=Caleb's Sketchblog=

Dungeon Majesty: Part 1

2011-12-27T00:01:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays, everyone! So, after taking an 18-months sabbatical from this blog, I have returned. Very little going on in Cleveland-town, so I thought I'd post a series of little images I created as a tribute to a gorgeous piece of ephemera - fanart for a piece of pop-art web history, Dungeon Majesty.

The premise for Dungeon Majesty was simple - a fuzzy guy with a cape and "DM" airbrushed on his t-shirt would play a short-form game of Dungeons and Dragons with some attractive ladies in front of a green screen, where, thanks to some homemade costumes and DIY special effects, their adventure would be illustrated.

I found myself really drawn to their love of 80's and 90's high-school aesthetic of lightning bolts and graph paper, to the simple effects and the gleeful abandon they showed when they rolled a natural 20 and the obvious influence of Tom Baker-era Doctor Who. The image of the Atari 2600 cartridge above (and those that followed) was a little ode of gratitude to the creators of this lovely show.

More to come...

Movin' on Up...

2010-05-19T08:43:00.000-07:00

To all two of you that follow this blog, please slide on over to www.calebcleveland.com, where even more crazy antics will ensue. Thanks!

D'Argo's Quest - I HAVE RETURNED

2010-05-03T22:08:00.000-07:00

Hey, everybody (all two of you). Just wanted you to know, unless you've migrated somewhere else, that I have indeed re-opened the dusty vault of this blog and shall endeavor to add new content regularly, at least once a week.
In the meantime, please enjoy these covers from the recently-completed FARSCAPE: D'Argo's Quest for BOOM! Studios!

D'Argo's Trial #4

2009-11-08T19:53:00.000-08:00

Here's a lovely little preview of the last issue of D'Argo's Trial, (which comes out this week) courtesy of Comic Book Resources.

FARSCAPE: D'Argo's Trial #3

2009-10-11T19:40:00.001-07:00

3rd issue hits the stands this week! Click here to jump to a preview of the first couple of pages!

FARSCAPE: D'Argo's Trial #2

2009-10-01T19:58:00.001-07:00

Teaser Blurb: Ka D'Argo must keep his wife and unborn child from Peacekeeper clutches, but will his Luxan rage be his greatest weapon or his greatest weakness?

On stands now. Check it out!

FARSCAPE: D'Argo's Trial #1

2009-06-19T12:10:00.000-07:00

Did this cover a while ago - the interiors have kept me busy for a while, so since the solicits have hit, I thought I'd post it:

GRAND OPENING!!!

2009-03-31T12:46:00.000-07:00

I finally got around to stocking my Etsy account with some original artwork! My original b/w drawings for Green Ronin's "WARHAMMER: Old World Bestiary" are now available, including the art for the Minotaur and Wyvern. All for you.

I have a feeling the coming months will see fewer journal entries, as I'm doing a couple of projects with BOOM! Studios now when I'm not refilling bottles or changing diapers; but as I add products to my Etsy store (shirts, graphics, stuff for kids), I'll make sure to post notices on here. Any ideas?

The Multinauts

2009-02-21T12:21:00.000-08:00

The Elmore-ish drawings of the Dungeon Majesty girls seemed to have reached their eyes, because last May I was commissioned by the Telefantasy Studios crew to draw some of the characters from their show The Multinauts. It's Tom Baker's Doctor Who meets Elric meets Cyberpunk. Meat and drink to a guy like me.

I tried to channel some Alex Toth into these sketches, but, course, his powers continue to elude me.

Farscape Teasers

2009-02-14T11:42:00.000-08:00

Some character sketches, this time revolving around the Farscape franchise:

Inspired Autos #2 Spyker C8 Double 12S

2009-01-16T03:30:00.000-08:00

The Spyker C8 Double 12S. Look at it. Just look at it. It's got a damn intake on the roof! A roof made of glass! And rivets! The inside of the car looks like an F1 racer that Jules Verne would've designed, with trimmings picked out by The Lord Of Darkness himself. There's Latin etched into the exhaust pipes, fer God's sake. You tell me that isn't hot. I dare you.

Plus it's Dutch. Dude.

Daily Doodles

2009-01-09T10:11:00.001-08:00

More of the Princess girls. I love using fun little drawings like these to warm up in the morning, before starting work.

Inspired Autos #1 1960 Fiat Multipla

2009-01-06T19:38:00.000-08:00

One of my favorite part of artistic projects is the research involved. When in grad school this always meant trips to the library, but I navigate El InterWeb a little more efficiently these days, so I rarely have to venture further than Google images in order to find what I need. But always, during these little ventures, I find more than I bargain for.

Example: During a search for unique, deco-inspired vans, I found the 1960 Fiat 600 Multipla. I've never been a fan of vans or campers before, but I found myself immediately smitten. Extensively designed and re-designed by Fiat after WWII, they built it with a need for a car that could fit a family, use a minimum of sheet metal, and be cheap to build and buy. It went on to be a massively popular model (in Europe), selling into the millions. I doubt I'd ever laid eyes on it before, but Ms. Multipla (meaning "All Service") will definitely find a way into some project of mine, sooner or later.

2008-12-23T23:11:00.000-08:00

Lately I've had a renewed interest in resurrecting an old idea - a few years ago, after an interview at Disney CP, I had the idea of taking the Princess line and putting them in a more modern setting. A fair few sketches later, and this is where I am. It's all for fun, of course.

Above are some doodles I did the other night of some possible characters: Esmeralda (The Hunchback of Notre Dame), Pocahontas, Milo and Kida (Atlantis), Drizella and Anastasia (CInderella), and Eilonwy (The Black Cauldron).

Retro Armor Design

2008-12-06T12:27:00.001-08:00

Thought I'd have another stab at doing retro-'50's power armor ala "Fallout", one year later, and I'm including a bit of my process along the way. I think it's much more successful this time. Big guns to follow.

WARHAMMER 40K - Fire and Honour 3A

2008-10-29T12:16:00.000-07:00

WARHAMMER 40K - Fire and Honour 3B

2008-10-29T12:15:00.000-07:00

WARHAMMER 40K - Fire and Honour #5

2008-10-29T12:10:00.000-07:00

WARHAMMER 40K - Exterminatus 5A

2008-10-29T12:09:00.001-07:00

"CAPED" - The Gemini Bros.

2008-10-29T11:32:00.001-07:00

Where Batman has the Joker, The Edge has Craig and Irv Gemini. Identical twins in the classic, silver-age supervillain vein, they dress, act, and even comb their hair as mirror images of each other, clothing their minions appropriately. I took Jürgen Prochnow, Crispin Glover, and Tom Noonan's "Red Dragon" and threw them into a blender to create the face and body language - just enough to ensure that they look like mass-murdering psychopaths and not Tomax and Xamot.

Kudos to you if you get the reference.

"CAPED" - Jimmy Lohman

2008-10-29T11:27:00.000-07:00

Enter Jimmy Lohman - where most superheroes might get a sidekick, The Edge hires Jimmy as a personal assistant. He's in his early twenties, poor, well-meaning, over-educated, and lost. The writers wanted the hopelessness of Michael Cera's character in "Arrested Development" coupled with the body of Steve Ditko's Peter Parker. I think he came out okay, but Jimmy ended up with the most iterations.

"CAPED" - The Edge

2008-10-29T11:19:00.000-07:00

"Gotham Blues" is an upcoming comic published by BOOM! Studios. It takes place in a familiar setting - a world populated by superheroes, from the grim and gritty to the ridiculous. The Edge is one of the former, a dark, brooding avenger of foul deeds whose main weapons are blades covering his forearms and a sickle that he keeps on his breastplate. The comic's creators wanted a dark, 80's Batman kind of look, and this is what I came up with.

But even guys like The Edge need a hand...

Zombie-fighting family

2008-10-28T01:01:00.002-07:00

Besieged House

2008-10-28T01:01:00.001-07:00

Backyard Zombie Invasion!

2008-10-28T00:58:00.000-07:00

Combat

2008-10-28T00:40:00.000-07:00

Time Flayer

2008-10-28T00:38:00.000-07:00

A Leonine Succubus

2008-10-28T00:37:00.000-07:00

Some gnomes are just born lucky...

2008-10-28T00:36:00.000-07:00

Quessen

2008-10-28T00:35:00.002-07:00

Tools of the Planar Explorer

2008-10-28T00:35:00.001-07:00

Bat Riders of Dezzavold

2008-10-28T00:33:00.000-07:00

A thoughtful thaumatugist...

2008-10-28T00:32:00.000-07:00

Bright Wizard

2008-10-28T00:31:00.000-07:00

Grey Wizard

2008-10-28T00:30:00.002-07:00

Jade Wizard

2008-10-28T00:30:00.001-07:00

Celestial Wizard

2008-10-28T00:28:00.000-07:00

Amethyst Wizard

2008-10-28T00:27:00.002-07:00

Amber Wizard

2008-10-28T00:27:00.001-07:00

2008-10-28T00:26:00.000-07:00

Fenbeast

2008-10-28T00:25:00.002-07:00

Wyvern

2008-10-28T00:25:00.001-07:00

Warhawk

2008-10-28T00:24:00.000-07:00

Dryad

2008-10-28T00:23:00.000-07:00

Werewolf

2008-10-28T00:22:00.000-07:00

Minotaur

2008-10-28T00:19:00.000-07:00

Lake Castle

2008-10-14T13:13:00.000-07:00

Spooky Forest

2008-10-13T20:24:00.000-07:00

Doombrother Seth

2008-10-12T18:36:00.000-07:00

A quick character sketch done for a friend on the "Dungeon Majesty" forum.

Quick Sketches - Male NPC

2008-10-11T10:16:00.000-07:00

Male Cyborg

2008-10-10T13:37:00.001-07:00

Female Cyborg

2008-10-10T13:30:00.000-07:00

WARHAMMER 40K - Exterminatus 2A

2008-09-16T18:27:00.001-07:00

©2008 Games Workshop, published by BOOM! Studios.

My very first (published) comic book cover, and it's filled with gun-toting cyborgs from the future. I'm fairly proud of it.

WARHAMMER 40K - Exterminatus 2B

2008-09-16T18:22:00.000-07:00

©2008 Games Workshop, published by BOOM! Studios.

40,000 years in the future, a pair of noble siblings attempt to dupe an agent of the Emperor's Inquisition. Little do they know he's a mind-readin', bolt-pistol-packin' badass. I mean, look at that hammer! Sheesh!

Fantasy NPC Concepts

2008-05-09T22:25:00.000-07:00

Wee Beasties

2008-05-09T22:24:00.000-07:00

Mushroom Monster

2008-05-09T22:21:00.000-07:00

Fantasy Treehouse Concepts

2008-05-09T22:19:00.000-07:00

A tree dwelling I designed for an elven race in a kid-friendly, all-ages fantasy MMORPG. Wish I'd lived in this as a kid - don't you?

Sexy Assassin

2008-04-25T15:45:00.001-07:00

Dungeon Master

2008-04-25T15:35:00.000-07:00

Experimenting with Painter X here: just trying to see what works for me, what doesn't. The subject is Riley Swift, the Dungeon Master from tv's "Dungeon Majesty". Seemed fitting to put him in an homage to the old DM's Guide. My signature reads "apologies to Jeff Easley".

"Hero" Custom Motorcycle

2008-04-25T15:31:00.001-07:00

I was on a vehicle-design kick a few weeks ago - trying to tie in my love of sci-fi/post-apoco "art brut" shapes while diversifying my portfolio. Here's another of the results.

Custom Motorcycle Concepts

2008-04-25T15:26:00.001-07:00

Post-Apoco Warrior, Take Two

2008-04-25T10:46:00.000-07:00

IT BEGINS

2008-04-25T09:58:00.000-07:00

Just want to begin by saying that the sketches, paintings, and other work on this blog were all fueled by incredible friendships - that of my co-workers, my family, and my long-suffering friends who have all contributed to the education of this struggling artist. My work is the best part of me, so I hope you enjoy what you see here.

My inaugural post is a concept sketch I did for Interplay a few months back.