Personal: Monsters Misfits and Serpents

  I promised myself I'd try something a little more alien and out there and for the most part I think I'm on the right track.some of these still have that dinosaur DNA but others (my particular favourites of this being 3, 5 and 9) are more bizarre, more something unknown.

  I believe there is enough character in each of these to tell a story for each one. What they are like to speak with, what their tastes are, maybe even what they consider to be artful or in good taste. I've grown to like turning rough shapes into creatures, a few of these I had a clear picture in mind but others started off quite vague and abstract. 9 I believe was quite random to begin with and some unexpected things came out of 5's outline.

At a pinch, it is possible that all or most of these could exist within the same universe, perhaps under the same banner.

Major Project: Third Time Is The Charm

  Confident after some initial drawings (below) I tried refining some ideas, going into more outlandish designs that could come from the puffy juvenile form I'm keeping with. I kind of like the amphibian forms - they relate to the swampy environment, they're somewhat bizarre and it's a form that could develop from the pudgy mass Four emerges from its cocoon as. They could also have some translucency to them (something I might need to practice drawing) to add that alien feel. I think I've hit the start of something that I could explore further.

These below were from a previous post today but I'm including them for context. 9-21 were I think when I started getting into my stride with this.

  Additionally, for the base I have taken to examining the original television show Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons, which was broadcast in 1967. It's not 1970s but there are possible signs of the trends that would mark the 1970s within the show. It's more mature and serious than it's predecessor Thunderbirds, for one.

@Phil: Major Project: Reworking Four

  After some consideration that I need to be more experimental with Four's design. I studied some of the techniques of Feng Zhu and a few more bizarre creatures to get some inspiration. I feel that creatures 7 and 13 are my strongest designs but they could definitely do with a lot of work.

  I tried further to develop some more ideas but these don't feel as strong as the previous designs. 16 and 21 might be an exception though 16 veers into genericism. 19 may work as it is a bit more outlandish and less Earth-like though it is a rather drastic change from other designs, which could be good or bad.

Major Project: Further Ideas for Adult Form

  After a minor course correction I investigated forms for the adult and in some instances juvenile Four. For this, I looked at sphinx cats, naked mole rats and babies. I'd like to keep the mouth, inspired by the hydrothermal worm, because I think it makes the creature look a bit more alien, and could influence the reveal of the eyes. As before it opens its eyes it'll be puffy, pink, generally unsettling just moments before David realises it has a beauty to it.

  I might switch out some features as I don't want this to look too much like a rat. I might tweak the ears so they could be embedded on the side of the head. From discussion, this creature will get less saggy as it matures and grows into its skin

  I used image referencing to try and paint what Four's skin could look like. It's rough but I plan to do more refined concepts later which hopefully should properly convey the creature's appearance in regards to whether it's cute or grotesque. This sort of drawing also makes it easier to show if it's translucent or not.

  After discussing with Phil there could be a beauty to the creature. The above sketches focus on movement because that's where I think this stage of the creature will come to life the most. This creature evolved in a marshy environment, it would likely be a hunter that could bound off trees or sprint through hills. This might be contrary to its previous forms which are a lot more bulky and cumbersone. But one thing that Phil and I discussed was that this creature had to be built as a survivor. Four is established as a hunter as in its grub state it eats moss and small insects. So in its adult form it could have evolved to hunt something larger, which requires it to be a bit more of an ace than the flabby thing that would emerge from the cocoon.

Sketchbook: Fish and Aliens a Colourful Mix

  I was still felling inspired visiting the London Aquarium so while they're not the best studies, I decided to draw some fish, thinking it might help with inspiration over the creature that will appear in the film. Although I was also inspired by watching James Cameron's Aliens on Sunday night (somewhat fitting given Weyland-Yutani's obsession with acquiring a Xenomorph for use as some experimental bioweapon reflects one idea that the creature in the project could be there though some big company looking to use it for commercial purposes.). Halfway though, as demonstrated on the right-hand size of the page, I decided to see what beasties I could fashion out of fish parts. It still feels a little generic at the moment but with time, revision and further inspiration will come something distinct.

There are some truly bizarre creatures that lurk under the surface of our oceans. Not just the classic bizarre creatures like the Angler fish. While at the aquarium I encountered two species of shark in particular: One swam like a manta ray and the other, the aforementioned Nurse Shark, had catfish-like whiskers attached to its nose. Unfortunately I only had my phone camera which takes terrible pictures in low light conditions.

  Still it gave me a few thoughts on how to make a creature that was otherworldly and grotesque. Sketching while watching James Cameron's actionised sequel for Hollywood's most iconic kill-happy alien monsters may have also contributed towards a bit of inspiration. To ad a bit of ferocity maybe adding a touch of shark or eel to the creature is going along the right lines.