http://search.deviantart.com/?q=gallery:luvataciousskull/23938011&section= deviantART RSS for gallery:luvataciousskull/23938011 en-us Copyright 2013, deviantART.com Tue, 21 May 2013 04:22:40 PDT deviantART.com http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://st.deviantart.net/minish/widgets/apple-touch-icon-precomposed.png http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/KMFDM-2013-Gig-Poster-Philly-Makes-you-Crazy-354819633 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/KMFDM-2013-Gig-Poster-Philly-Makes-you-Crazy-354819633 Sun, 17 Feb 2013 06:36:40 PST KMFDM 2013 Gig Poster - Philly Makes you Crazy nonadult digitalart/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
I did the illustration by hand, like always, and this time pushed the amount of black more than I ever had as an inker. I had fun using white paint to block out the windows, too!

So the Philly skyline coming out of Lucia of KMFDM's head. Yep.

The style was largely inspired by their longtime artist Brute! ]]>
I did the illustration by hand, like always, and this time pushed the amount of black more than I ever had as an inker. I had fun using white paint to block out the windows, too!

So the Philly skyline coming out of Lucia of KMFDM's head. Yep.

The style was largely inspired by their longtime artist Brute!

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Devin-Townsend-Project-2013-Gig-Poster-350753306 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Devin-Townsend-Project-2013-Gig-Poster-350753306 Sat, 26 Jan 2013 15:30:05 PST Devin Townsend Project - 2013 Gig Poster nonadult digitalart/photomanip/people luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
While I normally draw all my gig posters, this time around I decided to do one with a photo I took of 'ol Hevy Devy when he played Philly back in 2011. Its one of my favorite photos, and I've been searching for a cool way to highlight it.

Devin's artwork for himself and this project has been largely in this vein, and I wanted it to go along with it. His look has gotten very clean lately, very high-end, and I really like it. ]]>
While I normally draw all my gig posters, this time around I decided to do one with a photo I took of 'ol Hevy Devy when he played Philly back in 2011. Its one of my favorite photos, and I've been searching for a cool way to highlight it.

Devin's artwork for himself and this project has been largely in this vein, and I wanted it to go along with it. His look has gotten very clean lately, very high-end, and I really like it.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/DEATH-High-on-Fire-Goatwhore-2012-Gig-Poster-335379493 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/DEATH-High-on-Fire-Goatwhore-2012-Gig-Poster-335379493 Wed, 31 Oct 2012 15:41:14 PDT DEATH - High on Fire / Goatwhore 2012 Gig Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/macabre luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2012-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull

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Gig poster for High on Fire and Goatwhore for their show at The Union Transfer on November 29th in Philadelphia. This is the fourth in a series of 4 posters. ]]>

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Gig poster for High on Fire and Goatwhore for their show at The Union Transfer on November 29th in Philadelphia. This is the fourth in a series of 4 posters.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/FAMINE-Machine-Head-Dethklok-2012-Gig-Poster-334588762 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/FAMINE-Machine-Head-Dethklok-2012-Gig-Poster-334588762 Sat, 27 Oct 2012 08:46:12 PDT FAMINE - Machine Head / Dethklok 2012 Gig Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/macabre luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2012-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull

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Gig poster for Machine Head and Dethklok for their show at The Electric Factory on December 11th, 2012 in Philadelphia. This is the third in a series of 4 posters.

Please note that this show was originally scheduled for Halloween, but due to Hurricane Sandy, was pushed back to December 11th. ]]>

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Gig poster for Machine Head and Dethklok for their show at The Electric Factory on December 11th, 2012 in Philadelphia. This is the third in a series of 4 posters.

Please note that this show was originally scheduled for Halloween, but due to Hurricane Sandy, was pushed back to December 11th.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/WAR-Deicide-2012-Gig-Poster-333987386 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/WAR-Deicide-2012-Gig-Poster-333987386 Tue, 23 Oct 2012 15:48:11 PDT WAR - Deicide 2012 Gig Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/macabre luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2012-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull

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Gig poster for Deicide for their show at The Trocadero on November 7th in Philadelphia. This is the second in a series of 4 posters. ]]>

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Gig poster for Deicide for their show at The Trocadero on November 7th in Philadelphia. This is the second in a series of 4 posters.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/PESTILENCE-Lamb-of-God-In-Flames-2012-Poster-333827543 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/PESTILENCE-Lamb-of-God-In-Flames-2012-Poster-333827543 Mon, 22 Oct 2012 16:41:33 PDT PESTILENCE - Lamb of God / In Flames - 2012 Poster adult traditional/drawings/macabre luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2012-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull

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Gig poster for Lamb of God and In Flames for their show at The Electric Factory on November 24th in Philadelphia. This is the first in a series of 4 posters. ]]>

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Gig poster for Lamb of God and In Flames for their show at The Electric Factory on November 24th in Philadelphia. This is the first in a series of 4 posters.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/MSPR-Mark-Skull-Pirate-Radio-Skull-of-DEATH-302197354 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/MSPR-Mark-Skull-Pirate-Radio-Skull-of-DEATH-302197354 Mon, 14 May 2012 18:27:57 PDT MSPR - Mark Skull Pirate Radio - Skull of DEATH nonadult traditional/drawings/macabre luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2012-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull Mark Skull Pirate Radio, my own heavy metal radio station! Hey, feel free to print this out and give it out to your friends, put it in your cubical, etc! This one was inspired by Joe Petango and his work with Motorhead!

This was one of those times that a drawing kinda fights you until a certain point, and in this case it didn't really start to click until I started inking. This is, without a doubt, one of my favorite inkings! I went full-out and tried some different techniques and had a lot of fun! There's a lot of Pushead-inspired touches in the skull, too! ]]> Mark Skull Pirate Radio, my own heavy metal radio station! Hey, feel free to print this out and give it out to your friends, put it in your cubical, etc! This one was inspired by Joe Petango and his work with Motorhead!

This was one of those times that a drawing kinda fights you until a certain point, and in this case it didn't really start to click until I started inking. This is, without a doubt, one of my favorite inkings! I went full-out and tried some different techniques and had a lot of fun! There's a lot of Pushead-inspired touches in the skull, too!

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/MSPR-Mark-Skull-Pirate-Radio-Demoness-Frazetta-302196176 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/MSPR-Mark-Skull-Pirate-Radio-Demoness-Frazetta-302196176 Mon, 14 May 2012 18:21:44 PDT MSPR - Mark Skull Pirate Radio - Demoness Frazetta nonadult traditional/drawings/fantasy luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2012-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
I wanted to do something different for this one, and it was a lot of fun trying out a different style! I loved the work on High on Fire's "Snakes for the Divine" and did this piece inspired by both their music and the album cover. ]]>
I wanted to do something different for this one, and it was a lot of fun trying out a different style! I loved the work on High on Fire's "Snakes for the Divine" and did this piece inspired by both their music and the album cover.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Lamb-of-God-2012-Poster-Holy-Mother-281521407 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Lamb-of-God-2012-Poster-Holy-Mother-281521407 Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:47:14 PST Lamb of God 2012 Poster - Holy Mother nonadult traditional/drawings/illustration/conceptual luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2012-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
Sadly, the show is sold out, but I wanted to do something for them, anyway!

EDIT: I got to meet Lamb of God and have them sign it and I also gave them a copy! They loved it, and gave me a free pass! THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH!!!!

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

So, about the piece:

While it was originally "blasphemy for the sake of blasphemy", I quickly realized there was a lot more to my idea than that.

The woman you see in the poster is actually Mary, mother of God. I asked myself a question: What if the events of the New Testament happened today? What if some unwed teenage mother who was seeing someone but never had sex suddenly got pregnant? What is she believe her son would be the savior of mankind?

How would she react once they killed him? You're seeing just that.

She's wearing a crown of barbed wire to symbolize the pain of her son. The tattoo of the heart is the one held by Mary in the most famous painting of her, which is also why her left hand is the way it is.

In essence, the fact there are so many bullets and guns behind her and the sunburst and halo are supposed to represent "salvation through destruction"; in essence, the concept is that in order to save everyone you must destroy some small part of everything else, even yourself.

It's an incredibly destructive concept when put into the wrong hands.

The words around her head, although hard to see in this piece, are of her thoughts as she steps forward to embrace her own faith:

"I bathed in the blood of my son, the savior of mankind! I am the mother of the Lord, your God. I will save you all with my grace as you face the wrath of God!"

In this case, "Grace" and "Wrath" are actually both references to the band Lamb of God, namely the song "Grace" and the album "Wrath". I thought the comparison was incredibly powerful. ]]>
Sadly, the show is sold out, but I wanted to do something for them, anyway!

EDIT: I got to meet Lamb of God and have them sign it and I also gave them a copy! They loved it, and gave me a free pass! THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH!!!!

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

So, about the piece:

While it was originally "blasphemy for the sake of blasphemy", I quickly realized there was a lot more to my idea than that.

The woman you see in the poster is actually Mary, mother of God. I asked myself a question: What if the events of the New Testament happened today? What if some unwed teenage mother who was seeing someone but never had sex suddenly got pregnant? What is she believe her son would be the savior of mankind?

How would she react once they killed him? You're seeing just that.

She's wearing a crown of barbed wire to symbolize the pain of her son. The tattoo of the heart is the one held by Mary in the most famous painting of her, which is also why her left hand is the way it is.

In essence, the fact there are so many bullets and guns behind her and the sunburst and halo are supposed to represent "salvation through destruction"; in essence, the concept is that in order to save everyone you must destroy some small part of everything else, even yourself.

It's an incredibly destructive concept when put into the wrong hands.

The words around her head, although hard to see in this piece, are of her thoughts as she steps forward to embrace her own faith:

"I bathed in the blood of my son, the savior of mankind! I am the mother of the Lord, your God. I will save you all with my grace as you face the wrath of God!"

In this case, "Grace" and "Wrath" are actually both references to the band Lamb of God, namely the song "Grace" and the album "Wrath". I thought the comparison was incredibly powerful.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/MAYHEM-2011-Gig-Poster-265709113 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/MAYHEM-2011-Gig-Poster-265709113 Fri, 28 Oct 2011 05:07:54 PDT MAYHEM - 2011 Gig Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/illustration/conceptual luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2011-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
MAYHEM will be playing The Trocadero November 4th at 7PM!

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The idea of the monster was that it was this... thing. I didn't want it to be anything, actually, just this weird otherworldly creature. Its a mix of Chtulu and the monster from Watchmen, with a bit of my own weirdness mixed in.

One thing I loved about doing this piece was the fact that it reminded me of how I worked back in High School; sitting at my desk at night drawing the most Satanic and terrifying things I could imagine!

I did do the type separately in this case, and I drew it by hand and scanned it back in. Getting the tentacles to wrap was something I wanted, but I also wanted everything behind it, too.

Other than the way the entire typography was handled on this poster, the other big change is the way I showed the main band name; I decided to let it bleed off the page. I knew it was easy enough to read that passing by you would go, "Oh fuck, MAYHEM is in town? I need to go! NOW!" ]]>
MAYHEM will be playing The Trocadero November 4th at 7PM!

--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

The idea of the monster was that it was this... thing. I didn't want it to be anything, actually, just this weird otherworldly creature. Its a mix of Chtulu and the monster from Watchmen, with a bit of my own weirdness mixed in.

One thing I loved about doing this piece was the fact that it reminded me of how I worked back in High School; sitting at my desk at night drawing the most Satanic and terrifying things I could imagine!

I did do the type separately in this case, and I drew it by hand and scanned it back in. Getting the tentacles to wrap was something I wanted, but I also wanted everything behind it, too.

Other than the way the entire typography was handled on this poster, the other big change is the way I showed the main band name; I decided to let it bleed off the page. I knew it was easy enough to read that passing by you would go, "Oh fuck, MAYHEM is in town? I need to go! NOW!"

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Wednesday-13-2011-Gig-Poster-265374394 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Wednesday-13-2011-Gig-Poster-265374394 Wed, 26 Oct 2011 05:01:38 PDT Wednesday 13 2011 Gig Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2011-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
I wanted to do something that was a mix of classic horror fun and great illustration. I knew I wanted to do one of the "classic" horror movie monsters, you know, the Universal Studios monsters, and I knew I wanted to do them as women. I wound up going with The Bride of Frankenstein, which also happens to be one of my favorite songs written by Wednesday 13!

I decided to do this as fast as possible because I wanted to capture a mix of the old-style movie posters and the grindhouse ideal as well which were both heavily present in his music. I'm pretty happy with the end result!


WEDNESDAY 13 will be playing The Trocadero October 30th at 7PM!

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=---=-=-=-=-=-

Art-wise, this thing was insane! I had wanted to do it since August, but I never had a solid idea. With less than a week before the show, I knew I wanted to do something, so I came up with an idea Monday and Tuesday after I got home from work I went ahead and tried to do it full-tilt!

I wound up laying out everything twice, the second time just ignoring any of the rules I knew and having fun with it! That wound up being exactly what I needed, and I think there's a good feel to the illustration that makes it come alive! I also did a live-blogging of it while working on it.

The hardest part, just like all of my posters, isn't the illustration itself, it's designing the actual poster. I got to it around 11:30AM and thought it would only be 30 minutes. How wrong I was! The design was the single hardest part of this piece!

I wound up using a bunch of grunge textures on it because I definitely wanted the piece to look a little old, but at the same time I wanted to make sure the colors still popped.

More than anything, though, I've wanted to do a great Bride of Frankenstein drawing for about 3 years now. I never really tried until I had an idea I loved, and I hope you enjoy it! She'll be used in another piece soon! ]]>
I wanted to do something that was a mix of classic horror fun and great illustration. I knew I wanted to do one of the "classic" horror movie monsters, you know, the Universal Studios monsters, and I knew I wanted to do them as women. I wound up going with The Bride of Frankenstein, which also happens to be one of my favorite songs written by Wednesday 13!

I decided to do this as fast as possible because I wanted to capture a mix of the old-style movie posters and the grindhouse ideal as well which were both heavily present in his music. I'm pretty happy with the end result!


WEDNESDAY 13 will be playing The Trocadero October 30th at 7PM!

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=---=-=-=-=-=-

Art-wise, this thing was insane! I had wanted to do it since August, but I never had a solid idea. With less than a week before the show, I knew I wanted to do something, so I came up with an idea Monday and Tuesday after I got home from work I went ahead and tried to do it full-tilt!

I wound up laying out everything twice, the second time just ignoring any of the rules I knew and having fun with it! That wound up being exactly what I needed, and I think there's a good feel to the illustration that makes it come alive! I also did a live-blogging of it while working on it.

The hardest part, just like all of my posters, isn't the illustration itself, it's designing the actual poster. I got to it around 11:30AM and thought it would only be 30 minutes. How wrong I was! The design was the single hardest part of this piece!

I wound up using a bunch of grunge textures on it because I definitely wanted the piece to look a little old, but at the same time I wanted to make sure the colors still popped.

More than anything, though, I've wanted to do a great Bride of Frankenstein drawing for about 3 years now. I never really tried until I had an idea I loved, and I hope you enjoy it! She'll be used in another piece soon!

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/NOFX-quot-Obama-Clown-quot-Poster-256975209 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/NOFX-quot-Obama-Clown-quot-Poster-256975209 Mon, 05 Sep 2011 16:44:34 PDT NOFX "Obama Clown" Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2011-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
I loved "The War on Errorism" and "Cokie the Clown", and considering both the political nature of NOFX as of late as well as Anti-Flag, I figured skewing the current President would be appropriate.

I'm not anti-Obama, or even pro-Obama. I think the guy has done some great things and some incredibly bone-headed things as well. Caving into Republicans all the time? Really? Obama has put on the clown makeup for getting the U.S. into another pointless war or not closing Gitmo like he promised, and the Republicans threw the pie since they got him to cave in and change the date of a speech, among other things.

In other words; Obama is making himself look bad and into a joke, not me.

That said, I sincerely hope everyone enjoys it! To all my liberal friends, know it was done tongue-in-cheek, and to all my conservative friends, know it was done tongue-in-cheek.

NOFX KICK ASS!!!!

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Just like most of my posters, drawing it was a lot easier than designing it! I sketched a layout I liked, and drew Obama in almost near-final detail on the street (true story!). I got home, finished the details, and inked it in almost the same time it took for me to draw it.

The hardest part in the design was nailing the carnival look. The NOFX headline was done using a tutorial I found at letterheadfonts.com [link] After that was everything else. I wound up using a bunch of different fonts and styles until I got something I was happy with. ]]>
I loved "The War on Errorism" and "Cokie the Clown", and considering both the political nature of NOFX as of late as well as Anti-Flag, I figured skewing the current President would be appropriate.

I'm not anti-Obama, or even pro-Obama. I think the guy has done some great things and some incredibly bone-headed things as well. Caving into Republicans all the time? Really? Obama has put on the clown makeup for getting the U.S. into another pointless war or not closing Gitmo like he promised, and the Republicans threw the pie since they got him to cave in and change the date of a speech, among other things.

In other words; Obama is making himself look bad and into a joke, not me.

That said, I sincerely hope everyone enjoys it! To all my liberal friends, know it was done tongue-in-cheek, and to all my conservative friends, know it was done tongue-in-cheek.

NOFX KICK ASS!!!!

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Just like most of my posters, drawing it was a lot easier than designing it! I sketched a layout I liked, and drew Obama in almost near-final detail on the street (true story!). I got home, finished the details, and inked it in almost the same time it took for me to draw it.

The hardest part in the design was nailing the carnival look. The NOFX headline was done using a tutorial I found at letterheadfonts.com [link] After that was everything else. I wound up using a bunch of different fonts and styles until I got something I was happy with.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/T-S-O-L-Gig-Poster-2011-210898341 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/T-S-O-L-Gig-Poster-2011-210898341 Sun, 29 May 2011 19:23:05 PDT T.S.O.L. Gig Poster 2011 nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2011-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Holy-Grail-Gig-Poster-2011-207347658 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Holy-Grail-Gig-Poster-2011-207347658 Mon, 02 May 2011 16:51:06 PDT Holy Grail Gig Poster 2011 nonadult traditional/drawings/fantasy luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2011-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
I had a friend who turned me on to Holy Grail a few months ago, and the band is pretty damn good! A really solid thrash-metal outfit with some modern turns as well as some power metal twists. Their EP was awesome, filled with covers and cover art by none other than Ed Repka!

I heard they were coming to Philly, and not only that, but it was only $10 to go to the show!

Now, in the past, I go all-out doing promo for metal bands that come to Philly whenever I get the chance. I had the pencils for this poster started April 29th, the inks and base colors done April 30th, and I didn't have something I was happy with until May 1st.

The show was May 3rd.

I spent May 2nd at work and accidentally slept in. I missed my chance to help them out over the weekend, and I was bummed. I'm writing this the day before the show. I don't know if I'll even make it, and I hope the show goes great! If the guys in the band read this, know that you KICK ASS and next time you come around I've got one hell of a poster waiting for you!!!

-==--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

I sketched out the poster idea about a week before I decided to work on a finish. It wasn't a very developed concept; a woman with snakes. I always like trying to add more and more to a piece like that, and I decided to do an ode to Leviathan.

At the same time, I was looking more and more at the work of my contemporaries, especially Godmachine. His work is consistently amazing, and I wanted to try something in the style he did that seems to be, in fact, the modern illustration style (my opinion, and nothing more). That said, my apologies if its too close!

I'm pretty happy with the result. I worked on it originally as a t-shirt design that I was going to turn into a poster, but I kept running into the same problem; I didn't like how colorful it was, especially on the poster. The original has a LOT of green, and on a whim I decided to make everything red. It worked great for the poster, and so you have this.

A lot of blood, sweat, and annoyance went into this piece. The woman's head was a nightmare to draw, and it's my biggest weakness. I love drawing women's heads, but I suck at drawing them looking up. I think I got it this time.

NOTE: To keep it on DeviantArt without a warning, I actually censored a nipple. I kidna like it better that way... ]]>
I had a friend who turned me on to Holy Grail a few months ago, and the band is pretty damn good! A really solid thrash-metal outfit with some modern turns as well as some power metal twists. Their EP was awesome, filled with covers and cover art by none other than Ed Repka!

I heard they were coming to Philly, and not only that, but it was only $10 to go to the show!

Now, in the past, I go all-out doing promo for metal bands that come to Philly whenever I get the chance. I had the pencils for this poster started April 29th, the inks and base colors done April 30th, and I didn't have something I was happy with until May 1st.

The show was May 3rd.

I spent May 2nd at work and accidentally slept in. I missed my chance to help them out over the weekend, and I was bummed. I'm writing this the day before the show. I don't know if I'll even make it, and I hope the show goes great! If the guys in the band read this, know that you KICK ASS and next time you come around I've got one hell of a poster waiting for you!!!

-==--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

I sketched out the poster idea about a week before I decided to work on a finish. It wasn't a very developed concept; a woman with snakes. I always like trying to add more and more to a piece like that, and I decided to do an ode to Leviathan.

At the same time, I was looking more and more at the work of my contemporaries, especially Godmachine. His work is consistently amazing, and I wanted to try something in the style he did that seems to be, in fact, the modern illustration style (my opinion, and nothing more). That said, my apologies if its too close!

I'm pretty happy with the result. I worked on it originally as a t-shirt design that I was going to turn into a poster, but I kept running into the same problem; I didn't like how colorful it was, especially on the poster. The original has a LOT of green, and on a whim I decided to make everything red. It worked great for the poster, and so you have this.

A lot of blood, sweat, and annoyance went into this piece. The woman's head was a nightmare to draw, and it's my biggest weakness. I love drawing women's heads, but I suck at drawing them looking up. I think I got it this time.

NOTE: To keep it on DeviantArt without a warning, I actually censored a nipple. I kidna like it better that way...

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Live-Not-on-Evil-SXSW-Poster-199788408 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Live-Not-on-Evil-SXSW-Poster-199788408 Sat, 05 Mar 2011 05:28:21 PST Live Not on Evil - SXSW Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2011-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
Actually, in the background, you can see the original pencil art! I talked to a friend of mine who said the original pencils were awesome and I should use them somewhere in the piece, and I figured the background was a great place to put it since it helped tie everything together. ]]>
Actually, in the background, you can see the original pencil art! I talked to a friend of mine who said the original pencils were awesome and I should use them somewhere in the piece, and I figured the background was a great place to put it since it helped tie everything together.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/The-Stench-of-Redemption-197272760 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/The-Stench-of-Redemption-197272760 Sun, 13 Feb 2011 08:23:46 PST The Stench of Redemption nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2011-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
This is what happens when you go to Catholic School for 13 years, folks!

I love drawing nuns, relying on symbolism, and just being blatant at times. In this case, that's exactly what I wanted in every possible way.

I heard Deicide was coming to town and wanted to show my support by doing a gig poster for their upcoming show. I had a vision of just some praying nun with horns coming out of her head, and a Rosary in her hands.

To be honest, this piece is as deep as it appears, and then some. As much as it may be about some nun turning to Satan, it really isn't. In essence, I wanted to convey that the same love and devotion that can be shown to God can be shown to Satan. Is it really all that bad? Isn't faith and love in something and someone more important than who, ESPECIALLY if they're wind up otherwise being a good person for it?

-==-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-==--=-=-=-=-=-=-

DEICIDE - February 18th - The Trocadero - 7PM!!!!

GET TICKETS HERE FOR THIS AWESOME SHOW!!!

-==-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-==--=-=-=-=-=-=-

The more Artsy Stuff

So for this poster, I did something I normally never, EVER do; I did my own hand-drawn typography and did it as a vector! It was the most draftsman-like thing I've done as an artist in about 3 years because of how technical it was. I used Adobe Illustrator and for the first time turned on Smart Guides. I wished I had done it sooner! It made the curves much smoother and I love how the "e's" came out. The typography was inspired by some classic Gothic Blacklettering, but also a bit of Art Nouveau.

In fact, the entire piece has a sort of Art Nouveau feeling thanks in large part to me recently joining the Art Nouveau group here on DeviantArt. The inspiration from the genre was more subliminal and I decided to just go with it. ]]>
This is what happens when you go to Catholic School for 13 years, folks!

I love drawing nuns, relying on symbolism, and just being blatant at times. In this case, that's exactly what I wanted in every possible way.

I heard Deicide was coming to town and wanted to show my support by doing a gig poster for their upcoming show. I had a vision of just some praying nun with horns coming out of her head, and a Rosary in her hands.

To be honest, this piece is as deep as it appears, and then some. As much as it may be about some nun turning to Satan, it really isn't. In essence, I wanted to convey that the same love and devotion that can be shown to God can be shown to Satan. Is it really all that bad? Isn't faith and love in something and someone more important than who, ESPECIALLY if they're wind up otherwise being a good person for it?

-==-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-==--=-=-=-=-=-=-

DEICIDE - February 18th - The Trocadero - 7PM!!!!

GET TICKETS HERE FOR THIS AWESOME SHOW!!!

-==-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-==--=-=-=-=-=-=-

The more Artsy Stuff

So for this poster, I did something I normally never, EVER do; I did my own hand-drawn typography and did it as a vector! It was the most draftsman-like thing I've done as an artist in about 3 years because of how technical it was. I used Adobe Illustrator and for the first time turned on Smart Guides. I wished I had done it sooner! It made the curves much smoother and I love how the "e's" came out. The typography was inspired by some classic Gothic Blacklettering, but also a bit of Art Nouveau.

In fact, the entire piece has a sort of Art Nouveau feeling thanks in large part to me recently joining the Art Nouveau group here on DeviantArt. The inspiration from the genre was more subliminal and I decided to just go with it.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/OTEP-2010-Gig-Poster-168443800 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/OTEP-2010-Gig-Poster-168443800 Mon, 21 Jun 2010 04:25:51 PDT OTEP 2010 Gig Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2010-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
The girl in a bikini with the gas mask is meant to represent the devastation that BP is doing to the Gulf Coast, as well as to the beaches of Florida. The fact of the matter is, at the rate this is going, the only way you can go to the beach is by wearing protective clothing. OK, so maybe she isn't THAT well protected, but you get the point.

In the design process for the poster, I had a really weird feeling about the design process and I decided to basically let the piece design itself. Sounds odd, I know, but that's the way it goes sometimes.

I wanted to go for an gas poster look from the 1950's or earlier, and the flat colors were part of that. The font choice was done to reinforce the idea as well. It seems odd, but "OTEP" seems to have a sort of weird feeling to it in whatever context it's in, and in this one it just feels like the name of an oil company. I don't know why, but it just seemed to work.

That said, the girl in the gas mask wearing a bikini was the main idea and I think I got a great poster out of this. It feels a little weird and awkward, but it actually helps in giving you a creepy feeling about the poster and kinda draws you into it.

EDIT: Otep herself saw the poster, and I want to extend my deepest thanks for the feedback! It was both an honor and a privileged! Thanks for the idea of putting her in oil! BRILLIANT!

Also, quick note to anyone reading: No, this is not a commissioned piece, it's just me doing it for fun since metal needs more promotion in Philly!

What can I say? SEVAS TRA! ]]>
The girl in a bikini with the gas mask is meant to represent the devastation that BP is doing to the Gulf Coast, as well as to the beaches of Florida. The fact of the matter is, at the rate this is going, the only way you can go to the beach is by wearing protective clothing. OK, so maybe she isn't THAT well protected, but you get the point.

In the design process for the poster, I had a really weird feeling about the design process and I decided to basically let the piece design itself. Sounds odd, I know, but that's the way it goes sometimes.

I wanted to go for an gas poster look from the 1950's or earlier, and the flat colors were part of that. The font choice was done to reinforce the idea as well. It seems odd, but "OTEP" seems to have a sort of weird feeling to it in whatever context it's in, and in this one it just feels like the name of an oil company. I don't know why, but it just seemed to work.

That said, the girl in the gas mask wearing a bikini was the main idea and I think I got a great poster out of this. It feels a little weird and awkward, but it actually helps in giving you a creepy feeling about the poster and kinda draws you into it.

EDIT: Otep herself saw the poster, and I want to extend my deepest thanks for the feedback! It was both an honor and a privileged! Thanks for the idea of putting her in oil! BRILLIANT!

Also, quick note to anyone reading: No, this is not a commissioned piece, it's just me doing it for fun since metal needs more promotion in Philly!

What can I say? SEVAS TRA!

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Hail-Courtney-Full-of-Grace-168215391 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Hail-Courtney-Full-of-Grace-168215391 Sat, 19 Jun 2010 08:02:22 PDT Hail Courtney, Full of Grace nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2010-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
You know what I love? Pop art, the 90's, and Hole.

I bought the album "Live Through This" for the first time only a little more than a month ago. It's astonishing that it came out when it did, only a few days after Kurt Cobain's suicide. Songs like "Miss World" and "Violet" are abrasive, in you face, and to me, showed a woman who wasn't afraid to show who she was.

This piece is a reflection of a lot of things from that album, but also as a way to see her in a different light.

Courtney Love is a lot like Nancy Spungen in that she was... well, meant to be with Kurt Cobain like Nancy was meant to be with Sid Vicious. In fact, Courtney Love demanded she get the roll of Nancy when "Sid & Nancy" was being filmed.

Some people see her has this drugged-out loser, and I just don't see her as that. I see her as someone who actually is really beautiful, but has had that light hidden from the world for one reason or another. Someone who was never afraid to be who she is and be herself, no matter what, for better or worse.

I remember growing up that mom once said I always tend to draw the worst in people. This wasn't meant to prove her wrong, but I did want to try hard to do the opposite and show her in a different light.

Why Mary, you ask? And with a cigarette?

Well, Mary was just a woman, wasn't she? She was married to a carpenter and gave birth to something that changed the world. She was just a normal woman who one day was picked to do something amazing. I think updating the idea to Courtney Love kinda reminds us of that, and just makes you question what your conception is of both her and Mary.

As for the cigarette... well, what can I say other than I can't imagine Courtney Love without a cigarette. ]]>
You know what I love? Pop art, the 90's, and Hole.

I bought the album "Live Through This" for the first time only a little more than a month ago. It's astonishing that it came out when it did, only a few days after Kurt Cobain's suicide. Songs like "Miss World" and "Violet" are abrasive, in you face, and to me, showed a woman who wasn't afraid to show who she was.

This piece is a reflection of a lot of things from that album, but also as a way to see her in a different light.

Courtney Love is a lot like Nancy Spungen in that she was... well, meant to be with Kurt Cobain like Nancy was meant to be with Sid Vicious. In fact, Courtney Love demanded she get the roll of Nancy when "Sid & Nancy" was being filmed.

Some people see her has this drugged-out loser, and I just don't see her as that. I see her as someone who actually is really beautiful, but has had that light hidden from the world for one reason or another. Someone who was never afraid to be who she is and be herself, no matter what, for better or worse.

I remember growing up that mom once said I always tend to draw the worst in people. This wasn't meant to prove her wrong, but I did want to try hard to do the opposite and show her in a different light.

Why Mary, you ask? And with a cigarette?

Well, Mary was just a woman, wasn't she? She was married to a carpenter and gave birth to something that changed the world. She was just a normal woman who one day was picked to do something amazing. I think updating the idea to Courtney Love kinda reminds us of that, and just makes you question what your conception is of both her and Mary.

As for the cigarette... well, what can I say other than I can't imagine Courtney Love without a cigarette.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Fear-Factory-Tour-Poster-2010-166141300 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Fear-Factory-Tour-Poster-2010-166141300 Tue, 01 Jun 2010 19:43:48 PDT Fear Factory Tour Poster 2010 nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2010-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
I hadn't done a gig poster in a while, so I decided to just jump into this one head-first. With Fear Factory being one of my favorite bands, and they were doing a in-store signing, I decided to whip something up real quick.

In this case, I decided to plunge my thoughts and just do something... well, kinda sick and inspired.

The woman came from both a desire to do something weird and a Clive Baker action figure that was released, like, 10 years ago. Originally, she was going to be a LOT scarier, but I didn't like it, it didn't seem to fit. So I went back to the first version and decided to just have her give off a creepy but sexy vibe. The idea was the more you looked at her, the more you saw what was REALLY going on with her.

The layout was a nightmare. I toyed with about 10 different ideas until my pal came over. I asked him to take a look and, just for the hell of it, I decided to put the fonts on a slant. After a quick run to Checkers and getting a glimpse at the new advertising... well, it all just came together.

In the end, I felt a clean look would actually be a bit of a benefit. Fear Factory had basically re-invented themselves with the new album, so they had a fresh start, new sound, and a chance to impress a whole new generation of fans.

So, let me know what you think. Enjoy ]]>
I hadn't done a gig poster in a while, so I decided to just jump into this one head-first. With Fear Factory being one of my favorite bands, and they were doing a in-store signing, I decided to whip something up real quick.

In this case, I decided to plunge my thoughts and just do something... well, kinda sick and inspired.

The woman came from both a desire to do something weird and a Clive Baker action figure that was released, like, 10 years ago. Originally, she was going to be a LOT scarier, but I didn't like it, it didn't seem to fit. So I went back to the first version and decided to just have her give off a creepy but sexy vibe. The idea was the more you looked at her, the more you saw what was REALLY going on with her.

The layout was a nightmare. I toyed with about 10 different ideas until my pal came over. I asked him to take a look and, just for the hell of it, I decided to put the fonts on a slant. After a quick run to Checkers and getting a glimpse at the new advertising... well, it all just came together.

In the end, I felt a clean look would actually be a bit of a benefit. Fear Factory had basically re-invented themselves with the new album, so they had a fresh start, new sound, and a chance to impress a whole new generation of fans.

So, let me know what you think. Enjoy

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Kreator-Poster-Priestess-153099313 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Kreator-Poster-Priestess-153099313 Sat, 06 Feb 2010 07:39:40 PST Kreator Poster - Priestess nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2010-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull

This piece is actually less about Kreator and more about the subject matter. It's weird; it basically drew itself, but the design took a while to do. But it's also based largely on the album cover for "Enemy of God Revisited"

On the surface, this is just a semi-generic piece, with a skull, inverted cross, and some hint of nudity. Below is some actual meaning and purpose. Is the piece a statement of the futility of religion in and of itself? Am I saying that going down the path of "evil" will lead to your demise?

The odd thing is I don't honestly know.

There's a meaning to this piece, a sense of purpose here, that even I can't honestly explain. In the end, it could be nothing more than me taking a bit of a poke at Catholicism without really thinking about it. Why?

The inverted cross, while modernly referenced to Satanism, is actually a symbol of cleansing and purification. In fact, Peter, one of the 12 apostles, asked to be hung upside-down as he didn't find himself worthy of being killed the same way as Jesus. As you may know, Peter was "the rock" upon which the Catholic Church is built.

At the same time, upon this head, we see a skull attached to a woman's body. In reference to that last point, am I saying that this is, in fact, a dead church? And since there is a woman's body, that said dead church gives life at the cost of death?

Maybe. Now that I think of it, it could be.... or maybe I did just want to draw something that looked awesome.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

KREATOR will be playing The Trocadero March 4th, 2010 at 7PM! They'll be playing with Voivod, Nachtmystium, Evile, and Lazarus A.D. ]]>

This piece is actually less about Kreator and more about the subject matter. It's weird; it basically drew itself, but the design took a while to do. But it's also based largely on the album cover for "Enemy of God Revisited"

On the surface, this is just a semi-generic piece, with a skull, inverted cross, and some hint of nudity. Below is some actual meaning and purpose. Is the piece a statement of the futility of religion in and of itself? Am I saying that going down the path of "evil" will lead to your demise?

The odd thing is I don't honestly know.

There's a meaning to this piece, a sense of purpose here, that even I can't honestly explain. In the end, it could be nothing more than me taking a bit of a poke at Catholicism without really thinking about it. Why?

The inverted cross, while modernly referenced to Satanism, is actually a symbol of cleansing and purification. In fact, Peter, one of the 12 apostles, asked to be hung upside-down as he didn't find himself worthy of being killed the same way as Jesus. As you may know, Peter was "the rock" upon which the Catholic Church is built.

At the same time, upon this head, we see a skull attached to a woman's body. In reference to that last point, am I saying that this is, in fact, a dead church? And since there is a woman's body, that said dead church gives life at the cost of death?

Maybe. Now that I think of it, it could be.... or maybe I did just want to draw something that looked awesome.

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

KREATOR will be playing The Trocadero March 4th, 2010 at 7PM! They'll be playing with Voivod, Nachtmystium, Evile, and Lazarus A.D.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/BTBAM-Tour-Poster-152023697 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/BTBAM-Tour-Poster-152023697 Wed, 27 Jan 2010 23:33:42 PST BTBAM Tour Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2010-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
This is the "evil" robot of the two, and the idea was to do something that related to the first so that you knew it was the same show, ]]>
This is the "evil" robot of the two, and the idea was to do something that related to the first so that you knew it was the same show,

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Devin-Townsend-Tour-Poster-151905436 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Devin-Townsend-Tour-Poster-151905436 Tue, 26 Jan 2010 21:02:51 PST Devin Townsend Tour Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2010-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
Devin Townsend is, without a doubt, one of my favorite musicians of all time. Although he isn't headlining this tour, I felt he should and, in turn, did this poster for the show and my own personal amusement.

The poster is based on a few things:

1. Listening to Devin Townsend is the closet I'll come to a religious experience, so the joy and ecstasy on the robots face is supposed to represent... well, joy.

2. The doves symbolize peace, and Devin Townsend is the only musician I've heard who can actually calm me down when I'm mad.

3. The robot was inspired by my love of Hajime Sorayama's robot women. What can I say? I think of Devin Townsend... I think of hot robot chicks. ]]>
Devin Townsend is, without a doubt, one of my favorite musicians of all time. Although he isn't headlining this tour, I felt he should and, in turn, did this poster for the show and my own personal amusement.

The poster is based on a few things:

1. Listening to Devin Townsend is the closet I'll come to a religious experience, so the joy and ecstasy on the robots face is supposed to represent... well, joy.

2. The doves symbolize peace, and Devin Townsend is the only musician I've heard who can actually calm me down when I'm mad.

3. The robot was inspired by my love of Hajime Sorayama's robot women. What can I say? I think of Devin Townsend... I think of hot robot chicks.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Arch-Enemy-Tour-Poster-2010-150606886 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Arch-Enemy-Tour-Poster-2010-150606886 Sat, 16 Jan 2010 08:38:19 PST Arch Enemy Tour Poster 2010 nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2010-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
The style is actually an interesting combination of both propaganda-style art as well as traditional illustration, mixing my demonic illustration abilities with a much more graphic style. The demoness raises her arm in defiance, clutching a spear in the other as she prepares to attack!

Arch Enemy will be playing with Exodus and Arsis at The TLA January 21st, 2010. ]]>
The style is actually an interesting combination of both propaganda-style art as well as traditional illustration, mixing my demonic illustration abilities with a much more graphic style. The demoness raises her arm in defiance, clutching a spear in the other as she prepares to attack!

Arch Enemy will be playing with Exodus and Arsis at The TLA January 21st, 2010.

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/ANVIL-Tour-Poster-2010-149089918 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/ANVIL-Tour-Poster-2010-149089918 Sun, 03 Jan 2010 12:57:28 PST ANVIL Tour Poster 2010 nonadult digitalart/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2010-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
Back in 2003, I bought the Metal Blade 20th Anniversary box set and there were two songs on there by a band called "Anvil". The songs always stuck out in my mind and in 2009 when I heard that Anvil was coming to town based on a movie about their lives, I had to go. Since then, the band has always held a place in my heart.

About a week ago I got a copy of "Metal on Metal" and thanks to that AND the fact that they were coming to town, I decided to do a tour poster for them! It was inspired by the feeling I get from them and their music, and the fact that, music aside, they've become something bigger than themselves: A symbol of the triumph of perseverance.

Carry on, ANVIL! ]]>
Back in 2003, I bought the Metal Blade 20th Anniversary box set and there were two songs on there by a band called "Anvil". The songs always stuck out in my mind and in 2009 when I heard that Anvil was coming to town based on a movie about their lives, I had to go. Since then, the band has always held a place in my heart.

About a week ago I got a copy of "Metal on Metal" and thanks to that AND the fact that they were coming to town, I decided to do a tour poster for them! It was inspired by the feeling I get from them and their music, and the fact that, music aside, they've become something bigger than themselves: A symbol of the triumph of perseverance.

Carry on, ANVIL!

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Municipal-Waster-Tour-Poster-145975186 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Municipal-Waster-Tour-Poster-145975186 Sun, 06 Dec 2009 20:07:48 PST Municipal Waster Tour Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2009-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
Thus is the battle cry of Municipal Waste, one of the greatest thrash metal crossover bands of all time, and THE best of their generation! I've had the honor of meeting them once, and in honor of them coming to Philadelphia, I wanted to do a poster for their upcoming concert.

This was one of the easiest, and most difficult, pieces I've ever done.

The idea was easy and took only one thumbnail sketch done in 10 seconds. The full-blown pencils only took 10 minutes, with an extra 10 needed to fix the left hand. It was odd; it was if an outside force was controlling the illustration end of this.

The inks were done in record time: 45 minutes. The result was some of my boldest inking to date. I ran out the house to Kinko's so I could reduce it, got home and scanned it, and did comp layouts on the train ride back over the copies.

When I got home... it fell apart. The colors didn't seem to work, the composition threw me off, and I wasn't happy with anything. The more I worked on it, the less it looked like what I had imagined. I added a distressed effect and it all began to click.

What you see if the finished result. I went with the look and one thing led to another and BAM! Retro while still keeping modern sensibilities! ]]>
Thus is the battle cry of Municipal Waste, one of the greatest thrash metal crossover bands of all time, and THE best of their generation! I've had the honor of meeting them once, and in honor of them coming to Philadelphia, I wanted to do a poster for their upcoming concert.

This was one of the easiest, and most difficult, pieces I've ever done.

The idea was easy and took only one thumbnail sketch done in 10 seconds. The full-blown pencils only took 10 minutes, with an extra 10 needed to fix the left hand. It was odd; it was if an outside force was controlling the illustration end of this.

The inks were done in record time: 45 minutes. The result was some of my boldest inking to date. I ran out the house to Kinko's so I could reduce it, got home and scanned it, and did comp layouts on the train ride back over the copies.

When I got home... it fell apart. The colors didn't seem to work, the composition threw me off, and I wasn't happy with anything. The more I worked on it, the less it looked like what I had imagined. I added a distressed effect and it all began to click.

What you see if the finished result. I went with the look and one thing led to another and BAM! Retro while still keeping modern sensibilities!

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Combat-Crisis-Tour-Poster-144147853 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Combat-Crisis-Tour-Poster-144147853 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 16:59:57 PST Combat Crisis Tour Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2009-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
Now, the story behind this is both what not to do and what to do as a Freelancer:

About a week before I created this, I talked to a friend who said he needed a flyer for a band he knew. He gave me the name, approved a sketch, and that was the end of that. No new discussions, just a promise to to do. A week later on Wednesday I ask when he needs the flyer.

"The tour starts Friday". In other words, tomorrow.

I go home take the sketch, layout a good pencil start and then proceed to ink it. Over the course of inking it, I started trying to come up with the full design of the poster itself. I got the inks done at about 9PM, about 3 hours of work. I ran downtown to Kinkos and back (2 hours to do), scanned it in, colored it, and was in bed by 1AM.

I wrapped up the piece the next morning and gave him the file.

The lesson? Make sure you keep your promises, and even if you have to do a rush job, make sure you go all-out.

-==-=-=-=-=

Easter Eggs:

I actually did something really rare for a final piece, I threw in some awesome Easter Eggs!

1. In her helmet is a pack of cigarettes with a giant "C" on it. That stands for the band, "Combat Crisis", but it also was the start of an idea I had for their logo.

2. Though hard to see on this, on her bazooka is the word "Taliban" with 10 of them crossed out. Its a call-back both to WWII and my modern feelings.

3. The words "Bred to Kill, Not to Care!" on her shoulder are taken from the Metallica song "Disposable Heroes". ]]>
Now, the story behind this is both what not to do and what to do as a Freelancer:

About a week before I created this, I talked to a friend who said he needed a flyer for a band he knew. He gave me the name, approved a sketch, and that was the end of that. No new discussions, just a promise to to do. A week later on Wednesday I ask when he needs the flyer.

"The tour starts Friday". In other words, tomorrow.

I go home take the sketch, layout a good pencil start and then proceed to ink it. Over the course of inking it, I started trying to come up with the full design of the poster itself. I got the inks done at about 9PM, about 3 hours of work. I ran downtown to Kinkos and back (2 hours to do), scanned it in, colored it, and was in bed by 1AM.

I wrapped up the piece the next morning and gave him the file.

The lesson? Make sure you keep your promises, and even if you have to do a rush job, make sure you go all-out.

-==-=-=-=-=

Easter Eggs:

I actually did something really rare for a final piece, I threw in some awesome Easter Eggs!

1. In her helmet is a pack of cigarettes with a giant "C" on it. That stands for the band, "Combat Crisis", but it also was the start of an idea I had for their logo.

2. Though hard to see on this, on her bazooka is the word "Taliban" with 10 of them crossed out. Its a call-back both to WWII and my modern feelings.

3. The words "Bred to Kill, Not to Care!" on her shoulder are taken from the Metallica song "Disposable Heroes".

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/In-Flames-Tour-Poster-138292751 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/In-Flames-Tour-Poster-138292751 Sat, 26 Sep 2009 08:40:58 PDT In Flames Tour Poster nonadult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2009-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
I was on the train home this time around when I started sketching out the layout of this piece. I threw on "Come Clarity" and just started to draw what came to mind. A big-horned Demoness with flames coming out her eyes.... man, I wonder what THAT means? Seriously, I wonder what my subconscious was trying to scream out at me about.

I was really happy with the way the sketch came out. On top of that, I had already done a quick sketch for the Obituary poster that I've already posted, so when I got home I went straight to my art studio and cranked out the pencils in about 30 minutes. No, I'm not kidding. 30 minutes. The Xecutioner took about an hour or more because the pose was hard to get, along with the proportions... but that's another story.

The next day I went back to working, this time inking everything. I had wrapped up inking on the Xecutioner, and I was a little worried about this one (again, another story), but there was a really nice, easy flow to this one. The fact that this one wasn't even close to being as urgent helped. The inks on this were about an hour or more, and it involved doing the logo on a separate piece of paper. If you look at the pencils, even my scanned-in inks, you can see I had plotted out the logo. I took a piece of copy paper and a light table and inked the lettering onto the paper.

Scanning in everything was easy, and coloring it was fun. I made it as simple as possible and decided to stay as true as how I would do it by hand as possible. I'm contemplating doing a "painted" version one day, but for now, I'm thrilled with this.

Behind the screaming demoness is a symbol. Now, those familiar with In Flames will see something familiar yet strange. In Flames has adopted a few symbols over the years, and there was a sort of tribal one used back in 2006 for Come Clarity. I decided to take the idea and make it my own. In this case, it involved turning it into the symbol of chaos as well.

There's some writing on the original piece, but I had to take it off the smaller versions of the posters because it didn't read well. I was listening to "A Sense of Purpose" while penciling it in and one lyric in particular came to mind: " Feel this up your conviction!" To me, though, it sounded like "Feel the Realness of Your Convictions!", thus the name of the piece. The lyric is from the song "I'm the Highway".

But while I was listening to the album, another lyric came screaming out to me: " Thought I was unbreakable, but this is killing me!" This lyric is from "Delight and Angers", and it just felt perfect. Now, as soon as I wrote it, I was worried about the way people would interpret that. I didn't want it to look as if I was saying, "Oh no, Satan is evil and will betray you!", but its more along the lines of two old sayings: "Pride comes before the fall" and "Be careful what you wish for."

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=--=-=-
IN FLAMES is playing The Trocadero October 4th at 7PM. They will be joined by Between the Buried and Me, 3 Inches of Blood, and The Faceless.

All logos are trademarks of their respective bands. All artwork (C) Larry West 2009 ]]>
I was on the train home this time around when I started sketching out the layout of this piece. I threw on "Come Clarity" and just started to draw what came to mind. A big-horned Demoness with flames coming out her eyes.... man, I wonder what THAT means? Seriously, I wonder what my subconscious was trying to scream out at me about.

I was really happy with the way the sketch came out. On top of that, I had already done a quick sketch for the Obituary poster that I've already posted, so when I got home I went straight to my art studio and cranked out the pencils in about 30 minutes. No, I'm not kidding. 30 minutes. The Xecutioner took about an hour or more because the pose was hard to get, along with the proportions... but that's another story.

The next day I went back to working, this time inking everything. I had wrapped up inking on the Xecutioner, and I was a little worried about this one (again, another story), but there was a really nice, easy flow to this one. The fact that this one wasn't even close to being as urgent helped. The inks on this were about an hour or more, and it involved doing the logo on a separate piece of paper. If you look at the pencils, even my scanned-in inks, you can see I had plotted out the logo. I took a piece of copy paper and a light table and inked the lettering onto the paper.

Scanning in everything was easy, and coloring it was fun. I made it as simple as possible and decided to stay as true as how I would do it by hand as possible. I'm contemplating doing a "painted" version one day, but for now, I'm thrilled with this.

Behind the screaming demoness is a symbol. Now, those familiar with In Flames will see something familiar yet strange. In Flames has adopted a few symbols over the years, and there was a sort of tribal one used back in 2006 for Come Clarity. I decided to take the idea and make it my own. In this case, it involved turning it into the symbol of chaos as well.

There's some writing on the original piece, but I had to take it off the smaller versions of the posters because it didn't read well. I was listening to "A Sense of Purpose" while penciling it in and one lyric in particular came to mind: " Feel this up your conviction!" To me, though, it sounded like "Feel the Realness of Your Convictions!", thus the name of the piece. The lyric is from the song "I'm the Highway".

But while I was listening to the album, another lyric came screaming out to me: " Thought I was unbreakable, but this is killing me!" This lyric is from "Delight and Angers", and it just felt perfect. Now, as soon as I wrote it, I was worried about the way people would interpret that. I didn't want it to look as if I was saying, "Oh no, Satan is evil and will betray you!", but its more along the lines of two old sayings: "Pride comes before the fall" and "Be careful what you wish for."

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=--=-=-=-=--=-=-
IN FLAMES is playing The Trocadero October 4th at 7PM. They will be joined by Between the Buried and Me, 3 Inches of Blood, and The Faceless.

All logos are trademarks of their respective bands. All artwork (C) Larry West 2009

]]> http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Xecutioner-quot-Obituary-Poster-quot-138292013 http://luvataciousskull.deviantart.com/art/Xecutioner-quot-Obituary-Poster-quot-138292013 Sat, 26 Sep 2009 08:32:39 PDT Xecutioner "Obituary Poster" adult traditional/drawings/pop luvataciousskull http://a.deviantart.net/avatars/l/u/luvataciousskull.jpg Copyright 2009-2013 *luvataciousskull @Markskull
The X on her shoulder was also based on the bands old name. I'm a big Pushead fan and I wanted to use a similar font style on something, so I picked this.

I hope you enjoy it!

Obituary logo is (TM) Obituary. They kick ass. ]]>
The X on her shoulder was also based on the bands old name. I'm a big Pushead fan and I wanted to use a similar font style on something, so I picked this.

I hope you enjoy it!

Obituary logo is (TM) Obituary. They kick ass.

]]>