KADE SUN of PERDITION VARIANT COVER

[BIG ELF]

Hey all,
Jay complained to me that there has not been a lot of art posted yet on the message board so as promised here is some progress of a cover that I did for Arcana Studios "Kade Sun of Perdition".

I felt a bit of pressure as Sean has had both Templesmith and Ashley Wood do Variant Covers for him in the past and wanted me to really deliver with an emphasis on the "Dark Ages".

Here is the original drawing. I tend to draw on poster size paper. I feel more comfortable drawing large about 24 x 36 in size.



I used a mix of Charcoal and Conte.
I thought that nothing captures the idea of the Dark Age like Frank Frazetta who is an obvious influence, hence the big ass Axe.

[BIG ELF]

I then took a digital pic of the drawing and used Photoshop to start the coloring process. Here is an example of how I used the “Ted Turner Technicolor” or “Alex Ross” method as I like to call it, where I first seperated the color to give a monochromatic base in which to work.



Fixed the belt buckle and Sword on the back. Added texture to the Axe and Shield.

[BIG ELF]

Later, I cropped the drawing for a more centered composition and got to work on the background with lighting effects.



I also fixed the eyes for a creepier look.

[BIG ELF]

I didn’t quite like the “smurfiness” of Kade and so I brought back some of the original grey tones to the skin. Added the signature tattoos, some blood splatters, dark blood on the axe and presto you have a cover.

[HHComics]

This makes me sad that we never finished working together on your project.
Some day, some day.
This is awesome!

[BIG ELF]

Thanks man,
Yeah, our project together never seemed to pan out. Too many distractions. We are still young though so you never know what the future may bring.

[Brian Guay]

Something was bothering me about this pic, but I couldn't put my finger on it before. So that's why my feedback is so late on this piece.

His head is too low. While he could get his head to sit this low on his shoulder, and chest, it's a force to do so.

As far as the concept goes, I really like it. The use of dark is nice. I might have tried to find a way to get the axe head to be a bit more of a focal point, but that just depends on what your trying to say with the pic.

When will we see this piece in print?

Bri

[BIG ELF]

I see what you mean by the head and chin looking forced down. I guess I was trying to emphasize the weight of the axe. Your eye level is supposed to be at the saddle of whatever he is riding. So he's kind of looking down at you.
Kade's a jerk.

Here it is with the title and subtitle

This should be coming out in early 2007. Well at least that is what I thought. Arcana seems to be taking their sweet time on getting this out. Email http://www.kade@kade.ca and ask what is taking so long.

[Brian Guay]

Looking forward to owning a copy

Bri

[tHrOttLe]

I've seen better art from Strawberry Milkshake and Hot Wing Vomit swirls.

J/K........ Nice work...... as always. I am still hoping to own a "BIG ELF" original. Nice to see that you're keeping true to your passion again.

[BIG ELF]

Kevin,

I will never forget the masterpiece that was the allergic reaction of Stu.
That was quite the color contrast between the pink and red hot sauce.

Good to see you posting on Canadian Geek.

[tHrOttLe]

Kevin,

I will never forget the masterpiece that was the allergic reaction of Stu.
That was quite the color contrast between the pink and red hot sauce.

Good to see you posting on Canadian Geek.

Stu + Straw full of long Island Ice Tea + Strawberry Milkshake + Hot wings with Extra Hot sauce = fantastic colour contrast..... lol. Beats the Colin Cough any day.

Anyway, checking on your website when I came accross a link to this post. Figured it was a good way to see what's new in the life of the "Big ELF". Something I can easily do at work........

[BIG ELF]

I don't know, the Colin Cough was pretty epic. There were like whole mushrooms in there! I believe the drink of choice was Molson Canadian Special Draft.

For those who are reading this and don't know what we are talking about... its okay. We are just reminiscing about old drinking tales. These events are permanently etched in our minds with alcohol.

Only Throttle would know what 19 Popsicle shooters in a row in a matter of 5 minutes is like. (It would have been faster but those last 3 took a long time to put down)

[tHrOttLe]

(It would have been faster but those last 3 took a long time to put down)

19 in 5 min...... and three took a long time? My stomach said..... not long enough.

Only The "BIG ELF" would know what a micky of rum would taste line in 15 seconds, or 13 Oz's of $hit Mix in 30. bet you neither of us could come close to that now.

Those were the good old days.

Anyway, I will PM you.... got some questions for ya.

[knubbins]

This looks like a sweet project, I'll keep it in mind and pick one up when it kicks off.