★ NEWBORN ★ TheDirtSyndicate ★

**TheDirtSyndicate** · July 11th, 2009

ok, this is me throwing my hat in the ring i suppose...
right now all i have is a page of random doodles, but this is where i've decided on my concept. if you read the notes you can see my thought process and see me working out design ideas with my lame ass thumbnails.

anyway
I want to stay away from the "fantasy/sci-fi" world with this. i kind of figure thats the route most people here on the forums is going to take. so my goal is to be as realistic as possible.

• black market babies

to wrap my head around the idea better i've decided that what i'm going to design will be a book cover for a book called "newborn" about black market babies.

so yeah, thats my concept.
here are my doodles:

**TheDirtSyndicate** · July 11th, 2009

ok, got an update for you guys
i did some quick value studies on top of my thumbnail. my first thought was to go very clinical with the piece, very white, over exposed, etc. but i didn't want this to feel like it was "clean"... or "legit". i wanted it to feel kind of seedy... but not so dark that the "doctor" couldn't see. haha, so i ended up going with the one in the middle.

**TheDirtSyndicate** · July 11th, 2009

ok... i couldn't wait to start sketching.
at first i wanted a top view but i couldn't figure out how to make it work without looking boring... so i changed my angle just a little bit. i like having the knees together showing the extreme exhaustion from giving birth, i added the hand to push that even more... almost as if she was reaching out to get her baby from this guy who's going to steal it but she was too exhausted to go any further and just gave up...
i used my own legs as reference. my office is a second bedroom and the sliding closet doors are GIANT MIRRORS. haha, so i just rotated around, put the wacom on my lap and drew from life.
the hands, again from life. they're mine.
scribbles are a ton of shit i stole online piled on top of eachother... its really just a placeholder until i can do a real scribble and scan it in.

anyway, i've got a ways to go... need to work on some of my leg anatomy... but im happy with it so far.
feedback would be greatly appreciated.

**Black Spot** · July 11th, 2009

Interesting idea and nice legs you've got there.

**miycko** · July 11th, 2009

very nice legs

a bit of an unsettling scene though.

**magnut** · July 11th, 2009

DirtySyndieLauper,

I think you've come up with a very powerful concept.

The key to this is going to be the 'acting' in your characters. The woman giving birth is wonderfully composed, as it looks like she just went through hell giving birth. I imagine with all the blood and gore, and whatever you're going to do with the surroundings, it will look like hell, too.

Then there's the baby. That's what's gonna sell your piece, right there. I can't even imagine what the hell you're going to put there, but i get the douche chill shivers just thinking about it!

VERY NICE! You're on your way!

**d00dlebug** · July 11th, 2009

I have to say I think this is a really nice idea and the sketchy line art is working wonderfully

cant wait to see it in colour ^_^

**magnut** · July 11th, 2009

Syndie,

Another thing:

You said you need to work on leg anatomy... not so much, I think.

Don't go too far trying to rework your anatomy, because you could easily lose the intensity, the 'acting', the overall tension you've so far successfully accomplished.

Determine NOW, if you can, what IS working, and KEEP IT.

There is a HUGE difference between fleshing out something, and reworking it. Don't rework something to the point where you lose what made your composition powerful and dramatic in the first place.

**TheDirtSyndicate** · July 12th, 2009

i tried the scribble but i didn't like it.

**TheDirtSyndicate** · July 12th, 2009

FINAL:

**Black Spot** · July 12th, 2009

That's disturbing and powerful.

**miycko** · July 13th, 2009

WOW, it looks finishished even without the baby if you ask me. very, dark and disturbing picture, are they in a bathroom?

**TheDirtSyndicate** · July 13th, 2009

kind of a generic room i suppose... but yeah, i decided against the baby, or the black mark that would represent the baby. i think the piece still works without it, and it definitely looks better this way.

thanks for the comments guys

**Kuraudo** · July 14th, 2009

Oh, god. Hoped the baby's alright. lol.

I like it. It's dark and gritty. Reminds me of Silent Hill! Not much i can say cause this is your own personal style, good luck!

thanks for stopping by btw!

**Muttonhead** · July 18th, 2009

Grotesque, but effective! Personally, I would love to see the brightness of the knees dropped back a tinge while brightening the lighting on the hands, to make them the real focus, then your eye will eventually be drawn to the legs to fill in the rest of the story.

Cool!

**TheDirtSyndicate** · July 20th, 2009

thanks for the feed back guys!
i already sent off my final muttonhead, otherwise i would play with that. i do see what you mean though, it does kind of flatten the image out, im sure your suggestion would push the depth more.
speaking of which... are we supposed to get some sort of confirmation when we send in our final piece? i haven't received anything... getting a little worried.