[Meaty Ogre]

I had a brief conversation with an art director from a big company. Basically he felt that my stuff was too unfinished for his particular needs. He showed me some of his favorite stuff. Some of it was beyond me and some of it made me say, wait a minute here... I think I can do that. So I did this for the purpose of trying to win clients like him. I'll probably still tighten it up even more. He also said he prefers real paint to ps, which surprised me. And there's no way I'm going to start with oils so I tried to make this look as oily as possible, which was teadious but kinda fun. I enjoy working like this but I kinda feel that I�ve turned away from the righteous path. Fellow Mullins worshipers might know what I mean by that. Anyway, see ya.

I think the head was inspired by Mon.

[Mon]

This is classy work, I'm really enjoying the stuff I'm seeing from you lately! It should set you up with with work, no doubt about that. My favourite part of this one is the area around the necklace, the skulls and the beetle. Lots of love went into that spot and it really paid off.

The veins are a nice touch, but right now they're a little too pronounced. A little goes a really long way with these things. You might also want to take another look at the neck, and the collarbones; if you get the "fossa jugularis" (the little depression between the collarbones, at the base of the throat) looking right it will explain a great deal about how the neck is shaped.

Don't give in on this just yet, I'm sure you can take it to even greater heights and that it will help boost your career Getting really close on this one will help you in all your other work, so don't worry about if it's righteous or not. If you're enjoying yourself then that's all that really matters, right?
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[LePensky]

Hey there,

I think this looks pretty damn good. You sound like your attitude is spot on, as this art director gave you specific critique and you're striving to adapt. The idea that you're turning away from the righeous path (I'm not sure if you were kidding a bit there) is a silly one, because there is nothing to stop you producing your more 'free-flowing' work as well as the more 'refined' stuff.

Back to the image then, I can't really critique it too much, because in my opinion it's excellent. However, a couple of things that niggle me:

The shoulder pads, to me they could perhaps do with a bit more surface texture, as at the moment they look a bit 'rubbery'. What material do you perceive them to be made of? If they're metal in any way, perhaps you could give them a rusted look, to indicate that this guy is a seasoned 'warrior' (after all, he has several trophies around his neck!).

The only other thing I picked up on is his right (our left) elbow. I am not sure if he is supposed to have some kind of sharp bone plating here, or if he simply has a very sharp elbow! Either way, it's just a little unclear to me.

Anyway, I hope my comments are useful to you, and I really look forward to seeing how you progress with, if not this image, any future work you create

-LePensky
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[Meaty Ogre]

Mon, glad you like it. Thanks for the encouragement. I will work on this more and I'll see how I can improve the anatomy.

LePensky, thanks. I started to put a wood grain on the shoulder pads but it didn't look right so I took it out, but youre right they need some indication of what they're maid of. And I think I left the elbow so pointy becasue it looked strong and graphic, but if it looks weird to others then Ill tone it down a bit.

Thanks again!