Riddles in the Dark

A new illustration for The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien of one of my favorite scenes in The Hobbit, riddles in the dark.

It has been a while since I made a Middle-Earth illustration. I decided to take one of the watercolors I made for an independent study and finish it to a level I was unable to do with the original piece. The composition is similar to the watercolor, but the rendering is much different. The light source of Sting is much brighter and better color theory overall. In the book Gollum is said to have dark skin. Since blue plays an important role in the piece, I gave Gollum blue skin as well along with rim lighting the color of Sting. Bilbo's design remains the same but with a coat and cloak. For the cave, I found some good reference images on the internet and combined parts I liked from the photos to create the atmosphere. Overall, the piece turned out the way I originally hoped for and learned more techniques to add to my photoshop skills. 

Monster Monday- April 28, 2014

A new ink drawing for this weeks monster. It started out as an idea of what a Shambling Mound from Dungeon and Dragons Monster Manual 4.0. But it became more of a Fungus Behemoth. Originally the head was a different design it was similar to a log but after drawing the creature out, it made more sense that the character's head be a mushroom. 

This weekend I'll be at the Comic Book Shop of DE, for free comic book day. Stop by for free comics, star wars characters, comic artist and writers as well as illustrators. 

Sketch Book pages from December to April

I recently finished my yellow sketch book that I previously shown in an older post. And I haven't shown any pages from it, so today is a sketchbook page collection. 

Designs for a Basilisk for a monster codex type book for a roleplaying game. I am currently gesturing the idea down to figure out how the legs will look as well as the skin texture. 

Satyrs are all over my sketchbook, they are one of my favorite creatures to draw besides Goblins. I experimented with design as well as used some markers to color parts of the sketches.

A beast design for a spot illustration of a Dwarf tracker in the snow. It took a while to discover the design that was working but all the exploration paid off in the final image.

What a usual sketch page looks like, its all over the place. On this spread are some thumb nails, goblin week ideas, and a dinosaur. Usually being all over the place is a good thing in my sketchbook since its free flow.

Sketches for another piece I'm working on that I was inking last night. It's exploring an old watercolor I did of a satyr sitting in his arm chair. For the piece I wanted to add more narrative which I think added much more to the final illustration. 

Starkens also end up in the sketchbook as well, there were a few pages exploring poses and tattoo designs. The other page are the first ideas for the Orbis elementals. I posted two elementals for monster monday already, you can go back a few posts to see the final image.

Monster Monday- April 21, 2014

With a busy weekend, I didn't have too much time between family gatherings, hanging out with fellow illustrators, and attending an art show, to draw for monster monday. I drew the orc last night and inked it today. Orcs are fun to experiment with design and the black, white, and green paper are one of my favorite combinations to create a drawing on. Now it's time to get back to work.

Asbury Park Comic Con 2014 Recap

This year was the forth time exhibiting at Asbury Park Comic Con in Asbury Park NJ (which is just down the road from where I live). This year was the biggest con yet with multiple rooms of comics and creators. I shared a table with Claire in the indie room and happened to be the best room because of natural sunlight, cool temperature, and full of awesome people. I brought the same products I had at MoCCA fest since they are a week apart. I sold a bunch of stuff and drew Rocket Raccoon for one of my favorite shops The Comic book Shop of DE. For Free Comic Book Day, I'll be at the Comic Book Shop again this year for Saturday afternoon as well as being a guest artist for Ladies Night.

Monster Monday- April 14, 2014

Another forrest elemental for this week, exploring different designs of what elementals can look like. I really liked the concept I shown last week and decided to create another one. I drew the elemental on bristol then scanned and colored the piece in photoshop. The piece was done last week since I knew I was going to be busy with Asbury Park Comic Con this past weekend. Tomorrow I'll post about APCC but now its back to drawing.

MoCCA Fest 2014 in NYC

Over the weekend, I tabled at MoCCA Fest in NYC with my illustration buddies. This was my third year displaying my work at MoCCA but this time I wasn't tabling with my college. Here's a picture of the table.

I sold copies of my new book Conjured Thoughts as well as many copies of Goblin Guild. The monster stickers were also a popular product I sold. Since Goblin Guild was a successful book I created, I started to create another book this time about the Iron Halls, the great empire of Dwarves of Orbis. I'm hoping that I might be able to get the book done in time for Asbury Park Comic Con this weekend since I have a few finished ink drawings already done. But if not, it will definitely be done for Free Comic Book Day.

The strangest part of MoCCA was a giant Macy's Day balloon of Charlie Brown was inflated in the armory. It was crazy how big a parade balloon is till its about 5 feet above your head. The whole weekend the balloon deflated and it was freaky to have the balloon's foot drawing closer to hitting the table. But a big thank you to the ballon coordinators from keeping the balloon from killing us.

I had a great time meeting people at MoCCA including some Twitter and Tumblr people. I was lucky that Saturday was my birthday so I had extra spending money to get some awesome books at the convention. Check them out.

I also got to meet James Kochalka, who signed my copy of The Glorkian Warrior Delivers a Pizza, which was awesome because he has so many great comics.

This upcoming weekend is Asbury Comic Con, its Saturday and Sunday, and I will be tabling with my sister Claire. I look forward to the convention since I've shown at all the conventions they've had so far and made a lot of awesome friends.

Monster Monday- April 7, 2014

For this week's monster it's a forest elemental. Orbis has very few elementals in the world. There are rumors of more but their shy personalities keep them hidden in there home lands. There are 2 forest elementals in the western woods who guard the forest from lumber companies demolishing the land and habitat of other creatures. Even as guardians they tend to attack from afar or blend in so well with the forest, they remain unseen. Some of the city dwellers believe that the elementals are just myths that people believe in from ancient religions and texts.

Over the next few weeks I plan on drawing some other elemental guardians of Orbis.

MoCCA Fest 2014

This weekend is MoCCA fest in NYC. I'll be there at table C9 with fellow illustrators Claire Connelly, Ginette Montoya, and Hannah Scherba. We all have a bunch of cool stuff created for MoCCA like Hannah's tote bags, Claire's graphic novels, and Ginette's book of fears.

I'll have new 11x14 prints of some of my digital pieces as well as stickers of some of the monsters I've created over the past month or so. There will also be copies of Goblin Guild and WARG. But what I am most excited about is my new book Conjured Thoughts: Volume 1, a collection of my work from the past year. So stop by my table C9 at MoCCa for a chat.

Monster Monday- March 31, 2014

  This week is all about getting ready for MoCCA Fest in NYC. Here is a Jackalope I created as one of the designs for stickers I sell. I didn't want it to be a fluffy happy rabbit, so I added scruffier fur, sharp teeth, and dark brown hair elements.

If you are interested in getting a copy of my book, Conjured Thoughts: Volume 1, attend a con or shop visit that I'm attending. During May or June, I might open a store to make prints and books available.

Monster Monday- March 24, 2014

A new creature this week are Quillkins.

Quillkins are small creatures that forage through out the Fable Wood digging for seeds and acorns. With their small claws they dig in the soft dirt for food. They live in hallow logs and trees for protection due to their small size. The holes are also used for defense by hiding their body in the dirt and leaving their quills exposed to disguise themselves as grass. Another defense for the Quillkins is to hide and travel together to intimidate predators. Other creatures in the woods work along with the Quillkins for their expertise in finding seeds of plants with healing properties.

I was flipping through my senior thesis I made nearly a year ago and was thinking about adding more creatures to the book and adding more information to the project. I want to re-do the pages I created last year as well as add a bunch of new creatures. And hopefully have a Kickstarter with both the new project and my collected book of drawings, toned paper and digital pieces Conjured Thoughts: volume 1. 

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Gothmog toned paper drawing

For a while now, well since December, I've been working on a drawing of Gothmog from J.R.R. Tolkien's the Silmarillion. It took a few tries at creating completed drawing before I created the image I liked. While listening to the Silmarillion audiobook, I was inspired to draw Gothmog. Balrogs tend to be tricky because of the details of the monster is more descriptive of the fear it created and a few details of how it physically looks. I created my own version of Gothmog the Balrog that is not similar to the portrayal in the Fellowship of the Ring film but based on how I imagined Gothmog as I listened to the book.

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Convention Season

Convention Season begins. Here's a list of conventions, events, and shop visits. MoCCA Fest- April 5-6 New York City

Asbury Park Comic Con- April 11-12, Asbury Park NJ

Free Comic Book Day- May 3, The Comic Book Shop in Wilmington DE

Ladies Night- May 30, The Comic Book Shop in Wilmington DE

Illuxcon- September 19-20 Weekend Showcase, Allentown PA

Monster Monday- March 17, 2013

For Saint Partrick's day, I drew 2 creatures of Celtic legend.

Leprechaun's are widely known for finding a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. But there is much more to them then just gold. They are very experienced cobblers, fixing shoes at night while the village sleeps. I based my design much more on Folklore details then the stereotypical depiction of Leprechauns in pop culture.

Another creature for the week is Balor.

Balor is the king of the Formorians, a race of giants. He has one eye on the front of his head and another eye on the back. Making it difficult to sneak up on him. There was a prophecy of a grandsons slaying him and was killed by killing his grandkids. I couldn't find a clear description besides his unusual eyes. So I based the design that was similar to my Ice Giants since they are related as giants but of different races.

Monster Monday- March 10, 2014

Another green paper orc, the black, white and green is a combo that works well. The piece started out as a break between working digitally and turned out well. So I inked and added whites in my usual method. The orc isn't involved in Orbis, just a typical fantasy orc.

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Dungeons and Dragons

While cleaning my room recently I found a folder that contained all the character sheets from Dungeon and Dragons' campaigns from college. After reading over some of the sheets I found my character sheet for Zorn, my warforge knight. Zorn had an interesting background before the campaign started. Zorn was really Ellen Claxton, a knight of the realm. She was known for her fierce nature on the battle field and great leadership. Even with her great skills, Ellen was killed in a battle against the army of Hel (demons, skeletons, orcs, and a Wyvern) leaving their kingdom in the volcanic lands. She became separated from her battalion leaving her to fight her way back to her allies. A Wyvern blocked her path and the two faced off. After an exhausting battle, the Wyvern pinned Ellen down to the ground killing her. When the battle was over and the army of Hel retreated back to their land, a necromancer of Hel stored the soul of Ellen in a bottle. At the necromancer's lair he built a mechanical metal suit to place the soul in. When the suit came to life, Ellen gained control counteracting the curse place upon it. And killed the necromancer leaving to return to her knightly duties.

I drew the original drawing of Zorn during the campaign but after reading the sheet decided to redraw the character. I cleaned up the design making the warforge out of mostly armor pieces and added pops of color so it wouldn't be some dark. Her legendary sword made of meteorite is in the design though she has fought with other blades. The two pipes on her back help from the mechanical armor from over heating. Over all, I am pleased with the color palette as well as the design. If you are interested in having your character drawn, email me at PaigeConnellyIllustration@gmail.com for a price quotes.

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Monster Monday- March 3, 2014

Ice Giants are one of those monsters that I could draw day in and day out because of the variety of designs I am able to create. This Ice Giant is of a high rank due to having more sophisticated clothing of the leather chest plate, cape, and tattoos.

I drew this Ice Giant a while back to include into my new book Conjured Thoughts: Volume 1. Conjured Thoughts is a collection of ink drawing, toned paper drawings, and full color digital pieces compiled into a 32 page book. I'll have copies of the book at MoCCA Fest in NYC in April as well as Asbury Park Comic Con. The book includes never before seen drawings like the one above that have never been posted or published on the internet. 

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The Satyr and the Will-o-wisps

Since a lot of the work I created lately has been more of the high fantasy side, I wanted my next piece to be more folklore based and not centered around weapons and warriors. The inspiration for the piece came from looking at illustrations by John Bauer. I was reading a book of Swedish Folktale with Bauer's illustrations in it. Like much of my work it starts in my sketch book and evolves into the final piece. I spent extra time playing in photoshop to create the lighting and mood I wanted.

I do plan to write a short story about the Satyr and the wisps, but it still needs more fleshing out before I release the tale. I haven't done any creative writing in 5 years and I feel rusty, so it may be a while from now when I post the story and some spot illustrations to go along with the illustration above. 

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Monster Monday- February 24, 2014

This week's monster is based on drawing I created last year for Illustration Friday of the Goblin on War pig (can be seen in my portfolio). I wanted to draw a companion piece for the brown paper drawing for my sketch book I'm printing for convention season. The weekend provided time to design, draw, and ink the piece and I added color in the early afternoon today. This character spot isn't for a project but an exploration to a fantasy setting in the African savanna. 

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My Tools for sketching

Since I have been showing many final drawings as well as digital pieces, it's time to show my main tools for sketching.

Sketchbooks are the most important record of my thoughts at a given time. I've had a sketchbooks since I was 11 and never stopped carrying one around with me where ever I go. My current sketchbook is the large yellow one, I stopped using the brown paper sketchbook since I couldn't find a low enough price for my budget. I spent about 8 bucks on the yellow sketchbook. With cheap paper, you don't have to worry about making awesome drawings and just experiment. Last week, I bought a moleskine, sometimes carrying my large book is an annoyance so I often carry it in a bag when I leave the house. The moleskine is nice because its a good size to carry around. The paper is thin but it has a lot of paper so I'll get my moneys worth in it.

Some pages from my Moleskine.

Next are my supplies I use to draw in my sketchbooks with. 

I like to sketch in pen, it makes me learn to place confident lines on the paper, plus I have a record of everything I draw since there's no erasing.  The pens on the left are 2 Pentel Finto in black and red, the other pen is a sharpie pen. The pentel's are very similar to sharpies but move better across the paper (tip: use on thick paper only, it will bleed through very thin paper). The 2 pens I use the most are ballpoint pens of red and black. The red pen is for laying down the under drawing and the black is for cleaning the sketch up and adding details. To the right are the 2 pencils I use when sketching final pieces. The larger blue pencil with the metal is a Pro-Matic, it holds a stick of graphite and it's great for gesturing a large piece. Since I leave a flat tip, it keeps me from getting ahead of myself with detail. The other pencil is a basic mechanical pencil and a trusty easer near by. 

For inking I use FW Ink, I haven't found any other ink that lives up to FW's standard. I ink my pieces with Burnt Umber to give the drawings a warmer line. The white ink is FW as well and I use to for my toned paper pieces, it's great because it won't warp the paper because there's no water added. My favorite brush to ink with is Blick Studio Synthetic 0, I've experimented with many brushes over the years and can't find a brush I enjoy more then the Blick brush. Each brush has a color tape at the end to remind me which one is for white ink and what's for the umber ink.

That's it for my drawing supplies, later on I might do a post about my favorite paper to use in the creation of illustrations. 

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