ToeKneeArrows

X-Men: First Class

2012-03-01T22:55:00.000-08:00

Sorry Mr. Vaughan- your movie was fun and all, but this is the only First Class for me.

Sharpie Saturday

2012-02-25T18:34:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple old sketches I did in my sketchbook using sharpies. So fun to use...

Break out those Sharpies! If you have something you'd like featured on Sharpie Saturday, send it in and I'll happily post it!

Hulk...Get Smashed?

2012-02-11T14:07:00.000-08:00

I found an old sketch I'd scanned in of old school Iron Man fighting the Hulk. I figured I'd give it the coloring treatment:

And continuing with the Hulk theme, here's an old sketch of the Hulk I found on my hard drive:

Clearly, I like to draw the Hulk.

Destroy All Mutants!

2012-02-04T14:09:00.000-08:00

Went back and colored an old sketch of mine, just for fun:

Marvel Redesign: Nighthawk

2012-01-31T08:24:00.000-08:00

I was doing some sketching the other day and did this design of Nighthawk:

I actually really like the look of the original (though I'll admit it could be seen as a little over-the-top) so I kept the same basic color scheme and only simplified some of the details (the mask, chest emblem, etc.) Here's the original for comparison, via http://marvel.wikia.com:

Let me know what you think in the comments below!

Jubilee Redesign

2012-01-21T09:46:00.000-08:00

Just messing around, trying some different styles- ended up drawing this Jubilee and decided to color it.

I went for her traditional "mall rat" look, but updated it to what I think she'd wear around a mall today. Note the lack of the giant yellow trench coat.

Breaking Bats: Two More Contenders

2012-01-17T23:44:00.000-08:00

I had so much fun drawing Harvey "Two Face" Dent that I decided to keep going with some of Batman's other rogues. The obvious next choice for me was the Joker:

Because my Batman redesign was heavily influenced by police and riot-gear, I reasoned that my redesigned Joker should be an anarchist rioter. Visually I was influenced by images from the London riots, and I ran with The Dark Knight movie version of him as an agent of chaos. Also, I had a line of thinking where maybe there are more than one Joker, even hundreds, similar to Anonymous in that they are one entity that all wear Joker masks and wreak havoc. Of course there might still be one mastermind behind it all....

And speaking of masterminds, here's my version of Bane:

I wanted to give him a practical look, but really wanted to make him look like someone you wouldn't want to mess with. I kept the same basic mask because darn it, I just think it looks cool. I gave him a weight-lifter's belt and gloves, riot gear shoulder pads, and tossed some wrestling boots on him for good measure. Plus, I gave him a more practical, less easy to mess with delivery system for his venom. I guess he finally learned from EVERY TIME HE'S BEEN BEATEN that he shouldn't have huge exposed wires sticking into the back of his head that can be easily tampered with.

If you have any input on either design I'd love to hear it in the comments!

Justice League: Redesigned

2012-01-15T19:24:00.000-08:00

Just for fun, here's a little group shot I constructed from each of my Justice League redesigns- sort of a way to bring the project to a close and tie it with a bow.

Sue Storm Costume Switch-Up

2012-01-12T11:01:00.000-08:00

I realized I need more practice drawing women. So, I randomly decided to draw a version of Sue Storm, the Fantastic Four's Invisible Woman:

I mainly wanted to draw her in something practical but still feminine, so I decided to go with a skirt/tights combo. The boots were meant to be comfortable and practical, and were semi-inspired by ballet shoes and leg-warmers. I went without gloves because Sue's powers generally emanate from her hands, and because she's tough and I doubt she'd worry too much about breaking a nail. I kept her in the traditional black, white, and blue of the Fantastic Four. Pretty happy with how this turned out- I may get around to the other 3 members.

Super Redesign: Superman

2012-01-08T12:43:00.000-08:00

Last in my Justice League redesigns is Big Blue himself, Superman:

Superman's look is classic, iconic, and I really don't think it needs any redesigning period. But, just for the fun of it, and because no Justice League would be complete without Superman, I took a crack at it.

For starters, Superman needs the cape, S-shield, and boots, so I didn't mess with those much. The cape I made of average length and gave a slightly pointed shape to so that it doesn't get in his way as much while he's moving around. The S-Shield is basically the same traditional design, but I've opted to using gray instead of yellow to show his "Man of Steel" aspect. I think it adds a certain toughness and sturdiness to his look. I've also used the s-shield shape as a recurring theme throughout the costume: at the top of his boots, his belt buckle, and the larger blue shape around the s-shield itself. The two-tones of blue help break up the large area of blue that is left by the lack of the shorts (which as a side note, I see no problem with the shorts, and don't understand why so many people seem to hate them. I simply tried this design without them to see how I felt about it). Lastly, the gray bands around his wrists are meant to evoke the imagery of a weight-lifter, which reinforces the concept of strength.

Do I think this is what Superman should wear in his series? No. Was I happy with how it turned out, and think it's an interesting redesign? I think so.

Harvey Dent

2012-01-03T22:56:00.000-08:00

At the suggestion of someone on DeviantArt, who after seeing my Batman redesign said they'd love to see me tackle some of Batman's rogues, I've taken a stab at Harvey "Two Face" Dent:

I really modeled him after Eliot Ness, and tried a few new techniques while coloring him in Photoshop. I'm pretty happy with the results, and believed I achieved the darker look I was going for. Here's the line art to show what it's like before my experimental coloring:

And the grayscale, to show where I laid in the values before adding color:

I've got a sketch for a Joker redesign that I'm looking forward to getting started on, as well as the last JLA redesign. I think it's pretty "super". Stay tuned!

New Year, New Leaguer: Green Lantern

2012-01-02T13:12:00.000-08:00

Kicking off the New Year, here's my next to last redesign of the Justice League: Green Lantern.

Original Sketch:

And, with some minor changes, the finished product:

I didn't want to veer too sharply away from Hal's classic, iconic look, so I kept the same basic color scheme. Because the GL Corp is an intergalactic police force of sorts, I gave him elements that suggested this: the badge, the patch signifying which space sector he protected, and the shoulder bars that resemble the shirts that policemen wear. Other than that, I tried to keep him streamlined, simple, but heroic. Let me know what you think in the comments!

The Manhunter from Mars

2011-12-28T16:29:00.000-08:00

Plugging right away with my Justice League redesigns. Here I have my redesign of J'onn J'onzz, the Martian Manhunter:

My main inspiration for this redesign was to think of him as a hunter, which inspired my use of almost tribal-looking face paint. I also wanted to stick to the fact that he's an alien being, so I made him larger than the other Leaguers, with three toes and elongated fingers. I'm pretty happy with how this one turned out! Let me know what you think

Justice League Redesign: Aquaman

2011-12-26T14:51:00.000-08:00

Next in my redesign of the Justice League is Aquaman. While not exactly a fan favorite, I had a lot of fun redesigning him. My basic thought process was to put him in something streamlined like a wet-suit, and I'll admit I borrowed the foot-fin combo from the Aquaman design in the show Young Justice, which I really dig. So here he is, ready to smack someone with an anchor while he calls for backup:

...and without the undersea adventure background:

Let me know what you think in the comments. I have a few more Justice Leaguers up my sleave. Stay tuned! I'm saving some of my favorites for last...

What a Wonderful Time of Year

2011-12-21T22:26:00.000-08:00

It's been a little while since I've posted here, but I've definitely been keeping busy. Gearing up for Christmas, finishing up some last minute shopping, and while I don't enjoy that at all, there's definitely something special about this time of year; being with family and friends, sharing in a spirit of giving.

Before I get too sappy, here's a sample of what I've been working on in my spare creative time. Continuing my JLA redesigns, here is my redesign of Wonder Woman.

With this redesign I was mainly trying to "de-cheezify" her a little bit, while keeping her both feminine and bad-ass. I dropped the gold from her look because I just don't like gold, and instead replaced it with silver. Her toga signifies her Greek connection, as well as hearkening to the Amazonian practice of mastectomy. I was mainly trying to imagine what an Amazonian warrior would want to wear to fight, and this is what I pictured. I had a lot of fun with this one. Let me know what you think in the comments!

He's the best there is at what he does...

2011-12-15T16:28:00.000-08:00

Here are some designs I drew up of an idea my friend Chris Harper had for a way they could work Wolvie's classic look into the film franchise. Instead of a spandex mask, he could wear more of a helmet. As Chris pointed out, the only thing that really seems to hurt Wolverine in the film franchise is head injuries (like when he lost his memory at the end of X-Men Origins: Wolverine which was a terrible, terrible movie). So, his idea was that they make a helmet for him to wear and train with in the Danger Room- a yellow and black one. I came up with the following designs:

My reasoning on the yellow and black choice is that it's a test helmet, so they use the yellow and black caution-tape color scheme. As in "Caution: You may not want to shoot Wolverine in the head because he will tear yours off."

Then, as the film progresses, Chris' idea is that he gets a repainted version of the helmet that's close to his X-Force look (which I think looks pretty awesome).

So there it is. Cool idea, Chris! If you have any comments, leave them below!

A Cowardly and Superstitious Lot

2011-12-05T15:49:00.000-08:00

Next in my redesigns, I give you Batman. With this design, I was thinking what a person would need to wear to do what Batman does, and I decided that was riot gear. Also, seeing as how Batman's at his best when he's striking fear, I tried giving him a scarier appearance, hence the red eyes and more bat-like face.

I played around with the colors a lot, and I'm torn between the previous color scheme, and the following which doesn't use the blue. I'd love to hear any opinions on it!

And here he is without his mechanical wings. I figured he would use those to glide over the city on patrol, but would put on the cape for situations on the ground that might require stealth.

And there you have it. I'm pretty happy with how this one turned out. Leave me any comments if you have any thoughts on the design- I'd love to hear them. I believe I will continue this JLA trend. Maybe I have a Green Lantern up my sleeve somewhere...

The Flasher

2011-12-03T22:40:00.000-08:00

Misleading title, I know. Just a redesign of The Flash that I did yesterday. I tried to take into account the physical effects of running fast, so I gave him goggles for the wind, thick-soled shoes for the friction, a light-weight harness to keep his legs from hyper-extending, and a helmet for any super-speed spills. I know that technically his "speed force-field" makes all this moot, but that is the reasoning behind this design.

And the redesign without my experimental streak:

Finishing up a Batman one next- Just trying to finalize the color scheme...

It's simple....Kill the Batman!

2011-12-01T20:56:00.000-08:00

In honor of Arkham City (which is awesome and I highly recommend to any Bat-Fan), I'm posting a slew of Batman and bat-inspired bat-drawings! Hope you enjoy:

My Tribute-to-Steve-Rude Batman


Batman concept- Oldie but possibly goodie?


Joker, looking as flamboyant as ever. May finish this someday.

Who is Batman?

Half-an-Hour-and-a-Sharpie Batman

Back to My Roots

2011-11-30T19:39:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd take a minute tonight to take a break from all the digital art I've been doing lately and create something more traditional (well, at least more traditional for me). I painted and submitted 4 small paintings on 6" x 6" canvases to a local exhibition titled "notBIG", in which all pieces are to be smaller than 12" in any dimension.

One of my favorite things about this idea is that you can hang each individual painting however you'd like to. They can be one cohesive image, or they could be hung all over the apartment or house. I've been considering exploring creating pieces that can be hung in an order to tell one idea or story, then rearranged to tell another. This is maybe a baby step to that.

Stay tuned!

Up late with Photoshop

2011-11-21T21:51:00.000-08:00

I can't believe how fast the time flies while I'm drawing. I mean, it's awesome that I get so focused, but I get so on a roll that it's suddenly 12:30 and my responsible side is telling me I should go to sleep. Anyway, here's a small sample of the commission I was working on:

Kind of reminds me of a print I made back in college- one of my favorites actually. Unfortunately I don't have an image of an actual print, just the sketch:

Good, wholesome zombie fun. And, sticking with the black and white theme- a couple pieces I did with chalk on wood:

Something Old, Something New

2011-11-20T12:01:00.000-08:00

I have so much art that I want to post, but so as not to become lazy and post only things I've done in the past, I'm going to institute upon myself a rule: each post has to have both something old and something new. And, seeing as how I just finished an entry to Project: Rooftop's (link) contest to redesign Image Comic's Invincible, I thought I'd post an old entry to their redesign Wolverine contest (which sadly wasn't featured) to hopefully show how I've improved from then to now. So! Without further ado...

Initial Wolvie sketch:

Gone and colored in Photoshop (I think this was the first design I colored using my Wacom tablet, and boy does it show). Also, apparently my monitor was bad, because his costume's supposed to look more navy blue, and less like Grimace.

And now my lineart for the Invincible Redesign:

And my finished, colored entry:

Fingers crossed that it gets featured! Either way, I'm excited to see all the other submissions. Win/win either way, really.

I Just Discovered the Internet

2011-11-19T12:26:00.000-08:00

After years of seeing other artists posting awesome artwork on their very own personal blogs, I decided I'd start doing the same, if for no other reason than to motivate me to draw more. Hopefully somewhere along the process I will actually become able to draw. So without further ado, just so this blog doesn't look so empty and pathetic, I'll post some old work of mine.

I always liked the Fantastic Four when they're portrayed more as "science-adventurers" and less as superheroes. Here's my take- Sue looking very mod, Johnny a literal ball of flame with a person somewhere inside, Reed with some kind of crazy techno-gadget, and the Thing basically a grouchy old man.

Original Iron Man? Original Iron Man.

Continuing with the "original" theme: the original X-Men. Now, while I was pleasantly suprised at how much I enjoyed X-Men: First Class, this is the the only first class that'll ever matter to me. Why, oh why couldn't they have made the first X-Men movie about a team of teen outcasts in the 60s discovering their powers and fighting against intolerance? Featuring Cyclops, Jean, Beast, Iceman, and Angel? Oh, because that would have been too close to the source material that made the X-Men so popular. My bad.