Doodles

A bunch of 2022 spaceship and robot head doodles, and then a super cut of spaceship doodles I did 4 years ago for inktober 2018. Think I've made some progress these past 4 years, hope to keep pushing it for the next 4.

New Comicon Banner

Just received my second comicon banner, this one dedicated to the Megastructure project, in preparation of the book coming out and being available for physical sale. They did a nice job printing, now I can use either banner or both together.

New Video: Creating An Art Bible For A Fictional Universe

As an Art Director, you have many important jobs, and one of the more important ones in my opinion is creating the Art Bible for a project. So what is an Art Bible? It's a document that, if done right, can be read by anyone on a particular project, and then they will be able to produce a piece of artwork that fits into the project's aesthetic. It is a recipe, it is a formula, it is a guide, it is a rule set which shows the style of the project through text and images. 

So this lesson will show you an example of an Art Bible, specifically the Art Bible I recently completed for the Narrative Artbook "The Story Of Inc" that myself and a team of artists and writers released almost 5 years ago. 

For those of you who want to work on films or videogames in an art department, this may give you a glimpse into how helpful this sort of document can be. Or for those of you who are just scifi fans, you can enjoy this trip into the thoughts and art that make up the Pocket Universe of Inc.

https://youtu.be/X34ykTj7Hbo

Megastructure Fine Art Prints

Got samples of the fine art prints that will be coming with the print reward tiers of the Megastructure kickstarter. Additional copies will be available for sale at various comicons in the future.

New Lesson: The Difference Between Concept Design And Illustration

Added a new written lesson called "The Difference Between Concept Design And Illustration". I hope the article spawns some good discussions, this is a complex and nuanced topic, and not everyone's experiences are identical.

http://www.neilblevins.com/art_lessons/concept_design_vs_illustration/concept_design_vs_illustration.htm

Megastructure T-Shirts!

Limited Edition Megastructure T-Shirts are now on sale! After a successful Kickstarer campaign in 2021 for the book, enjoy the official T-Shirt. The shirt will have the Megastructure logo on the front (as shown), and a blank back. The shirts will be nice thick cloth, and will be printed locally to achieve maximum quality. 

 

 

This is a limited time sale. Will close pre-orders Feb 14th, get them here: https://artofsoulburn.gumroad.com/l/qtgvr

Spaceship Painting

Little weekend painting doodle. Some sort of police spacecraft me thinks...

Megastructures Jan 2022 Update

Welcome to 2022, the year the Megastructure Book comes out! And we are so excited to finally share with you the end result of this massive project!

So I have a major update on the current progress of the book. First the not so great news, as many of you have certainly experienced in your life this past year, the world is being plagued with supply chain issues. From companies not being able to get the employees they need to make stuff, to companies not getting the raw materials they need to manufacture things (paper is especially in a short supply), to stuff shipping and then sitting in containers at major ports for far longer than they should. And sadly the Megastructure book has not been immune to these issues. But the good news is the delay caused by all of these problems looks like they may not be all that bad (maybe I've jinxed myself by saying that).

Here's the current schedule I just received from the printer...

Current: Books are in line at factory in China to get printed
Feb 23rd: Books printed
Mar 3rd: Books picked up at factory in China
Mar 11th: Books leave Chinese port on cargo ship
Apr 7th: Books arrive in USA port
Apr 14th: Books arrive at USA warehouse and start shipping to the customers

Of course all of these dates are subject to change, and I'll keep you informed on any changes that do happen, but we thank you for your patience during this crazy time!

Expect at a minimum a monthly update on where the project is in the schedule, and again, thanks for the support and your understanding on global factors that are beyond our control. Any questions, always feel free to ask!

Will speak again soon, in the meantime, hope your 2022 is awesome!

Never Before Seen "The Story Of Inc" Artwork

Happy 2022 everyone! Here's a bunch of never before seen "The Story Of Inc" artwork. Only 100 of 1000 books left, so hoping to get them all sold this year! 

http://neilblevins.com/books/inc/inc.htm

Here's the planet where our story takes place. 

A lighting test for Inc book, the same image of the citadel in the desert in 6 different lighting scenarios. Wanted to get a better understanding of how time of day could affects the light and atmosphere on the planet 

A rough thumbnail exploring possible keyframes for the fight between Landis and the first guardian

You can tell a lot about a society from their furniture, the people of the Oasis have to build everything from the scraps of their crash landed generation ship and local animal skins.  

Most weapons didn’t survive the generation ship crash, and so they were fashioned and adapted from the construction equipment that did survive.