David Petersen's Blog, page 27

Black Axe #6 Creator Commentary

I've made a Creator Commentary video for the sixth issue/chapter of Mouse Guard: The Black Axe!  Please feel free to follow along in your copy of the story in either issue form of from the hardcover as I talk about the behind the scenes details, art notes, and my head-space as I go page by page and panel by panel. Enjoy!






Direct YouTube link:
https://youtu.be/GOSi7tirNLY

Mouse Guard Canoe and the Heron Process

I've released a new Mouse Guard sketchbook titled 'Dawn, Daye, & Dusk'. It can be found in my online store: https://mouseguard.bigcartel.com/

I've created new pieces for almost the entire contents of the collection––mostly themed on trying to get certain lighting effects in to show time of day.

This Canoe Mouse piece to the left is a finished piece for that collection. And below I'm going to go through the process steps to create the art.


Reference:
I wanted to do a piece of a mouse in a canoe, and after an image search for 'canoeing at dawn' I found this painting titled Hunters In A Canoe By Philip R. Goodwin. Goodwin's painting had an interesting angle to the action, and while I wanted to depict a single Guardmouse on the adventure, it gave me a steady foundation to work from.

I also found a photo of a traditional handmade birch bark canoe built by Henri Vaillancourt as reference for my mouse boat.



Pencils/Layout:
I drew the pencils for this in two passes. The first was of the mouse and canoe. The other was a background drawing of the stream, shore, and far off visitor. I wanted the mouse's mission to have meaning, so I loaded up his vessel with some packed goods (food & medicine perhaps?) and towing some barrels.

I added a dry leaf tied to the stern almost like a flag. And instead of the Moose in Goodwin's painting, I added a Heron––which in Mouse Guard is also a constellation used for navigation.



Inks:
With the pencils combined in Photoshop, I printed them out on copy paper and taped them to the back of a sheet of 300 series Strathmore Bristol. I could use the printout like pencil lines to ink from by placing the piece on my lightpad, which allows me to see through the surface of the bristol. I used Copic Multiliner SP pens to do the inking. Because I knew depth was going to be important in this piece, I didn't connect any of the background ink lines to the mouse or canoe. This made the next step in color easier.


Flat Colors:
I scanned in the inks and started the coloring process––which was in this case almost as much about flatting colors in as it was establishing color holds. Flatting colors is just establishing with flat colors where every color starts and stops, a grownup version of coloring in the lines. Color Holds are ares that I need to isolate and paint so that they are a color other than black. In this piece, the birch bark, the canoe painted design, the leaf's veins, the water, the  nearer shore and the further shore and Heron are all separate color holds.


Final Colors:
The final colors were achieved by using the Dodge and Burn tools in Photoshop to work in specific light and shadow when rendering the piece. I use a stock brush in Photoshop that also adds that lightly pebbled texture.

Owlhen Caregiver Reading

I wrote and illustrated a new Mouse Guard short story called 'The Owlhen Caregiver'. Like many of my other short tales, it's a story within a story as a member of the Guard receives a moral parable when they are young that shapes who they are as a Guardmouse.
As part of my ONLINECON event in August of 2020, the story was performed aloud by Meredith Salenger as I displayed the page art on the screen. I've edited that recording so that anyone who missed it, or would like to hear it again, can watch the video on YouTube.





Direct YouTube Link:https://youtu.be/ow46ruvYlVo

I also wanted to share a little 'Making-of' inspiration for the story:
The young character in the tale is Delvin--who is based on my friend Nate Pride. The name Delvin actually means 'Proud friend'. I started writing this story years ago about Nate and his mother caring for  Nate's father at home in his final days--as many of you know, I ended up also caring for my mother for three years, and it was her death at the start of 2020 that prompted me to get the story finished.
Nate is a very generous and caring person. It's why Delvin's Instinct in the RPG is to care for the needs of others above his own. He sums up the nature of service I created the Mouse Guard for. And this tale helps instill where the mouse Delvin may have learned this lesson.


For the exterior of the northern edge of Flintrust, I wanted something that looked peasant-like––Russian peasant to be exact (see below for the inspiration for the tale within a tale's visuals). So my mind went to Anatevka, the setting of Fiddler on the Roof. I found some modern day photos of the filming locations for the movie in the former Yugoslavia now Croatia. These buildings became Delvin's town.


The interior bedroom of Delvin's home were referenced from photos of Bayleaf Home at Weald and Downland Living Museum in Singleton, West Sussex England. I found the images via a Google image search for 'Medieval bedroom', but later learned about the Bayleaf home in a UK history show called 'Tudor Monastery Farm'


As I often do with these shorts, I used the tale-within-a-tale to explore some other kind of visual style. I've done this with marionettes, embroidery, and illuminated manuscript before––this time I referenced the Russian illustrator from the early 1900's: Ivan Bilbin.

Bilbin's work reminds me of Arts and Crafts block prints and tiles––though he's usually more associated with the Art Nouveau movement. His illustrations were often framed in elaborate borders (sometimes stylized--other times natural drawings) that enhanced the theme or tone of the piece.


This is my favorite piece of Bilbin's. I love hop the open spaces balance against the tigt groupings of patterns and floral ground cover. I copied the pattern on the standing figure's coat as the cloak for the Owlhen's mouse.

And lastly, the Owlhen's home was based on photos I collected of the Church of the Nativity of our Lady of Peredki which is now found at the open-air museum Vitoslavlitsy in Veliky Novgorod, Russia. I replaced certain sections of the timber walls with nesting to get the pint across that an owl lived here.

Mouse Guard Vermeer Homage

I've released a new Mouse Guard sketchbook titled 'Dawn, Daye, & Dusk'. It can be found in my online store: https://mouseguard.bigcartel.com/ 
 I've created new pieces for almost the entire contents of the collection––mostly themed on trying to get certain lighting effects in to show time of day.
This piece to the left is a finished piece for that collection. And below I'm going to go through the process steps to create the art.



Reference:I wanted to do a Mouse Guard piece that was a peaceful slide of life...not the struggle to survive, but the rewards of mouse society thriving. I looked at two Vermeer paintings: The Milkmaid, and Young Woman with a Water Pitcher to draw from for this tranquil scene of domestic bliss. For the stained glass in my piece, I went to the website of materialsunlimited.com (the antique architectural shop I was working for when I started Mouse Guard..and to decorate the wall, a map of the Island of Sark. 


Pencils:
It's rare that I pencil everything at once--but in this case, I did! I'll often layer drawings together on a light pad and then assemble them in Photoshop--but here I did the entire drawing on the paper. With a few exceptions...I did trace out the map over the top of my printed out reference, where I'd also digitally replaced the text with VENN. The Isle of Venn is a small island in Mouse Guard I've referenced before and is a nod to some family friends who own a cottage on an island in Michigan.  For this layout, I also digitally added in a digital version of the window's leading.

Inks:To ink the piece I printed out the above layout and taped it to the back of a sheet of 300 series Strathmore Bristol. On my lightpad, I was able to see through the surface of the bristol down to the printout to use as a guide to ink from. I used Copic Multiliner SP pens as I inked the Vermeer homage.

Flat Colors: With the inks done I scanned in the physical artwork back into Photoshop to start the coloring process. Here I painted in flat versions of all the colors––where those colors started and stopped, like a professional version of coloring-in-the-lines. I also established a color holds  on the window leading, the map details, the milk, and a lighter streak where the light would be pouring in from outside. 



 Final Colors:The last step was to render the final colors in Photoshop using the Dodge and Burn tools. Those tools are used to darken and lighten base colors to form shadows and highlights. Using a stock texture brush also helps add some life to the rendering.
This one was definitely a challenge for me to render a more painterly idea of real light––while also being an illustration with inked outlines.

Vidad Treepens 2020 Wands

Back in 2015 I became a wandmaker. I used an anagram of my name to go from David Petersen in Vidad Treepens and carved and crafted interesting wands from exotic and standard hardwoods. (You can see examples of those here: https://davidpetersen.blogspot.com/2015/08/treepens-emporium-wands.html)
Some of the wands became gifts for special friends and family, and I sold the rest––declaring myself retired for the time being from wand-making. Well, it's 2020 and I've made a whole new batch of wands! Below you can see photos of the new wands and they are currently available in my online store: mouseguard.bigcartel.com

Maple12 & 1/2”Chimaera QuillCommanding. Destined for great things

Teak10 & 1/4”Dragon HeartstringDomineering. Powerful. Requires Wisdom to use

Leopardwood10 & 1/2”Thestral HairSilent. Good for Nonverbal spells

Teak10 & 1/4”Kelpie Tail HairMildly Flexible. For Transfiguration

Oak11”Demiguise hairVERY delicate. Already repaired thrice.


Leopardwood splined w/ Oak9 & 1/2”Pegasus FeatherA Tailor’s wand. Reverses with ease

Cedar11 & 3/4”Basilisk FangSurprisingly light. Killed 14 giants
Black Palm12”Acromantula SilkAcutely used for Dark Magic. CURSED!

Black Walnut8 & 3/4”Cockatrice TallonScriber of Runes. Precise.

Oak & Leopardwood 12”Thunderbird PinfeatherRegal and demanding. For serious Wizards only.

Teak10 & 3/4”Phoenix HeartstringA Murderer’s wand. Dark willed.

Leopardwood7 & 3/4”Kneazle WhiskerDainty. Perfect for goblin or elf

Oak & Leopardwood8 & 1/4”Pixie WingMischievous. Known for hiding from owner

Oak10 & 1/2”Erumpant HornExuberantly strong. An Auror’s Wand

Maple12 & 1/2”Chimaera QuillCommanding. Destined for great things

Leopardwood & Oak13 & 1/2”Phoenix FeatherLong and true. The Wand of the righteous 

Oak splined with Leopardwood8 & 1/4”Leprechaun hairClingy. Good for charms

Oak splined w/ Leopardwood12 & 1/2”Manticore ManeBold, Powerful, has backfired before.

Leopardwood13”Wyvern boneResolute - A Curse Breaker’s wand

Ironwood12”Unicorn hairOnce belonged to the architect Rodrigo Gabriel 

Oak9 & 1/2” (was once 11”)Dragon HeartstringBattle worn but Resilient

Oak w/ Teak grip8 & 1/2”Selkie ScaleDelightfully perky. A Charmer’s wand

Cedar8”7 Zouwu tail hairsA Potionier’s wand

Black Axe #5 Creator Commentary

I've made a Creator Commentary video for the fifth issue/chapter of Mouse Guard: The Black Axe!  Please feel free to follow along in your copy of the story in either issue form of from the hardcover as I talk about the behind the scenes details, art notes, and my head-space as I go page by page and panel by panel. Enjoy!






Direct YouTube link:https://youtu.be/h-AwQHgv368

ONLINECON: Aug 19-23 on TWITCH

August 19-23 I'll be running a special event on my Twitch Stream (twitch.tv/davidpetersen). Over the course of those 5 days I'll be streaming 8 hours per day, spending half the time drawing, and the other half with guests for panels, interviews, and programming! I'l also be running a sale in my online store and adding new original artwork and merchandise to the store.
August 19-23rd I'll be running an ONLINECON on my


To the left you can see the promo for the event and I'll go into more details below!



The Guest list is pretty fantastic! And almost every other hour of the ONLINECON features one of them. An incomplete list of those joining me: Tony DiTerlizzi, Meredith Salenger, Jesse Glenn, Jeremy Bastian, Justin Gerard, Annie Stegg-Gerard, Gabriel Rodriguez, Mark Smylie, Gary Whitta, Johnny Frazier Allen, Chris Schweizer, Kishore Hari, James Wojtal, Gordon Smuder, Jamier Bressler, Julia Petersen, Darek Zabrocki, Didier Konings, and Luke Crane.

To see which guests are appearing when, check the full schedule below:


But in addition to guests, there will be several new items going into my Online Store during ONLINECON:

A new 11" x 11" print titled 'PREVAIL'
A new 24 page full color sketchbook collection titled 'Dawn, Daye, & Dusk'
While not 'for sale' a new Mouse Guard short story will be shown and read aloud by Meredith Salenger! The original art for the pages will be available for purchase in the store once the story has been read on Friday.

New original inked art from the Mouse Guard sketchbook

My hardwood Vidad Treepen's carved wands
Signed Mouse Guard books (Fall, Winter & Black Axe)

And I've opened up commission slots so that I'll be working on those live on stream while the event goes on.

Since doing conventions in real-life is not an option right now, I wanted to offer up the closest alternative I could--a FREE convention, where I offer up new merchandise for sale, but beyond that, where we can get a chance to hang out and visit, where I can offer panel content and guests...where we can still enjoy our community of people who make and/or enjoy illustrative art that tells a story.
BONUS!
If you'd like to print out your own ONLINECON badge to wear as you watch, I've made 16 different ones (all 5 day passes--of course). Download, print, & enjoy! 

Mouse Guard 'Snapping Turtle' Process

Later this month I'll be releasing a new Mouse Guard sketchbook titled 'Dawn, Daye, & Dusk'. I've created new pieces for almost the entire contents of the collection––mostly themed on trying to get certain lighting effects in to show time of day.

This Snapping Turtle piece to the left is a finished piece for that collection. And below I'm going to go through the process steps to create the art.



Reference:
I started with wanting to be sure I had a few pieces for this collection with some kind of predator or threat. And it had been a while since I'd drawn a turtle that way in Mouse Guard (not since the 2011 Free Comic Book Day story that was later collected as the prologue for Black Axe). I found this photo of a snapping turtle and pretty faithfully used it as my jumping off point.


Pencils:
And using a lightpad I pretty literally drew the snapping turtle with the photo underneath to use for details & proportions. I did have to make some adjustments and line decisions, especially interpreting the back shell and repositioning the legs and feet. And since this is a Mouse Guard piece, I also had to draw some mice. I did that on separate sheets of paper––one a Guardmouse protecting the other, a mouse drawing water.



Layout:
With those drawing scanned into photoshop, I could make edits and adjustments until I found the positions I liked for each character. To help me see each form, as well as help define the landscape I'd neglected to draw in the pencils drawings, I did a quick digital color job to rough in the shapes of water and grass.

I may have gone a bit overboard on the 'quick' digital coloring mock up--but having the landscape defined this way helped me in the next step defining the inking values.

Inks:
I printed out the above digital layout on standard copy paper and taped that to the back of a sheet of Strathmore 300 series Bristol. On my lightpad I was able to see through the surface of the bristol down to the printout to use as a guide to ink from. I used Copic Multiliner SP pens (I think I only used the 0.7 and 0.3 nibs on this one).

As I said above, having the digital color reference for the light and dark areas on the stones helped me as I stippled all that rock and stone texture.


Flat Colors:
With the inks completed and scanned back into Photoshop, I started on the coloring process. I used my colors from the mock-up as a starting point as I flatted in the base colors. This process is called 'flatting since all the colors are just that––flat colors with no texture or shading. It's just a way to establish where the various colors start and stop.

I also added a color hold at this stage on the grass and the water and some of the turtle's details. A color hold is where I want the ink work to be isolated and painted a color other than black.

Final colors:
The last step was to do all the rendering and adding light and shadow and texture to the piece. I do this almost entirely with the Dodge and Burn tools in Photoshop while using a stock texture brush.
I like that this piece has a narrative to it. When doing the layout I opted to rough in a clutch of eggs to show the turtle's motivations, and at the inking stage I put in a broken bow and a few arrows in the turtle's face. With just those little elements this single image tells several moments from before this tense snapshot of a Guardmouse's life.

ONLINECON info

August 19-23rd I'll be running an ONLINECON on my Twitch Stream (twitch.tv/davidpetersen). Over the course of those 5 days I'll be streaming 8 hours per day, spending half the time drawing, and the other half with guests for panels, interviews, and programming! I'l also be running a sale in my online store and adding new original artwork and merchandise to the store.

To the left you can see the promo for the event and I'll go into more details below!



The Guest list is pretty fantastic! And almost every other hour of the ONLINECON features one of them. An incomplete list of those joining me: Tony DiTerlizzi, Meredith Salenger, Jesse Glenn, Jeremy Bastian, Gallery Gerard, Gabriel Rodriguez, Mark Smylie, Chris Schweizer, Kishore Hari, James Wojtal, Gordon Smuder, Jamier Bressler, Julia Petersen, Darek Zabrocki, Didier Konings, and Luke Crane.

To see which guests are appearing when, check the schedule below:


But in addition to guests, there will be several new items going into my Online Store during ONLINECON:


A new 11" x 11" print titled 'PREVAIL'
A new 24 page full color sketchbook collection titled 'Dawn, Daye, & Dusk'

While not 'for sale' a new Mouse Guard short story will be shown and read aloud by Meredith Salenger! The original art for the pages will be available for purchase in the store once the story has been read on Friday.

New original inked art from the Mouse Guard sketchbook

My hardwood Vidad Treepen's carved wands
Signed Mouse Guard books
(Fall, Winter & Black Axe)

And I'll be opening up commission slots a few days before ONLINECON starts so that I'll be working on them live on stream while the event goes on.


Since doing conventions in real-life is not an option right now, I wanted to offer up the closest alternative I could--a FREE convention, where I offer up new merchandise for sale, but beyond that, where we can get a chance to hang out and visit, where I can offer panel content and guests...where we can still enjoy our community of people who make and/or enjoy illustrative art that tells a story.

Black Axe #4 Creator Commentary

I've made a Creator Commentary video for the fourth issue/chapter of Mouse Guard: The Black Axe!  Please feel free to follow along in your copy of the story in either issue form of from the hardcover as I talk about the behind the scenes details, art notes, and my head-space as I go page by page and panel by panel. Enjoy!



Direct link to watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/T-VwcFpVl1o



PLANNED 2020 Appearances
New York Comic Con: October 8-11 ??
Baltimore Comic Con: Oct 23-25 ??