Chow # 39 - VOTING - JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS

[trevor]

http://www.oreganoproductions.com/chow/chowlines.jpg

ROUND #39
--------------------------


JASON AND THE ARGONAUTS


POLL RULES
(for the new people)
NOT ALL ENTRIES ARE TAKEN TO THE POLL.
(the selection is based on technical quality criteria)
ENTRIES NOT POLLED WILL RECEIVE C&C
(i really try to do this every time)
IT IS A DIFFICULT PROCESS - MISTAKES CAN BE MADE
I am trying to set this as a professional demand. I act as the client...
Oblio is always looking for feedback - If Oblio is wrong - tell him so.


Oblio Edit:
GOTTA ADD THE WINNER
"this is how... _Jakkas_ gave the winning vote to chuckmate's Hercules... was he aware? Son of a... "

[guastaferro]

Final:
Pirithous' Battle with the Centaurs

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i85/guastaferro/Battle_Final.jpg

Pirithous was the king of Lapiths, and the son of Zeus. Pirithous and his frind Theseus were known in legend as "the strongest men that Earth has bred, the strongest men against the strongest enemies, a savage mountain-dwelling tribe whom they utterly destroyed." Among the guests at Pirithous's wedding to Hippodamia were the centaurs, who, after havig too much to drink attempted to carry the women away. Fighting ensued and the Lapiths defeated the centaurs.

[evildisco]

Orpheus from The Argonauts.

http://img291.imageshack.us/img291/8448/evildiscochow39orpheusdr5.jpg

The Argonautic expedition

Despite Orpheus's Thracian origin, he joined the expedition of the Argonauts. Centaur Chiron had warned Argonaut leader Jason that only with the aid of Orpheus would they be able to navigate past the Sirens unscathed. The Sirens lived on three small, rocky islands called Sirenum scopuli and played irresistibly beautiful songs that enticed sailors and their ships to the islands' craggy shoals. Once shipwrecked on the rocks, the sailors became supper for the Sirens. However, when Orpheus heard the Sirens, he drew his lyre and played music more beautifully than that of the Sirens, thus drowning out their alluring but deadly song.

[Chuck,mate.]

a rough sketch. i`ll be trying to create an Hercules, not really sure yet what
theme-
http://img180.imageshack.us/img180/6098/herculeswipjg1.jpg

update:
http://img473.imageshack.us/img473/5795/herculeswip2mc1.jpg

Update:
FINAL-
http://img234.imageshack.us/img234/1685/chuckmatechow39smallup2.jpg
2006:
It is time again.
These are desperate times. Times of uncertainty and tragedy.
A world of dismay and corruption is calling out for help.
Crying out for heroes, once again.
Summoned by Zeus himself,
Dead or alive, these once revered men of legend,
Must keep a promise Taken in the days of the ancient.
Dead or alive, these men, now forgotten,
Must take upon themselves one last task.
On the battleship "Argo" Lead by a heavy medicated Jason, and an emotionally crippled Hercules,
these men, merely ghosts from a dead past, set out on one final mission
For the sake of all human kind.
It is time again.
These are The Argonauts.


Things are about to get ugly.

[dannE-B]

Ok this is my final.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v721/Reanimate/Prophet_Chow39_jasonandtheargonauts.jpg

[Keda]

Here is FINAL image...

Jason in sci-fi/fantasy setting.. hanging in a rope from his airship...

http://keda.se/pics/keda_chow39_jason.jpg

[trevor]

well here we go
in honor of this becoming the official chow (wtf Howd that happen hahah do i have to post the poll thread now???)
here is my wip of peleus
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v48/trevorclaxton/Peleus.jpg
here is the wikipedia entry about him
i am putting him with his two prized horses balius and xanthus
the horses are just blocked im planing on making them look supernatural
i liked the idea of him because he is a bit of a blank slate

In Greek mythology, P?leús (Greek: ??????) was the son of Endeis and Aeacus, King of Aegina, and father of Achilles.
Peleus and Telamon, his brother, killed their half-brother, Phocus and fled Aegina to escape punishment. In Phthia, Peleus was purified by Eurytion and married Antigone, Eurytion's daughter. Peleus accidentally killed Eurytion during the hunt for the Calydonian Boar and fled Phthia.
Peleus was purifed of the murder of Eurytion in Iolcus by Acastus. In Iolcus, Peleus lost a wrestling match in the funeral games of Pelias, Acastus' father, to Atalanta. Astydameia, Acastus' wife, fell in love with Peleus but he scorned her. Bitter, she sent a messenger to Antigone to tell her that Peleus was to marry Acastus' daughter; Antigone hanged herself.
Astydameia then told Acastus that Peleus had tried to rape her. Acastus took Peleus on a hunting trip and hid his sword, then abandoned him right before a group of centaurs attacked. Chiron, the wise centaur, returned Peleus' sword and Peleus managed to escape. He pillaged Iolcus and dismembered Astydameia, then marched his army between the pieces.
After Antigone's death, Peleus married the sea-nymph Thetis and fathered Achilles by her. As a wedding present, Poseidon gave Peleus two immortal horses: Balius and Xanthus. Their wedding, however, was also the beginning of the quarrel that led to the judgement of Paris.
In an early and less popular version of the story, Thetis anointed the boy in ambrosia and put him on top of a fire to burn away the mortal parts of his body. She was interrupted by Peleus and she abandoned both father and son in a rage, leaving his heel vulnerable (a nearly identical story is told by Plutarch, in his On Isis and Osiris, of the goddess Isis burning away the mortality of Prince Maneros of Byblos, son of Queen Astarte, and being likewise interrupted before completing the process). Peleus gave him to Chiron, on Mt. Pelion (which took its name from Peleus), to raise.

[Mantroon]

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b143/mantroon/mantroon_CHOW39_jason-and-the-argon.jpg

Argonaut Shock Trooper

Dispite they're appearence, the Argonaut Shock Trooper is one of the most feared opponents in the battles of the outer systems.

As every society needs shepards, it also needs butchers. When the tide of battle goes against the Ageatian Empire, the warship Argo and its divisions of troopers are deployed. Cities, continents and even planets have been layed to waste in the wake of the Argo.

The Argonauts adourn themselves with ancient armour and leathers, upon which can be seen references to the ancient greek myth from which their name derives, although the significance has been lost in time.

[Panagos]

I was planning on doing a lot more for this one. But as usual, other things came up, and I'm heading out of town tomorrow, so no time to do more. :( But, I did produce one clean sketch I really like of Ascalaphus, King of Orchomenos and Son of Ares.

The rules say "no sketches", but I'm assuming that refers to rough sketches and not to polished pencil pieces. Hopefully this is ok.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/Panagos/Panagos-Chow39.jpg

I'm heading out of town for a couple of days, I'm looking forward to getting back and seeing what everyone else produced. Good luck all! See you on the flip side. ;)

[Johann de Venecia]

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e307/deceptant9/jasonargonaut2_devenecia.jpg

Took me a while to remember how to post in Photobucket again. Well, here's my entry. Other than the fact that he's losing one right arm and sporting a thong, this Jason's pretty generic, if a little on the S&M side. That said, props to Prophet, Chuckmate and Mantroon for crossing zones. Its a challenge considering Jason (Hercules? my myths are all over) doesn't really have a loud visual trademark other than being a brute so that it diminishes his character more. If there is one, it escapes me at the moment.

Trevor and Guastaferro's looks promising, looking forward to the completed entry.

Panagos' detail is very nice. Looks like a lot of work went into it, and glad to see it all rendered in pencil. Face looks great. For crits, I'd say the shield is looking just a little flat, and the hair seems to be blown by the wind, but not the skirt. Just minor nitpicks. Cool horse motif on the armor.

Props to Jska for the narrative quality of the entry, and the research/knowledge on the topic. Hoping to see the finished version. Colors look great. For crit, I'd say the girl's hand seems unnaturally clamped on that dragon.

Hope no offense was taken with the crits. Its in the spirit of crit week (or is there one? I popped in for the first time in months and was welcomed by a gigantic banner saying crit damyoo!)

Anyhow, its been fun. Hope to do some more. Looking forward to seeing Bluefooted's entry. Latah! :sony:

[JakkaS]

Ok., I can’t look on this one any longer.
I thought this topic could be good exercise for me, so I choose Mr. Hercules.


http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a314/JakkaS/_Jakkas_CHOW39_Herkules.jpg

I like the myths about Hercules, especially this one with the hydra (this was one of the 12 works). So I designed a light armor (he is half God, so I think this is enough for him :D), helmet and the mace-torch to help him slain the Hydra.

---
BTW, Lukavi, Chuck and Panagos ….nice works guys. I think Chuck’s entry is my favorite so far

[Simon Boxer]

Great entries. Disco, you'd best be findin time for that!

Not sure how I feel about mine. Could probably do with a complete re-rendering... meh.

Was a good excuse to draw a hell-bent warrior with demonic armour. Cheers for the character list, Panagos - definately made the topic more accessable.

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f107/cognitionsb/cognitionsb_CHOW39_ASCsep06.jpg

Will add a description later, assuming I remember.

[maxetormer]

Ok ya guys here it my contribution to this month
topic, meet Jason, :D I had a blast doing this one!
GREAT entries all around, its an honor to participate!! :D

http://filexoom.com/files/12929/jasondesignfinal.jpg

[xgabo]

http://www.gabo.ca/xgabo_chow39_jason.jpg

As Jason wore the sheep skin around hs neck the sun shone upon it; he noticed then the little gold specs that covered the fur, and realized the fleece was not made of gold as the legend described, but merely sprinkled with particles from the river. Positioned just a few steps from the cliff, sword and spear in hand, facing an entire army of warriors from Hades, he for a second thought himself lost, that his quest was in vain, a sailor's illusion.

But then he looked at the faces of the warriors, and even inside dead orbits where no eyes lived for centuries he coul see fear, and more, respect. They were afraid to advance. Suddenly, the memories of the last year in the sea flashed inside his mind, and he felt his heart at ease, even facing certain death. He finally learned the truth:

The quest itself, and not the fleece, had made him worthy of being king.

[smugbug]

Just black and white from me. Had absolutely no time to color this piece.

http://static.flickr.com/80/233530972_f51e73552f_b.jpg

Atalanta

She was born on a distant planet. Gender equality had never been an issue so, being an only child, her father taught her everything, anything that he would have taught a son. He took the young Atalanta whenever he traveled; no matter if it was a distant planet or another continent. He was a hunter and was teaching his daughter all that his own father taught him. She became adept with any type of weaponry he handed to her and she became equally capable of flying just about any vehicle or ship.

As the years progressed, Atalanta's father's interest in interplanetary hunting expeditions waned and she soon found herself planet bound at an age where her sense of adventure was incredibly fierce.

An adventurer named Jason from a neighboring system was on the search for crew members for his space vessel, the Argo. He made a stop on Atalanta's planet and she, yearning for adventure, showed Jason she was more than capable to join his team. With her father's blessings, she joined the crew and soon they speeded off to the far reaches of the galaxy in search of a mythical "Golden Fleece".

[Oblio]

wips

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e181/chaosrocks/Jason2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v408/donJonSwan/Autoly_WIP-2.jpg

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e181/chaosrocks/argonaut.jpg

http://img84.imageshack.us/img84/7521/cupofjoechow39jasonandtheargonautsja5.jpg

Atlanta-
After being abandoned in the wilderness by her father, Atlanta was raised by the wild after being taken in by bears sent by Artemis. She was trained by hunters, and soon became famous for her amazing speed and strenght, said to be greater than that of any man. After being taken up again by her father, The announcement was made that any man who could beat her in a race could have her hand in marriage, but anyone who lost would be executed. Atlana excepted, expecting her suitors to give up, but they continued to try. Growing tired of this, Atlanta singed up to sail on the Argo in order to escape her suitors.



http://www.jskaconcepts.com/badaboom/CHOW/jasonargo1.jpg

http://www.jskaconcepts.com/badaboom/CHOW/backstudy830.jpg





C&C will come soon.

[evildisco]

My vote ultimately went for Chuck's, liked the execution.

Worth mentioning: Trev's(but you didn't put the new one or update it, I guess something must've popped up), Prophet's(interesting, you would've sold the design to me if it was more intricate, but overall really nice), gustaferro's( I think you suffered from the same hubris I had, which is going for the full blown illo instead of 'just' the character', liked your idea though), Panagos's (Good sketch, though the design itself could've been more radical, it is way too classical for the 'redesign' aspect), JaKKas's (really nice execution, the mace is a very cool design), Cognition's (yours was interesting, the armor was a very cool idea but some other elements weren't so much, why the spiky hair for instance), Maxetormer's (really well done, still the design part of it could've been pushed a little bit more but regardless), xgabo's (again extremely classic, nicely done and although it has some foreshortening issues here and there it works well).

Good job everyone.


Edit: why is multiple voting on?

[Ive]

Voted for chuck, his character had the best personality IMO!
Jakkas' was nice but too many muscles :(

[Interceptor]

I went for Lukavi.

The over emphasis of the muscles is perfect for the type of character.

[guastaferro]

i voted for evildisco, it was imo the best character design. Alot of creativity behind it and great execution, and tho apparently unfinished (maybe?) it seemed to still be the strongest. I would like to see this finished!

Notes:
CreativeSmugbug - i would have liked to see a little more execution on this, it looks like an interesting design, but leave us wanting so much more.

xgabo - very fun piece, theres alot to look at! It appears that you have a nice grasp on lighting and i really like the design, but something about it makes me think more Inca or Mayan warrior at first glance, rather than Greek.

maxetormer - great character design, but hard to figure out some parts of it. You have so many interesting details that i really want to see them more clearly! And the sword design is awesome!

cognition - love the armor design, very freaky! the one thing that turns me off is his head, which imho doesnt have the menacing feel that the son of Ares should have, doesnt really scare me that much. Regardless, its a great entry!

jakkas - cant say much except that is one original take on hercules, referring to the armor and mace. Very very cool. You do great work.

luvaki - very nicely done, great rendering and concept. You were up there for my vote. one thing that bothered me was his hidden (missing?) arm. I couldnt catch if that was purposeful or not.

panagos - brilliantly rendered pencils! i would really have loved to see what you could have done with color on this! The detail in the armor is superb.

mantroon - cool idea and neat design, but it seems to lack the detail that would make it a great piece.

Keda - very interesting take on Jason, unconventional to say the least, maybe a bit too far. He seems to lack the strength and ferocity that someone like Jason would have. But the rendering and the presentation are top notch. Great entry, and i for one am glad for the creative take on it.

Trevor - (echo) Anyone home? This one looked promising and i would have loved to see the finished one! Im sure something came up....

Guastaferro - i dont know why you did a scene, instead of a character design, probably cause it was the easy way out. Try sticking to the purpose next time, and use less black!

Chuck,mate - excellent as always! no place for crits from me, i especially like the story behind it. Man i wish i could paint like you!

Prophet - very cool design but in need of refinment. Some of the details get lost. Those details are what would make this piece excellent!

[trevor]

hey guys good work all
ill crit later but i really dont think mine should be in the poll
it is seriously unfinished (and that version abandoned...booooorinnng)

[dragon4lunch]

When I vote, I start at the top, scroll down, stop for a picture now and then and the strong onces I decide on the spot if I like it better or less than the previous one... So it went like this:

evildisco: That is quite nice and I dig your crazy avatar. Your piece was my favorite until...

panagos: Very solid. I wanted to vote for you because it was a drawing and concept art doesn't always have to be ultra time consuming rendering in colour, yes? Other than that, evildisco is also strong. Nothing wild in either case though, I mean, relatively speaking. Armor is armor - make it NUTS!!!

Then I scrolled further... and of course the hands down winner had to be JAKKAS, the punk once again cranked out the sweetness!!! And if you know me, you know that I often use the term punk to show affection :) Awesome work!!!

Props to maxetormer, nice drawing, good design - but I'm sure you agree that JakkaS with this pumped up rendering is a clear winner here!

[jackenstein]

Um, I think I voted without unchecking the other two selections I was considering. I don't know how multiple votes go, and I apologize if it messes anything up, but my final vote was for Max's piece. It wasn't just a scene, it fulfilled the concpet aspect excellently in my opinion. It had an ancient feeling, but felt epic and not dated. Jakkas is an extrmely close second for me, and it was really hard to pick.

[Justin.]

Tough between Max and Prophet... mine goes to Prophet though- even though I liked the original lines better than the color, I like the way he executed it. Very nice work everyone!

[Supervlieg]

Voted jakkas and Chuck, mate. Both had best execution imo. Thank god for multiple votes, it would have been hard to chose.

[Oblio]

i think i will add votes for the ones taken to the poll and who take the time to CRIT and give feedback.
eh.. what do you say?

[Supervlieg]

Oblio: Can you be more specific? You will count votes of people that gave feedback why they chose it, or will you count votes of people that crit every entry, and do the crits have to be more then "best execution" or something similar? Most of the time I think the ones that dont win need the most crits to develop their skills, but it would also be the most time intensive option. I would say it adds a lot to your workload to check every vote, and for voters to crit everyone. I dunno about the whole deal, but that just my 2c.

[Chuck Wadey]

So nice to be given more than one vote.

I voted Chuck M for best overall piece.
I voted Evildisco for a vivid painting that could have benefited from being more finished.
I voted Jakkas for a great painting that would have been my favorite if not for being a little off put by the segmented anatomy (mostly in the legs).

[Oblio]

i want to encourage CRITS in this area - it's the only way that everyone can grow and push further. i want to give votes for the ones who take the time and give constructive crits.

[Jska]

Ultimately I voted for Chuck and JakkaS, which were the strongest in personality as well as rendering. Evildisco would've gotten a vote too if it were finished!!

Props to Maxetormer, and Gustaferro - your poses had the most energy, which I can appreciate because that is something I want to work on for myself!

Pretty good turnout, I'm pretty bummed I didn't get to work on mine more... but there's always next round :)

[guastaferro]

I agree with Oblio that crits should be a much bigger part of this, of course this is coming from someone whos needs them (that would be me). but i do see that it would be a HUGE task for you Oblio to have to moderate this...i think perhaps the easiest while yet effective way would be to simply remind those who enter the contest and those who vote that critiques are highly encouraged, as it is the purpose of this site, to help artists grow. It would also be helpful if crits could be given throughout the process :shrug:

This definitely should be addressed tho, just my thoughts:D

[sve]

I don't know about crits being counted in votes, I think it is not fair, art is totally different quality. I look at art, if I like it, writing has nothing to do with it.
The other thing it might kill the fun of the contest. Will make it more like a hard responsibility. Not anyone has a time to write too.
What is bothering me, that sometimes not the most interesting ideas got recognition, better to say they get lost somehow. But I think it will be hard to change, human nature, so to speak. With time it might do the trick though, getting your name recognisable.

[jackenstein]

I think Trevor's has alot of potential, and I love the rendering of the muscles and the face. It just looks very..flat, almost monchrome. The red on his right abdomen seems out of place, and the horse figure on the right is so pale, it blends in. Some contrast, maybe some bluish tones and darker browns might help create more depth.

As far as crits counting as votes, I know I haven't been here long, but I totally think they need to be made here in the voting process. I'm not sure if they should be counted in voting though, but I think if you vote, you need to explain why you voted for who you voted for, and maybe offer critical advise for those you didn't vote for so that they can improve upon their design ability.

[armando]

JakkaS: You got my vote. Big ass caveman with a club, he looks like a dude built for brawling. Great armor and torch/club design.

Keda: I just don't think "Jason" when I look at that, I just see a pirate.

Trevor: I liked your piece. The only crit I have has to do with the description. You should have picked one specific episode in his life and expanded on that to describe his personality. Everyone knows Achilles, so that could have been the episode to emphasize. As it is now it's just a collection of random tidbits in his life.

xgabo: Pretty good illustration with the upview and invisible face, makes him seem like a force to be reckoned with. Technically the backlighting could have been done better, add some glare and rim lighting around the helmet. I liked your description.

chuck,mate: Great concept. The washed out color scheme really enforces that mood and theme.

guastaferro: I like the energy of the piece, the guy's expression and the swing of the sword. Some inconsistency in that the background looks like they're in a cave but the description says they were at a wedding. Only other crit is the centour's leg, should have gotten some reference.

[Chuck,mate.]

voted evildisco - finished or not - best piece here.
great character.
great composition.
great design.
great color scheme.

:)

i`m gonna go rest a while, now (about 4-5 years..).

piece.

[Layil]

i voted for jakkas. not the most innovative of concepts, but a solidly executed character design.

:)

good work everyone!

[Blue Severin]

Chucks does it for me, feels the most complete. Gustaferro's was pretty sweet too.

[maxetormer]

evildisco: yeah I agree about that...Im still figureing our a lot
of things about my design sence, I tryed to incorporate
Goat like abstract simbols here and there, but still I could have
pushed the design a lot more, especialy after seeing how good
desings JakkaS and you made... will try harder next time,
count on that!! and thanks for the critc and comment!

guastaferro; Im glad you liked the sword design, really it was my
fave part, and the one were I had the most fun thinking how to
design it, yeah iv been hearing a lot of comments about that...,
my shading was a little to dark..and abstract on some areas, ill
keep this on mind for the next one for sure! THANKS!

dragon4lunch: he he yeah actually I voted for JakkaS too, tho
I would have loved to see his caracter on a less static posse,
I know its a caracter sheet but I do feel he could have used a better
posse, on the desing rendereing and idea its got my vote rigth on from
the start, Chuck,mate was my close second, but for some reason the
hercules from JakkaS clicked for me, I the renderig and tid bits on the
clothes are just asum, I would love to see a movie with Hercules
portraited like that!!

J_absinthe: HEY THANKS a lot mate, Im glad it did the trick for you, really!

Jska: THANKS a lot mate :D


I VOTED FOR JakkaS

Because for me he portaired the full force and energy of the son of ZEUS,
and I must say I liked the torch-mace a lot, so does the red heavy wool
cape and the whole design details on the helmet, oh and the way you faded
the arm that is farther from us its just golden, that is one really efective
use of atmospheric prespective!!
I do felt that your possing was a little boring, you could have
made his stance more powerfull or menacing, I found out that if
the drawing can show clearly the elements of design while
having a good anatomy-body lenguje the whole thing jumps out
to the viewer even more, other than that it super well done!!
congrats!

Chuck,mate: Youv got my second cause even tho I liked the
idea A LOT and the frase "you son of a god" made my day,
I felt you could have worked the visual aspect of him a little
more, his clothes could have been better designed as now hes
just wearing a nice cotton shirt and jeans...I mean they look
cool, but I felt they could have been more impressive than
that, the face on ther other hand is impressive, LOTS of
caracter there!!! kudos for that, I aways loved the way
you handle your faces!


xgabo: mate such a good idea for the armor!! I wish I would have
thought of that!! really your armor design with the flince was
one of the more original ideas on the contest, the only thing
that bother me is that I fell you left to many areas on a pich
black, shadow (kinda like me :P) and I really would have
loved to see those armor details a bit better... plus you could
have used a little more rim and reflected light to make those
details pop, and a little less black a more blue hues mixed with
the warm ones you already had, that could have maked for better
color harmonies...well thats about it, I REALLY liked your idea It
was my third choise :D

evildisco: Well what can I say... yours was one of my faves
I would have vote for it, if it were to be finished mate, as theres
still many things in wip stage, I was relentless to vote for it while
I didnt knew exactly the final shape of the harp and how the armor
would have looked once you completly refined it, still I do belive you
did a great job and Ill be waiting for the final release on the FF seccion!!
with a lot of anticipation and exitment!

Ok thats about it...I wish I could do more commenting but Im really
tired and Iv got to sleep, also I apoligise for not posting my opinions
on monday, I do feel that writing comments and critics should
be a big part of the whole CHOW activities, so ill be commenting
on it for sure!

Overall every one made one hell of a job and Im
very glad to have participated on this weeks activity!

see ya later! :D

P.S. I didnt knew about the multiple voting till now...
damet I would have liked to vote on my two other runers up...:(

[JakkaS]

Thank u guys for all comments, crits and votes!
Btw, congratulation Chuck.

[guastaferro]

Thanks for the votes guys. This was a really good week, great stuff everyone. Chuck, Jakkas, nice battle, very close.

[Chuck,mate.]

that`s a nice surprise. thanks people for the comments and votes.

jakkas - it`s an honor and a pleasure going neck to neck with a skillful mofo like yourself. hats off to you, brother.
:yayca: