Had a fun time imagining what some of my favourite characters would look like drawn as octopuses… Lucy the Octopus style!
The Big Bang Theory (Howard, Leonard, Penny, Sheldon, Raaj, Amy, Bernadette): Lucy the Octopus Style!
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Lucy the Octopus Style!
Nightcrawler of the X-Men: Lucy the Octopus Style!
So this week’s Lucy the Octopus strip was no normal episode. An average Lucy strip takes about 5 hours to complete. This took more than a week…
I’ve been meaning to try a large one panel Lucy comic for a couple of years, and stars aligned to demand I finally get on with it.
I knew I wanted to do a seascape with Lucy depicted at various moments in one day. Lucy looking for her beloved pet puffer fish seemed liked a good scenario.
I noted down all the design and story elements I’d need, including any visual gags that sprung to mind. I’d already planned to turn the image into a poster, so not wanting to date the image too much when people see it a year or so from now, I planned to include characters that have yet to appear in the weekly webcomic.
This lead to all sorts of storyline and gag ideas that I also noted down to incorporate into the strip down the line.
Initial Notes
Next up I made a very rough plan of the layout of the buildings and story elements. I wasn’t worrying too much about the shape of the finished image at this point.
Rough Plan
Now to put the elements closer to how they would appear int he final image. Note my old school green grid system to help me transfer the layout on A3 paper onto the A2 paper I would do the final artwork on.
Tighter Plan
While working on the penciled artwork I did a whole heap of design doodles (technical term) for any characters and elements that I’d yet to draw in the webcomic.
Drawing the underwater vehicles was a challenge, but ultimately fun. Interpreting real life machines into underwater versions helps give me further understanding the world Lucy inhabits.
Design Doodles
The pencils – frankly the most taxing bit of the process!
I drew these tighter than I would for a normal strip as there was so much to keep track of.
At this point the weapon shop that Lucy’s parents shop in was called Weapons R Us. By the time I got to the inks I thought Bang Bang was a less obvious and far more “Lucy” style name for it.
Pencils (Click image for bigger view)
Inking the image was again a little different to a normal Lucy the Octopus episode. I used a far wider variety of line strengths ranging from a 0.2 mm fine liner to a Sharpie marker pen, to get a sense of depth (thicker lines in the foreground).
Inks (Click image for bigger view)
As with most Lucy images I included some photographic rock textures over the majority of the rocky buildings and rocky, er, rocks.
Texture
A sandy background included shadows under characters, buildings and objects.
Sand Background
The colour added on Photoshop. With the regular Lucy strip I don’t have time to add much lighting to the characters, so it was good to make this image a little more special.
Final (Click image for bigger view)
After adding the Lucy logo, I sent a file off to the printers and got these lovely posters back!
The printed posters
Horray and phew! On to the next drawing…
Today I put on my Creative Scriber hat and headed over to Chelsea College of Art and Design. I nearly left the house wearing my Cowboy hat but noticed just in time.
For those who don’t know, creative scribing involves listening to a lecture or group discussion (usually as part of a seminar) and visualising on paper the key points being made, using words and more importantly pictures. Today, there were many talks happening simultaneously as part of a busy seminar so I had to scramble round with my sketch book and sharpies, listen in and pick up points where I could for an intense 75 minutes.
Okay, so these are drawings rather than paintings, but “Who Draws the Drawers” is too much of a tongue twister.
Occasionally in the class I was attending, the model would cancel at the last minute, so instead us arty types would sit around and draw or paint each other. It’s a whole new set of skills, drawing a moving subject as oppose to a professional model, sitting still for ages. Also, as all the models in the class have been women it’s been the only opportunity in the class to draw guys…
Ink portrait 13.3.12 (1h 10 min)
Ink portrait 13.3.12 (1h 10 min)
Pencil portrait 11.7.11
And here’s a couple more pencil portraits…
Pencil portrait 8.11.11 (20 mins)
Pencil portrait November 2011
Richy’s Portrait & Life will return in Portrait & Life Part 6!
Laydeez Do Comics is a fantastic monthly get-together where fans of comics and art (of any gender) listen to creators talk about their work and get to mingle, chat and eat cake.
I usually go there to check out the other speakers but in September I’ll be making the leap in front of the audience to show some images and talk about my work, focusing particularly on Lucy the Octopus but touching on mini-comics, Wallace & Gromit, Almost Naked Animals, music and ceramics. I might even have a few things on sale.
Monday 10 September 2012
6.30 – 9.30pm
The Rag Factory 16-18 Heneage Street, London E1 5LJ
Entrance: £1.50 (including cake!)
I’m also looking forward to hearing the other speakers on the night…
Louise Crosby, artist http://www.facebook.com/SeeingPoetry
Louisa Parker, artist www.louisaparker.com
Panel from Laydeez Do Comics June 2012 Blog
You can get a taste of the evening in the blog I created for June’s Laydeez Do Comics.
Here’s a drawing I did for the excellent X as Y blog – a genius idea from the mind of illustrator Haillie Bateman. The purpose of the blog was for arty types to send in self-portraits of themselves as their opposite gender.
This was a challenge. My brain throbbed as I contemplated the alternate gender version of myself. Then I decided to just have fun with it…
Richelle – Myself as a lady!
Now the blog is going to keep going with regular changes to the dastardly challenges it sets for its contributors! Will be interesting to see what develops…
Had fun making this card for my son’s birthday.
He felt the characters should look happier. 5 year-olds are harsh critics.
Scooby-Doo, Pikachu and Yoshi enjoy biking fun!
Here’s another recent card. This one was for my nephew who fits the subgroup of humans who like both Family Guy and Lucy the Octopus.
Lucy the Octopus and that dog from Family Guy
And this is my son’s birthday card from last year, where I managed to squeeze in far more characters.
Peso the Penguin (Octonauts) at the top. Next line down shows Rastamouse, Scooby-Doo, The Cat in the Hat, Lola (Charlie & Lola), Hong Kong Phooey, Charlie (Charlie & Lola) and Shaun the Sheep. Middle row shows Mickey Mouse then on Scooby’s back is Panny (Panda Go Panda), Humf, Peppa & George (Peppa Pig) and holding on to Scooby’s tail is Pikachu (Pokemon). At the bottom in the water is Ponyo and Nemo (Finding Nemo) and finally bottom right is Stitch (Lilo & Stitch).
Best get thinking of what to do for his 6th birthday next year. Hopefully stick men will be all the rage by then – that should save time.
When you’ve worked closely with someone and consider them a good friend its easy to take for granted what an incredible talent they are. Such is the case with my Rosie and Jacinda collaborator, Manga artist and Fashion illustrator, Zarina Liew.
As part of the International Alternative Pres Fair this past weekend, Zarina ran a workshop on her techniques for using coloured inks. The fact that so many talented creators (plus me) were there to soak up some of her skills shows how respected her technique is.
Zarina showing how its done
Zarina began by demonstrating her arsenal of methods. It all got quite physical using blowing, splattering, washing and dabbing. A great antidote to the cleanliness of creating art on a computer (though Zarina is great at that too)!
Workshoppers busy inking, including Paul Shinn, Karrie Fransman and a smiley Sally-Anne Hickman
Zarina definitely made it look easier than it is, but managed to show everyone some basic ideas that they could utilise in their own work.
Getting to grips with the techniques
Putting the techniques into practice. At Zarina’s wise suggestion I added a bit of highlight to this with Photoshop later.
Ian Rudd and Van Nim relax after some intense inking
And here’s what Zarina herself managed to come up with seemingly effortlessly and in just a few minutes. Having worked with her, I know she can produce great work really fast!
Zarina’s own workshop piece
For more of Zarina’s work, check out her site: cobaltcafe.co.uk plus her webcomics Le Mime and the forthcoming The Higgs.
It’s been a long time since I’ve sold my wares with a table at a comic show and the MKomix event last night was a lovely one to return to. There was a friendly and chilled vibe in the MK Gallery in Milton Keynes as I joined some familiar and some new to me indie comic creators, including organiser Paul Rainey plus David Baillie, Jay Eales & Selina Lock, Sean Azzopardi, Karen Rubins, Jon Scrivens, Dan Lester, Jade Sarson and Amy Letts.
I had the pleasure of meeting Laura Watton for the first time in person and realising I’d bought a Sweatdrop collection she’d worked on many years earlier. Was also great meeting my table mates and fellow Londoners, Avery Hill Publishing.
All in all, a good evening. Thanks to all who came and asked me about my work and those who bought some of it! My new Lucy the Octopus Tasty Taster Comic was my best seller of the evening!
The night was rounded off by driving home with Alex Fitch, David Baillie and Dan Lester, failing to find a Little Chef so opting for a Chinese take away eaten in the open air in Dunstable. If anyone passing through Dunstable, pops into the China Express, I recommend No 74.
I’m very pleased to announce that I will be exhibiting and selling my work at the MKomix event in the MK Gallery in Milton Keynes on Thursday 19 July 2012, 6-9pm.
The event has been pulled together by the very talented Paul Rainey and features many greats of the Small Press scene including David Ballie, Jay Eales & Selina Lock, Sean Azzopardi, Karen Rubins, Jon Scrivens and Dan Lester, plus Jade Sarson who I could tell drew the excellent flyer below even before spotting her credit!
MKomix Flyer Drawn by Jade Sarson
