THIRD PLACE - ARCHIE
(http://i1290.photobucket.com/albums/b536/neilmcclements/fish02_zps1e4ce441.jpg)
SECOND PLACE - ALLIED72
(https://31.media.tumblr.com/e278952ec29eaf75adcbfa7fbd03240e/tumblr_n40xwj1Vkz1rm4g9oo1_500.jpg)
FIRST PLACE - STEVEN AUSTIN
(http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af150/ausven/ArtCompentryApril2014inked300dpi_zps38acfe70.jpg)
A relatively slow month but one that made up for quantity with amazing quality - ! Mr Austin was a shoo-in from the get-go - getting a vote from nearly every voter he ended up 50 points ahead of 2nd place - probably the biggest landslide I've ever seen! Although the fight for 2nd & 3rd was a great deal more tense, with Allied's clever propaganda poster and Archie's strikingly detailed Judge Fish routinely overtaking each other for much of the voting. Remember you can find out about those behind the pictures and more over on the comp Facebook page --> https://www.facebook.com/2000adartcomp
THARG'S CHOICE goes to Allistermac's corpulent Grampus - !
(http://fc07.deviantart.net/fs71/i/2014/111/1/0/klegg_grampus_by_allistermac-d7fg6cm.jpg)
Our DROID'S CHOICE this month is veritable drawing lord D'Israeli - and not one to be accused of half-measures he has decided to undertake a full critique of every entry. You've seen his sprawling and fascinating blog posts and 2000ad Covers Uncovered entries - this particular droid doesn't believe in cutting corners! He's still in the process of generating his feedback, but I'll add the full thing to this thread when he's done so entrants keep your eyes peeled - believe me, constructive feedback is always worth the wait!
Well done on another great competition. Really enjoyed the works om show and the imagination, skill and effort shown by all. Z
Excellent choices and well done to everyone who entered!
Worthy worthy top 3. Especially that stunning piece from Steve Austin.
Can't wait to see the D'israeli critique. His process blogs and commentary are a goldmine of goodness. And he's one artist that I will buy regardless of who's writing or what the story is.
He's also one of the nicest men in comics.
I met him at a convention once. I gave him some godawful comic I'd made and instead of laughing in my face and tearing it into confetti he gave me one of his. A little A5 thing that he must have done when he was barely out of short pants. Nothing in it recognisable as the man who gave the Lowlife life, not even a hint of the hand that immortalised Lazarus Churchyard. Whenever I'm trying to do something and failing dismally at getting the brain pattern down onto the page I think about that comic and what it says about working hard, learning a craft, trying and trying again.
It is a great honour to get Tharg's Choice. Congratulations to Steve Austin, a well deserved winner. I think that his excellent piece put off some of the competition and resulted in the relatively low turn out this month. Can't wait to see the critique from D'Israeli, it is very good of him to offer up his wise words to us aspiring artists.
The top 3 look real good together and AlMac, well done on Tharg's Choice. Thanks for the look in on my piece too people. I know raggedman and Zen were very kind to me. Cheers for the comp O and the team.
Nice to see that my top 2 votes and my HM were the final winners. Excellent month for entries again, and congrats to all. Especially thanks to all those who voted for me. I had my best month yet and was really grateful for the votes and comments.
I will crack the top 3 one month!!! ;) :D
Hoagy, I gave you first on sheer merit. I loved the play of light and shadow and the grim set of the Judges body language. Z
thanks for all the votes, delighted with my second place. always great fun doing this comp and looking forward to the D'israeli critique too! Great job, as usual from everyone
Nice one, looking forward to the words of wisdom from Matt.
Only just clicked that D'isreali is critiquing every entry and not the winner, am now even more excited to read that! :D
Well done all, glad to see Steve won it was a terrific piece of work. Thanks for all the votes and again thanks to Owen for his diligent work as ever.
Brilliant work. A well deserved winner.
Congrats to all future Art Droids!
Congrats Allistermac on getting Thargs choice, well deserved sir, a relatively quiet month but with some crackers. And thank you all for the kind words and votes on my piece...it means a lot. :)
'Spect to everyone who took part. Great work. I look forward to passing judgement from my custom-built Grand Judges vibrating massage chair/throne (if only) on your efforts in this month's What If... challenge. ;)
Poor D'Israeli, I hope he doesn't gush too much over my entry. Obviously, I've been a massive inspiration to him over his career - I believe he based the style of his recent 'Ordinary' art on my 'Judge Morphy's Underpants' entry of 2006. I hope he reigns it in a bit, otherwise it'll be embarrassing.
Well done to all the talented bastar... ahem, the winners!
Well done the top 3. Lots of effort, thoroughly deserved.
Love seeing every single entry, as always.
Now, how do I send a few creds D'Israeli's way before the criticism ??? :-\
Awesome entries and a well deserved win for Steve.
The generous, ridiculous and glorious Mr D'Israeli has approached each entry as if he was looking over it at a portfolio session - giving a constructive breakdown about what works and could be improved about each image. We are a lucky lot to get such detailed feedback :D
Albion - Wotten Cweep
Ah, I remember this moment well! Love the storytelling and the graffiti references - extra points for remembering Alec Trench!
Next time:
There's a fair amount of dead space around the edges of the frame - if you pulled in tighter, the drawing would have more impact.
Allied72 (1) Recruitment Kleggs
I don't usually like photomontage, but this really rocks! The strong graphic treatment, bold flat colours and use of type all work together to create strong images that really capture the feel of recruitment/propoganda posters.
Next time:
I'd maybe have thickened out the Kleggs' waist a bit (I think even buff Kleggs are built more like weightlifters than bodybuilders) but then, it works as a joke... let's face it, I'm pickin' nits here :-)
Allied72 (2) - Klegg Ambush
If you've seen my work, you can guess I love a good detail shot. The manic energy of all these little guys (all doing something different!) is terrific. The use of grey is good - it pushed the figures forward from the background and helps hold the whole thing together. It would be easy for a complex scene like this to dissolve into a mess, but this is clear and coherent. Bonus point for the poor little Judge with the amputated legs.
Next time:
I'm not sure you need the three panels far right - they only enlarge sections of the main image, and then not by very much. While this is excellent, everything's at a distance - it might be worth thinking about having larger figures in the foreground (and even smaller ones in the distance) to give more feeling of immersion in the action.
Allistermac - Grampus
Terrific portrait of the old Klegg that really catches the manic gleam in his eye. I love the way you've captured the shiny folds of his space-PVC uniform.
Next time:
If you let his legs drop even further into shadow, Grampus' hands would pop forward a little more.
amines2058 - Dredd vs Robo Dredd
This is Dredd story that was running when I first started reading 2000AD (when it merged with Starlord) - you've got good drama going on with Dredd's stance and the head with the lolling jaw. The radial zap lines really lead your eye to the focal point of the image.
Next time:
I can see the logic of Dredd holding the head up by the severed spine but it looks a little odd as it is - I think you either need more spine dangling below his hand or maybe have the head impaled on a stick Dredd's holding. The drawing is good, but the lighting is a little flat - maybe think about some strong up-lit shadows on Dredd's face and the robot head to yet more drama?
Archie - Deputy Chief Judge Fish
All hail him! Nice use of reference - he really looks like an actual fish, rather than a sort of generic drawing of one. There's a good, slightly grungy sort of brutalist vibe going on with the inking. I really like the way the shadow of the bowl shows up in grey tone inside the bowl.
Next time:
You're actually working a bit too hard here - I'd leave out all that rendering on the top edges of the bowl and let the clear glass and water contrast with the volume and texture of the badge and fish. Sometimes less is more.
CrazyFoxMachine - The Legacy of the Day The Law Died
Nice bit of narrative drawing - I like the way the background elements give a sense of place and time and the way the place has been abandoned. I also like the way you've "coded" the statue as stone by using a grey outline. And do I spot a subtle hint of the background turquoise in the shadows of Cal's bust, helping to unify the composition? Nice one.
Next time:
Again, there's quite a lot of empty space here - you could make the bust of Cal a bit bigger and move the background sign and cracked plaster in tighter behind - even have the bust overlap one or both. Colour is your friend here - if you mix a little (25-30%) of that background turquoise into all the colours of the background sign and brickwork, it'll darken them down and unify them so the bust and plinth will pop forward.
Fungus: Dredd v Cal
I wouldn't have thought of using a movie poster - it gives a different take on the story, concentrating on the terrific cast of characters rather than the events. Execution is good, and the idea of Benedict Cumberbatch as Cal is excellent - you could really see him doing the mix of fey and downright terrifying you'd need for Judge Cal.
Next time:
I'd think about integrating the design a bit more - at the moment you've got a set of excellent drawings, but they look a little bit like they're all floating separately on the page. Adding more to the drawings of Cal and Dredd, so Dredd is located standing behind Cal, with both their torsos extending to the bottom of the page and so being overlapped by the circular inset panels, would really pull the whole composition together.
Hoagy: Dredd's Rebels
What I love about this one is the atmosphere. We've had some great drawing so far, but not many people trying to use dramatic lighting. This one really gets across the feeling of trying to sneak into the darkened Hall of Justice. The high contrast gives it an almost photographic feel.
Next time:
There's maybe not quite enough in the way of definition here - Fergee in particular is getting lost. I'd add just a little in the way of hard rim-light to the edge of the foreground figures, which will really make them "pop." You only need a bit, mind. I can see where you're going with Fergee's flies, but in practice I think they're a little distracting. Having them just as a cloud of black dots would probably work better.
Pete Wells: Greasy the Ferg
Obviously the product of a sick and deranged mind, which is why it made me laugh out loud! Also: love the fat flies. I don't know whether to add or deduct a bonus point for the teeth-rattling pun, so I'm doing both at the same time :-)
Next time:
A good trick for making pools of liquid look like liquid is to have irregularly-spaced, slightly wiggly vertical lines running through them. Objects sitting in the pool (like the hat and eyeballs) should have dark lines running down from them, to locate them as sitting on the surface of the liquid.
RaggedMan - TDTLD Through the Eyes of Deputy Chief Judge Fish
Storytelling is key to comic cart, so I'm always delighted by work that finds new, imaginative ways of getting the narrative across. This Judge Fish's eye view is a superb imaginative idea, beautifully executed. It's also REALLY difficult technically (you wouldn't believe the number of times I've planned to use fish-eye perspective and then wimped out at the last minute). Also, is that a brush you're inking with there? Bonus point if so!
Next time:
In panel three I'd have bent the Klegg's eye round a bit more so it conforms with the fisheye effect. Generally, the only thing this really lacks is the sense of being inside a container (as opposed to looking at the scenes through a distorting lens). Including a few reflection lines and flattened ellipses around the edge of the frame would give the impression of being inside glass; maybe a bubble or two to suggest we're in water?
SKD - Judges Percy, Glass, Quincy and midget Dredd
This has a classic early 2000AD vibe - both the drawing and the inking have a sort of Mike McMahon deliberate roughness to them. I like the fact that everyone's in action (as opposed to just standing stiffly, posed, which is easy to fall back on when you're doing multiple figures).
Next time:
I'd look a little bit at the overall composition; Judge Slocomb looks a bit out of place (everyone else is fighting someone, he's apparently braced for attack from persons unknown outside the frame). It's also not clear why they'd all be fighting like that. One way of approaching these group compositions is to look at the characters and the relationships between them; here, the real judges are all dressed ridiculously because they're out of favour while the dwarf is dressed as a judge because he's got the lead in a movie. So a composition where, say, the three real judges are slumped and dejected, but the dwarf is in a triumphant pose (maybe standing on their shoulders?) would reflect both the characters and their situation.
Steven Austin - Cal's Arena
Of all the entries, this is the one that comes closest to professional quality, in terms of combined composition, drawing and finish. You could easily see this as a cover for one of those 2000AD reprint volumes they bundle with The Megazine. The composition is dynamic, but at the same time allows all the elements to be clearly seen. Having done this kind of composition myself, I really appreciate how much work has gone into this.
Next time:
There's a slight issue with consistency in terms of the drawing; Dredd and the Klegg are pretty realistic, but some of the background guys lean maybe a little too far into the cartoony for comfort (Fergee in particular). It's very difficult to keep consistency over lots of small figures like that, but practice makes perfect. Drawing faces in small batches and doing something else in between can help build up your drawing stamina.
You're also working a little too hard in the inking; there's a lot of hatching in there that wouldn't be helpful if the image was going to be coloured. Try doing a drawing where you shade mostly with blocks of solid black, then add the absolute minimum of hatching to soften off edges and add the odd bit of modelling. Don't be afraid of white space.
Finally, leaving a little gap between the outlines of the background and foreground figures really helps to "pop" the foreground forwards. The gap only needs to be a couple of millimetres.
Hope those comments are helpful. Overall I've been tremendously impressed with the standard of entries here, and particularly the level of thought that went into the different approaches to the challenge.
Made my day. Thank you kindly Mr D'Israeli Sir :) (you too CFM)
Fascinating comments, and appreciated.
Chuffed to bits to read my critique from Mr D'israeli. Also fascinating to read the comments for all the other amazing entries (especially those directed towards Mr Wells!). CFM you spoilt us this month, excellent work! :D
Generous and glorious is true.
Really good of him to spend the time.
Fascinating to read the critiques (I'm trying that water technique), can we not club together and put him on some sort of retainer?
Also I used a brush pen - so I'm claiming half a bonus point!
Thanks CFM and Thank you Mr D'Israeli sir
just to echo what everyone else has said, generous and well thought out critiques, all fascinating to read and I'm taking advice from all of them.
Much appreciated Mr D'Israeli, your critique is invaluable and I take it all on board. You're a gent. Cheers.
Amazing! Obviously when I read his comments about my work I read it like he was crying, wishing he could come close to my artisticnessness. Hmmmm, I wonder if I'd have won if I'd done even fatter flies?
Seriously though, he is a beautiful man. Whenever he does a cover breakdown for my blog he sends masses and masses of notes and pictures and even video for the last few. Definitely one of the good guys!
Thanks to Matt and thanks to CFM.
Just Wow! D'Isreali/iving an amazing critique! Just Wow! Wish I had talent! Z
It was a real treat to read D'Israeli's comments. Thank you sir and thank you Crazyfoxmachine for your work each month on this most zarjaz of threads.
A great big thank you to D'Israeli for going above and beyond the call of duty with his feedback. Very generous of him and appreciated by all by the sound of it. A top bloke and example to us all.
I was going to wait until I was feeling rough, but this IS Bank Holiday again and family functions are cramping my health surge, Thank you D'Israeli for your bullet points and great insights to our works and mine. Very special for me that.
I really appreciated D'Israeli's advice but I think he missed off "Pete, have some artistic talent, you fat little shit."
It's an easy oversight I suppose.
That first place pic is stunningly good. Well done all.
Could you now vote in teh short story comp please - a 2000AD GN for a random voter is up for grabs.
Ta
Just want to say a massive well done to all the entries for the last 2 competitions, and another apology for failing to vote.
I have a new computer now which works, thankfully! I shouldn't miss it again.
Another benefit of winning:
A bonafide entry on Pete Wells' amazing 2000AD COVERS UNCOVERED (http://2000adcovers.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/steven-austin-insensitive-klegg.html)!
:D