Brer Robot (ink drawing)

[nonie]

A sleazy businessman once convinced the elderly mayor of this sleepy village that there were enemeies all around him and old him a pricey giant robot guard force. The robots have been standing around the town walls, vigilant but useless, for fifty years. This bot, whose model name is Brother and who happens to have a beautiful view of the sunset every night, has become a popular hangout and picnic spot.

That's the story. .0025 Hi-Tec-C pen on an 8"x10" paper. I'm kind of afraid the central composition is too boring, but he was going to just be a sketch and I got a little too into my new pen. I went for pointilism in the background to try to make it sort of out-of focus... Crits and opinions are much appreciated :)

http://www.winonanelson.com/blah/brerrobot.jpg

[arghmisfit]

niiiice :confident

[Octocorn]

The more I think about this peice, the more I love it. A+ for concept. I've never thought about the fact that mechs/big robots don't necessarily move around all the time, and that they would inevitably collect graffiti. Really nicely drawn, as well. Great detail; its apparent the amount of time spent on the peice. That time and attention to detail really fits with the mood and backstory. :confident

[terp]

nonie, your piece brought me to post after almost a year of lurking(!)
the style you chose on this was really different and refreshing.
the sense of derelictness (is that a word?) is really apparent, and
i really get a sense of a breeze blowing through the piece...sweet!

the only crit i could give is maybe to add 1 or 2 more scale cues.
it took me a second to get a sense of scale. cool!

[STickmANsaysHI]

AMAZING

do you ever get frustrated while working with such large amounts of detail?
whenever i think about pointilism i always get the urge to tear up a sheet of paper or perhaps papercut my eye in sheer frustration.

but this is just amazing, i love the whole feel - everything.

great work.

[nonie]

STickmANsaysHI: I get this mixture of pure hatred and utter fascination when working in ridiculous detail like that. I had to put the thing down over and over just because my arm was sore and my eyes wouldn't focus. I even had a dream in pointilism :P

But I usually like my stuff better when I spend obscene amounts of time on them. And it was a new pen - I always get a thrill from new supplies.

terp: I guess you do really have to look to figure out just how big he is. Good point.

[PaulGanguly]

I thought "this is kinda cool" and then I saw the graffiti.

I think I find the stippling a little distracting, but overall, I like the concept. The giant robot just standing there. I'm kind of a sucker for abandoned shit, and introducing mechs to the principle of urban decay is a pretty appealing idea.

It stands to reason though. I mean, just look at trainyards. The cars are all covered in graffiti. Why not a stagnant mech as well?

Good job.

[Blahm]

wow, carple tunnel syndrome anyone! looks awsome. the only thing is im having trouble making out the shapes of the robot. mostly its upper body.

[Sems]

" all around him and old him a pricey giant robot" Im assuming you ment sold not old, really nice pic I like how you put the graffiti on him in the bottom and all the detail you put into this piece :)

[OSU_Samurai]

I gotta ask, how much time did this take? Stippling that well takes some serious time, and those hatches with all the detials, it just makes me drool. Nice pic Nonie!

[madplanet]

Very nice. I would hate to crit a piece that took so long, and my only observation is that the robot looks as out of focus as the background. Maybe a bit darker with the shadow areas? I agree with everyone else about the graffiti; it's the little touches that can really make a piece.

[nonie]

It didn't really take all that long - maybe a total of about 20 hours. I may try this concept in paint, but I don't know when I can get to it. I was already using time I should have spent on another project.

madplanet - I can see what you mean - I think the scanned upped the contrast a bit, though it's there in the original as well.

Here are a couple detail shots of the scale cues - the picnickers and some travelers:

http://www.winonanelson.com/blah/brerdetail1.jpg

http://www.winonanelson.com/blah/brerdetail2.jpg

[alexx]

Great job. I like the story and the drawing. Well done.

[STickmANsaysHI]

perhaps if you had a slightly higher resolution image of the piece that would help people

i also like the other abandoned robots in the background that are connected to him

[wassermelone]

Its very nice, like the rest of the people, I like the concept.



I wish there wasn't a uniform outline to him though. I think it really flattens the mech when everything else has a nice 3d quality to it.

[CreationEdge]

The story is awesome, it's what really caught me, but then I noticed how thorough you were when this was just supposed to be a "sketch". The other mechs in the background, the graffiti, the humans.

Seriously though... I might have to borrow that story idea... Hmm...