My kingdom for a graphic artist.

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Fel
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My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Fel »

Seriously.

I need to find someone good at freehand illustration, and I've had little luck with the people I know at university. They either want to "stylize" Tarrin or "cutesy" him. I've not been satisfied with the sketches the 3 artists I know here who took a hand at it after I described him to them.

So, if you know someone decently good at illustration, send them here. If you think you're capable of it yourself, then whip something up and put up a link so we can look at it.

What I'm looking for is a portrait of him in a static standing position, holding his staff, but with his eyes glowing and a "you're in trouble now" expression on his face without it becoming too angry. ;)

You know, one of those stoic expressions of a man about to clean house.

The artists here either want to "personalize" Tarrin's appearance to suit themselves or want to chibi him. I'm sorry, but a 7.5 foot tall sociopath is not a candidate for chibihood.
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Taltos
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Taltos »

i asked a guy over at deviantArt, we'll see if he's interested...

edit: got the answer, unfortunately he doesn't have time...
Last edited by Taltos on Fri Nov 11, 2005 7:25 am, edited 1 time in total.
freethrow
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by freethrow »

Boy do I know someone that would be perfect to draw Tarrin or any other character in these books. However, I haven't seen him in years. My oldest daughter used to date him. He would be 30 now. As a teenager he was already drawing professional quality characters like this all from his own imagination. Last I heard he was doing some work for some pretty major companies. I have emailed my daughter who still talks with his Mom now and then and she will get the information. I will get him to sketch an example for you if I can reach him.
Super C
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Super C »

I'm a proffesional artist (computer mostly), though I'm not sure what format you need exactly. I'd need a very detailed description. I've read stuff here but am unsure of a few things. Would you like a sketch or a 3d model? (yes, I can do this though it will take me considerably longer) Unfortunately my site is no more but if someone can host I can e-mail sample art. One thing though, I'm not exactly known as... punctual, but rest assured this would be done free of charge as your stories cost me the same. :)
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Fel
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Fel »

Woo, an aritist...jackpot, hehehe.

I'm not interested in computer models...the picture is going to be put up somewhere either on this message board or on the website, if I can ever get access to the shell and fix it.

So, you need a description eh? Well, ask and ye shall receive.

--General Appearance

Tarrin is 7'8" tall (got me what that is in meters...hehehe), and weighs 350 pounds, all of it muscle. His basic body appearance is a combination of power and sinuous sleekness, favoring definition over muscle bulk, but he does have some muscle. His body is built like a gymnast. Outside of his obvious Were-cat alterations, his body is extremely human-looking.

The major parts of his appearance that has to be attended most carefully are, naturally, his Were-cat features. His fur is coal black, thick, short, and only extends to a ragged line just above his elbows on his arms, and just above his knees on his legs. He has shaggy fetlocks as well. The fetlocks on his arms grow on the outside of his forearms from midway up the forearm to the wrist, and on his legs, the grow on the backs and outsides of his legs from midcalf to ankle. These fetlocks are rather shaggy, but their fur is not very long.

His ears are not overly large, but they are very noticable. They extend UP more than they extend OUT, but they do have tilt to them given they are set on the outside of the top of his skull. His ears are typically cat, triangular in general appearance and with their backs covered in black fur. His ears stick out from his hair, which is pulled back and around the ears to form his braid.

Tarrin's hands are not human. His hands are double the normal size of a hand for his body's size, with very large, thick fingers. He has 5 fingers on each hand, and naturally, does not have fingernails. The palms of his hands have a single large pad along the ball of the hand (the area below the fingers) and extending down through the center of his hand to just near the thumb. Each finger has two small pads on it as well, on the first and second phalanges. His thumb only has one pad, on the first phalange.

Tarrin's feet are much more inhuman than his hands, for they are a cross between a cat's paw and a human foot. They are abnormally wide across the ball, and each foot possesses overly large, developed toes. Unlike a cat, who only has 4 toes on the back feet, Tarrin has 5 toes on his feet, and each one shows the tip of the claw recessed within at all times (Were-cats can't completely retract their feet claws...they're too large. Foot claws are substantially larger than hand claws on Were-cats). Tarrin stands on the balls of his feet and walks on his toes, which makes him appear to stand at a height of 8'2", but his feet and legs don't have the duke-ankle joint prevalent in most quadrapeds. His ankle is most definitely formed like a human ankle. Much as with his hands, Tarrin has a very large, thick pad across the ball of his foot, and the tip of each toe and the bottom of his heel also carries a pad.

Of special note: Tarrin's tail is exactly 1.5 times the length of his leg. Yes, that makes it abnormally long (nearly 6 feet long), but that's Were-cat anatomy. It also sticks out of his lower back just above the cleft of his buttocks, NOT out from between them. Coming into a vertical base caused Were-cats' tails to both shift in their position and lengthen to maintain weight proportion. His tail fur is black like the rest of his fur, and it does NOT tuft at the tip.

--Appearance

Tarrin's face carries strong cheeks and a squared jaw, but his features are drawn because of his height. His apparent age is very difficult to determine, for his face carries both a youthful look and an ageless, timeless quality (thanks to Shiika's kiss). When his features are relaxed, he looks very young. When he carries his usual stony, emotionless expression, he looks very mature (but not OLD). His green eyes are quite piercing with their vertical pupils, and his eyebrows are blond and a little thin. His nose is slightly narrow, with a slightly upturned tip.

If you draw him with his mouth open, REMEMBER THE FANGS! ;)

Tarrin customarily wears a simple vest that only extends to his waist, leaving his chest and midriff bare, and a pair of simple leather breeches whose legs are tattered from his foot claws. Were he still living, he would be wearing his amulet and have his brands.
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Super C
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Super C »

That clears up A LOT. One question though, does he look more like a human with a cat's head or a thunder cat? In other words, is his face more feline or humanoid? From the description I'm getting it seems more of the latter. Also, are there any particular actors you've molded him after? I remember someone mentioning Triana looked like an actress from the Harry Potter movies. Is this the same with Tarrin? Also, the brands... I'll draw up a few sketches so you can settle on the right one. I'm also assuming the Shaerem on the website is correct? I remember there being a debate on what a weavespinner Shaerem looked like a while back.

I'm pretty busy this week but I'll try to get a few proportion sketches done to get a basic framework. I SHOULD have those to you by the end of the week. If I seem to take too long GET ON ME. I'm notorious for dragging my feet when I don't have a set deadline.
I also have 2 cats, so they should give me good referrence... assuming they sit still long enough. :)
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Lochar »

I'll host it if you wish. Email any samples to bmw9211(at)cox(dot)net.

And Fel, thanks loads for the detailed description. Maybe it'll remove a bit of the craziness that is trying to chibi him.
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Were_Fan »

Fel wrote:Seriously.

I need to find someone good at freehand illustration, and I've had little luck with the people I know at university. They either want to "stylize" Tarrin or "cutesy" him. I've not been satisfied with the sketches the 3 artists I know here who took a hand at it after I described him to them.

So, if you know someone decently good at illustration, send them here. If you think you're capable of it yourself, then whip something up and put up a link so we can look at it.

What I'm looking for is a portrait of him in a static standing position, holding his staff, but with his eyes glowing and a "you're in trouble now" expression on his face without it becoming too angry. ;)

You know, one of those stoic expressions of a man about to clean house.

The artists here either want to "personalize" Tarrin's appearance to suit themselves or want to chibi him. I'm sorry, but a 7.5 foot tall sociopath is not a candidate for chibihood.
Fel,

Depending on how you want to use the Tarrin picture/drawing, you might want to read the copyright FAQ at:
http://www.copyright.gov/help/faq/

Basically, if an employee draws something, the employer has the copyright. If an independent contractractor makes a drawing, the legal waters are somewhat muddied. An artist is generally free to use and re-use and even sell a picture drawn as an independent contractor ... UNLESS there is a prior written contract explicitly transerring the copyrights. This will be especially important if you ever want to use pictures in publishing books.

For more extensive info, you can Google:

copyright "independent contractor"

On another note, please send me an email. I need your email address so I can send you a free Baen Webscription.

--
Jim
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Spec8472 »

Lochar wrote:I'll host it if you wish. Email any samples to bmw9211(at)cox(dot)net.
Darn, you beat me :)

Hosting is available here too - I can set you up with FTP access if you'd like, Super C.
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Fel
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Fel »

Super C wrote:That clears up A LOT. One question though, does he look more like a human with a cat's head or a thunder cat? In other words, is his face more feline or humanoid? From the description I'm getting it seems more of the latter. Also, are there any particular actors you've molded him after? I remember someone mentioning Triana looked like an actress from the Harry Potter movies. Is this the same with Tarrin? Also, the brands... I'll draw up a few sketches so you can settle on the right one. I'm also assuming the Shaerem on the website is correct? I remember there being a debate on what a weavespinner Shaerem looked like a while back.

I'm pretty busy this week but I'll try to get a few proportion sketches done to get a basic framework. I SHOULD have those to you by the end of the week. If I seem to take too long GET ON ME. I'm notorious for dragging my feet when I don't have a set deadline.
I also have 2 cats, so they should give me good referrence... assuming they sit still long enough. :)
His head and face are completely human, except for his eyes, his fangs, and his cat ears...and remember, he doesn't have human ears at all. Usually his hair droops down to cover where human ears would have been.

As to who he looks like...well, imagine a MUCH younger Harrison Ford, but with a face a little narrower and longer, and not quite as handsome...more rugged.

The brands are actually very simple....upright longsword and spear crossed at an angle (in X formation, but crossing higher up than in the center), enclosed within a circle, and moon over a horizon, enclosed within a circle. Remember, they're brands, they can't be too intricate. They are very simple images.

The Shaeram on the site is more or less correct, but Tarrin's amulet isn't solid...the triangles aren't filled, and it has no color. It is all black metal, including the chain, which has largish links and looks very sturdy. The only thing filled in an amulet is the concave center star, which usually holds a tiny gem in the center (though Tarrin's amulet does not). A Weavespinner's amulet has the tines extending out from the sides of the concave star at angles, then turning up and down (depending on where it came out) to join to the triangles. The tines are symmetrical; the inner 2 attach to the corner between the top/bottom triangle and its neighbor, and the outer 2 attach to the exact center of the next triangle over, in symmetry both horizontally and vertically.

As far as deadlines go...pft. I don't believe in deadlines. You're doing it for fun, so go at your own pace.
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Fel
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Fel »

Were-fan:

I thought everyone knew my email, lol...I don't keep it secret. ;)

randomified to piss off the webcrawler email fishbots:

faalken (AT) hotmail (dot) c o m

I check it like once a century, so never send me something that you consider important...PMing me here brings a much faster response. ;)
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Taltos
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Taltos »

Fel wrote:Were he still living, he would be wearing his amulet and have his brands.
wow, now that's a major spoiler there... :)

anyway, somehow i fear this whole artwork stuff since _my_ picture of tarrin will definitely get mangled quite badly... :?
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Lunchbox
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Lunchbox »

my mental picture of tarrin is like FF10's kimahri but more human-like. i know thats not what he is supposted to look like, but hell its my mental image damn it!
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Shadowhawk »

Do Tarrin has twin, double braid (like stereotipical Native American) or heavier single braid (and if it is so, how he avoids disadvantages of braid in hand-to-hand combat)?

If Tarrin legs combine skeletal human structure (knee as main joint) with cat leg skeletal structure (with heel as main joint), it is no wonder that his legs take that much of his height; even if heel is not in the half of the leng length, but perkas quarter or one sixth even. Surely his martial arts style (long-range version) includes many long kicks and use of rear (legs) claws.

Does shaeram amulet have filled background (like etched coin), or is it usually "see thru", not filled, "wireframe", openwork style? What style is Tarrin's amulet? If I remember correctly Tarrin's is made of some black metal...
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Fel
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Re: My kingdom for a graphic artist.

Post by Fel »

He has 1 braid...the size and weight of it tends to keep it behind him when he's fighting. Remember, it nearly hangs down to his knees.

A Were-cat's legs are always a bit tricky. Yes, they are quite long, and you're correct in that his knee is his primary joint. The structure of a common mammal quadraped is that the ankle becomes the "knee," and the foot becomes extremely long...which is why dogs and cats look like they have 3 joints in their rear legs instead of 2. Tarrin's feet aren't like that. They're a hybrid of foot and paw, but they are only SLIGHTLY elongated, and that's only so the foot can support the unnatural width across the ball. Tarrin's feet would only be a couple of inches longer than a human's foot who is of the same height, but naturally, it looks NOTHING like a human's foot.

Since his feet aren't entirely human and his heel is much narrower than the ball of his foot, that's why he tends to stand on his balls of his feet. It gives him a much more stable platform.

The shaeram is wireframe, except for the concave star.
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