Inking more or less finished. The hard part now will be colouring it.
Artists Inspired by H.P. Lovecraft
Last week I received in the mail the most massive tome I ever hope to own. It’s about 12″ by 16″ and 2″ thick. It retails for $395 US. It’s called “Artists Inspired by H.P. Lovecraft” and as such I happened to get it as a contributor copy since it included a copy of my “Where the Great Old Ones Are.” I have a couple other books dedicated to the art of the Cthulhu Mythos, but this one is clearly the most comprehensive and spectacular. And the good news that Jerad from Centipede Press says “if people order the book and mention your blog, they can take $120 off — $275 postage paid instead of $395!” That’s a hell of a discount! Cyclopean, even.
[Link]
Rhinosferatu – Robin Thompson Style!
Robin Thompson is the artist for Champions of Hell! He also inks Outnumbered. Special thanks to him for this were/pire action shot! Visit his site at championsofhell.com, won’t you?
Outnumbered phase 2.
My next step in creating the back cover for Outnumbered #6 was to take some various poses in sketch form and cobble them together in slightly different combos. I submitted these to Kevin and Todd and they came back with their favourite.
Here are 2 of the samples:
New T-Shirts on Dead Space God.
Here I am starting my line of un-Thickets related shirts. Oh what a clothing designer I am. The isopod shirt will go up whenever I have some more free time. These two were relatively easy to do. The rain UPC is Duncan’s design.
Dead Space God eBay store (link)
Want one? Don’t even go through eBay, just ask me.
Compare and Contrast
Not just one of my favourite scifi movies, but one of my favourite movies.
To be determined (not hopeful).
Outnumbered 6 preview
You’ll recall I did the back cover for Outnumbered #5. Kevin has commissioned me to do another drawing for Outnumbered #6.
We had a meeting about all the different ideas – I won’t bore you with sketches especially since most have been thrown away – and settle on a duel between Orphan and Scoracle over the dead body of Lord Scratch.
Here are some of the photo references. Special thanks to Kolja.
The Four Horsemen
On the 30th of September 2007, Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris and Christopher Hitchens sat down for a first-of-its-kind, unmoderated 2-hour discussion, convened by RDFRS and filmed by Josh Timonen. All four authors have recently received a large amount of media attention for their writings against religion – some positive, and some negative. In this conversation the group trades stories of the publicÂ’s reaction to their recent books, their unexpected successes, criticisms and common misrepresentations. They discuss the tough questions about religion that face to world today, and propose new strategies for going forward. AuthorsÂ’ Recommended Books: The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins Breaking the Spell by Daniel C. Dennett Letter to a Christian Nation by Sam Harris The End of Faith by Sam Harris God is Not Great by Christopher Hitchens
Click here to watch.
Part 1 of 2. Get it on DVD at: http://richarddawkins.net/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=14
Numinous is a Latin term to describe that which is “wholly other.” The numinous is the mysterium tremendum et fascinans that leads in different cases to belief in deities, the supernatural, the sacred, the holy, and the transcendent. Etymologically, it comes from the Latin word numen, which originally and literally meant “nodding”, but was associated with meanings of “command” or “divine majesty”. It may be viewed as “the intense feeling of unknowingly knowing that there is something which cannot be seen.” This “knowing” can “befall” or overcome a person at any time and in any place – in a cathedral; next to a silent stream; on a lonely road; early in the morning or in the face of a beautiful sunset. Similarly unpleasant or frightening scene or experiences can lead to a sense of an unseen presence of ghosts, evil spirits or a general sense of the presence of evil. Visions or hallucinations of god, gods, the devil or devils can also happen. The idea is not necessarily a religious one: noted atheist Christopher Hitchens has discussed the importance of separating the numinous from the supernatural.[2]
-from wikipedia.
Thickets Video Contest
Mario had an idea for a music video contest for the Thickets. Here’s my first draft for the writeup/rules. Feedback welcome.
Hey kids! Do you have a film school project coming up? Are you an indie filmmaker looking to expand your portfolio? Or do you just have a cell phone camera, a lot of hard drive space, and a jonesin’ for all things Lovecraftian? Introducing the very first music video contest for the H.P. Lovecraft inspired punk band, The Darkest of the Hillside Thickets.
Our next CD release will include a DVD, and we want your work to be on it! There are very few restrictions, and here they are:
1. You must give us permission in writing that we are allowed to use your film for our DVD and promo purposes (such as youtube).
2. You must use a complete song from any of our albums.
3. No porn, misogyny, or general bad taste in subject matter. Fake gore in good humour is a-ok!
4. Must not contain any elements to which you do not have the rights (don’t use Star Wars, Mickey Mouse, or Hellboy in the video, for starters). This includes any sound or images you don’t own, (unless they’re public domain or covered by a creative commons license). No pilfered film footage, that includes other music, identifiable products or logos (no sports team jersies or coke cans).
You own the rights to your film. You can submit it to film festivals (such as the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival, Screamfest, and A Night of Horror), make your own DVDs, whatever you like. As long as The Darkest of the Hillside Thickets are credited with the music, we’re not going try to restrict use of your film.
It can be live action, a Flash cartoon, stop-motion animation, anything you like.
We, the band, will review all of the submissions and pick a video which will receive the Tentacule d’Or award. This recipient will receive $200 in Thickets merchandise of their choice. Even those who don’t win the contest are still eligible to have the film on the Thickets DVD. All qualifying films will get a copy of the album/DVD.
Bonus considerations for the Tentacule d’Or are as follows:
a) Use of tentacles in the video.
b) Giant monsters destroying cities.
c) Setting in the deep sea or in outer space.
d) Use of the Necronomicon.
e) Using any of the following songs: Blackout; No Way; Strange; Return to Melanesia; Cultists on Board; A Need-To-Know Basis; Operation: Get the Hell Out Of Here; Ride the Flying Polyp; Downtown (In the Cenozoic); Nyarlathotep; 20 Minutes of Oxygen; The Innsmouth Look; Power Up; Frogstar; The Math Song; Dies Is Unverschamtheit; The Chosen One; Slave Ship; KABLAM!; Big Robot Dinosaur; Goin’ Down To Dunwich; Yig Snake Daddy; Hookworm; Rock Lords; Protein; Burrow Your Way To My Heart
Full credit will be given to you on the DVD of course, including the website of your choice. We will even help you out in any way that we can while you make your video. We can probably send you some photos and other footage if you need it, and we’ll answer whatever questions you pose. If you live near Vancouver BC, Seattle WA or Portland OR you’ll have some opportunities to take live footage of the band.
-Phase One will be your proposal submission. Let us know what song you’d like to do, what the theme and subject matter will be, what media you’ll be using, and all of that. Deadline for proposal is Oct 1 2008.
-Phase Two will be the final product! Deadline for final product will be June 28 2009. Extensions can be requested but no guarantees. It’s even better if you can provide updates of your progress. Why not make a blog about the project, or at least email us with your updates and we’ll spread the word amongst Thicketdom to keep the interest and excitement at peak levels AT ALL TIMES. Maybe our vast network of Cthulhoids can put you on your way to wealth and infamy.
Format: Mini-DV, DVD, or Quicktime, in either HD or NTSC (the North American video standard). Videos shot in PAL (the European format) can be converted, but it’s a pain in the nippers so best avoided.
Gugs and fishes,
Toren Atkinson
thickets@uniserve.com
604.737.4283
3254 West 3rd Ave Vancouver BC V6K1N4
Comic Con of the Day
I went to the Comicon at the Heritage Hall today. I couldn’t stay long as I had a rehearsal for “The Summoning” at 4pm, but I did get another sketch of Rhinosferatu which I’ll upload soon.
In the meantime, I found out that Mike Mignola is going to be at the H.P. Lovecraft Film Festival this October, where a certain H.P. Lovecraft inspired punk band will be playing. I’m gonna pee my pants…while Mike draws a picture of Rhinosferatu for me, Yog willing!
You must be logged in to post a comment.