Minor/Major Project: Tikbalang Heads

Rough brainstorm sketches

I looked back on my original Tikbalang post, and decided to work more on the head. The old heads seemed to go the "zombie" route, which doesn't fit into the Tikbalang's mythology. The creature is described as "a tall, bony humanoid creature with the head and hooves of a horse and disproportionately long limbs", with a mane made of sharp spines. They're supposed to scare and play tricks on travelers, and are also thought to be guards of "elemental kingdoms". I decided to explore giving the Tikbalang the teeth of a pig (seen on the skull sketch, as well as making the front protruding teeth sharp and menacing. I wanted the creature to appear to be somewhere between physical and supernatural, appearing to almost be made of just skin and bones.

Minor/Major Project: Black Shuck - Studies and Development

Irish Wolfhound watercolour studies

Rough Sketches

Minor/Major Project: Bukavac - Skin Colouring and Textures

Looking back on an old post, I'd given all my skin ideas for the bukavac the wrong colouring for a lake dwelling creature. Fish, crocodiles and newts for the most part have paler underbellies and darker backs, so I went back with the new head design and did some new rough ideas for the bukavac's colouring and skin textures. The bukavac will appear black and white in its animation, but the journal may feature some roughly coloured sketches (either by adelaide or another explorer), I will put together some rough colouring ideas once the general tone and texture has been decided. 

Feedback is welcome and appreciated!

Minor/Major Project: Bukavac Update

Minor/Major Project: List of Creatures (Final) and Direction of Travel

Locations to be visited and creatures found there:

London, England - Spring-Heeled Jack.

Suffolk, England - Black Shuck.

Loch Ness, Scotland - The Beast of Loch Ness.

Galway, Ireland - Fae.

Connemara, Ireland - Dobhar-chú.

Paris, France - Gargoyles.

The Danube River, Srem District, Serbia - Bukavac.

Masovia, Poland - Leshy.

Tehran, Persia (Iran) - Manticore.

Vittala Temple, Hampi, Karnataka, India - Yali.
Nepal, Himalayas - Yeti.
Yichang, Hubei, China - Dragons.
Luzon, Philippines - Tikbalang.
Wind River Indian Reservation, Wyoming, USA - Jackalope.
Northern Maine (nr. St John River), USA - Wendigo.
Pineland Ghost Town (name unknown), New Jersey, USA - Jersey Devil
Mandeville, Jamaica - Rolling Calf.
White River, Ocho Rio, Jamaica - River Mumma.
Northwestern Congolian lowland forest - J'ba Fofi.
Eastern Madagascar - Man-Eating Trees.

Personal Work: Lilith, and Photoshop Improvement

I'd been wanting to sit down and do a full digital painting for some time, both to practice and see if there was any noticeable improvement from previous paintings. My friends and I have been planning to play D&D together, so I decided to make my subject for this painting my tiefling druid, Lily. The painting is based off a drawing I scanned from my sketchbook, then drew over in photoshop before painting over the sketch.

Comparisons with old work:

Old work 2014/2015

Most recent work.

By far one of my biggest struggles is to continue with work when I feel it doesn't look how I imagined it would. It's important for me to look back on old pieces to see how my art has changed and improved, as it motivates me to keep going. The pieces from 2014/2015 are two of my first ever attempts at using photoshop. 

I would like to attempt both the old pieces again, drawing and painting the same characters with similar colour schemes. One day I may even return to the Lily piece or "Beyond the Sea" and create more work I'm even more proud of.

Minor/Major Project: Bukavac - Head Redesign

Overall there were a few things about the Bukavac that I was unhappy with, mainly the horns, so I went back to my design and sketched out some more ideas regarding eyes, teeth and horns.

My main reason for wanting to change the teeth was a change in killing method. The Bukavac is said to strangle its victims, hence why I gave it long fingers at the front, but after some thought I imagined the Bukavac could be improved by making it strangle its victims with its tongue, before consuming them whole like a snake.

In order for the Bukavac to swallow its prey, the two long teeth in the middle would have to go, so I sketched some versions with different teeth. I prefer them shorter and only potruding from the bottom lip (2 and 3). 
The original eye shape also didn't feel right to me, whilst the new sketches fit much better.

The Bukavac's "gnarled" horns originally felt rushed and more "random" than gnarled. I went back and looked at goat and ibex horns, as well as tree roots and gnarled trunks. These designs feel more fitting with the description of the Bukavac.

Minor/Major Project: Adelaide Handwriting - Fonts

I've been looking at fonts for Adelaide's handwriting as it will appear in the journal. I want the writing to be readable but also appear handwritten. The font will also be used for titles in the final Art Of and crit presentations in order to keep a consistent design.

The fonts I'm leaning towards right now are Sabrina and Abuget, with Sabrina being the more reader friendly of the two.

Personal Work: Beyond the Sea - Mermay Edit

Personal Work: Mermay 2018

While I didn't manage to do something every day for #Mermay, it was nice to sit down and work with pencil and watercolour on these.