Last september I got a concept job at a small mobile games studio and they keep me pretty damn busy. Mainly sci-fi kids stuff but super fun doing concepts for all sorts of things creatures, environments, weapons, vehicles and the like. Unfortunately I can't show a damn thing yet, probably not for a long time but it has served as an awesome training ground. That aside I have been fighting a battle with myself to get back to work after work and keep that fantasy illustration dream alive. It has been difficult for sure and add to that my wife and I just had our first kid - so now my time is literally gone. I get a few hours every night if I'm lucky to chip away at the paintings. Here are the fruits of the last couple months - some finished some wips and just a couple doodles still on my desktop.
yay for show n tell - I'm glad this blog is still alive!
Damn! Loving the top ones, really nice work. Excited to see you get some more hours in on the last few.
ReplyDeleteOh and congratulations!
And the wave creature/wizard/ship one is epic!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely looking better all the time. I know what you mean about the working after work thing. It's tiresome. Do you end up just doing concept art at the job or are you making 2D assets as well? Also--congratulations on the baby! :D
ReplyDeleteFrom a design perspective I really like the owl guy, he seems like a great character, I especially like how stout he is.
There are some reeaaaly beautiful moments on the hands of the sea monster, whose face is hilarious and great, by the way. :D There's all kinds of texture crammed into that which I'm blown away by. It also does a good job at avoiding becoming monochromatic which is really refreshing to see. Keep going!
Looking great Dude, and congrats! Mobile gaming, for better or worse, seems to be the only sector thats still hiring newbies consistently. I am not really too prod of most of the stuff I made at Hwy 1, but your right, it does serve as an awesome training ground, especially with just being in a studio environment at getting to listen in on the business/programming/design part of things.
ReplyDeleteIt also seems that you are building quite the portfolio for a wizards of the coast or equivalent client base. And you have an extremely consistent style that runs throughout your stuff that art directors love. They can look at small body of work, and get a really clear idea of what they are going to get from you, which cuts down on the risk factor for them. My shit is all over the place and changes constantly, I would love to have a solid body of work that show off that you can work consistently over time.
Also, congrats on the baby! Im sure you are tired as shit right now, and will be for the next decade, good luck my friend!
Hey wow thanks everyone for the kind words! Its crazy having a kid but I love it..so far. lol
ReplyDeleteYeah the work for the job isnt portfolio stuff - well maybe if i was focused on getting concept work but the visual challenges have been awesome. I do unfortunately work on a lot of spec projects that go nowhere so that work is lost forever pretty much but I love having new content to tackle all the time. No I don't just do concept work - that is the majority of projects but they have me doing all sorts of shit marketing art, icons, final 2d assets and the thing I have come to hate most user interface design and layout. Those projects I'm basically turned into a storyboard machine that constantly churns out iteration after iteration of menu elements and buttons. But that only lasts like a couple weeks at a time and I'm not the only artist that gets thrown that stuff which is nice. But all in all I love the constant change and challenge of all the projects and I pray that the doors aren't locked every morning I show up like so many other small games studios.
"It also seems that you are building quite the portfolio for a wizards of the coast or equivalent client base. "
You hit the nail on the head, fantasy art is where I wanna be. Yeah I know the trend is for a more realistic approach but as my painting skills progress maybe I can hit a line somewhere in the middle and catch some attention. Who knows - I have stopped waiting for someone to let me draw the stuff I want so after work thats all I do. Other than hold babies. Thanks again for all the cool comments - I wont wait as long to post next time!