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One If By Land

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This started as another #light study, because light is my favorite thing in #art – I added all the other stuff to make the composition less boring. Thematically, it’s an update of the whole #paulrevere ‘the Redcoats are coming’ schtick at the start of the #revolution and updated to reflect the #multicultural #equalityforall society we’ve become since then. At first it looks like a #woman standing by a #window but notice the weapon, the walkie-talkie and the detonator, & she becomes much more than a vapid #model starting out into space, she becomes a #hero – #new #digital #doodle masquerading as #artwork

The Bubble

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I wanted to see if I could create the feeling of being inside a space helmet, without creating an actual helmet. I think it was a success.

Also, if you wonder what it looks like in the creation process, here’s a screenshot.

Basically, there’s a lot of illusion in the creation of art, especially digital art. This is a top down perspective, but some things are shrunk others grown, and placing objects just as they would occur in life, such as the four screens, don’t always give the best artistic visual. Anyway, thought you may like to know what’s behind the mask.

Rebirth

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“She woke up, disoriented, confused. The last thing she remembered was driving down that dark country road, probably too fast, when the deer came out of nowhere. In that last moment, she recalled her body was not made to go through a windshield. Now, here she was, the floor was cold, wet, full of water. Picking herself up, she looked around, the strangeness of her surroundings hiding in the dim light. Her entire body hurt except her arm, it was strangely numb. She looked at it, and the panic set in, the unusual metal didn’t belong on a body. Then, from above, she heard movement. Looking up, she froze in terror as the alien being came into view, it’s limbs reaching for her. With a flash of blue light the alien finished its work, activating the cybernetics in the limb.”

There was a moral in there somewhere. Originally, this digital artwork started as a beach scene, but there’s too many of those. There’s not enough alien appreciation out there.

Inconvenient Exit

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I was watching the 2012 version of Total Recall the other night and there’s a scene where Kate Beckinsale, *sigh*, slides out a window firing a weapon. Then I watched a Korean movie called 2009: Lost Memories which has a villain that dies all too early in the movie. This artwork is a combination of both of these influences, plus I wanted to see if I could successfully render someone going out a window firing a gun.

What’s it all mean, Basil? (Best Austin Powers voice) Well, maybe she’s an assassin, or a hero like in Die-Hard. I tried to capture anger, determination, a little fear (who wouldn’t going out a skyscraper the wrong way), and utmost confidence. Did I make it happen for you?

November Roundup – AKA No ‘Regerts’

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Well, November is over. I came in at just under 21 pieces of artwork, or 70% efficiency. For those who may have missed one or two, I’ve collected all of November below. The last piece I did was technically published in the wee hours of December 1, so I have to include it there.

My Favorite of This Month’s Work

Why do I keep track? Art is what I do instead of playing video games (lots of time lost there in the past) or binge watching TV (also lots of time lost in the past) – but no ‘regerts’, as the meme with the misspelled tattoo suggests.

In all seriousness, keeping track helps me to realize the value of time, since, as an artist going for fame and glory three-hundred years from now, there is precious little of it. Time is the one irreplaceable thing we have, so I want to make the most of it.

Without further ado, I give you November.

Note: there are some closeups, so there are 24 photos in all.

So what was November about? I think my themes were generally the power and beauty of woman, irony (as always throughout my work) and hope. Thoughts? What did you see in the artwork? Commentary welcome!

Woman | Warrior

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I like moody settings so the challenge for me is #lighting – this is another of my too dark to see #digital #paintings that I threw a #filter on to bring out the #beauty contained therein I forget the #title but I’m always changing them anyway, so…. #art #illustration #drawing #render #woc #fantasyart #adventurer #warrior

Woman with Pearls

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Woman with Pearls. #vermeer is my favorite #artist and #girl with a #pearl #earring is my favorite of his #artwork so I decided to update it for 21st century #america – I was hoping to get this #render done by 9, but didn’t count on my rig taking 4 hours to do it, so I missed the golden hour of posting. I’ll have to settle for 6 instead of 8 likes 🙂 #digitalart #digitalartist #new #beauty #portrait

The Scream 1983

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Today’s #doodle takes #edvardmunch ‘s The Scream and updates it to 1983. Why that year? It was the height of the Cold War and the closest the world came to #nuclear war with #Russia – but for the heroic actions of one man, Stanislav Petrov, who should be in everyone’s working memory. On 26 September 1983, the nuclear early-warning system of the #USSR reported the launch of multiple intercontinental #ballistic #missiles from bases in the United States. These missile attack warnings were felt to be false alarms by Stan Petrov, an officer of the Soviet Air Defence Forces. He risked his life by not reporting these errors to his superiors, and died in obscurity (but not forgotten). He never got a Hero of the Soviet Union medal, though he was much more than that. Okay, #history aside, the #scream always looked like some form of fiery #nightmare to me so I played with that thought. The people in the background are a take on 80’s #apocalyptic cinema, and it took some work to get the mushroom cloud to look more authentic; there’s a literal sun inside there. #art #digital #digitalartist

Fantasy v. Reality

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A woman dressed in medieval armor sits at a modern office desk with her head resting on her hand, embodying a clash of fantasy v. reality. A sword leans against the desk beside her while a computer monitor, keyboard, and mug adorn the surface. Ceiling lights illuminate the surreal scene.

One of the types of art I’ve enjoyed creating is the juxtaposition of adrenaline charged high fantasy, with the cold mundane-ness of reality. I’ve done a few creations to this end. Let’s explore:

The first is, “A Warrior Walks into a Bar.” I created this from multiple angles, because there is a lot more going on than just another portrait.

I did a second take to focus more on the server and her reaction to the impossibility of someone bringing their horse into the bar – which has been done in cinema.

Another cool thing about alternate angles is that it can showcase other players in the scene and what they are really doing, for example, the bartender saying to the Warrior that horses are definitely not allowed in the bar.

Finally, there’s the boredom that any gamer feels when having to ‘adult.’ In this case, our hero can’t wait to get out and slay the dragon, but she has to do the TPS report first.

The Princess

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A person with flowing red fabric behind them poses dramatically over a table with a candle in a holder. The person has wavy grayish hair and a fierce expression. The background is neutral, emphasizing the dynamic fabric and candle.

The muse of painting has deserted me. I’m not sure when she’ll be back. No worries, her sister the muse of digital artistry is alive and well!

I’ve been doing digital work for about a month, and have already become quite prolific. All of my work is available on my Instagram feed @robmedleyart. I’ll be posting those creations here over the next few days.

My latest work is entitled “The Princess.” It’s about incorporating and celebrating women of color into classic fairy-tales, which seem to be boringly cast full of white characters. There’s so much diversity in the world that I find it tragic our folklore doesn’t follow suit.

Anyway, there are two versions of the Princess. The first one I thought was super beautiful, but in discussing her with my friends, found that I was buying into tropes that were tired and dated.

So, I went back to the virtual drawing board. I’m much more pleased with the results of version two.

Both are beautiful, but I feel there is more going on in the latter and the scene feels more alive.

It’s Been a Minute

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A woman with dark hair tied up in a bun is crouched on the ground, holding a long sword over her shoulder. With intense makeup and bold red lipstick, she wears a serious expression. It’s been a minute since she trained here, in an outdoor concrete area with walls, clad in her sleeveless outfit.

I just looked at my site and saw my last article was published in April of 2018, almost a year ago. For those that held on, thank you!

Where did I go? The short answer is ‘nowhere’; which is both true and ironic. I’ve been working a lot. Since being mortal is part of the human condition, I had to eat, pay rent, etc., and as we all know, art doesn’t a living make, unless you know people, have rich parents, or are talented enough to rise above the noise of the global art market – a billion artists souls vying for your eyeball time.

I haven’t been painting on canvas, per se. Like her musical sister in 2013, that Muse packed her bags and left me for brighter pigments. I’ve had a canvas on by easel since April, but all I’ve managed to do is hit it now and then with a duster and compressed air.

I have been exploring the other arts, like digital illustration, writing, and painting miniatures (which I did as a teenager). I’ve also been taking the aforesaid miniatures and composing photographic scenes, which is fun in itself.

Here’s some of the work I’ve been doing. I usually post to Instagram first, but since I’m paying for this site, I might as well use it, eh?

So, have I been productive? That depends on what one considers art. I’ll leave that for you to decide. Some day, canvas muse may come back, or rekindle as the musical muse did briefly, but I’ll always be doing something creative.