I looked at the calendar and decided to squeeze one more post into the year, something short and sweet. Like Coda (the resident puppy)!
So here’s a drawing of Coda (from a photograph) I gave my mother for Christmas. It was done in charcoal and colored pencil. I drew on the rough side of pastel paper to achieve the textured look. Click to enlarge.
Merry Christmas, and blessings for the new year.
As briefly noted last week, I’ve joined a team that is developing a board game prototype. The game, currently called Aerth: Tides of War, is a tactical conquest game; several invented cultures and civilizations compete for territory and provisions. Some of the cultures are based on historical peoples and periods, such as the Roman empire and the Northern Renaissance, while others are more mythological in their origins, based on creatures and races, such as the giants of Scandinavian folklore. Each civilization has a series of troop tiles, eg. pikemen, knights, village levy, that advance across a system of interchangeable terrain tiles rather than a board. Think of it as a world map you can rearrange.
My task is to design the various tiles. Aside from researching medieval arms, armor, attire, and architecture (the 4 A’s) to draft troop sketches, I’ve worked mostly on sketching terrains. The first batch of tiles contains 12 different terrains (6 double-sided tiles), and I’m approaching a point where I can start color images for most of the 12. Next on the roster: the first civilization troops, based on the medieval Britons.
Instead of turkey, how would you like lamb chops and frog legs for Thanksgiving this year? Oh. Not so enthused? How about the meal menagerie before instead of for Thanksgiving? Take it or leave it–that’s what I’m serving today.
First on the menu, some lamb–a snapshot (yes, it was taken with a camera) of a scene from my latest commission, The Littlest Sheep. Our protagonist, alone, struggles against the wind and rain to climb the mountain.
Second menu item: frog legs. The first leg is that the autumn issue (37:3) of Frogpond (The Haiku Society of Ameria’s literary/poetry journal) arrived the other day, and page 40 is garnished with my first professionally published short poem:
(This is the one that rocked the poetry reading opening night of the haiku conference I attended this summer.) The second frog leg is that today I received an email accepting a haiku for the next issue, too.
Have a joyous and blessed Thanksgiving!
Within a few weeks and without road bumps, expect to find the first pack of Pandagrams printed for purchase!
These black and white ink paintings feature panda pals engaged in potentially punny and otherwise adorable antics. Each set contains cards featuring 6 different illustrations. The première pack includes Pandaikon, Frying Panda, Baby Butterfly, and 3 more. Further details, such as the number of cards per pack, the inclusion of envelopes, and the possibility of purchasing single original illustrations to be determined.
Panda Preview: Baby Butterfly (left), Pandaikon
To promote this panda-demic species, I will venture into the jungles and bamboo groves of digital marketing and social media further than ever before. Special thanks to a friend for suggesting some potential venues for these monochromatic mammals. Once things are underway, I will add links here for easy access should you wish to send them to others.
There will be at least 2 more packs of Pandagrams. Try guessing the other titles and offer suggestions below! (Yes, leaving comments can be fun!)
Here’s a smattering of updates for your perusing pleasure:
Alice Moran painting: Slowly but surely, she’s coming along. Finished underpainting & non-churned water (more or less), started background details (city & sky). Remember all those remarks about dormitory lighting when I was working on the M. Moran? My latest location isn’t any better. Here’s a snapshot of the mildly methodical madness from a few days ago:
The mildly methodical madness goes like so:
Do You Have a Pebble in Your Pocket?: Finished revisions & started transferring images to canvas paper. That means I’ll be able to start painting tomorrow or Saturday.
Seagull & Spoon: I revised the story a few days ago and have since relegated it to the backburner whilst I figure out a title and just what to do with this quirky turkey.
Cartage: Continuing to develop designs. Last night I spent the better part of an hour researching and sketching shopping cart designs for a high-speed chase scene down the deli meat aisle. (There’s not actually a chase scene, but there is a rollicking ride on a shopping cart.)