Creature and princess (nudity)

[Ignatz]

I drew a pencil sketch of this design a while ago and decided to go ahead and color it in. The subject and style is heavily influenced by Frazetta.

Crits and tips welcome.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v447/ignatz/album%2012/creatureandgirlcolor2copy.jpg

[Pavel Sokov]

awesome!! frazzeta and simon bisley looking pic..
i love that style!! make more like this

[thebluepuppy]

an ametuer copys. a professional steals. remember that. could you paint something frazetta inspired if i said you could only use a armadillo and a trash can?

[Gilead]

Frazetta inspired? Yes it certainly is! But in a good way. There are so many people out there who just lift pieces of Frazetta paintings, rearrange them and call it original work.
It's gratifying to see someone who can actually make up something new and just say "OK how would Frank paint this?"
nice job.

[Lake]

very cool.
I think I might want to see just a little more contrast, but hey, that's me, whatever. I don't know what I'm talking about.

Excellent piece, again.

What did you use to color it in?

[Gilead]

Panda how would it even be Possible to have more contrast than this pic? It's a night scene. night scenes won't have much color, just value. This picture has value contrast in spades.

[Sim]

The negative space between the wings is really popping out for me. My eyes keep getting drawn above the creature's cranium where the action isn't. I'm finding it uncomfortable to let my eyes move horizonally I think pushing the wings to the background more by fading them out slightly might cure this and also contribute to the sense of scale/depth. Allowing a little air space above the wings would also decrease the feeling of shapes within the composition being closed of from one another.

[Teknoholic]

I find it a little distracting where her spear point hits his bracer.

And all you dorks know what I mean.

[|NTeRN]

i love how you nailed frazzettas round hip/ ass girl look. very nice. but i think you need to worn on her back and hip anatomy a bit. her lower half is nice but the upper is lacking.

the gargolye its self is very stunning. nice nice lighting and anatomy
also the clouds could use a bit of work too.

an ametuer copys. a professional steals. remember that. could you paint something frazetta inspired if i said you could only use a armadillo and a trash can?

blue puppy do you even have a point? if you dont have a crit dont post. makes you look dumb

[Ignatz]

Thanks for the tips.

As for the center of interest, my actual intention was for the gargoyles face and shoulder area to be the center of interest. I wanted to draw the viewer to the grotesqueness of the Gargoyles face before moving to the naked girl. Kinda starting from top to bottom rather than left to right. (Kinda risky trying to make someone look an an ugly monster rather than a butt). Thats part of the reason I positrioned everything in the center rather than having action coming from the left. (even though there really isnt any action going on...yet)

I see what you mean about being drawn above the cranium though. A little too high above the mark I was aiming for. Ill soften the wings, and darken the light area of the sky a bit to see if that works.
Ill also darken the braces on the creature so it doesnt lo9ok like the spear is touching it.

In the mean time I wnet ahead and touched up the girls back -

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v447/ignatz/album%2012/creatureandgirlcolo3copy.jpg

[Main Loop]

everything's too stuck in the middle.. no eye flow.. Frazetta would never do a composition like that, and for good reason

[Ignatz]

everything's too stuck in the middle.. no eye flow.. Frazetta would never do a composition like that, and for good reason

Frazetta would never do what?

http://www.societyillustrators.org/permanent_collection/images/frazetta_f.jpg

http://artnews.wz.cz/obrazky/galerie/200402210002_003%20frazetta_paradox.jpg

http://nwn2.ath.cx/modules/xcgal/albums/userpics/10002/normal_Frank%20Frazetta%20-%20Death%20Dealer%20II.jpg

http://www.turtle4dog.com/frazetta/frazetta6.jpg

http://www.thedragonsgallery.co.uk/shop/images/f138.jpg

http://mail.ultinet.org/saggi/frazetta/bloodstone.jpg

About 30 to 40 percent of Frazettas paintings were centered, with the action and characters all positioned in the middle of the painting. There was no "left to right" flow in these type of paintings.

.

[nacho_grande]

As a fan of Frazetta and Vallejo I love the artwork very much. I would like to see more examples of the style you use.

[Joey-b]

damn,. thats good.. hmm wanna crit but cant find anything.. one small thing..

the sky could use some more details.. but thats it.. great job.. its just so good..

[jpedro]

really nice work man. if i may give my two cents, i would kindof expect the gargoyles wings to look a bit "more attached"...they look just a little like the were another BG element and he was standing in fornt of 'em....but maybe that's just me, and dont wanna be nitpicking, since this is great. bravo!

[Arri.]

Awesome work Ignatz i love it <3 <3 <3

if i may give my two cents also, i would say that the skin look too monochromatic you shoul add more hues like frazzeta do it and the gargoyle expresion is sad instead of agresive or threatening.I hope this help you ;)

[Pavel Sokov]

i like simon bisley as much or more then frazetta.. their style is super badass..
love that mamoth ( is that the word? ) pic.. so badass..

[Capprotti]

I've been watching this thread for a while now. First let me say that you did a fine job on this painting. The only things I would say about it is that it doesn't really pop, the colors are pretty dull. This might be a stylistic thing, but it doesn't seem to be justified. This type of illustration doesn't lend itself to such a desaturated pallette. You want to create tension, or a sense of danger, and I don't get that from any of these colors. And the other thing I'd say is that her calves are huge, you might wanna just thin those up a little bit.

Ok, now onto the other thing I wanted to say. Looking at this painting, I don't see your voice at all. It screams Frazetta. Composition, subject matter and painting technique. Every one has copied they're favorite artist at one point or another, but they eventually find other things that inspire them, and combine all those inspirations, plus a little something (actually the most important something) that comes from inside themselves. Whether it be their colors, their subject matter, composition, medium, technique, etc... Jeffrey Jones used to paint very much like Frazetta, but soon found that finding his own voice was much more rewarding. If you're familiar with Mike Hoffman, than you know that there are Frazetta clones out there. If you don't know who MIke Hoffman is than that's even more reason to find your own voice. I talked to Frank Frazetta Jr. and he was telling me just how much they hate Hoffman (although I think he put hit a little more gently while he gritted his teeth), and how they areare furious about him making money off of his Fathers hard work.

Please understand that I'm not bashing you or your art at all. In fact this was a pretty succesful peace. The reason I went on such a rant is because I can see the talent you have now, and the potential of your talent in the future. I don't want you to waste too much time working in some one else's style, instead I want you to find ways to make your work stand out and above the rest. That's impossible to do if people are already so familiar with what you're doing. Again I hope you don't take this personally, and I hope that it helps you in some way. I can't wait to see what you post next.

Take Care
Mike

[Capprotti]

I just checked out your other threads. They look great, and they're soo rich in color. And it was nice to see a range of styles and techniques. Good stuff, keep up the progress.

[nonie]

I think the wings need a little work... Everything else is pretty anatomically correct. Those wing really look unrealistic compared to everything else, since they just curve rather than having an elbow joint. I'm also kinda unsure about the Y of her butt-crack (it looks too dark - here's a butt (http://www.female-anatomy-for-artist.com/free/Kneeling_Pose_0084.JPG) - not the same position but maybe it'll help). Really great job on the gargoyle's face and shoulders! Other than my little complaints, this is a really well-done piece. Lots of great shading and value.

[sevencrows]

nice job would make a nice black t shirt design.

[zandernice]

I dont normally post, but I just wanted to say:

its a great study in my opinion, but one thing stands out to me more than anything else...
THe area between the wings is more saturated than the rest of the painting & really throws off the balance. I think this is why some one else said that the their eyes are forced to that spot. The problem with that is that its the not where the action is happening. I would suggest saturating or adding contrast to some place towards the bottom of the image to so the eye has somewhere to go.

Great work,

[Ignatz]

Thanks for the post Caprotti...And theres no need to assume that Im taking your comments as bashing. I fully understand your point of view and welcome it.

I do have a few things to point out though -

1) This isnt my usual style of painting (As you may have noticed by looking at my other artwork). This was just a one time thing inspired by Frazetta.

2) As for the girls calves, I would have made them thinner but Frazetta usually makes them thicker (look at the other Frazetta paintings I posted.)

3) Thanks for the info on Mike Hoffman...Ive heard of him but never seen his work. I did meet Frazetta himself about 12 or 13 years ago at his museum in Pensylvania and spoke to him for about an hour about his work. At the time I think he was prepairing to movie his museum somewhere but I dont know if he went through with it.

Anyhow, thanks for the pointers.

And thanks to everyone else for the comments.

Ignatz

.

[carnalizer]

Hey, that looks really great! Difficult getting recognition while mentioning mr Fraz. I guess he is a holy cow of sorts. I just wanted to say that the influence was instantly visible to me and I loved your color choices since (even though I love FF's work) I think he uses far to much saturated colors. And everybody else of the time...

Only thing that bugs me is the girls butt where there is a really dark triangle above the crack. It reads like the genitals to me and you don't want to think "mmm hairy..." about a girls bottom. Sorry if someone else already said this but it was a too lengthy thread to read carefully.. :hatsoff:

[Odds]

Dayum! Great work here, do some more and post 'em! Actually, I think the centered composition works well for this piece. Keep it up. ;)

[Ignatz]

Yet again Id like to say thanks for the crits, tips and comments (both positive and negative). I feel that the best lessons come from the negative comments as they tend to pin point the poroblem.

I also want to say again that this Frezatta type painting is not my style and I dont usually draw this way. I actually had to go outside of my normal illsutrating habbits trying to get this look. I do work as graphic artist but in no way do I make my living by selling Frazetta styel paintings. This was just a Frazetta study I did for myself.

My normal style is basically a simple generic comic book/ fantasy art style.


Ignatz

[BlackKitty]

Frazetta would never do that. But first, I like yours, I'm not bashing you, just explaining why Frazetta jump out at you and this one doesn't so much, so that you can take the skill you used for this one and really do it justice with Frazetta-like composition. :)

The composition you have circles around without much direction except inward.

In your first example, in the words of Rage Against The Machine, check the diagonals. This is a very forceful composition, and the twisted pose of the figure creates tension against the straights of the falling trees. Contrast that with the curved tusks and you have a circular motion that leads you again and again to the dynamics between the beast's eyes and his prey/attacker, both in motion violently against each other.

Second example: The strong verticals of the columns push your eyes down hard, the soft swirls of the pool gently lead your eyes both back to the focal point, the flexed, yet slowly moving warrior. The softness of the harpies creates movement in their wings and bodies that gives an equally tense action to go with the tight warrior, yet its softness and ambiguity is just enough that it's an integral part of the composition, yet does not detract from the central figure. The tension between the elements helps to create a mystery, the story that makes you come up with an action sequence in your own brain, the question: what's going on and what's going to happen next???

Third: Action. You can feel each blow land. You can't get much more force from a directional composition than this one. Match it with a purple master hue contrasting with oversaturated orange complements and you have a composition that not even DD's scythe can compete with. And don't forget the 3 T's: tension, tension, tension!

Fourth image: This thing flows. You can feel it not only twisting and jerking around, but your eye slithers around the central focal point, since the snake is positioned to make your eye do exactly that. Frazetta once said he can make a fist, but if he's going to make it, he's going to make it the biggest fist he can so that you can feel it coming out at you. It's the same premise here, don't just make a snake, make the position exactly represent the movement you want your viewer to experience. It's chaotic and wild, and yet there is full tension there so that you can feel the gorilla really pushing and pulling against something. Then, in the middle left, you have an ambiguous shape that pushes your eye back into the center when it wanders, the diagonal in the upper left to lead you back to the snake head, and all the diagonals along the right edge pushing you back to the center without being obvious. Subtlety is what makes the magic happen.

Next, the composition is the story. You have an incredibly strong vertical column, and the two main figures are the key. What is happening here? What has happened? Oh no, what is going to happen next?? The two figures are dark, and their shadows are full of detail that gives us clues to what's going on. Forget that there's a giant brain behind them, that is there to provide a bright contrast to the figures, and keep your eye from wandering away from where it needs to be.. the point of impact! Then there are the subtleties like how the intercostal arch of the standing figure mimics the upper curve of the brain, effectively separating the top half of this figure from its bottom half, creating movement subliminally as the colors oscillate and make your eyes move.

In the last one, what is the main focus, the sword dripping with blood? No, it's the huge brawny chest that subliminally is crafted to imply a skull. Everything leads you back down to it. The mist guides you gently back up when you go down to far, making movement that contrasts the stillness of the figure. The dripping blood moves you down, and the straight arms lead you back to the center. The flowing beard and hair create a wispy movement that contrasts the tension in every muscle, and the necklace points you right back to the sternum. His eyes are looking not at the blood of victory but to his hand on the hilt, creating a thin triangular area that doesn't let your eyes break from the composition like they would if the eyes were looking at the blood. The belt creates a visual break from the torso and facilitates the darkness of the legs, which causes them to recede into the mist and your brain fills in their details and doesn't ask for clarification. The curvature of the upper edge of the bloodstone guides you back to the skull-chest, and the purple undertones of his skin are pushed into the visual forefront by the contrasting green and orangey red, which are themselves contrasting each other.

In all of these, and every painting from all artists whose style you want to emulate, don't take from them "what they do" in the sense of "figure in the middle, dark muted colors, evil gargoyle... ta da!! Painting!!" Instead, take from it the concepts. Where do you want the focal point to be. If it's your gargoyle's head, don't make the girl's rear end so attractive and distinct. You want to lead eyes around the painting, don't mimic the negative space curve between the wings in the lower corners of the painting. The sign of a perfect painting isn't what you put in, it's what you didn't put in that people see. Put in enough to make people see in their minds what you want them to see, but don't tell them what to see. Leave it up to their imaginations. Then the painting is more powerful and people create the story. Put in tension. Nothing is absolutely still in life, unless it's dead. Then it's not "in life". Make your characters off-balance, I mean visibly off-balance, and they will move in people's minds. Close up the position between characters to create a sense of immediacy, even if they are supposed to be far apart -- make the illusion. And then your paintings will have life, energy, tension, and will not only tell a story, but make the viewer create stories to explain what's going on, enhancing their interest and giving them ownership of the story and your painting.

That's what Frazetta does. :)

Keep up the good work!


Frazetta would never do what?

http://www.societyillustrators.org/permanent_collection/images/frazetta_f.jpg

http://artnews.wz.cz/obrazky/galerie/200402210002_003%20frazetta_paradox.jpg

http://nwn2.ath.cx/modules/xcgal/albums/userpics/10002/normal_Frank%20Frazetta%20-%20Death%20Dealer%20II.jpg

http://www.turtle4dog.com/frazetta/frazetta6.jpg

http://www.thedragonsgallery.co.uk/shop/images/f138.jpg

http://mail.ultinet.org/saggi/frazetta/bloodstone.jpg


About 30 to 40 percent of Frazettas paintings were centered, with the action and characters all positioned in the middle of the painting. There was no "left to right" flow in these type of paintings.

.