Coldfire

Aiko Mascot 2012

The Winnipeg Anime con (Aikon) is notorious for selling out of artist alley tables in minutes, and I've only managed to get in last year by fluke- BUT if you win 1st or 2nd in the mascot contest, you are awarded a table.

plus- the theme this year was Sci Fi... I couldn't resist.

I'm going through Comic Con withdrawal right now... I've been filling out all my Artist alley forms these last couple weeks, getting my tables confirmed for the year, and am JUST itching to attend a show.

Also bought a banner stand :) cannot wait to get the banner printed! (pics will be posted as soon as I have it constructed)

Update 2012

Coldfire is being rebuilt!

Here is a current shot of the piece, as well as the original design- still missing a background and fine tuning, but its coming along.

the background is just a squished jpeg I slapped in for testing- but I think I've got things figured out-should have final image in a couple days (video of the "making of" too... as soon as I can figure out what song to match with it)

original

The coldfire dragon was one of my first really big successful pieces accomplished with the Shattered vector painting style, so I've always been an especially big fan of the piece.

January so far-

Been spending a lot of my spare time on the upcoming "Quackers" children's book, we're trying to have ready for print at the end of the month. I'll post some snippets as soon as it hits printers.

Also had some artwork stolen last week, a European site was selling a piece of mine without permission, and when I emailed them about it, they claimed they had an artist responsible (the f*&^!!). I then showed them several things which proved I had original files, they still refused to take the piece down- so finally in frustration I posted the incident online and informed a couple art communities about the sites art-thievery. from what I hear, the site was soon after attacked with nasty emails+the such.

evil laugh.

The site has since removed my work, but expressed great displeasure concerning their reputation being tainted... easy fix: don't steal artwork. and on top of that, don't claim you didn't steal it when confronted by the artist.

Got interviewed by adobe couple weeks back as well :) very very cool.

The "Chasing Artwork 01" 60pg Artbook is coming along as well- but mostly in the sense that I'm constantly working on other projects which will eventually end up in the book, I still plan on hitting the printers late Feb/early March to have the 300 copies ready for all the 2012 comic cons I plan on attending. the con scedule is as follows:

Winnipeg Toy+comic Expo (confirmed)

March 3+4

Vancouver Fan Expo (papers filled out)

April 21-22

Calgary Expo (confirmed)

April 27-29

Anime North (I hear its hard to get a table at this one, but will try my best)

May 25-27

Winnipeg Aikon

July --

Chicago Wizard Con

August 9-12

Toronto Fan Expo (papers filled out)

August 23-26

Montreal Comic Con (confirmed)

Sept 17-18

Winnipeg C4

Nov 2-4

Hmm what else...

Resolution: I want to keep this blog updated a big more this year, I find one of my favorite features is just to look back a year or two back and see what I had going on then, and its frustrating when I'm super vague/sparse with my posts :p

Helped out my gf with social posters:

fun lil project, and fun event :)

chat later!

cheers :)

Lady of Pain

We're Stardust.

without a doubt, In my mind, this is the most beautiful and inspiring
knowledge that science has given us.

Full quote:

"The amazing thing is that every atom in your body came from a star that exploded. And, the atoms in your left hand probably came from a different star than your right hand. It really is the most poetic thing I know about physics: You are all stardust. You couldn’t be here if stars hadn’t exploded, because the elements - the carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, iron, all the things that matter for evolution - weren’t created at the beginning of time. They were created in the nuclear furnaces of stars, and the only way they could get into your body is if those stars were kind enough to explode. So, forget Jesus. The stars died so that you could be here today."

Sneak Peek at a my upcoming book

Lady of Pain commission progress

class of vessel: Destroyer

this is for a Star Trek AU

First Video of my process :)

Wolverine Progress from Chase on Vimeo.

WIP working on a moving castle

tons to do yet, it needs more of a patchwork feel yet... stay tuned.

im off to play pool with some mates and have a couple drinks to help forget that im trying to tackle too many projects at once :)

Finally, a branding package

this was far overdue.

Its been harder than I thought, trying to brand myself... the big problem is how quickly I'll start to critique and want to change my logo- I find designing logos for high profile mortgage companies or such clients far far easier than coming up with something for myself.

but I think this will work.

Initially, I had wanted a more illustrative logo, but this graphic will (90% of the time) be used in conjunction with my artwork, so something more simple and elegant was called for.

I needed this logo for my upcoming comic con Banner, as well as the cover for my 2012 Artbook

hope you cats approve!

Winnipeg Comic Con

Another Winnipeg comic con has come and gone, and I'm happy to report that I managed to double my print sales compared to last years show :) between that, all the great people I met, and the copious amount of other shenanigans I got up to this weekend, I'm placing this Halloween firmly into the the legendary category :)

Friday:
Set up my table at the con, the volunteers, of course, sent several artists to the wrong tables, so there was a bit of shuffling, but I've come to expect things like that at c4 :)

I had to duck out of the convention early in order to take off to Brandon for my eldest sis's wedding social. My friends and I managed to take home the group costume prize at the end of the night... as the group of sexy nurses.

Saturday:

The very good looking and talented James Gillespie was kind enough to work my table Saturday morning, giving me a chance to recover from the social and make my way back into Winnipeg.

After the frenzy that is Saturday at a con, there was a quick visit at Boston Pizza for a beer and perogi pizza (oh my god delicious) and then it was off to the Six Pines Haunted house, just outside of Winnipeg- it's worth checking out

Sunday:

Sunday at c4 was the very first time I've ever seen the biggest attendance on the last day of a show, thank you Will Shatner:) Sales were steady throughout the day, and as always, the end of the show, there was a rushed race to catch various artists before they packed up for art trades. got some good stuff.

Still mentally and physically exhausted from the show, but already getting excited about the prospect of the next big show, and have made a big long list of new pieces to get ready in time for it :)

Morning Scenery :)

got to spend the morning creating a background scene for a new 2d scrolling game I'm working on :)

Chasing Artwork_the book.

"An artist is always learning, always evolving, always growing. Your best piece of work will always the next one. Start chasing."

I have started putting together my first ever (limited run) Artbook, which will be published and available early 2012

I met with a printer and publisher/distributer last week, and have everything ready to roll other than building the actual book!

....small details...

This high quality book of awesome will include 60pages of artwork, a detailed description of my vector process , doodles, some of my meandering thoughts, and a bunch of new art (like exclusive never-will-be-posted online- paintings)

At this early stage of the book, I would love to hear any ideas or suggestions on what you guys (as you are a great, and good looking, example of my audience) would like to see or have me talk about in the book, any input would be greatly appreciated

cheers mates.

Launching My First book this Weekend :)

after almost 3 years of work, my first book has been published!

From the author:

This 72 page illustrated book written by a passionate father trying to teach his two teenage children something about electricity. As an engineer I was surprised when looking through my son’s Grade 6 Science book to see the same material introducing the topic of electricity to my son that I saw when I was in Grade 6 back in the 1960s. It showed the basics of static charge like a balloon sticking to a wall and pictures of light bulbs and conventional wall light switches.

Today, in the 21st Century, we live in a different world. The advent of the microchip and computers made teaching the subject of electricity much more relevant and fascinating. My career has taken me along some amazing journeys and has allowed me to see things, which I thought incomprehensible, clearly in a different way.

I wanted to share what I know with my sons in such a way that any entry level or high school student can grasp. The concepts laid here are not complicated. All one needs is imagination. The heart of the digital information age involving computers, smart phones, jump drives, music, video, and cameras are explored through a young girl named Rachel. All this is explained in a non-technical pragmatic way through a strongly visual, picture book format.

I am hoping that in some way this work, inspired by the illustrations provided by Justin Currie, will spark further interest and study in Science and Engineering. I can tell you, it is one heck of a ride, and …… it is just beginning!

Check out all the info here for the book launch this weekend

go here for more info on the book, or to purchase

Deadpool

Last piece before the c4 con happening next weekend! (SoO ExCIIttted!!)

This piece will be available sans word bubble, or with a blank one, so you can write in whatever you want :) bit of a custom piece, hopefully it sells well :)

Crazy productive weekend

WIP: Almost done this Starship - its been a sweet commission to work on, looking forward to finishing it off and starting on another ship in the fleet .

From Monty Pythons "Holy Grail"

this beastie has to be my favorite part of the film

Below is a new childrens book project about a duck :) ... just tossing out a teaser for now

and then this is what my computer looks like on sunday night... chipping away on my last piece the upcoming C4 winnipeg con: A customizable Deadpool print.

The print will be available plain, or with a blank speech bubble for customers to have whatever they want written in :) I think it could be a big seller,

The Fett

A progression of a Airship I'm working on :) still lots to do yet,

but I think I'm starting to find the shape and style I want.

wallpaper version:

had some requests for wallpaper versions... have at'er :)

no need for an umbrella

I felt it was about time to do a piece without dragons or robots...

that, and its been like, 2 weeks since I painted something new for myself,
I was starting to get the shakes.

Toronto Fan Expo Aftermath

Boo-ya! the Toronto Fan Expo went right ahead and rocked my world.

So first off- unlike most con weekends, I actually got a chance to see a bit of the city:) the convention is right downtown, at the MTCC, right at the base of the CN tower. I rode a subway for the first time ever, got lost in a neighborhood or two, saw a bit of buskerfest... all kinds of good times :)

Onto the show!!

Before I even got on the plane- the security guard checking my bags flipped through my portfolio for bombs or w/e, loved my artwork- and so I ended up giving her 2 pieces to take home (she made sure I had been cleared for not having drugs/explosives before accepting) haha

The Fan Expo is huge... and awesome...

I did not get to meet Tom Felton myself (Draco from Harry Potter) but I did send my cousin in for 2 autographed pictures- as I had promised some important ppl back home some malfoy ink :) sounds like he's a pretty easy going guy, everyone seemed to have a lot of fun chatting with him.

I also chatted with Lance Henriksen- twice :D once when I went up for a signature on my "all hail the Queen" piece, and then a second time because he wanted a copy of the picture as well!!

I grabbed another print from Mike Boldt,

his childrenbook illustrations are all kinds of impressive and inspiring- nice guy to boot.

Also met Caanan, this guy has some sick style, most definitely be keeping an eye on his work from now on... very calvin+hobbes esq = im on board.

One of the artists responsible for the Iron Giant movie dropped by to grab a print and chatted :) The Iron Giant is inside my top 10 movies of all time list, so this was beyond cool for me.

an exhausting four days.... think that's about it for the weekend, it was a great show, Im already excited about heading back again next year :)

in other, non-fan-expo news:

I will be in Winnipegs Market square on Oct 1 for " Culture Days" , selling quick sketches and prints... I'm not expecting a huge turnout or profit, but I feel like im behind on my traditional mediums practice quota, and drawing live for kids and bystanders is great incentive/practice.

got interviewed here about the Royals comic hitting shelves

one of the coolest things happened the other day.... a FF fan from the UK has gotten a piece of my art Tattooed front and centre. damn.

ALSO! while were talking about this piece- its been downloaded 100-god-damn-thousand times from some wallpaper site... which is cool... but the fact that they upload their wallpapers without giving credit to the artists has me irked. I have had a dozens of people come up to me at comic cons who recognize the piece because they downloaded it from this site... super cool... but a bit not

Xmen and a tee

Working on an X-Men piece- shes in the very early stages, but you get the general idea (wolverine is taking on a sentinel)

I had originally planed on having this piece ready for the fan expo- but life has been hitting me from all sides lately, in the best kind of summer-is-awesome-and-overly-hectic-kinda-way just didn't have the time to finish :S

catch you cats when I return from Toronto next week!

also- this past week I screen sprint 40 tees for this goofy idiot's annual kegger (you had the option of blue or yellow):

some new noise

your first task: Go listen to this sad/awesome portal vid

and now for some ramblings:

Got featured on kotaku which means I received MAD internet attention for a couple days :) always nice

Got back from Chicago wizard con 2011- first off- thank you everyone who came to my booth and purchased work! this was my most succesful artists alley to date, and I am already excited to make the trip next year... (ive been hearing some great things about the Chicago C2E2 show, may have to make that con as well...)

I winged this wknd solo- so I was pretty much stuck behind my table the entire time, but I did manage to wander a bit and check out some of the other talent, this years con featured 500+ artists, and good lord was there some talent kicking around... I wish I had bought/traded far more artwork :S

also grabbed one of these bad boys:

My desk now looks proper-classy

also- did an interview with these guys: the first video just has a little blip of my work/table, but I think the full interview will be posted soon.

my hotel was also quite the wknd experience: I had breakfast a couple tables away from Felicia Day, rode an elevator with the Chewbacca actor, checked out at the same time as Lough Farigno, and took a shuttle back to the airport with one of the Boondock Saints... celebs just coming outa the woodwork

So now that my print inventory has been completely decimated by the classy cats of chicago- its time to rush to my printers for the Toronto Fan Expo in 2 weeks!!

cheers mates!

August Long

Just wrapped up August long weekend-and regardless of having no plans made whatsoever, it turned out to be a great one... im writing down what I did -more for me to remember, than for you guys.

Fri- sent off my print files for the upcoming chicago comic con, met up with my mates and went to the "Toad in the Hole" pub, met some random country people, followed them to the "Academy" Patio, after a drink or two there, we skipped over to the Australia bar "billabong" where our bartender working was Jermaine Clements (from flight of the conchords) doppelganger... im still not convinced he wasn't the real one.

From there, we set off on a trek for the "Taverns" rooftop patio-for whatever reason we ended up walking through a forest on the way... was a bit sketchy, there was randomly a mattress in there. The night eneded with a trip to the Poutinery (which is a place that exclusively sells big messy plates of fries+gravy+awesome)

Sat- finished off the above Metroid piece :) then BBQ and beers with some buds, followed by the famous BDI's ice cream and then off to a sports lounge for exotic beer. finished off the night with a marathon of "East Bound and Down"

Sun- went to Winnipegs Folarama Festival "Celtic Pavillion", followed by drinks at a buddies house, then off for pints at the kings head pub- which included a staggering loss at foos ball against some new friends. Im pretty sure they were AAA foos ball players in disguise.

Mon- hit a club for the first time in a while, and did all the things one does at a club. wait in line to get in, danced it up, waited in line to get a drink, dance, waited in line for the patio, rinse and repeat.

also:

found a stellar New song for the playlist

Comic Cons are Great :)

My current job is awesome... "design anthropomorphic steampunk animals" was a task given to me the other day. success.

0

Commissioned Iron Man piece, should sell nicely at the upcoming comic cons.

STUFF update:

Recently I attended the AiKon anime convention here in winnipeg- which randomly turned out to be my most profitable wknd of selling artwork YET. awesome surprise. I think a big factor was: Anime artists are the shyest most socially awkward breed of artists out there, so the fact that I actually talked to people walking by helped me out greatly with sales.

My print supply is now decimated, so I'm currently in checklist/new piece mode in prep for my upcoming trips to Chicago Wizard con and Torontos Fan Expo. I expect both trips will be a blast, cannot wait :)

cheers

My current desktop

The Fall

The Fall updated

My Angel Gabriel WIP

WIP- just started this up, and I really should be working on other things- or getting ready for a weekend of camping. Annoying how i always produce my favorite stuff when I should be spending my time on 6 other things besides my own pieces :S

One of my current favorite songs at the moment is Gabriel by Lamb. Great tune, and as with all songs, i keep imagining my own little music video whilst listening- basicly an angel has done something, and is cast out of heaven. the fall to earth causes her halo to disentigrate, her angely power to dissipate, and her wings to burn off, by the time she lands, she completely mortal.

the final piece will have a lot more to look at, as well as some nifty verbage :) stay tuned

GlaDOS Wallpaper for da

got a lot of requests for a wallpaper version of my previous portal piece- so voila!

WIP Tree Guardian

I had originally planned to enter into a "Create A Collosus" contest, but ran out of time- I blame my little sis's wedding. very selfish of here not to adjust things to my schedule :)

I still plan on finishing the piece, the final will feature a group of horrified little woodsman whom just shopped down trees in the wrong woods.

On a side note: my little sis got married last weekend, it was a great event, copious amounts of pictures, family noise and festivities. I think i might be fully recovered sometime next week.

Portal Fanart:

Finally managed to play a bit of this game the other week, thought it would make a great addition to the print selection for the upcoming comic cons. (Ai-Kon, Toronto and Chicago, i'll blog about those soonish)

My new favorite trick: build your artwork in grayscale, then play with colours afterwards. It really allows you to experiment and come up with some nice looks.

was about time to update this beast... My lack of updates was due to a comic project with Bluewater productions- I'll have my first comic on shelves this August :)

Steamy ol Tony Stark

Commission for a friend, but i was happy for an excuse to work on a steampunk character.

Just signed up for both AiKon and Toronto Fan Expo Comin cons :)
now I just need to wrap up some freelance so I can get working on my own artwork!