Dream-Sear: Fantastic take on Desire. The ambiguous gender, the gilt and sort of sumptuous quality to the rendering, are all spot on. Great work.

Franna - A good take on Desire; I think you pushed the gender ambiguity really well, and I enjoy the little touches like the broken-heart belt buckle.

RichLyons - Nice! A lot of very interesting details both on the character and in the background, and I really like the idea of Destruction as a biker. Probably my favorite take on Destruction here.

bluefooted - This is a really interesting style you've chosen to work in and yet it fits perfectly. I really like the textures and subtle lined designs, and the branches of the heart reaching up and above Desire him/herself. There's less obvious playing with gender here, but still, it works.

nightblue: I really enjoyed the textures in your rendering on this, especially with the feathers and the realistic koi on strings. Delirium's expression is also neatly interested but not really focused. Very nice.

[Viridis]

Aaaand this is my post for people I didn't vote for, but still commented on.

Amber Alexander - The pose here is all right, and the concept of the costume is not bad, but overall there's a flatness and a stiffness to this piece that really dulls it down. The expression on her face is very distant and kind of strange, and it looks more like she's a model of a person than a person. This seems to be something that happened in the rendering process, because your initial sketch looks okay. (Also, if you wanted tattoos vs no tattoos, I would have put more tattoos on her right side.)

scottmcd- I think I actually liked the silhouette you had at first better. The cut-out tear and smile stood out much more than the more subtle glitter-tear, and I feel like we don't see as much contrast between the figure and silhouette in the final. I do like the increased glow of her fireflies, though.

Gothique - Well, you certainly get the emotion of despair in here. I like the little flames and the mirrors in the background, although I think maybe more of the mirrors would have been nice to see.

Dan! - I really like the subtle glowing patterns on Dream's skin, but it seems like the background is a little too muted and subdued? I almost want to see a darker, richer background to contrast with all that glow.

agnostes: Hmmm. I don't honestly think I would have picked this out as Dream if it wasn't labeled. It seems a little more like Destruction. There don't seem to be any of Dream's emblems, like the skull-helm or the ruby, that pick him out as "Dream". Even flame-patterns in that long cape would have done more to establish the character, I think.

Buckster: Is Death male here? I like the idea of the floating emblems by the head, but the gender-switch is a little odd. Interesting take on Dream's helm, though.

KleeWyck: I like this idea of a bird-Death with the ankh sword, but I think your first sketch design was a little better in terms of conveying a sort of winged elegance. In the final she looks a little more like some kind of spooky monster or ghost instead of Death, who, while a little scary for everyone, is usually pretty warm and welcoming as a character.

Poshspice: I like that you kept the playful, quirky character of Gaiman's Death, and the bubbles concept is interesting, but all the pink was a little much for me. Maybe a little more contrast between the figure and the background?

FridayEve: Did you get cut? That's a shame, I rather liked this version of Delirium. I can totally see her walking around in the human world and forgetting for awhile, so she ends up in a mental institution (but still makes fish to play around with.) The piece is sketchy, true, but I rather think it works for this one.

KayOnim: Death as a little girl works, the blatant reaper silhouette doesn't quite. They really try to avoid the reaper and scythe imagery in Sandman (I think Death actually cracks a joke about it at some point) and it doesn't read as well as Gaiman's Death as much as a slightly different take on the traditional idea.

psantha: Nice work; I especially like the book with its many bookmarks hanging out. A solid rendering of Destiny, even if he seems a little more... overwhelmed by his burden than coolly detached as we often see him.

AvisNocturna: Very nice. I didn't vote for this one, but it was definitely among the top entries, I thought. I like the detail of the design behind Desire, as well as the casual but inviting pose. (And the cigarette, which I think is something also common to Desire but not as well-known). There is something a little odd about the face, though, and I think maybe if you had s/he turned towards the viewer and engaging us a bit more, it might be more effective.

Sekino: I also didn't see yours in the poll, which is too bad. I really like the simple style you used, while still getting versions of Despair and Death that are different from the comics but convey a lot of character. Of the two, I think the design for Death is maybe a little more interesting, but still, kudos for doing two designs in a week.

jpedro: The colors, pose, and design of this one are really nice, but I can't quite wrap my head around a purely-female Desire. The kinda-male kinda-female aspect is really central to the character, and seeing the character as totally female just doesn't quite fit the prompt, in my opinion.

spaztastic: I like the handling of Despair here, but the handling of the background less so. The calligraphy is okay-- it's readable, but while it kinda works on the headstone it seems a little awkward floating in the air, and the overall snow effect is a little too smudgey and blurred to really give that cold and bleak sense of atmosphere.

Adi. - I think my issue with this one is that the figure just looks too "human". She looks like a woman dressed up in a punk outfit, not really like a personification of Death, cheerful or otherwise. She looks like a movie character concept, but not much at all like Gaiman's idea of Death.

hungryan - I actually quite like this painting style, but I think the poofy pants fit the design a little better. Very loose and sort of primitive looking, which just makes it more interesting. It reminds me a little of some kind of aboriginal design, and for a character who is all about stories and legends that seems very appropriate.

kurios- The idea of a steampunk Death is a really cool one, but overall I feel you didn't do enough development and rendering here to really sell the idea. The pose is fun and the top hat is great, but a lot of the cool part of steampunk is all about the textures-- silk and lace, heavy velvet curtains, the ruffles and folds of fabric-- and those just aren't really very well described here.

....aaand I missed some people, but I'm about critiqued out now. Oy. That took far longer than I was expecting. Still. Great round, everybody.

[MichaelNoel]

MichaelNoel - A very different take on Death, and yet this one actually works for me, unlike some of the others. Was the subtle nod to the scythe with the ankh and the moon deliberate? If so, it's a clever touch, alluding to the traditional death without being obvious.
Aye, it was supposed to be there, but didn't want it to be.. erm, too obvious so as to seem gimmicky. Thanks for the comments, this round was ridiculously good, and I was impressed with the sheer number of quality works. Voted for three people, but every other piece here was deserving of a vote. T_T

[blackcherry]

Ah man, I think this is one of the toughest rounds I've voted for. I liked so many of the entries and it was a tough call to pick my usual three favourites. So here it goes:

Fersteger: A stunning entry. The character, colours, lighting and style of the piece are amazing as well as the background details. I love how she's holding the sundial n her toe and I really like the shades :) the dog looks particularly cool! Nice rendering of water too.

jpedro: I love your desire! She's like a superhero with her cool outfit, which is sexy, bright and has logos. I like the touches of a yo-yo and her whip forming the heart on the floor. Also I love the colours used, and also your style of colouring and the lighting around her body. she really stands out!

Markito: I really love the style of this one. It's cute, fun as well as being quite dark. The character designs for both Delirium and Despair are great and I like the other details in the piece too.

---

Other entries which I really loved were:

Poshspice: I really like your character design of death going emo! Love the colours and style of your piece as well as the concept with the bubbles.

Rodimus25: Great interpretation of Dream. The pose is great and I really like his expression and the blue decorative symbols on and around his body. Nice colouring too!

RickLyons: Another great character design with 'character'. I like your biker version of Destruction with his cute dog. The expressions on both are great. Really like the background/other details of the pieces too.

Arthur Two Sheds: I like the darker side of Dream, he's very menacing looking. I like the dark feel to your piece with the colours, and his expression. I also like his pose and the added touch of the dream-catcher around his neck.

Buckster: The dark feel to your entry with the bright symbols around dream really caught my attention. I love the atmosphere in the piece and I liked your potrayal of death but I didn't feel it quite fit the 'endless' interpretation.

Dan: I really like the lighting effects in your piece, especially with the decorations on and around dream's body. It looks really cool and works really well with the darker tones of the rest of the image.

Nichols: Great concept for destiny with all the books and the pages flying around. Nice lighting too.

Great round everyone who entered :)

[Amber Alexander]

I just wanted to thank the people that take the time to comment on who they didn't vote for, knowing the main thing we can improve on is very helpful, thank you :) I'm using all this feedback for the fairy so hopefully we'll see a noticeable difference.

[scottmcd]

There are a lot this time. Here are some comments.

fersteger: Very nice. The dog's nose ring cracks me up. I almost voted for it, but Delirium seems too mentally together to me. I don't see her as being together enough to have attitude. :) Nice job on the rendering and pose.

Amber Alexander: It seems like the easy comment to make, but I'd suggest as much life drawing as you can manage. She seems stiff. I like the book Force: Dynamic Figure Drawing for Illustrators - I think it might give you some good ideas.

Gothique: How creepy! I like the drip at the bottom of the frame. I think the hair could have been more snaky and curvy.

Dan!: One of my favorites since you first posted it. I don't see the indistinct background as a problem. vote

agnostes: I like the finished version of this quite a bit more than the WIPs. Knowing that he's about to go in to face Hell makes the armor and pose make sense. Otherwise, I can see the comments about Destruction. Looks like you could have used more time in the lower legs and the bg.

elliste: Cool hand puppet. The style on this one is too realistic to be a cartoon, but too exaggerated and flat in places to be realistic. For example, there's good volume around the breasts and torso, but not on the hand covering her face.

LM: Suitably strange. Her near shoulder could use some more form. And like I said in the thread, awesome boots.

KleeWyck: I like the concept. There's a stiffness there that the same book I recommended to Amber Alexander might help.

Poshspice: Nice work and cool bubbles. Is it OK if I find the idea of Death crossed with Britney Spears truly terrifying? This is the creepiest one of the lot. :) Can't think of anything to recommend on the rendering/technical side.

FridayEve: Nice work and neat idea for the psych hospital clothing.

dream_sear: Something about this one bothers me, but I can't figure out what. Technically I think it's awesome, and Desire certainly is gender-ambiguous. Actually, I think it's my reaction to the figure itself rather than anything to do with the artwork. Lip rings have always slightly creeped me out. The expression is quite aggressive, too. The transition from volume around the face to flat rendering around the legs and an iconic snake head (heh) is really well done. Very nice work.

Tommoy: Not sure about this one. I like the drawing quite a bit, but I'm not sure which of the Endless it is. Dream? My 10 year old wasn't sure either. (No, she hasn't read the comics but she's aware of who the Endless are.)

Ramza: The fish-hook as a hand weapon is cool and sort of reminds me of David Mack's Kabuki. Your style also reminds me a bit of his later versions of Kabuki also. I like the hands coming up from the bottom. The bottom area is quite dark on my monitor and it's hard to see what's going on, though.

Rodimus25: That's quite a chin on Dream. Modeled on Bruce Campbell, right? ;) The transition from lower belly to pelvis to pants doesn't quite work for me. Nice glowing tattoos. Might be neat to see one detaching from him.

KayOnim: I like the concept better than the execution. Mainly I think it's the girl's anatomy. Obviously from mine I like the stylized, cartoon approach. The arm with the teddy bear seems to be on backwards. I think the legs work well, though the lines could be smoothed out some. (I'm still working on that as well.)

Wheezy: A nice figure and pose, clean linework and coloring. I think the hair works best.

The Original E: My biggest problem with this is a preconception from having read the comic. Destruction is more of the reluctant soldier type who'd rather compose a poem than go into battle. Unfortunately, he's a crappy poet. On the drawing side, the pose is stiff. I'd like to see a little more twist and angling between the pelvis and the torso.

AvisNocturna: Nice work, and my favorite part is the window background. Desire itself looks off it's butt drunk because of the red nose and general posture. Nice detail on the pants, which calls attention to the less defined rendering on the sleeves, which are nearer the face and point of interest.

Nightblue: Best essence of Delirium out of all of the, IMO. The eyes and mouth do it. Nice work on the koi, too. The thigh seems too skinny to me, but I'm not sure. vote

DarthMarsh: Great lighting and excellent sense of volume. I'd like to see a little more rendering on the legs - probably a time issue. vote

Franna: Seems a little flat to me, and I'm not sure if that's a stylistic choice or not. As someone else said, the heart belt buckle is awesome, and so is the expression on the face.

Sekino: My favorite Death, and I think the best translation to another culture here. :) Nice work. vote

jpedro: Nice work, but not the least bit gender ambiguous (at least to me). I love the yo-yo.

bluefooted: Lovely, and the claws are great. vote

NicHolS: Good feet! The right arm doesn't really read for me - my eye gets confused as to what's going on. Really cool atmosphere. The lower part of the book is great.

Spaztastic: Nice drawing and figure. Not the Despair I picture, but that's the point I guess. There's something off about the foot and the near knee. Good volumen and rendering around the face.

ArthurTwoSheds: Quite a nightmare there. The third finger on the hand seems off, but I'm nit-picking here. Nice work.

RichLyons: Very nice job, and great puppy! The background seems unfinished to me, but I think the saturation on it is just right. Actually I'm just greedy - it's a very well done background that - because it's a weekly activity - just didn't have the time to be finished. (?)

IIKII: Would like to see more twist and angle difference between torso and pelvis. Nice hair.

Adi: Lovely pose,rendering, and fabric. Nice lighting. I don't get the Death vibe from her, ankhs not withstanding.

hungryan: I think you nailed the brief. It's obviously Dream and obviously for a different (alien?) culture. I think the simpler background was a good move. I think the pose ended up a little stiff.

baxter: I was about to complain that Despair isn't obese, but then thought that in idealized Greek stories she wouldn't have been, would she? I'd like to see more hair behind her ear, though. The skull doesn't seem to have enough depth.

Mercuralis: I still want that coat. I think you worked out the sand coming from the hand quite well. Nice use of sigils.

Mythmaker: Really great. In fact, I thought I'd voted for you but it turns out I hadn't. *grumble* Consider yourself having an extra vote. Great alien/god skull. The knee and boot on the leg coming towards us doesn't work quite right, I I think.

Ack - out of time. Nice round all.

[Aly Fell]

Thanks for the crits and observations on mine. Much appreciated!Sorry I'm not as active in the crit department, but it is down to time and a complicated life. NicHolS - I didn't actually look at Chris Bachalo's Death for this except in passing. I love his work, but the swirly colour inspiration came from 'Shade: The Changing Man', another Bachalo comic from a similar time as Sandman. But yes, I love Joe Chiodo as well; alot! So he got in too! :) Cheers!

[Lou Siefer]

Damn wish I'd known about this Chow that was happening. Good job all these are great!

[PuppyKitten]

I voted for Agnostes, Buckster, pepps, Nichols, Arthur 'Two Sheds', Tommoy, bluefooted, poshspice, Ryuloulou, Dan, and psantha...

But there were so many pretty ones this round, I really had to limit myself or I would've voted for a lot more. :P

[Nerahla]

Voted for some, but Nichols' took my breath away. Best one by a landslide. Well done all.

[orchitect]

AvisNocturna: Wonderful rendering. You really nailed the character and portrayed him/her in a new way. Well done.

[Gothique]

I try to observe your reactions an learn from them...althrough I would like to ask for some comments or advices to my picture from anyone having some time (could be as a private message) cause I start to feel it is crap and I don´t know why...thanks a lot

[quickreaver]

Hrmm. Well, firstly, if you feel like crap right now, you MIGHT be in the wrong profession. You've gotta have a thick skin, but that comes with time and rejection. ;)

I think you did a solid job. The anatomy is believable, it certainly portrays Despair, and I like the drips you added that broke out of the picture frame. Perhaps it could've been a little more carefully rendered, and the lighting more thoughtfully depicted. The lack of value ranges...specifically your mid-tones...made it tough to read many of your great ideas, like the hooks and hair.

But perhaps the biggest thing to take away from this...and I have this issues too...is think about your design and composition with more creativity and originality. A great design/concept will capture the veiwer's eye quicker and more passionately than the most realistically rendered image.

Hope this helped!