Getting the Shot

-By Dan dos Santos

Helping my model get a more dynamic pose.

For me, one of the most important parts of any job is the photo shoot. Fortunately, I think it's also the most fun!



When I work digitally, revisions and experimentation are so easy that I often find myself making up most things. But oil paints are a bit different. Revisions are really time consuming, and when a tight deadline looms overhead, experimentation is a luxury I usually can not afford.



Because of this, I tend to place a lot of emphasis on my photo shoots. Getting a killer photograph makes the painting process SO much easier, and so much faster. Instead of playing an anatomical guessing game the whole time, I can just look at my reference, and improvise as needed. Why spend days repainting the light source in your painting, when you can move an actual light in just a few seconds and see what it really looks like before you even start?



Typically, I'll spend a full day prepping and shooting reference. Sometimes it's really simple, and just a few snapshots will do. Other times, I build elaborate models, costumes and dioramas... whatever it takes to get the shot I need. For me, much of the design phase of my painting happens in the photo shoot. The lighting, the costume details, the silhouette... all these things are carefully designed in 'real time' through the lens.

(Above: The model shoot for Kalimpura, and the supplemental reference I took to make a more convincing environment.)



A lot of young artists view a dependence on photo reference to be an artistic weakness, and that just is not so. If you constantly rely on your imagination, you are always pulling from the same limited visual vocabulary that you did the last time. Acquiring reference lets you learn about things, and expand your understanding of the way your model and light truly interact. Further more, great accidents happen! I can't tell you how many times something cool happened in a photo shoot (be it an unusual pose, or an interesting shadow), that I NEVER would have thought of otherwise. Sometimes, it's those happy accidents that end up really making the painting great!



Drapery is one of those things that really makes the shoots worth it for me. I've seen many a great painting go awry because of poorly rendered drapery. Conversely, good drapery can really sell an image, especially when it comes to action shots.

(Above: Punching, and getting punched... My friend helps me get some great action shots!)



Get creative with your reference! You don't need to buy the exact stuff you're trying to imitate. You can achieve some spectacular results with common stuff you can find around your house. I've made surprisingly convincing birds from aluminum foil and spray paint, and even leather outfits from black garbage bags. Or, if you have the time, hit up a Thrift store, and buy some old clothes and accessories to cut up and repurpose.

(Above: Don't own a wolf? It's amazing what you can make out of a fleece blanket and some craft paper!)

(Above: Here, a cheap floor lamp stands in for a magic flute)

(Above: Sometimes the reference shoots go SO well, that the painting practically paints itself.)



So the next time you start an intimidating composition, give yourself a fighting chance. Spend the time to do some research, go to the fabric shop, take some preliminary poses yourself, build a model, and see what happens! You'd be really surprised at the subtle, and unexpected, things you fall in love with along the way.

The Basics of Bases

-By Tim Bruckner

I was commissioned by connoisseur and collector, Don Bohm, to sculpt a Superman bust of my own design. While working with DC Direct I sculpted thirty-nine different Superman pieces, both action figures and statues. Several I got to design, but they all had to fall within the guidelines of what DC determined was their product parameters. So, the opportunity to design a Superman without it having to be tied to a specific artist, current storyline or the latest incarnation was very appealing.



I have a Jones for bases. There I said it. I like a base that lifts and informs the piece mounted on it. There are instances when a traditional base does just that and sometimes, depending on the subject, a traditional base can be downright perverse. In designing Don’s Superman, I wanted the base to give the piece presence without it weighting it down.



The first design was a steel clad cylinder with the Superman logo suspended in it. It took me days to figure it out. It was only after I made the damn thing that I realized I’d under appreciated the lens effect. After some jerry rigging, I got it to work. Sort of.

Back to the drawing board. I sketched out a few more designs, none of which really worked with the piece.

I wanted the bust to be mounted on a clear cast unit but wasn’t sure how to work that into the complete base. Don and I got on the phone, throwing ideas around. He suggested we use a blue tinted resin as opposed to a red tinted resin. And that turned things around. I sketched out a few more ideas and we settled on one that seemed to work really well.

I constructed the base in two parts, the cradle and the shield. The cradle was made out of 1/8” styrene sheet; glued, sanded and primed. The shield was a bit trickier. I built a form out of heavy card stock, sprayed the interior with mold release and cast urethane into it. With the basic form in resin, I sanded and patched it and then cut out the “S” from 20 gauge sheet wax and spray mounted it onto the form and primed it.

Note: There’s a mold release specifically designed to release silicon from silicone. By spraying both primed parts liberally with that release, I was able to get clean molds without any of the primer becoming bonded to the interior of the mold.



I cast both parts in resin and put them up on the table to make sure they fit and that the clear cast was the right density.

I finished the cradle with a hammered steel spray. For the shield, after sanding and buffing it out with 000 steel wool, I masked off the “S” interior shapes, gave them several coats of gloss varnish and then airbrushed in a few coats of a darker blue transparent glaze. With the masks removed I gave the entire shield several more coats of gloss which really helped increase its transparency. Note: There are several kinds of clear resins. The two basics are semi-clear and water clear. The A side of the semi-clear has a light amber tint to it and needs to be countered with the addition of a small amount of purple or lavender tint. I used the semi clear for the shield. The water clear offers a very clear casting but is really expensive and is a pain in the ass to use.

Don’s completed bust mounted on the “S” shield base. Next, the creation of the bust from sketch to clay, to wax to resin, to Paint Master.

Happy Thanksgiving

From all of us, to all of you! Whether or not your country celebrates the holiday, we hope you'll all find a little bit of time to reflect on the blessings in your life, and spend the day with those you love most.

'Burial of Uncas', by N.C. Wyeth

2014 Independent Spirit Award Nominations

The Independent Spirit Award Nominations have been released! Check these out, and let us know if you agree or not:


BEST FEATURE (Award given to the Producer, Executive Producers are not awarded)

12 Years a Slave
PRODUCERS: Dede Gardner, Anthony Katagas, Jeremy Kleiner, Steve McQueen, Arnon Milchan, Brad Pitt, Bill Pohlad

All Is Lost
PRODUCERS: Neal Dodson, Anna Gerb

Frances Ha
PRODUCERS: Noah Baumbach, Scott Rudin, Rodrigo Teixeira, Lila Yacoub

Inside Llewyn Davis
PRODUCERS: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen, Scott Rudin

Nebraska
PRODUCERS: Albert Berger, Ron Yerxa



BEST DIRECTOR

Shane Carruth
Upstream Color

J.C. Chandor
All Is Lost

Steve McQueen
12 Years a Slave

Jeff Nichols
Mud

Alexander Payne
Nebraska


BEST SCREENPLAY

Woody Allen
Blue Jasmine

Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke & Richard Linklater
Before Midnight

Nicole Holofcener
Enough Said

Scott Neustadter & Michael H. Weber
The Spectacular Now

John Ridley
12 Years a Slave


BEST FIRST FEATURE (Award given to the director and producer)

Blue Caprice
DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: Alexandre Moors
PRODUCERS: Kim Jackson, Brian O'Carroll, Isen Robbins, Will Rowbotham, Ron Simons, Aimee Schoof, Stephen Tedeschi

Concussion
DIRECTOR: Stacie Passon
PRODUCER: Rose Troche

Fruitvale Station
DIRECTOR: Ryan Coogler
PRODUCERS: Nina Yang Bongiovi, Forest Whitaker

Una Noche
DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: Lucy Mulloy
PRODUCERS: Sandy Pérez Aguila, Maite Artieda, Daniel Mulloy, Yunior Santiago

Wadjda
DIRECTOR: Haifaa Al Mansour
PRODUCERS: Gerhard Meixner, Roman Paul


BEST FIRST SCREENPLAY

Lake Bell
In A World

Joseph Gordon-Levitt
Don Jon

Bob Nelson
Nebraska

Jill Soloway
Afternoon Delight

Michael Starrbury
The Inevitable Defeat of Mister and Pete


JOHN CASSAVETES AWARD - Given to the best feature made for under $500,000.  Award given to the writer, director, and producer.  Executive Producers are not awarded.

Computer Chess
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Andrew Bujalski
PRODUCERS: Houston King & Alex Lipschultz

Crystal Fairy
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Sebastiàn Silva
PRODUCERS: Juan de Dios Larraín & Pablo Larraín

Museum Hours
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Jem Cohen
PRODUCERS: Paolo Calamita & Gabriele Kranzelbinder

Pit Stop
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Yen Tan
WRITER: David Lowery
PRODUCERS: Jonathan Duffy, James M. Johnston, Eric Steele, Kelly Williams

This is Martin Bonner
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Chad Hartigan
PRODUCER: Cherie Saulter


BEST FEMALE LEAD

Cate Blanchett
Blue Jasmine

Julie Delpy
Before Midnight

Gaby Hoffmann
Crystal Fairy

Brie Larson
Short Term 12

Shailene Woodley
The Spectacular Now


BEST MALE LEAD

Bruce Dern
Nebraska

Chiwetel Ejiofor
12 Years a Slave

Oscar Isaac
Inside Llewyn Davis

Michael B. Jordan
Fruitvale Station

Matthew McConaughey
Dallas Buyers Club

Robert Redford
All Is Lost


BEST SUPPORTING FEMALE

Melonie Diaz
Fruitvale Station

Sally Hawkins
Blue Jasmine

Lupita Nyong'o
12 Years a Slave

Yolonda Ross
Go For Sisters

June Squibb
Nebraska


BEST SUPPORTING MALE

Michael Fassbender
12 Years a Slave

Will Forte
Nebraska

James Gandolfini
Enough Said

Jared Leto
Dallas Buyers Club

Keith Stanfield
Short Term 12


BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Sean Bobbitt
12 Years a Slave

Benoit Debie
Spring Breakers

Bruno Delbonnel
Inside Llewyn Davis

Frank G. DeMarco
All Is Lost

Matthias Grunsky
Computer Chess


BEST EDITING

Shane Carruth & David Lowery
Upstream Color

Jem Cohen & Marc Vives
Museum Hours

Jennifer Lame
Frances Ha

Cindy Lee
Una Noche

Nat Sanders
Short Term 12


BEST DOCUMENTARY (Award given to the director and producer)

20 Feet From Stardom
DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: Morgan Neville
PRODUCERS: Gil Friesen & Caitrin Rogers

After Tiller
DIRECTORS/PRODUCERS: Martha Shane & Lana Wilson

Gideon's Army
DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: Dawn Porter
PRODUCER: Julie Goldman

The Act of Killing
DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: Joshua Oppenheimer
PRODUCERS: Joram Ten Brink, Christine Cynn, Anne Köhncke, Signe Byrge Sørensen,
Michael Uwemedimo

The Square
DIRECTOR: Jehane Noujaim
PRODUCER: Karim Amer

BEST INTERNATIONAL FILM (Award given to the director)

A Touch of Sin
(China)
DIRECTOR: Jia Zhang-Ke

Blue is the Warmest Color
(France)
DIRECTOR: Abdellatif Kechiche

Gloria
(Chile)
DIRECTOR: Sebastián Lelia

The Great Beauty
(Italy)
DIRECTOR: Paolo Sorrentino

The Hunt
(Denmark)
DIRECTOR: Thomas Vinterberg


ROBERT ALTMAN AWARD - (Given to one film's director, casting director, and its ensemble cast)

Mud
Director: Jeff Nichols
Casting Director: Francine Maisler
Ensemble Cast:  Joe Don Baker, Jacob Lofland, Matthew McConaughey, Ray McKinnon, Sarah Paulson, Michael Shannon, Sam Shepard, Tye Sheridan, Paul Sparks, Bonnie Sturdivant, Reese Witherspoon


17th ANNUAL PIAGET PRODUCERS AWARD – The 17th annual Producers Award, sponsored by Piaget, honors emerging producers who, despite highly limited resources demonstrate the creativity, tenacity, and vision required to produce quality, independent films.  The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant funded by Piaget.

Toby Halbrooks & James M. Johnston
Jacob Jaffke
Andrea Roa
Frederick Thornton


20th ANNUAL SOMEONE TO WATCH AWARD – The 20th annual Someone to Watch Award recognizes a talented filmmaker of singular vision who has not yet received appropriate recognition.

My Sister's Quinceañera
DIRECTOR: Aaron Douglas Johnston

Newlyweeds
DIRECTOR: Shaka King

The Foxy Merkins
DIRECTOR: Madeline Olnek

 19th ANNUAL STELLA ARTOIS TRUER THAN FICTION AWARD – The 19th annual Truer Than Fiction Award, sponsored by Stella Artois, is presented to an emerging director of non-fiction features who has not yet received significant recognition.  The award includes a $25,000 unrestricted grant.

Kalyanee Mam
A River Changes Course

Jason Osder
Let the Fire Burn

Stephanie Spray & Pacho Velez
Manakamana


- Lena

Flash Gordon Series by Titan Books

Vol. 1 On The Planet Mongo 1934-1937

Greg Manchess

If you're gonna go through life with a name like 'Flash', you'd better back it up by being very cool under fire, have a hot I'd-better-go-with-you girlfriend and a brilliant father-figure scientist buddy at your side.



That would be Flash Gordon. The best airman this side of Mongo.



My grandmother used to send me clippings of the Flash Gordon Sunday strip out of the Chicago Tribune when I was a kid. They didn’t run it in my local Cincinnati Enquirer. By the time I discovered it on a trip to my grandparent’s house, I had no idea where the story had started or where it was going.



I didn’t care. Those clippings were like jewels of color that I studied and studied.

Whoever this Alex Raymond guy was, his artwork was enough to get me curious. With his graceful, information-charged lines, I could daydream about Flash’s world, make up images of Flash and Dale and Dr. Zarkov as real people.



But over the decades, I’d lost hope that I’d ever get to revisit those strips in quite the same way.

But Titan Books has been publishing the entire series in one beautiful volume after another. Recently released is volume 3, “The Fall of Ming 1941-1944,” preceded by volume 1, “On The Planet Mongo, 1934-1937,” and volume 2, “The Tyrant of Mongo, 1937-1941.” The production is excellent and makes a gorgeous set of books, collecting several years in each volume.

Vol. 2 The Tyrant of Mongo 1937-1941

Vol. 3 The Fall of Ming 1941-1944

The beauty of the pages is that they not only capture the color, but they capture a bit of the age of the strip. It allows me to remember my excitement as a kid, only now, I know what I’d been missing.

Alex Raymond’s work is as exciting today as it was in the 30’s and 40’s, or even my childhood. The pages are lovingly produced. Titan respects these pages as much as the fans and presents them as fresh and alive as if inked yesterday.



In production now is volume 4, “Kang The Cruel” by another fabulous inker, Austin Briggs.

Hollywood Revolution for Women

Here is some great news about women in Hollywood. Finally. Enjoy this Forbes article after the jump:

 "When you spend your time writing about women and Hollywood there are many, many days when things seem bleak and downright depressing. But not this week. This week I am filled with hope, and that hope is on the big screen in several films rolling out shortly including Catching Fire and Frozen and Philomena. Let’s be honest, 2013 hasn’t been a good year for women onscreen. It’s been disheartening to say the least. In the summer the only women onscreen (in wide release) were Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy in The Heat. Then in October Sandra Bullock again broke box office records as the lead in Gravity. But now, just in time for Thanksgiving there are multiple films with female leads that people all across the country will be able to enjoy.

First, Catching Fire. I can’t say how big a game changer this series of films are. This is the second film in the four part series based on the Hunger Games trilogy of books written by Suzanne Collins. Jennifer Lawrence again takes up the lead of Katniss Everdeen and I caught myself holding my breath during the opening moment which was a full screen shot of Lawrence. It is so rare to see a full on beautiful shot of a young woman to open a film. And from that opening moment, this young woman just commands the screen and leads this film in every way. The fact that she seems completely normal and hasn’t been enveloped into the Hollywood system where most young women seem like they are hungry and have been programmed, is such a revelation. She seems to be in charge of herself, and she’s no longer the girl we saw at the Oscars when she was nominated for Winter’s Bone. She’s become a young woman who doesn’t seem to take herself, and the business too seriously, which was confirmed to me by the film’s producer, Nina Jacobson. Her everyday personality – especially her bold comments about how the industry creates unrealistic images of women, endears her to women and girls, and let’s face it, she’s young and cute so the guys are also into her. She’s the full package and even though she is a huge star and has an Oscar she is still relatively new in the business and will hopefully have a great career ahead of her.

The film opens tomorrow on 4,100 screens and according to Fandango the film is the top advance seller or the year and is “outpacing Iron Man 3 at the same point in the sales cycle.” The first Hunger Games film made the same amount domestically as Iron Man 3. It’s overseas where Iron Man 3 soared making over $800 million. The conventional wisdom is that Catching Fire will do better than the first film overseas. The domestic box office is expected to huge. The last film opened on the same amount of screens and had an opening weekend gross of $152 million dollars. That film opened in March, this time it takes over the Thanksgiving slot that the Twilight films held for several years, so we might even see a larger opening weekend. In some ways, The Hunger Games films have the Twilight films to thank for laying the groundwork for their success. There is no comparing the stories, but Twilight did plant the seeds for successful multiple films told from a female perspective.

I was hugely surprised by how much I loved Frozen which is written and co-directed by Jennifer Lee. It is about two sisters, power and love- things you don’t often get in the animated world. Personally, I still don’t know why every heroine in animated films needs to be a princess, but I will give that a pass here because this is a film where neither sister needs to be saved by a man. There is no hero coming to their rescue, in fact, the girls actually need to save each other. Inspired by the Hans Christian Andersen story The Snow Queen, the film gives older sister Elsa (Idina Menzel) the power to make things freeze. It is not something she can control very well so she hides herself away from the world including her sister Anna (Kristen Bell) because she is afraid of what she will do and what people will think of her. Suffice it to say her power is revealed on the day she is to be coronated queen and she flees in fear, and while feeling she unknowingly leaves everything in her wake frozen. Anna takes it upon herself to go and bring her back to save the queendom. No group of men head up the mountain, just Anna. Yet hiding on the mountain, Elsa is finally free from hiding her true self and being the good girl and the moment she embraces her power without fear in an amazing ballad “Let It Go” is a one of those goose bump movie moments. It sure helps to have Idina Menzel’s soaring voice at the center of this spectacular moment but major credit goes to husband and wife writing team of Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez for creating a moment where a young woman can sing about owning her power. I walked out of the film with a huge smile on my face because I knew that this was another special film moment – an animated movie where the female characters drive the action and need no rescuing from any dudes. Now we just need them to be other things besides princesses.

Last, but certainly not least, is the Dame Judi Dench starrer Philomena. I saw the film back in Toronto in September and loved it then and still believe it is one of the best movies of the year. It’s a great story about a woman who tries to find the son stolen from her fifty years before. It’s got a terrific script with tons of laughs co-written by Steve Coogan (who co-stars in the film.) But the film would not work without the endearing and heartbreaking performance of Judi Dench who will most probably get another Oscar nomination for it. It opens in limited release this weekend and will roll out into more theatres before Thanksgiving.

It is rare that so many different, original and very good films with female characters are released at the same time. Part of the problem is that Hollywood gets nervous that women won’t come out and support these films. They get nervous when they release one, so three at the same time is quite rare. But the thing to understand about these films and about films about women in general is that they are not made for just women. Just because a movie stars a woman, or a girl or an animated female characters should never mean that this is a film for women. These stories are about people, and last time I checked women were included as people. I don’t think I am going out on a limb by saying that these three movies will be successes. What they will prove is that there is an audience of men and women and boys and girls who want to see these stories because they are compelling, dynamic, riveting, adventurous, heartbreaking and exciting. They won’t be successes in spite of the fact they star women but because they star women."

Melissa Silverstein, Forbes

- Lena

Cedarlore Forge: Interview with David DelaGardelle

- by Cory Godbey

I return to you, dear Muddy Colors readers, once again! If you missed the introduction in my first guest post, I'm Cory and I am filling in this month for Justin Gerard who has fled the internet to go get married IRL. My first post was on the importance of personal work. This entry will be an interview with the absurdly accomplished maker of swords and fine weaponry, David DelaGardelle.

---

David, thank you for joining us! First of all, tell us a bit about your background and how you got started making swords. What led you to establish Cedarlore Forge?



Thank you so much for having me! It’s an absolute honor and privilege, as I have been inspired and amazed by the work shared on this incredible blog since it’s beginning.



Looking back on my life I feel like I’ve been a swordsmith at heart ever since I was a little boy. I was raised in a creative and encouraging environment, thanks to my loving family. I grew up on a healthy diet of classic literature, including the epic fantasy works of authors like Tolkien, Lewis, Bunyan, and Chesterton. Also, I spent every summer running around the Northwoods of Scandinavian-heritage rich Door County, Wisconsin, which undoubtedly inspired my fast growing imagination. In many ways, I almost stumbled into swordsmithing by accident as a young kid with my life-long friend Andy Davis. Andy and I had been friends since middle school, both being like-minded fiery-hearted Tolkien-obsessed kids; we quickly setup a makeshift workshop on his parent’s farm property to try our hand at blacksmithing on the weekends. What began as a joke hobby quickly became something serious as it evolved into a business we fittingly named “Mad Dwarf Workshop”. We setup a website our freshman year of college to sell our simple forged knives and swords, like the ones we had read about in childhood. Heroic stories about defending the weak and fighting for truth in ancient mythology, folktales, and Anglo Saxon poetry fueled my creative fire from the start and still do to this day. I loved the idea of crafting a beautiful symbolic object to encapsulate those positive themes. When it came down to the tangible art itself, Andy and I learned primarily from numerous books and websites. We were blown away by the endless free knowledge available about the craft for which we took full advantage. In 2012, after several successful years of working and learning together, Andy and I parted ways as business partners but not as brothers and friends. I then established my solo swordsmithing endeavor; Cedarlore Forge.



Cedarlore Forge is my artistic exploration of the Northern European mythopoetic tradition, in the form of uniquely hand forged swords and artwork. I craft each piece with meaning and purpose, a mythic story to tell, and a truth to be known. I work with the raw materials as closely as they would have been used thousands of years ago by historical swordsmiths. To this day I am still learning this amazing craft, as it is an endless art form with no limit to the amount of perfection you can aim at, and effort you can pour into each piece.



I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that your Tolkien inspired work will strike a chord with most Muddy Colors readers. What is it that draws you to that tradition of fantasy? What do you hope people feel when they see your work?



Fantasy is an incredible world for artists to explore because in a strange way by exploring other worlds it helps us see our own more objectively and truthfully, and helps us appreciate beauty in the simplest of mundane things. I think the old enlightenment or “rationalistic” mindset of looking down on fantasy as something childish and contemptible is thankfully dying away in our culture, because it’s obviously neither. I love Tolkien’s argument against those who mock fantasy as “escapism” when he said:

“Fantasy is escapist, and that is its glory. If a soldier is imprisoned by the enemy, don't we consider it his duty to escape?. . . If we value the freedom of mind and soul, if we're partisans of liberty, then it's our plain duty to escape, and to take as many people with us as we can!” - J.R.R. Tolkien.

And I couldn’t agree more. I want to help people “escape” their own “mind and soul” and look outside of themselves at what is objectively and unchangingly true and beautiful. The sword is a symbol that can easily do that in a human being. A sword is an object that serves almost as a litmus test for ones own soul. It immediately gives a weight of responsibility to its wielder, and with it you can do incredible good or incredible evil.
 So I want each sword I forge to tell a story, challenge people to fight the darkness in their hearts, defend beauty outside of themselves, speak truth, and be a symbol and a character in and of itself.


What does it take to craft a sword? Describe the process that goes into swordsmithing.



It always starts as a spark of inspiration in my mind before it goes anywhere else. I begin designing it first by either sketching out rough ideas on paper, or going straight into Photoshop to render the sword digitally. It all depends on the piece and its complexity. Once I have a design locked down I begin work with the raw materials. If the sword’s blade is pattern welded than I compile the layered billet together and forge weld it into a single bar in my forge. If the blade is mono-steel, I select the right bar of high carbon steel according to the dimensions of the sword. Then I will do a mixture of cutting, profiling, and forging to get it to the right shape. I work on giving the blade its bevels by rough grinding them in on my belt sander. Once the geometry is close, but not sharp, I begin heat treatment, which is the most crucial step. I harden the blade by heating it to non-magnetic temperature (bright red/dull orange) and then quench it in oil. After hardening, I temper to give it flexibility and so it won’t break under heavy use. I then begin crafting the hilt out of a wide variety of materials to choose from, such as: steel, iron, bronze, brass, wood, antler, and leather. The hilt is tightly and securely assembled so to never come apart, and the scabbard is fashioned out of similar or complimentary materials. I take the final stages of finishing each sword seriously, as the fine details matter a lot to me in my work. Each choice of color, material, polish, and patina speaks volumes about what the piece means and what it stands for.

You did some work for Marvel on Thor. What was your experience working with them and how was it seeing your work on the big screen?



It definitely was a huge opportunity and blessing for me in my personal career as a self-employed artist. This movie project gave me the opportunity to step out in faith and give all I have to go full time as a bladesmith. It also certainly helped spread my work out there a bit further than it would have spread otherwise. But it was not the most rewarding project I’ve worked on by any means. I much more appreciate working with one individual average person to help them bring their dream to life. I love building relationships with my customers and exceeding their expectations in the swords they dream of owning. That’s what brings me a huge amount of joy in this craft.

What is the most difficult part of being a swordsmith and what is the most rewarding?



I think for most bladesmiths it is balancing design with function. I think every true professional swordsmith would agree that you need to have solid historically time tested function and quality as your foundation, and then upon that you can build and express yourself as an artist with aesthetic design embellishments. Design should never compromise quality and the functional use of the sword though. Both design and function are very important in their own rights, but function should be the leader of the relationship.

The most rewarding thing would undoubtedly be holding a finished sword in your hand that started in your minds-eye, that you have literally poured your blood sweat and tears into. Steel, iron, bronze, wood, and leather are all things that go into making a beautiful sword, and all of them fight you every step of the way in their own ways. You have to patiently learn to master each, and no one ever truly learns to flawlessly master any of them in his lifetime. But when you do manage to fight through and are holding a finished well-balanced sword in your hands it is indescribably rewarding.



You also pursue illustration in addition to weaponry. Tell us a little about that.



Traditional art and illustration fits into my work hugely, especially since I briefly began to study it in college before stepping into swordsmithing full time, and for a years I hoped to be a full time illustrator. Even though swords are my primary bread & butter; illustration and drawing work still plays a huge role in almost every piece I make, as I design each piece out on paper before forging it. I often create visual back-stories for each piece, complete with characters that would wield such a weapon, and the decoration and ornamentation that adorns each sword.

I also often do illustration work for individuals and organizations in between sword commissions, for everything from magazine covers, CD covers, to book illustrations, such as my most recent project; “The Narrow Road”, a novel based off of John Bunyan’s classic The Pilgrims Progress.

What sort of hobbies do you enjoy outside of swords?



Answering this question will sadly reveal how pathetic I am…
But in all honesty, I really am doing what I love. Sword making started out as my hobby when I was only 13, and it still is today even when I’m not forging a sword for a client.
 But other than swords I love filling up my sketchbooks with my own fantasy art. I’m an outdoor fanatic all year round and love Bushcraft survival skills. I love CrossFit, craft beer, pipe smoking, bonfires with friends, and good food smothered in Sriracha.
 But most of all and more than anything else, spending time with my beautiful wife, traveling with her, and enjoying the tasty baked goods she makes (not covered in Sriracha).



Where can people keep up with you online?





My website with a gallery of past swords and art can be found at: cedarloreforge.com

You can support me and my work by liking Cedarlore Forge on Facebook.

My Flickr stream.

And you can follow me on Twitter: @cedarlore

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Good denizens of Muddy Colors, it has been fun! I may or may not be back for one more post. All depends on Justin's schedule. If this is in fact the last one, well, I have had a great time! Big thanks to Justin and Dan for inviting me to fill in.



As before, you can see more of my work over at corygodbey.com, or find me over on Twitter / Instagram / Facebook. 



One final note: I just set ablaze my yearly Fire Sale. If you're interested you can discover all sorts of treasures on my shop before they burn up.

Download Craig Brewer's "The Poor and Hungry" Free

Craig Brewer, acclaimed writer/director of such grounbreaking films as "Black Snake Moan" and "Hustle and Flow" (which was nominated for an Academy Award), has finally made his first no budget feature film available for viewing - FREE of charge!

The story of a Memphis car thief who falls in love with one of his victims, THE POOR & HUNGRY is the previously unreleased first feature from Craig Brewer (HUSTLE & FLOW, BLACK SNAKE MOAN, FOOTLOOSE).

This gritty, black and white micro budget “digiflik” was written, directed, and edited by Brewer in the late 90’s on the cusp of the digital revolution for only $20,000. Utilizing local actors and an energetic handheld camera esthetic, this previously unseen first feature boasts strong performances set against a rough and soulful backdrop of Memphis.

Here is the trailer:



Download your free digital copy here!

- Lena

Inking — Part 1 of 3

By Paolo Rivera

Superior Spider-Man Team-Up #5 Cover. 2013.

Ink(ed by Joe Rivera) on bristol board with digital color, 11 × 17″.

Before I get into the nitty-gritty of how to ink a page, I want to cover a bit of the why. I'm hardly qualified to give a history lesson on the practice, but I can say with (moderate) confidence that it was always a necessary part of comic book publication. Early printing methods simply weren't capable of reproducing the subtle grays of pencil — but even though technology has improved, the practice remains solidly in place.

inks by Joe Rivera over cyan print

If we think back even further, it becomes apparent that "inking" has existed since the first printed art objects. From woodcuts to engraving, printmaking is a relatively new technology that has only flourished over the last 600 years. The techniques originally created to cope with the limitations of the medium eventually grew into a style unto themselves.

my Dad's inks at full resolution (with George for relative size)

cyan print of my digital "pencils"

So what is that style? It's any distillation of the experience of seeing, rather than a rote copy of nature. It's an approach that isolates what's important about a scene by exploiting the differences between objects. There's a reason that we can watch an animated film — 2D or 3D — and still get caught up in the story. What matters to us is the characters, not their visual proximity to nature. Even the most fully-rendered print by Durer, with it's many subtle values, is a kind of hyper-reality — it's a cartoon in the sense of being a type of exaggeration. That's what inking's all about: selecting what's most important about an illustration and leaving out everything else.

my digital "pencils" at full resolution

The time lapse video at the end of the post is more about the thought process behind inking, rather than the physical act. (I'll cover more of that next time.) In it, I'm digitally inking over a fairly refined sketch (with a Cintiq 13HD in Photoshop). While it won't show you which brush to use on what paper, I hope it can reveal some of the decisions I make when going from a sketch to a finished piece. In most cases, it's all about clarity — making sure that what the viewer sees is what I want them too. You could, of course, be as loose or rough as you like with your inks, but having only two value options can really focus the mind on composition.

digital sketch, color-coded by layer

I made the transition from rendered paintings to line work in 2008, but I like to think that the switch reaped unexpected rewards when I eventually returned to painting. Having fewer value options has a way of imposing good composition practices. You can almost always save a bad composition with fancy lighting (this was actually a game students played at the Brandywine School) but any sketch with a strong start has a much better chance of a strong finish.

digital layouts for editor approval

Just a quick note about this cover: I don't normally pencil digitally, but I was between studios at the time and this method was easier. To be completely honest, we could've used my "pencils" for the final art, but I had my Dad go ahead and ink it because it's a cleaner style (and we like having original art to sell). My total time for the piece was 18 hours (not counting my Dad's inks). Here's the hourly breakdown.



layout: 2.5

digital sketch: 6.5

digital pencils: 6.5

digital colors: 2.5



I plan on writing 2 more posts on the subject, so if you have any questions or topics that you'd like covered for next time, don't hesitate to ask.

Taking the Time to Improve

-By Howard Lyon

First, I want to say how lucky I feel to have a regular spot to post here on Muddy Colors.  It is humbling, inspiring and a great opportunity.  Thank you.



Sometimes when life gets really busy, either with work or family, it is tough to make enough time in our busy schedules to practice. I will often find myself in the middle of many deadlines and other obligations and the first thing that I will let go is taking the time each day to do a little personal sketching or painting.

This is a mistake though, because I find that I take the most risks and receive the most gains when working on personal projects. I think about growth often. What am going to do today to improve? If want to paint as well as Waterhouse or Rockwell, what I am doing about it? There is certainly much to learn in reading or from teachers, but at the end of the day it will be in front of the easel that most of the improvement will happen.

I may never even approach the skill and quality of the great artists that I admire, but I am certain that if I don't actively work towards a goal of improvement, I will fall much shorter otherwise. I was talking to a very talented and commercially successful artist and asked what they were doing to improve. He looked at me and said "Nothing, I am able to paint to the level I sought." Please take me out into a field and hit me over the head with a shovel if I ever utter such words.

Each morning I try to take an hour or two before I start working and draw, read or paint. This week, I did a little sketch over two days to share here and recorded it. This is about 3.5 hours of painting time done over two mornings. I shot the reference for this about a month ago. I had some floral wreaths made for a painting series I am going to be working on and asked my daughter to model them for me.



I did this little 5"x5" sketch on masonite with a lot more texture on the board than I usually use (if you read my Norman Rockwell post you will remember how struck I was with the texture of the ground).  I still painted pretty thin, but I liked the way the texture underneath worked with my brushstrokes on top.  I need to explore this more.



I started with a pencil drawing, then inked the important lines with a Micron Pigma pen followed by a quick wash with casein and then went right into oils.



Watch the video below to see a time-lapse of the sketch.

I find doing small personal pieces like this immensly rewarding professionally, but also psychologically.  It feels great to start and finish a piece in the same day and they give me a little boost each time.  Some are duds, but often enough there is a spark of inspiration or problem that resolves and I take a baby step towards my goals.