Design Complete!

Above: Final sketch in brown sketch book.

I completed the final design a few days ago, i have opted for a gliding, insect eating, bark pealing, furry, egg laying, tree climbing mammal, small enough to snuggle in the palms of your hands, but don't fret they don't bite! They are friendly creatures to humans, they are often be seen in groups of 10 or more gripping to tree trunks and gliding from one to the next to find the next best 'Bug Spot'! An impressive sight indeed.

I am currently working on the texturing process and learning so much along the way! Please continue to track my progress in the 'CREATURE DEVELOPMENT' section of this Blog and scroll down to Semester 2! Enjoy!

Developing from the Bird-Monkey Concept

Above: My first Bird-Monkey concept in my sketchbook.

I selected this concept to take its design process further, considering believability as the main target. 

Please visit the 'Creature Development' section of this Blog and scroll down to the 'Semester 2' section, there you will find the development process i am currently under going with this creature. I discuss my findings and design decisions based on facts to increase my creatures believability.

As a result of this process i am currently up to finalising the design, once finished i will proceed into Photoshop and experiment with texturing.

PLEASE VISIT 'CREATURE DEVELOPMENT' AND SCROLL DOWN TO SEMESTER 2 TO SEE DEVELOPMENT STAGES AND DISCUSSION.

Check Point

The past week or so i have felt a little lost. I have my Bird-Monkey designs but didn't really know what to do to progress further.

During my one to one feedback discussion with the Alien Apple crew last week, they suggested making my creatures look less 'Cut and Paste', i totally understood what they meant by this as some of my creatures so far may appear to just be a simple mix and match. Although in my defence my reasons for this are simple, what i have produced so far is the results of my research, and as i am striving to achieve believability in my creatures, the use of existing animals seemed a logical place to start.
With this in mind i did test a few, 'more creature-like' designs based on one of my Bird-Monkeys which i will upload shortly as a progression sequence.

Whilst doing this i have also been working on a life cycle of one of the Bird-Monkeys and after a discussion with my tutor we decided that this was the right path and in doing this i will discover issues that can question my Bird-Monkeys believability, and with these issues i can alter the creature effectively so eventually i will have a issue proof believably creature. I will use facts and living examples to help back my design further increasing its believability as a design.

We also discussed possible ideas for my final MA outcome... but this is a secret and still subject to change on this crazy roller coster journey!

Alien Apple Studios Visit

Today we had a lecture from a concept art company based in North West England, Alien Apple Studios.
I found this lecture to be most inspiring as i too aspire to become a concept artist. They specialised in a wide range of disciplines including vehicle, environment, character and CREATURE design. This was a lecture i would have been stupid to miss.

They discussed their methods and inspirations and even showed examples of their works and discussed them step by step. I found this useful as i discovered some new ways of working which i will be trying myself.

They also discussed their inspirations and how important REFERENCE is as a concept artist. I have always used as much reference material as possible in my own work thus insuring i know what it is i am designing and not attempting a piece without base knowledge.

I was also lucky enough to discuss my work with them afterwards, and show them what i am currently working on and what my current aims on the Ma are. This was extremely beneficial as i received personalised advice which i am very grateful for. We concluded that dinosaurs are awesome and with that i am going to draw one now as a personal mini brief which i will post eventually :)

Overall a very good day!

Bird-Monkey Subspecies

Above: One of my Bird-Monkey subspecies.

An expert fisherman in the Bird-Monkey world. The Heron-monkey cross, perches lifelessly above mangrove waters where fishes are plentiful.
Its long towering neck sits motionless, its black stripe resembling a branch of a tree and its white reflective fur appears mirror-like when above water as the colours surrounding it reflect helping the Bird-Monkey blend with its current surroundings. In fact all that can be noticeably seen moving on this creature is its beady eyes monitoring fishes below and the feather structures on the tip of its tail swaying in the breeze.
It haspeculiar tail, long and slender with odd feather like plumage on the tip. These feathers are designed to lure fish to the surface, the bright colours tickling the waters surface attract fish as they believe them to be flies or other insects, and once in striking range the creature, gripping the tree will slowly lower its neck towards the waters surface before striking with speed to capture its meal.

I will shortly updating my Creature Sketches section which will include other Bird-Monkies i have created.

The Dawn of the 'Birdmonkeys'!

Above: My BirdMonkey sketch ( Howler & Tawny Frogmouth) Coloured pencil on brown Paper.

Above is one of my many Bird/Monkey combinations. It is a combination of a Howling Monkey and a Tawny Frogmouth. I initially started drawing the silhouette of the Howler and thought a large mouthed bird would fit nicely thus creating my Howler Frogmouth. This creature feeds on fruit and insects and is very territorial creating a howling screech when others invade its patch.

Function Considered - Reaching food in high places and successfully eating them.  

My reasons for designing these 'Birdmonkeys' is that the creature has incredible manoeuvrability when climbing through trees, long tails for balance and birds heads and beaks for breaking open hard shelled fruits, and breaking away tree bark to reveal sap and insects. I have designed several sub species including a Green Pecking Marmoset and an Owl-Utan.

The main test here was using coloured pencils on brown paper as well as light and shade, which again i quite like as it gives the image more perspective and makes it more interesting to look at.

Avatar's Hammerhead Redesign

Above Top Image: My Redesign of Avatars Hammerhead Concept.
Above Bottom Image: Breakdown of changes.

Based on my discussion in my SM2 Research section about Avatars Hammerhead Creature this is my redesign of how i believe the creature would look in 'real life', considering functionality.

The first thing you will notice is i have got rid of those unnecessary spare parts (the extra 2 front limbs), as i believe they are not needed for this creatures survival. I have taken away the shoulder armour and given my redesign a full spine armour suit, from its hammerhead horn to the tip of its tail it now has solid impenetrable, over lapping plates to protect from debris or spears being thrown under the turtle shell inspired structure on its back. I have given it a turtle shell as it remains streamlined for running at high speed and will prevent snagging as it has no sharp pointed edges. Also if this creature were to compete with other males for a female the shell would protect its upper body from potentially devastating blows of an opponents hammer horn. As the shell clasps to the front of the creatures body i have also discarded the sharp pointed spines, creating a smooth less harmful harness for the hammerhead.

These are only minor changes to the original Hammerheads design, but i believe these changes improve the creatures design from a functionality point of view, which leads me to believe this creature could have been designed with vision as its main consideration, and giving the audiences the 'wow' factor. I believe my redesigned version still does that but without those added visual extras. As i have mentioned before keeping visual representations from animals in existence today helps audiences relate to the creature and almost believe it could exist. Added visuals simply decreases that believability.