Random Bits

THE AVENGERS MAX - The Iron Man

2011-08-25T13:58:00.002-05:00

After the war, left-over Stark Tech was strewn across the battle fields of Western U.S. Few knew how to make it work, fewer still were brave enough to try.

One man did.

The Iron Man wanders the wasteland between Reno and Las Vegas amassing a rag tag group of engineers and tinkerers, together they scavenge for Stark Technology and are said to be building an army. The Eastern tribes whisper rumors that he is Tony Stark yet others wonder if the suit works at all...

Another mashup via Carlos Villagra...The Avengers MAX!

Rogue: 90's Xmen Challenge

2011-08-19T15:49:00.002-05:00

UPDATE: Phoenix for Diego

Thanks to Netflix I can now watch any episode of X-men the animated series. This combined with Marvel Vs. Capcom 2 should give you a good sense of what I wasted my time watching/playing in my misspent youth. I tried channeling a little of that into this piece, an imaginary X-men game where they simply updated those eyepoping 90's costume designs. Carlos V. did a fantastic, sleazy, Gambit that you should totally check out.

Cheers,

JL

John Carter of Mars

2011-07-15T13:17:00.001-05:00

Back in 2007 I was working at American Greetings alongside some extraordinary illustrators and creative thinkers. Back then the Sketch-o-rama blog was a way to vent the creative steam that builds up when your working on say...Care Bears or some such.

We had just heard of the Disney/Pixar John Carter of Mars deal and were psyched at the prospect, so much so that we all did our take on the fearsome Tars Tarkas ( James Groman and Carlos Villagra )

I opted for a longer leaner look for the Thark, less muscle bound than the iconic Frazetta
imagery.

It seemed to make sense that a 15 foot tall alien will be intimidating regardless of how ripped they were and it helped reinforce a sort of tribal theme I felt tied in well nicely with Burroughs description of the Tharks in "A Princess of Mars".

It was so much fun that I did a few MORE drawings to get the designs out of my system.

Variations on a theme. I moved the tusks from inside the mouth to the outside of the mandible and gave him a ridgy spinal protrusion to balance out the larger, engraved tusks.

I remember trying to find an approach that was true to my vision of the character at the time.

And this is the important part: While that vision might change, it's important to infuse as much of your art with your personal spirit and vision. In the end it's all that matters and will make your art stronger and vastly more appealing than anything conjured up to please someone else.

I spotted this image in a sneak peak article on io9:

Tall skinny Tharks!!!

And then this screengrab of the very excellent trailer released yesterday:

I was lucky enough to meet Iain McCaig, Concept Artist, Master Storyteller and all around Force of Nature at this years' Illustration Master Class. During his presentation he talked about working the John Carter of Mars movies. THREE times with THREE different directors.

Ultimately he and his uber talented daughter, Mishi, also worked on this Disney Pixar version.

Can't wait to see it and congrats to all those involved in finally bringing this story to life.

Teaser Trailer

Robopocalypse/Venom sketches

2011-06-23T14:17:00.000-05:00

A few bits and bobs. Both of these are sketch jams with Carlos V. Anyone else reading Robopocalypse? I'm loving everything about it so far.

Alien Guy: UPDATE

2011-04-20T08:44:00.004-05:00

UPDATE: For those of you interested in these sorts of things here is my speedily constructed base mesh....

Quick lunch type sketch. Started off as a doodle and expanded into a quick Sculptris sculpt, then finally colored in Photoshop.

Mecaf, Monster, Lobster!

2011-04-04T10:14:00.002-05:00

Spring/ Summer is slowly starting to claw and bite its way back here in New England, and it looks like this is going to be a busy couple of months for me.

In May I'll be attending the Maine Comic Arts Festival, where I'll be sharing a table with fellow Illustration Ninjas, Ellen Crenshaw and Chad King.

I wanted to paint an original illustration for the con and so it became excuse to draw a lobster monster and pirates! Keep checking in for progress pics.

Then in June I'll be attending the Illustration Master Class. I can't properly describe how psyched I am to attend this star studded workshop so I'll simply whisper Boris freaking Vallejo....

Finally, August = The International SCBWI conference in Los Angeles. Megan and I have been busy working on a picture book that is very dear to us, and we can't wait to talk to and be inspired by fellow Illustrators and writers.

Astonishing Assholes: Yuriko

2011-03-22T21:09:00.000-05:00

Yuriko aka Lady Death Strike.

Check out some MORE killer Assholes by Karg, Ford, and Chris [a.k.a. KFC] Here.

JL

Nausicaä Earthquake Charity Drawing

2011-03-17T06:01:00.001-05:00

Hey everyone,

So I'm sure if your like me, you've been overwhelmed by all the gut wrenching news coming out of Japan.

I finally got tired of feeling helpless/hopeless. I'm auctioning off an original drawing with 100% of proceeds going towards the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund.

Click here to bid

Please take some time and check it out and bid.

If you're more inclined to donate directly here are a few verified charities:

Artists Help Japan via Dice Tsutsumi:
http://give2asia.org/artistshelp

Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund via
GlobalGiving:
http://www.globalgiving.org/projects/japan-earthquake-tsunami-relief/

American Red Cross:
http://newsroom.redcross.org/2011/03/11/disaster-alert-earthquake-in-japan-tsunami-warnings/

Anime and Manga Bloggers for Japan:
http://www.bloggers4japan.com/

Thank you,

JL

http://newsroom.redcross.org/2011/03/11/disaster-alert-earthquake-in-japan-tsunami-warnings/http://newsroom.redcross.org/2011/03/11/disaster-alert-earthquake-in-japan-tsunami-warnings/

Harmony Drawing Pt.2

2011-02-25T13:28:00.002-05:00

Harmony doodles done mostly to warm up. There is something intangible about the looseness of this little program that I love. Next step is to take one of these to a finish. Any suggestions on which?

Also if you have not already, do yourself a favor and check out the Muddy Colors blog. It's chock full of illustration, inspirationy, goodness.

The Astonishing Assholes- Wolverine

2011-02-13T23:38:00.001-05:00

Savage High School Dropout: Wolverine is the story of a young man whose principal interests are sex, ultra-violence, and beer.

The Astonishing Assholes are the X-men by way of Kick-Ass. As Carlos puts it: "The Astonishing Assholes is a reinvention of the X-men. Young, jaded assholes that have no purpose but to listen to loud music and smash a few heads. They smoke, drink and fuck. Everything your normal teenager does."

Make sure to check out Carlos's Beast and Gavin's Cyclops.

Cheers,

Couple of F.O.B's

2011-02-04T11:09:00.000-05:00

What a ref!

These are a few drawing warm ups that got out of hand...

Lunch sketch

2011-01-25T17:47:00.001-05:00

Fired up the ol' Alchemy during lunch today and this dude emerged all angry and stuff.

JL

La Femme Bobba Fett

2011-01-12T17:47:00.001-05:00

Yet another one of these challenge deals between Gavin Goulden, Carlos V. and myself. This was a lot harder than I expected. The idea was to take a Star Wars character and gender bend them. This is one of those instances where an idea popped into my head and I couldn't quite nail it down to my satisfaction.

But thats half the fun of exploring and trying something new, you're never quite sure how it'll turn out.

JL

Trash Planet & WW-N: Samus Prints Now Available!

2010-12-22T10:53:00.004-05:00

*Please note: all prints are only available for a limited print run, so get while they're hot!*

Prints are now available through Society6! Make sure to check out the banner on the right for Gallery quality Giclee prints on matte, smooth, 100% cotton rag, acid free archival paper (whew! thats a mouthful!)

What if Samus Aran fought in WW2?

2010-12-07T13:45:00.002-05:00

UPDATE:

As seen on: Kotaku, G4tv, and Irrational Games!

Once again we opted to do a redesign of some of our favorite characters, I somehow ended up in a world where Samus Aran, from Metroid, fought in WW2 for the allies.

This was a lot of fun, after I got started it was hard to stop which is a great sign.

I'll post a quick progression later this week. Make sure to check out Carlos V's. entry and check back for more updates as other friends and colleagues upload their Nintendo/ WW2 mash ups.

Trash Planet: Pixar speed paint

2010-11-23T09:35:00.010-05:00

In an effort to get a quick blog update in before the holidays, Carlos V. Chad K. and I agreed to do a Pixar related post. The twist: choose a Pixar character and make em into a warrior. I remember reading somewhere that the working title for Wall-E was "Trash Planet" and thought it would be cool to make an 80's B-movie poster of that.

It's Wall- E meets Mad Max!

Happy Turkey Day!

-----jl

Scupltris Experiments in 3Dimensions

2010-10-26T12:23:00.005-05:00

So I'm obsessed with Sculptris. Its the first 3d program that truly feels intuitive and easy to use for non 3d artists. Seconds from opening the program I was making things that looked like things. All too often I find myself fumbling with commands and learning how to simply rotate the object in 3d, with Sculptris it feels natural and easy to "get" It doesn't seem like a full blown 3d solution but its fun as hell.

This guy took about an afternoon from Sculptris to Photoshop.

-----jl

In Soviet Russia, Robot Lenin wears YOU!

2010-09-21T15:45:00.003-05:00

Check out my Threadless submission and take some time to vote for it:

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Gouken

2010-08-29T19:51:00.005-05:00

So for once I poked Carlos about doing a random drawing for our blogs. I thought a Street Fighter theme is as good as any. Carlos chose Gouken for me to draw, I'm still waiting on his Cammy.

I might do more of these, I have a Blanka kicking around my sketch book...
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JL

Harmony

2010-08-23T23:46:00.007-05:00

Harmony is a browser based drawing program developed by "mrdoob" and I'm kind of addicted.

Here are a few doodles:

If you check it out make sure to link me your results!

Via Hans Bacher
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TRON

2010-08-02T21:21:00.007-05:00

Ok so Carlos once again has thrown down the sketch gauntlet and it had to be answered. I'm loving every little bit of this new Tron movie, from the Daft Punk Soundtrack to the hot new vehicle designs, so I chose to use it as a jumping off point to conjure up a TRON Mecha. Picture it folding and origami style or simply speeding along all motorball like.

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JL

Predators

2010-07-25T17:22:00.004-05:00

My buddy Carlos posted a sweet Predator Illustration over on his blog last week and convinced me to do a sketch.

Also make sure to check out some Predators concepts by Alex Toader here.

More posts coming soon!

JL

Skeletor: Evil Lord of Destruction

2010-06-28T21:09:00.004-05:00

Oh blog it's been a while. Been busy with a few things, hang in there: big post coming towards then end of July.

See how I just gave you something to look forward to?

Thank me later.

JL

Freakshow: Critter

2010-05-17T23:36:00.005-05:00

When David Server asked me to do a pinup for his comic Freakshow, I could not resist. It's like a horror show version of the X-men. These are things I like.

This is a prep sketch for it just to help me figure out the character design of critter and to get me psyched about the piece.

I'll post step by steps by request, so if you wanna see that, post a comment and I'll do it!

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Zilla

2010-05-14T12:31:00.007-05:00

I was really inspired by Derek Thompsons sketches of Godzilla over at his blog, so much so I couldn't resist trying my hand at painting my take on ol zilla.

Random sh*t

2010-05-10T12:32:00.001-05:00

DOg-Sketch

2010-05-09T21:24:00.003-05:00

Playing around with a few techniques, and my new Cintiq (yay!) came up with this over the weekend.

More to come!

JL

Captain America Redesign: Project Rooftop

2010-05-05T13:33:00.003-05:00

The concept behind my redesign is simple: What does captain America look like ten years from now? I'm a big fan of the old school Joe Simon design, with that in mind I felt that modernizing this character is key to making Cap'n relevant to both an older demographic as well as kids raised on Halo and the shadow of the Iraq war.

Make sure to check out Project: Rooftop for more comic book costume goodness.

Alchemy sketch

2010-04-17T14:08:00.002-05:00

Kick-ASS

2010-04-06T17:07:00.002-05:00

I've been watching the trailers and clips from this and I cannot wait! In the mean time check out the comic it's a brutal little book, the Romita Jr. artwork is well worth the price of admission.

Watch Nic Cage Kill Absolutely Everyone In New Kick-Ass Clip

Final Kick-Ass Trailer Will Leave Boot Marks On Your Face

Random-ness

2010-03-08T16:39:00.002-05:00

Jarl Haakon Sigurdsson

2010-03-03T15:58:00.002-05:00

In 20,995, a quarrel broke out between Haakon and the Trønders just as Olaf Tryggvason, a descendant of Harald Fairhair arrived. Haakon quickly lost all support, and was killed by his own slave and friend, Tormod Kark, while hiding in the pig sty in the farm Rimul in Melhus.

BLOG I have neglected thee...and that aint right...

2010-03-02T18:15:00.011-05:00

Dear Blog,

I'm sorry. I know there is no excuse for neglecting you for so, so long. But I hope you'll understand that work, moving and selling a home are important things that take time. I'm also sorry for posting on other blogs.

I miss you. Please take me back.

I hope these few pieces will convince you that I'm still interested in continuing our relationship.

Yours Forever,

JL

New Year: New Site, New Post

2010-01-06T17:49:00.017-05:00

First and foremost I'm really happy to announce my new website has gone live! Check out Jlacera.com It's been a long time coming but after months of noodling it I finally took a step back and realized "Hey this aint half bad!". It's a work in progress and like all art, it's hard to say when its actually "done" so feel free to peruse the galleries and email me your feedback.

I also just had a few more Dungeons and Dragons images published over at Dungeon Magazine so I can show off a few:

...and a few lunchtime doodles from sketchday

If 2010 is anything like the end of 2009 it's going to be an awesome one...thanks to all of you who've commented and kept me busy with yet another year of blogging!

Let's own 2010.

JL

AVATAR: James Cameron 90's Color pallette

2009-12-10T10:55:00.017-05:00

Let me preface this post by saying I love James Cameron's films. When I was in the 5th grade Terminator 2 came out and blew my mind FOREVER. I have fond memories of buying the soundtrack on cassette tape and listening to it while playing Mortal Kombat on my Snes...you heard me!

So theres this movie, Avatar. I'm dying to see it but something kept bugging me. And on my way to work one morning it hit me: James Cameron's color palette is straight out of the 90's.

So Cameron has the obvious obsession with the "Blue to Orange" color scheme he uses in ALL OF HIS MOVIES. But i'm ok with that. In Avatar the colors were clashing in a way i'd seen before. I was surprised when I placed some 90's color palletes next to these high res Banshee images:

Sweet jacket:

Banshee:

Wake Boards:

Banshee:
Hammer Pants:

WTF!

I'll keep looking for other examples but until then what do you guys think? Send any related images my way and i'll post them in the line up.

Terraguhl

2009-12-01T19:08:00.003-05:00

"Among the most horrific creatures found in
Codricuhn’s employ, the terraguhls are sentient
mounds of grave dirt, replete with twitching corpses
trapped in their bodies and compelled by madness
and wickedness to bury their enemies alive."

Demonomicon of Iggwilv: Codricuhn, the Blood Storm

D&D piece done for the Dungeon Magazine

What is it about monsters that makes them so much fun to draw/paint? Being a horror movie fan, I've given it some thought and I think there's something primal and weird about horror as a genre that is attractive to artists. The genre is so flexible: horror is a fertile ground for imagination, and there is a rich tradition attached to it from Goya to Del Toro.

I'll be posting more Illos from this article later this week so keep dem eyes. peeled...

CG HUB Bi-Weekly Jam 20: JEDI Concept

2009-11-17T12:23:00.002-05:00

My entry for the Bi-Weekly Jam 20: JEDI Concept :

Once I saw that topic I couldn't shake the thought of a lightsaber hand. I wanted to go for a Toshiro Mifune style Jedi Ronin, wandering the solar system looking for a good gamble or a village that needs saving (for the right price).

Alice on SUPER PUNCH! & Imaginefx

2009-09-21T11:52:00.010-05:00

Ah what a cool feeling finding out you've been given a shout out on one of your favorite blogs, in this case it's SUPER-PUNCH check it out right now!

Also keep an eye out for the latest issue of ImagineFX where my artwork accompanies an article on the Artorder blog. I got say thank you to Jon for going with one of my images for the article!

I promise new posts soon...

Wizards of the Coast and Alice

2009-09-10T18:45:00.006-05:00

Wow who knew that getting back into the swing of blogging after an extdended absence would be so friggin hard? I've been working on a variety of things lately, so I'll share a few of the latest:

This was done for the CGHUB Sketch Jam challenge : Alice in Wonderland. I had the idea of punking her out a bit, you don't often get to see a modern twist on these fairytale characters so with this idea I threw my hat in the ring.

The tattoos are based on Illustrations by Sir John Tenniel, he illustrated the first edition of Alice in Wonderland in 1865.

The folowing Illustrations were done for Dragon Magazine, the official D&D magazine. These were a lot of fun to do, it was awesome to work with Jon Schindehette, Senior Art Director Dungeons & Dragons® Wizards of the Coast. You can find all of that issues Illos. here. Keep an eye out for my friend, co-worker, and all around Illustration badass Chad King's great work (fourth row down)

Thats it! Keep checking in for some more posts soon OR scroll to the bottom and sign up to follow my blog and be automatically updated!

C.H.U.D.

2009-09-03T14:58:00.003-05:00

Sketch-O-Rama Post from last week, based on the 80's flick C.H.U.D.

Concept Wednesday lives!

2009-09-02T17:18:00.003-05:00

A bit of a tease this week, trying to get back into the swing of things post wedding, some fun stuff to share soon enough...

Start running...

ArtOrder: B&W Vampires

2009-06-25T21:29:00.005-05:00

This was a real quickie, done in a few hours last night.

Its for this weeks ArtOrder challenge and it was a lot of fun working in black and white, I'm a huge nerd for old school B&W Illustrations, check out one of the all time masters, Bernie Wrightson here.

I loved working this fast and loose, I think I'll try doing one of these a week...

Newsarama Interview

2009-06-09T18:28:00.003-05:00

Hey everyone!

I'm going to make this post a brief one since I have a busy week ahead of me (i'm getting married on Saturday!) :

Newsarama ( a website dedicated to comic, film, games etc.) recently conducted an interview with me, check it out and let me know what you think!

Up and Coming: Jorge Lacera interview

Special thanks to Chris Arrant for hooking me up!

PS: I know they misspelled my name in the article, the editor is on it :)

ArtOrder: Variations on a Theme

2009-05-30T21:24:00.002-05:00

This week's Artorder challenge:

"Pick a character, put them into a pose, and give me three variations on a theme. The character you choose, and the pose you choose are up to you."

Let me know what you guys think in the comments section!

Thanks,

JL

Concept Wednesday: Cowboy Zombies and a Young Vulcan

2009-05-27T10:27:00.006-05:00

This week is pretty self explanatory...

These two are character designs for an untitled collaboration with the ghastly Von Kreep these were a lot of fun to do, I'm a huge western/horror fan and really want to explore doing more designs in these two genres.

This is my take on Paul Pope's awesome Spock comic in the J. J. Abrams edited issue of Wired, you can read it online here. I love Spock's design in this and thought it would make a GREAT CG animated series ala Clone Wars, but following the adventures of a teenage Spock with a chip on his shoulder and something to prove.

As always comments/critiques are soooooo appreciated and don't forget to check in nest Wednesday for some more visual stimuli!

JL

ArtOrder :Usual Suspects Silhouettes

2009-05-22T19:49:00.004-05:00

This week's Artorder challenge was to depict a line up of characters only in silhouette. This was a bigger challenge than I expected but had a lot of fun figuring out how to tackle it. Silhouettes are a common technique that concept artists use to explore unique shapes and form quickly, I personally don't practice this step but after this art challenge I'm definitley going to incorporate it into my process.

JL

Concept Wednesday: Meet the Speqtors

2009-05-20T16:53:00.003-05:00

Thanks for checking back in on a late Weds. edition of concept Wednesdays!

This is the final Speqtors post ( for now) and the cover for our one sheet. As you can see it depicts our ghost busting family in a quiet moment before the proverbial storm.

From left to right: Edwin: Dad skeptic and scholar. Sydney: Mom worlds most powerful pshycic. Ben: fashionista. Claire: heart of the family, also her sweater is possessed with the soul of a 1000 year old kungfu master.

Got any questions or comments? Feel free to write back int he comments section below or shoot me an email at jorge@jlacera.com

Check in next week for more art and concepts!

JL

Concept Wednesday: Meet the Speqtors Part 2!

2009-05-13T15:01:00.006-05:00

It's Wednesday and you know what that means!

Here is another concept showing the youngest member of the Speqtor family, Claire, meeting up for a play date with a ghost friend of hers... you know, like kids do.

The Speqtors takes place in the historic town of Miskatonic, Mass. I knew from the get go that I did not want it to look like other shows on tv (saturated colors, no variation in tone, heavy black outlines etc.) so I opted to go with a richer color palette, with limited bright colors acting as accents. I wanted the Speqtors to literally bring color and life to the dreary dead township.

Hope you dig it, and as always comments are REALLY appreciated. I'll be posting more Speq stuff next Weds.

Cheers!

JL

Concept Wednesday: Meet the Speqtors

2009-05-06T16:41:00.006-05:00

Starting today Wednesdays on Random Bits will be known as "Concept Wednesdays" Where I'll be posting bits and pieces of artwork done for the various comic/television/film pitch ideas I've developed over the past few years.

I'm kicking it off with a piece I did for an animated television show concept I'm developing with my fiancee, Megan Newcomer, known as The Speqtors!

The Speqtors are a family of ghost hunters, in Hollywood-ese I'd describe it as the Royal Tenenbaums meets Ghostbusters with a dash of Incredibles for good measure.

This shot shows one of the Kids, Ben, riding his bike home, completely oblivious to his deceased neighbors.

I'll be posting more images of the Speqtors soon as well as some other goodies so stay tuned!

JL

Boll Deevil

2009-05-02T13:44:00.010-05:00

UPDATE:

Wow what an honor to have been chosen as one of the winners of the Boll Deevil contest!! I definitely recommend you go over to Artorder and check out the rest of the entries (53 total!!) Congrats to Jasper Ng and Kiriko Moth as well!

This weeks Artorder challenge is a big one!

"The "Boll Deevil", a large and imposing critter - at least 15 feet in length. The attacks it can have I will leave up to you, but I want to see them. In other words, if it has a claw attack, I want to see claws that look like they can do real damage. If it has a breath weapon - show it's effect. " Jon Schindehette.

The winner of this weeks challenge wins a commission from either Dungeon or Dragon magazine!

So make sure to check the Jon's blog and wish me luck!

JL

Studies for the head

Little sillhouette study for my own benefit, I ended up going for a more grotesque, aged look.

Shock and Awe

2009-04-26T13:58:00.004-05:00

Updated: Scale reference

This weeks Artorder challenge. Here's the description:

Challenge #1
Concept Name: 'Shock and Awe' weapon
Due Date: April 26, 2009, Noon PST
Concept Description: In my D&D game last week, we had a moment that called for a 'shock and awe' moment. It was my job to run in with my Goliath Warden and set up that "Shock and Awe" moment. I kept wishing I had a weapon that would have helped with that task. Help me out please. Design a weapon that just screams death and destruction, or makes monsters pause before going up against someone wielding it. The only constraints, it has to be a fantasy based martial implement (swords, hammers, axes, etc.) and has to be wieldable by a 8 foot tall, 300 pound juggernaught of destruction. See what the D&D Goliath looks like here.

I've been playing some Soul calibur 4 and I think a little bit of the Soul Edge snuck in there. Hehe...the soul lives on...

I haven't designed a prop in a long while and I have to admit that this was a bit challenge. But i ended up having a blast: the research alone was worth it.

Bromides Continued

2009-04-21T18:04:00.002-05:00

DRAGON-BORN:Evolved

2009-04-17T16:09:00.008-05:00

This weeks ArtOrder entry, got carried away but it was also alot of fun.

Feedback, as always, is welcome.

Ptera-Gloth!!!!

2009-04-10T14:18:00.007-05:00

Pteradactyl + Demon + Undead = Ptera-Gloth!!!

Check out the rest of the submissions on Tuesday at the Artorder blog.

ArtOrder Sketch 2:Bromide

2009-04-05T14:31:00.003-05:00

My take on this weeks Artorder challenge.

I imagine the Bromide race as humanoid tribes that use Plants and fungus as a primary material. As they began to expand the use of the plants, a symbiotic relationship began to evolve. Now the Bromides ritualistically remove a limb as sacrifice and symbol and regrow a symbiotic replacement.

The breathing "graft" is also Symbiotic as the Bromide exhales the plant instantly converts the Co2 into oxygen, giving the wearer the ability to enter low Oxygen environments.

Construct

2009-03-29T13:33:00.008-05:00

When is an image truly finished? I couldn't help myslef. These were done for the Artorder weekly themed sketch session.

Dragon! Run!!!!

2009-02-23T19:49:00.001-05:00

Coooobra!

2009-02-17T22:21:00.004-05:00

Carlos Villagra finally sent out the call for the newest Sketch-o-rama theme: Redesign Cobra Commander. I opted to go straight away for a more militaristic and severe look. I can invision this version of Cobra Commander just as easily ordering a glass of wine or ordering the deaths of millions.
Clearly his new facial "augmentations" don't prevent him from indulging, like a good villain.

Troll

2009-01-14T19:31:00.001-05:00

Getting back into the swing of things after a long vacation, a quick painting done in Photoshop.

Cat Woman, Batman, Hellboy, Oh my....

2008-12-04T20:07:00.005-05:00

More Super-Heroic shenanigans to come...

Thor Progress

2008-10-23T17:36:00.004-05:00

Some progress on the Thor piece I started a few months ago, i'm having alot of fun working on this piece slowly and building it up over time.

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Alchemy= Awesome

2008-10-14T16:02:00.003-05:00

Late last night while taking a break from some freelance I came across this little Application called Alchemy, it's a pared down drawing program designed to keep things spontaneous and loose and I have to say it's pretty sweet. Here are some things I did in the span of a couple of hours.

Flying Contraption

2008-10-03T18:20:00.002-05:00

Speed Paintings!

2008-09-20T17:49:00.007-05:00

Studies and sketches

2008-09-12T16:40:00.010-05:00

Here are a few sketches and studies I've been working on lately:

This was done for the Sketchaday blog. Theme: Underwater creature

Again done for the sketchaday blog. Theme: Isometric environment

This I'm doing for fun mostly, Carlos just posted his prelim over on his blog and I figured I'd follow suit. I'm doing this in Photoshop where I've been painting primarily. I usually start with a dark green layer set to multiply, on top of this I set up an overlay layer to work out my value tones.

More on this piece as i get her done.

POP-MECH / ImagineFX spread

2008-08-25T15:05:00.007-05:00

I did this piece for the sketchday blog which you can find here, the theme was symbiotic relationship between a girl and her robot...

...and my ImagineFx spread at last in my grubby hands!!! I have to admit I got a kick out of seeing my stuff alongside so many talented people, a great mag for all you artistic types.

Shanna is a pUnk Rocker

2008-08-14T21:02:00.006-05:00

I've been tryin' out some different drawing papers recently and this was one of the things I was playing around with. I recently discovered the work of Michael Shultz so I also had girls and Dinosaurs on the mind.

Let me know what y'all think!

JL

BATS!!! and some figure drawing...

2008-07-21T16:46:00.008-05:00

I drew this while waiting for the Dark Knight 12:01am screening (yes I am that much of a geek...)

I've been attending a regular figure drawing class here in Quincy, MA. these are a few studies done in my sketch book, I'll make sure to post some of my larger pieces once I take pictures of em.

HULK!!! and stuff...

2008-07-02T18:14:00.005-05:00

Sorry for the lack of postings guys, been a bit busy at work etc. Here are a few pieces done for both Sketch-o-Rama and Sketchday blogs.

Also keep an eye out for the July issue of ImagineFx Magazine, a fantasy and sci-fi digital arts magazine, where some of my artwork will be featured. I'll make sure to post an update as soon as it hits the news stands here in the states.

Steam Punk Alice and Wonderland: Queen of Hearts

2008-05-23T15:21:00.004-05:00

Another quickie done for the sketch a day blog, this time I took some drastic liberties with the character of the Queen of Hearts, this was a fun one. Would love to hear any and all feed back!

Hatter

2008-05-20T22:43:00.004-05:00

Some drawings for the Mad Hatter for the Sketch a Day blog. More to come.

Pickman's Model

2008-05-12T17:12:00.002-05:00

Inspired by the short story "Pickman's Model" by H.P.Lovecraft.

Sketch a Day Theme: FolkTale

2008-04-30T17:34:00.004-05:00

La Loba from mexican and Native American folktales.

Just uploaded this over at the group blog SketchaDay, some talented folks are starting to post so be sure to check it out!

Hellboy

2008-04-23T18:40:00.008-05:00

John Carter of Mars: Tars Tarkas revisited

2008-03-21T16:19:00.005-05:00

SO the other night I could not sleep... and without really thinking about it I picked up my sketch book and started drawing. I just let my pencil wander and lo and behold Tars Tarkas began to appear all angry and yelling and carrying on. Once I was done drawing him he settled down and I went back to sleep and slept like a baby... A few days later this bit of news re-appeared on Jim Hill Media, weird huh? I can't wait to see what Pixar/Disney dose with this franchise and if by any odd coincidence they happen to need any additional design work done I AM available for freelance...ahem..well let me know what you guys think...cheers!

Helmet study

2008-03-05T20:24:00.003-05:00

Monstruous Feos

2008-02-28T22:19:00.004-05:00

S'more sketchy fun.

Sketch Download

2008-02-25T11:41:00.011-05:00

Hey everyone, these sketches have been backing up so I think its a good time to post em. I've been taking some time away from vector programs and experimenting with new techniques, mediums and subject matter.

I've also been posting (semi daily) over at sketch a day, a blog I started up with my good friends Chad King and Laura Zimmermann. Hope you guys enjoy it and feel free to leave some feedback.

JL

PS: Check don' t think I've forgotten my peeps over at Sketch-o-rama
check it out and keep an eye out for more.

Head Gear

2008-02-03T14:36:00.000-05:00

Quickie sketch.

IT LIVES!!!

2008-01-29T20:25:00.001-05:00

Yikes, It feels like a life time since my last post even though it really hasn't been that long, It's just that 2008 has decided to start off with a bang!

As of this month January I am an employee of 2k Boston, the game studio responsible for a little game called Bioshock. I'm currently working as a storyboard artist here and I'm friggin thrilled to be working with such a talented crew.

So between saying good bye to my friends in OHIO, moving, and starting a new job I've been a tad busy. But never fear here are a few sketches to feed the blog beast for a bit.

For those of you who have stuck with this blog I want to say THANK YOU!!! Your feedback and comments are a constant inspiration and motivation, I'll be posting pics of the new work diggs soon. So till next time let me get back to work...

Girls and Guns

2008-01-03T15:24:00.001-05:00

quickie Sketech-o-Rama post

Monkey Business: How Magazine

2007-12-20T12:06:00.001-05:00

Hey everyone! Make sure you check out the latest issue of the Graphic Design magazine HOW, partly because it's got a great section on typography but MOSTLY because i'm in it! I was asked to do this ice cream label for Publix supermarkets earlier this year and it got chosen as one of 51 award winning in house designs of the year! It's a great honor and I have to thank Warren Dossey over at Publix for having the guts to try something different.

Death by Monkey!

I've got some crazy news to report soon so keep an eye out and keep checking in!

Grendel: Redux

2007-11-26T12:28:00.001-05:00

I'd been meaning to get back to messing with custom brushes in photoshop for a long time, after seeing Beowulf in 3-D last week ( great 3d effects, so so movie, not sold on full mocap movies yet but can see the potential) i whipped up this take on grendel as an experiment. It was so much fun creating textures and in PS, i highly recomend it. Still haven't been able to figure out how to customize brushes in Painter, if anyone knows any good tutorials please send a link my way!

Under Control

2007-11-20T13:00:00.001-05:00

Here are some sketches based on a dream I had last week...

Joan D

2007-10-29T13:26:00.000-05:00

Quickie sketch-O-rama post.The subject: Joann of Arc. This piece was an experiment in Photoshop and i'm pleased with the results, just trying out a bunch of wild techniques. hope you dig.

Character Design Blog Interview

2007-10-28T10:02:00.000-05:00

Hey everyone, make sure to check out the awesome Character Design Blog where you'll find an interview with yours truly, it's an awesome blog and an honor to be mentioned among such great artists! Check it out!

Click here for a direct link to my interview.

Ahab

2007-09-25T11:23:00.001-05:00

Hey everyone! Here is the final design I did for Captain Ahab or an upcoming Moby Dick themed edition of sketch-o-rama. My take on Ahab was to show him as a withered, ghostly, deranged gentleman.

I'm experimenting with leaving my sketchy line drawings visible in areas to retain some of the energy of the original sketch. I've been definitely influenced by the drawings of Alberto Giacometti. I think there is an energy to his line work that could easily lend itself to animation design. More to come, stay tuned.

Robot-chika

2007-09-11T10:58:00.001-05:00

Hey everyone,

Here's an image i did as an excuse to work in Painter again. If you read this blog at all you might have noticed i have a soft spot for all things robotic and female, perhaps it was premature exposure to Sorayama at a young age?

Shanna, The She Devil!

2007-08-30T11:25:00.000-05:00

Our latest Sketch-o-rama theme is hot chick, i decided i'd do a Shanna, the She Devil here's a bit more about her:

"Shanna the She-Devil is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe. Originally created as a derivative of Sheena, Queen of the Jungle (who was herself a female derivative of Tarzan), she later became the partner and wife of Ka-Zar, Marvel's own derivative of Tarzan. Created by Carole Seuling, Steve Gerber and George Tuska, she made her first appearance in Shanna the She-Devil #1 (Dec. 1972)."

Cthulhu Crunch!

2007-08-13T07:50:00.001-05:00

Here is my entry for the Cereal Killers book, here is a brief description:

"Kreepsville Industries presents Cereal Killers. A spooky, kooky coffin table cartoon art book featuring terrorfying takes on some of your favorite breakfast cereal's".

This project has a crazy amount of talented folks involved, i'm in great company! Special thanks To Dr. Von Kreep for letting me be a part of this book. Make sure to check out more spooky cereal goodness here.

Quick little mini mock up of the box:

Random Sketches

2007-08-01T23:32:00.001-05:00

Some Captain Ahab studies for a future sketch-o-rama post...

What can i say i've been reading World War Hulk, and so should you!

Platform!

2007-07-27T12:14:00.000-05:00

Here it is finally my Platform International Animation Festival Post! I got the opportunity to go thanks to American Greetings, I was able to go on a "Creative Recharge Grant" (thanks AGP!!!)

It was an amazingly informative and inspirational few days in Portland, Oregon, i met a slew of animators and film makers. I was blown away by the amount of talent and the level of quality of the films shown, and came back inspired and (appropriately enough ) creatively re-charged . Here are a few pics of my trip, i'll make the full album available on flickr soon also make sure to check out some of the other coverage of the festival at the following links:

Official Platform Site
Article about the festival on Animation World Network
Ward Jenkins Platform Flickr photoset

The Portland Center for the Arts

Some Platform Shwag: Note the Cartoon Network frisbee, a personal favorite :)

Portland is a beautiful city, tons of parks and very pedestrian/biker friendly.

Sweet drawing by Artist Illustrator James Jarvis, one of the guest speakers and designer of the awards trophy.

Special 35mm screening of Disney's "Snow White", hosted by famed animation historian John Canemaker, with special guest Marge Champion, the model for Snow White's movements and gestures.

Closing Night Party.

Smoosh live!!!
Me and Don Hertzfeld, animator creator of many short animated films, including the Academy-Award nominated cult favorite "Rejected". Don's latest film "Everything Will Be Ok" was one of the best films i saw at the festival, and won Best in Category at Platform, highly reccomended.
Thats it! Special thanks must go out to Ward Jenkins for allowing me to hang out with him and for poitning out who everyone was, also thanks to Amid Amidi for being cool and encouraging on my first animation festival experience!

Darth Talon!

2007-07-09T11:56:00.000-05:00

Here is my Sketch-o-rama entry for Darth Talon, it was fun drawing this bad girl, here is a little more on this cute chick:

Darth Talon was a Sith Lady in Darth Krayt's new Sith Order c. 137 ABY. She was a female Twi'lek of the red-skinned Lethan group. She had black Sith tattoos covering her body, head, and lekku. These tattoos were earned in ritual combat.

She was trained by a fellow Twi'lek Sith named Darth Ruyn, whom she killed on Krayt's command with a swift decapitating strike of her lightsaber.

What can i say I'm a sucker for a girl that enjoys tatoos and decapitations.

PS: I attended the Platform Animation Fest in Portland Oregon, expect a post with pics soon!

TEE-Shirts!!!

2007-06-19T09:20:00.002-05:00

My co-worker and friend Saxton Moore recently told me about a great site called
Bountee.com, it allows you to create t-shirts by uploading your own designs.The shirts are printed using a digital process that looks remarkably similar to silk screening, only there are no limits to how many colors you can use. Check out the Bountee banner on my sidebar to the left and buy a shirt!

The Vulture

2007-05-11T00:33:00.000-05:00

I am a huge film buff, i devour special features and am in awe of the amazing talents that go into making a feature film. I am an especially big fan of concept art, ever since i got my hands on the Return of the Jedi sketchbook as a kid i've been addicted to it. So this weeks theme for sketch-o-rama was to do our take on a classic Spiderman villain for a future installment of the Spiderman film franchise. I jumped all over the Vulture.

I chose to cast James Marsters in this role because he not only has the physical looks to match the character but he also has the charisma needed to play one of Spidey's classic villains. I also re-interpreted the character as a monsterous, tragic figure. In my version, the vulture undergoes a horrifying physical and mental transformation, ala' Seth Brundle in the Fly.

As always, there is more awesomness from my peers over at Sketch-O-Rama.

Shadow Walker

2007-05-09T12:16:00.000-05:00

Riff watches over us all!!! Did this in about an hour and half.

RoboCop: Redux

2007-05-01T21:32:00.000-05:00

Here is yet another Sketch-O-Rama entry...RoboCo...errrr...Chik!

I'm probably the only person that actually really likes RoboCop 2 better than part 1. I remember my parents telling me there was no way they were letting me see RoboCop 2 opening week because of how violent it was, luckily my neighbors hadn't read any reviews and took me along with their kids to see it! Score! I have fond memories of Phil Tippet stop motion robots beating the crap out of eachother...those were the days,,,

"Cain LIKE nuke....hhhmmm..."

Spider-Woman

2007-04-26T17:35:00.000-05:00

I always thought Spider-Woman had a ridiculous yet sexy costume, it's definetly 70's cheese but it's somehow really hot too...

Bizarro's Lament

2007-04-24T15:42:00.000-05:00

This piece was inspired by my room mate Carlos V. who, like myself, is a rabid Grant Morrison, Frank Quitley fan. He's been reading All Star Superman and last issue Bizzaro made an appearance, Carlos decided to take a stab at drawing him and couldn't help myself either. Make sure to check Carlos's Bizarro here!

Fantastic 4!!!

2007-04-20T09:24:00.000-05:00

Our latest Sketch-o-Rama theme: the Fantastic Four! Consider these an attempt to erase the memory of the movie from my brain, yeck!