I wanted to share a little behind-the-scenes look of my Hellboy design ("Anung Un Rama, the beast with the heart of gold") currently on display for the Hellboy 20th Anniversary Art Show at Hero Complex Gallery.
To me, Hellboy is one of the richest treasures of Illustration & storytelling combined. (Mike) Mignola is a true master, who makes everything he draws look flawless, yet you can trace the evolution of his craft over the years. This is one of the many reasons I've found myself feasting on his books over & over again (good eye protein). You can always tell it is about quality. That's something I highly admire and try to incorporate in all of my work and my life in general.
When I started to work on my tribute I was frustrated because I wanted to draw 20 different images I had thumbnailed, but none of them satisfied me. I wanted something that combined them into one...one meaningful love letter that said it all. I kept going back to a doodle I had done 4 years back of Hellboy bearing his heart (which is heavily inspired by the cover of "Hellboy - the island #2," which is my favorite Hellboy illustration (see first pic above)). I thought about Hellboy's dual roles of protector & destroyer, the symbols that go along with him, and ultimately his sacrifice for the greater good.
What you see above is a layer by layer summary from start to finish. If you got this far, thank-you for reading!
-CHOGRIN
hellboy20thartshow.tumblr.com