Chow #014 VOTING - The Egyptian Lich

[S.C. Watson]

THE EGYPTIAN LICH

Fantasy/Historical

Known only as the Egyptian Lich, this abomination is responsible for the curse of Lord Fredrickson. It is served by it's eternal guard, mummies of servants from ages past.
______

trevor
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v48/trevorclaxton/sketches/EgyptianLichFinal.jpg

Jonoy
http://i10.photobucket.com/albums/a134/jonoy/lichpharoah.jpg

Uziel
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v287/jarrafatti/Scannen0005c.jpg

redehlert
http://www.cognitionstudio.com/conceptart/chow14_wipJan25.jpg

Bammer
http://webspace.ringling.edu/~gbahm/YesyYesyFin.jpg

OurSin
http://ic1.deviantart.com/fs9/i/2006/028/3/5/Lich___Final__by_OurSin.jpg

Mr.Blonde
http://alduar.iseenothing.com/jan/chow35-8.jpg

matias
http://home.austarnet.com.au/esjakku/Egyptian%20Lich.jpg

VirusArtist
http://www.virusarts.com/mostrecent/lichking.jpg

xgabo
http://www.gabo.ca/lych.jpg

bwkeough
http://nand.net/~keough/sketchbook/egyptian_lich_fin.jpg

chaosrocks
http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e181/chaosrocks/ch-lichw.jpg

DazWatford
http://img93.imageshack.us/img93/2480/dazimageshackchow14el6hm.jpg

Marley
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v648/marty_dude/Anubis-3web2.jpg

ParkerD
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v678/ParkerD/parker-test.jpg

endregan
http://www.visiblesurface.com/painting/endreganlich.jpg

newman
http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e197/bennewman/resizedlich2.jpg

cakeypigdog
http://i45.photobucket.com/albums/f87/cakeypigdog/lich3.jpg

masque
http://www.metrocast.net/~chipartist/ImagePost/LordFredricksonsCurse.jpg

Bennett
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v238/jbennett304/LichyPreview.jpg

[S.C. Watson]

goran
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v17/smogyboy/characters/lich.jpg

Phaethon
http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a44/Phaethon/lich2.jpg

Helzon
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v283/Helzon/mywife1.jpg

BlkCelebration
http://www.strangereaction.com/imagehost/albums/userpics/10046/redsorn12.jpg

Corrick
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b51/Corrick/Lich_sm2.jpg

ecsdesign
http://www.ecsdesignvfx.com/personal/images/egyptLichSketch_v01.jpg

cognition.sb
http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f107/cognitionsb/CHOWegypt-lich2-sb28jan06.jpg

Idiot Apathy
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v13/Ragnarok27/Chow11-Final-Crop.jpg

PaulGanguly
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v292/paulganguly/Sketches_/Lich_5.gif

darth massacre
http://www.massivebias.com/sketchbook/lich.jpg

morbidhumor
http://home.comcast.net/~bcrart/chow14.jpg

[redehlert]

so many good entries this round!
sorry i never had a chance to work up my entry beyond my quick bic pen sketch and minor digi workup...please forgive me good peeps!
i just had to vote for trevor this round! the dynamic pose and the strong composition with fore, mid and background considerations made this all too good.
other entries i seriously admired were...well, damn it(!), a good lot of ya!
peace and chicken grease!
d

[Corrick]

Voted for ecsdesign. I'm gender biased, and I dig the perspective and rendering.

Great work all around?

[Jonoy]

Just updated my pic, then realised that this thread was a poll! D'oh!
Anyways... voted for Masque; the style and the iconic layout.
...and they followed the criteria...

[OurSin]

...i figured out what was wrong with photobucket, file was a little to big lol..

this link should work better than the first one i posted.... http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f150/OurSin_Is/LichColor2.jpg

sorry about that

[darth massacre]

Masque, Trevor, Mr Blonde, Virus, Matias......... eeny money meeny moe. mmmmmm


Went with Masque.

[Idiot Apathy]

Oof, voting was tuff. *Pops in his secret ballot* *Yeah I know it's visible*

[Chuck,mate.]

idiot apathy - you get my vote. for the most original, beautifuly painted, scary like hell , concept.
keep it up, dude.

masque - you were my runnerup. great piece.
love the angle, the colors, and the atmosphere. kudos.

helzon - you got some penciling skillz that just make me go muthafuckasonovabitchdamnyoubastard!!
i envy you.

bwkeough - gorgeous art work. loved it alot.

the rest of you guys - awesome entries all around.
didn`t get the chance to even work on an entry myself this time. no biggie.
:)

[VirusArtist]

for me it was a serious tie between masque and trevor.. both follow the description, are eerie as hell and well executed on top of that... in the end I voted for trevor... love the dramatic approach and composition.

kudos to: mr blonde (original approach), matias (style), dazwatford (love the style), and cakeypigdog (CRAZY idea and execution!).

dudes... you people made my week :)

cheers,
Etienne

[asoir]

You've outdone yourself all. Parker, great shading on the face. Also, I'm really liking Daz's entry. But trevor's was too powerful not to vote. Great stuff!

[Helzon]

Chuck;mate: thanks man...that is a high compliment. As such it made me laugh, so it goes under my avatar... Cheers!

[Chuck,mate.]

Chuck;mate: thanks man...that is a high compliment. As such it made me laugh, so it goes under my avatar... Cheers!

you`re very welcomed.
it`s nice to know my agony is your delight.
:wink:

[noche]

voted for mr.blonde, cause of the strong character and originality. (are you influenced by justin sweet?)
its not a hardboard figurine...
idiot apathy is my 2d choice. color has a mean there, nice.

when i vote for a char, i try to isolate it and think of it in a neutral -or static- pose, if the char still holds itself, then it has something. composition and extra lightining shouldnt be of much importance here -needed- but not something to really judge after..

masque, trevor. nice execution, but too cliche.

[neoknocker]

Trevor.
Great concept! Even if it is a classic vision, you rendered the work awesomely.

[OurSin]

if i Had to vote on sheer technical ability i'd have too hard of a descision so i'm going to vote on which design i like the best. And that's Masque's, I just really feel a sense of character to his design. Everyone did amazing work though, hopefully next time i can keep up with you all.

[sve]

I voted Mr.Blonde, because his character has a very vicious, disgusting, dangerous nature, but he did everything not to say it straightforwardly. The colors, pose, gesture, the face, manner to paint are very subtle and elusive, yet the character makes me very uneasy. And it is very strong impression, but I got impressed with mild effects, i love this. The costume provokes my curiosity, and this sick, thin, yellow face. I like the image very much. That's an old paintings approach all the way, to captivate the spectator with gentle, but much more effective , long lived charm. Thank you, Mr. Blonde.

The next in my favorites are
bwkeough It's really beautiful and powerful painting, I wanted to vote for this too very much. Actually it's very close to Mr. Blonde mood, but style totally different. The face and the figure are very creepy. Those willowy thin legs and hands, the slipping from the total understanding sick, unpleasant and dangerous personality, passive pose, but danger in the air and colors and blood dripping from his weak hands. Awesome art! Love the play of light in the room. Thank you so much. That's great story telling, in my opinion.

DazWatford I love your image. The body language is so-o-o-o great, powerful, yet not screaming, love this a lot. The character is very strong, determined and soulless, killing machine. I like your original manner to express yourself so much. But I'm afraid that's what stands on your way to the top. You are too original and subtle, not using immediately acting effects. I love your artwork, very much so.

xgabo Awesome design and execution, Very strong and has a great impact on me. You didn't tell much about him, the pose and the face are very obvious, but I love your lines, colors, details, all this richness and power. The colors said more than pose. Love all these precious stone on this costume and the whole style of yours.

morbidhumor I like his pose, gesture and execution a lot, very creepy and unpredictable character.

Idiot Apathy I like your image a lot, the pose and look of the character are very interesting and tell a lot about his vicious nature. I'm in doubts about colors, they don't tell me much. Did you wanted earthy palette? The creature is surreal and magic, so I'm not sure about those colors you chose.
Thank you so much all.
Sveta

[fes]

My vote went to Trevor (tho it was a tough decision) because of composition and made me really want to look at it.

Others that caught my eye were:

Mr Blonde: but his costume reminded me of a ballet too too and it ruined the scary aspect for me... oops.

Xgabo: good character but I felt the geometric design on his kilt/skirt/toga thingy was too strong in contrast and diverted my attention from his face.

cakeypigdog: love the upper half, but lost me in the lower.

masque: great sense of magic and danger, your monotone colours didn't grab me at first but on second, third, forth inspection my appreciation grew. You were my second choice, 'cause you made me look and linger.

Helzon: Great line work and I particularly like the sense of scale and the creatures/mummies at the bottom. Lots of movement.

Morbidhumor: Great dynamic pose and linework.

That's all I've got time to type but good work from everyone! :)

[PaulGanguly]

Damn, I didn't get a chance to finish mine. Even if I had though, Masque and cakeypigdog had some absolutely killer entries. Good work all around, everyone.

-Paul

[cakeypigdog]

cool entries everyone!

where is my man toms though? he had a top submission in the previous thread but its missing from the poll!!!!

my vote goes to helzon.

i know its not done but the mummy monkeys are just so special!

thanks for the kind comments and the votes,

i would have liked to have resolve my image further but ive just had such a killer week. just too busy with DIY and other such meh!

[DazWatford]

Every week I try to step up my game a little, and just when I'm feeling good about my piece, a stack of incredible other entries get posted :nohope:

Again, so hard to vote this week, the standard keeps getting higher all round. I was really torn between Trevor (bold, dramatic, exceptional understanding of "glowing" lights, confidence in his treatment of the "undead horde", probably one of the most fearless approaches to a painting that I've seen on conceptart) and Newman (out of all the designs, this was the only that really disturbed me in a "scary" way, I feel uneasy jus' lookin' at it ;) )

Eventually I went for Newman, as I figured the design is the important part (and Trevor's got enough votes not to feel put out ;) )

Orignally posted by sve:

You are too original and subtle

LOL, Thanks for the backhanded compliment :D and I actually tried to rein myself in and not be too obscure this week too ;)

Thanks for kind words go to VirusArtist and Asoir too

[sve]

to DazWatford
No, buddy, it wasn't a sarcasm. I really think your work is great. It's just you use modest colors combination, mild effects and your images are not big enough to make the viewer pay an attention. But you tell a lot in your art. And there is always some humorous touch in it, some exaggeration, except in your Lord Fredrickson character, nothing funny about him for me. I personally very happy with your style.

[masque]

voted for Mr. Blonde -- very strange and creepy in my eyes, and a well-rendered and unique approach to the "living mummy" idea.

others high on my list: Trevor (good drama, maybe a bit too much lighting FX, and that lich looks awfully healthy for an undead, but hey, maybe he's gone organic :teeth:); Bammer (good action and swirling lines, really defines the space in the pic, excellent use of full tonal range); bwkeough (love the sense of age in the lich, sweet use of patterned lighting, but his minions' poses seem awfully posed, a bit like 60's fash models); DazWatford (solid character rendering, good use of view angle); cakeypigdog (excellent skin textures and lighting, maybe a bit far from the brief but i understand your intent); helzon (hella good draftsmanship! concept strange but appealing); ecsdesign (love everything above the Ra symbol (heh heh... not just the boobs) but the lower half of the figure seems to lose some coherency. very good hues and lighting)

and thanks to those who gave mine votes and comments -- much appreciated!

[Idiot Apathy]

@Chuck_Mate: Wow, thanks for your compliments and vote mate :)
@Noche: Thanks for the 2nd choice! Was it for the color then?
@Sve: Thanks for the crit! I started with only colors in mind, I wanted a bright fire-orangeish background and a cool foreground. In hindsight I see what you mean about adding some mysticism etc. I'll have to think about how to do that properly, I just think sometimes things that are a little more grounded in reality are scarier; like it could really exist.

Thanks guys, I'll have to try to do this more often!

[DazWatford]

@ Sve:

It's just you use modest colors combination, mild effects and your images are not big enough to make the viewer pay an attention.

Ahhh, I think I'm beginning to understand what you mean, and no worries, no offence taken :D I'd actually like to chat to you more about this but I can't PM you, as your account is not set up to receive them (I was trying not to clutter the voting thread up too much :bashful: ) If you're OK with me contacting you directly could you PM me please? Or follow the "My Site" link on my Sig (my e-mail address is on there) Thanks

@ Masque:

Thanks for the kind words :D Good skills yourself. That tricksy perspective/view angle coulda gone all kinds o' wrong, but you've held it together beautifully.

[iomoon]

Masque got my vote but it took me a looooong time to decide. The POV won me in the end - along with the fact that he looks creepy as hell.

Ecsdesign would have got my vote if I could have seen just a hint of a face under that cowl. Perhaps the sinister glint off an eye. That background totally rocks.

Props to Bammer for a great dynamic shot and to Trevor for some serious spookiness.

Great work all. The standard these days is sensational.

[trevor]

ok i lost my damn mind and decided to spend an hour writing crits- im not sure i can tell anyone anything new but i did used to teach some classes so maybe some of the things i say may help or hurt or just lie there
too much great work this time around

redehlert- i wish you could have finished dude

Bammer- good balance of values
but i think you need to work on the skeletal system a bit
try some medical anatomy books and maybe the collected Bridgeman works. i like the idea of the sake skeleton

OurSin- wheres the beef?!?!?!

Mr.Blonde- really quite beautiful. i love the sort of hazy atmosphere, loose painterly style and the overall texture of it. and while it almost looks like he's wearing a too too, for some reason it looks awesome. i love the design and really dont have much of a crit for it you got my vote

matias- great pic great sort of cartoon-ish accesability
my only crit is he looks a little uhh i guess soft, or out of focus?

VirusArtist- a good idea it just looks a bit too loose, still appears to be a wip i think and the perspective looks a little wonky for what little BG you can see and i would suggest an anatomy book or maybe a life drawing workshop they help a lot i'm also a bit overdue to brush up on my life drawing good pic over all just needs a bit of refinement
xgabo- good design , kind of cartoonish and a little flat
perhaps due to the over alldarkness of your line work
i think maybe the light doesnt look very volumetric to me

bwkeough- love it he looks alittle more tired than evil (i suppose after an incredibly long existence as an undead wizard i would be a little tired too) the mummies look a bit long in the torso but it doesnt really detract from the pic. i hope you're going to work on this more, i think youre style is pretty original and i like the sort of sketchiness in the line quality

DazWatford- another sort of cartoonish one but totally different not much to crit on except maybe the overwhelmingness of some of you're blacks especially around his hands

ParkerD-good idea like the simplicity of design. on to the crits.
his fingers are all the same length and his thumb is way too short, the angle of his knuckles is very off as well
i like his face but he looks a bit too alive and well for the topic. i would also work on the drapery a bit (like i dont need to riiiiiight....)

newman- nice idea a little too geiger esque for me but its cool. dont like the filter on the bg heiroglyphics though but i like the sort of gooeyness he exudes

cakeypigdog- like the textures you used and the sort of water color look of it. the smoke looks a bit muddy and i would like too see his hands but overall nice work

masque-i like this one alot the thumb/finger issue confused me too but after you're explanation i got it. but it still bugs me a bit. something seems a bit off about the servants, maybe they just don't look as finished as the rest of peice i dunno. he does in fact look pretty damn evil and i love your color scheme and lighting
oh and about the lighting effect thing on mine, yeah i got a bit carried away just a bit over the edge but it was almost worse thank god i scaled it back a bit

goran- wow i like this a lot great design great color great evilness and costume, i just wish the BG was a bit less barren. love his face and love youre DSG's
they are usually my favorites

Helzon- wish you colored it, super unique design it just looks a little flat but i LOVE the monkeys

BlkCelebration-loose stylized simple i like it. its very visually appealing there are a few lines i would not have put in there such as the sort of choppy outline around his hand and wrist. i think if it were just a sort of mass of color on top of the hand it would look more like volumetric lighting and less like an outline

Corrick- like the camera angle like design idea but i think it looks a bit too under developed. doesn't seem like you committed as much time to work on this as it needed

ecsdesign-its beatiful i just wish i could see a little more of the design but its sweet as it is. my only issue is her hand but overall you were my second pick love the painterly texture

cognition.sb- good texture good idea. it looks a little messy and the colors are kind of strange but its nice

Idiot Apathy- even if it is based on someone else's sketch i think the color is what makes this one great the texture and volume you were able to put in this are great and overall the design is damn unique and the palette is very nice

PaulGanguly-cool design i just wish it was finished! i think his pose is a bit stiff but i liked it overall

morbidhumor-like the pic and the feeling of urgency the line quality and strokes create good idea is he a lizard?

for those i did not offer crits too i did not think any thing i could say would help and for some its obvious that youre young or just starting out all i can say is keep drawing keep attending
classes and study anatomy! its also important to use real media not just youre computer and life drawing Will make you
a better illustrator even if you dont like it. keep doing it
youll like it later

wizards for everyone!!!!!!!!

[styler]

lots of really tight stuff. My vote went to trevor because of his colors and contrast. The next piece that really struck out to me was by masque. I liked all of them though.

[Sept13]

Lots of good work, but Masque nailed it best for me :)

[Sept13]

Lots of good work, but Masque nailed it best for me :)

[Corrick]

Trevor - Thanks for the comments, and you're right on the money, I dashed this out thinking I was over the deadline. Realizing I wasn't, I didn't have time to tighten it up. Had to finish the trilogy though, better luck next time.

[VirusArtist]

Trevor - thanx for the crit, it is well appreciated :)

you're right about the WIP status of this pic.. I have been buried in work this month, so I always sneaked in a few minutes to do this pic... would have loved to finish it, but my deadlines just didnt allow it...

as for the anatomy: that was intentional.. wanted to go a little off track with these mummies, making them more monstrous, but in the end I messed up some parts (got a little rusty in that category - especially around the arms).

thanx for taking the time :)

cheers,
Etienne

[chaosrocks]

Ah, humbled by the mighty array of skills before me, I can hardly bring myself to vote. But I did

I voted for Helzon's, as that one seemed to be illustrating thinking outside that box. I just watched The Mummy, and The Mummy Returns and I was looking for anyhing that could not have inhabited those movies, not that I didn't like them but I love beiong surprised by something new.

I don't feel qualified to critique technique, and the array exhibited here is astounding. I do have a personal bais toward traditional media as well. Totally digital work can look sterile, and less engauging. Slick but lacking in internal structure, if you will. I would like to echo Trevor in saying, study anatomy and composition.

I am honored to be in this company at all, even merely as the shadow behind the door, at least I'm in the room!

Humbly Submitted
chaos Rocks

[Helzon]

Wow!.. This was one of those..pick your favorite child moments...very tough decision..and still am on the fence..such solid entries.

Fes: thanks for the kindness.
cakeypigdog: The vote is so appreciated, glad you liked the monkey mummies...threw em in there for a touch of comic relief.
masque: thanks so much. I just gotta get crackin on the colors.
trevor: First, let me say thank your for the c+c. Yeah..the colors...not exactly my strongest suit, ask anyone...but..I am curious as to when you say flat....overall flat looking or just absence of tone and color to bring out the shapes?...again..just curious.
chaosrocks: wow...many thanks for the praise and the vote.
To all, Monkey mummy love all around!!...too bad there isn't an animated icon for that...:P

[redehlert]

redehlert- i wish you could have finished dude

you and me both, bro. last week wasn't a week of finishing anything except client projects. had to draw the line (with one of those big kindergarten pencils) and say: enough....

looks like you will be taking this one to bank! congrats, mate!
cheers,
d

[Art_Addict]

I voted for ecsdesign just for the painterly feel this time. His idea seems to me the most logic aswell.

Trevor, a close second

( Damn, one of these days, I'm in ! )

[theshunzun]

trevor has my vote

[JeffZNY]

Couldn't enter this week's CHOW. Anything I came up with would've just come out like this:
http://web.syr.edu/~daparker/mummra2.jpg

[bluefooted]

Dammit!!!! It totally sucks when conceptart.org won't work for me - this time it lasted a whole week. Must be my ISP :needle: I've just gotten back on, now.

Anyway, I would've liked to participate, but since I can't...

I'll vote for Mr.Blonde :teeth: I probably would've voted for his anyway - really nice technique on him (those legs make me drool!)

[Rascar Capac]

have to agree with SVE
voted for Mr blonde - only crit I have is I wish the face was a bit more interesting - but it definitely stands out above the rest for me.
Is that painter by the way?

[masque]

Dammit!!!! It totally sucks when conceptart.org won't work for me - this time it lasted a whole week. Must be my ISP :needle: I've just gotten back on, now.maybe not your ISP, blue. i've been getting intermittent periods where i get a server not found message, 10 - 15 hours each, every few days or so. never as much as a week (that sux royal), though

[bluefooted]

Yeah, it was like that before - usually I couldn't access the forums from about 8am to 3pm - but this last time it was just ... nothing. Other people don't seem to have that problem, though, so the forums weren't down.

Sorry this is off-topic, but it does affect my ability to participate in activities with deadlines :(

Anyway, great job on all these liches, dudes!

[trevor]

that crap happens to me too bf
i get at least a few hours in a row a few days a week of no access
weird
ps thanks for allthe votes everyone
i did this peice because i was angry with myself over what i saw as one of my weakest pics ever for the one month challenge hopefully i can keep up this caliber workor maybe better
i think i just needed a kick in the ass

[Aly Fell]

Some very inspiration stuff this week, but I went with Helzons as it was a strong design with some fantastical stylistic elements that remind me of the work of Austin Osman Spare for some reason, and I love his work! Trevor, Mr Blonde and Masque gave me a warm fuzzy feeling as well...