URUKKI SAKI

Inspiration sometimes happens like a trigger. One picture, one scene, one music act that moves me to draw something. It was like that with this artwork. I was reading “Hellboy in Hell”, Mike Mignola’s stuff, one of my favorite comic and comic book artist of all time. There was a demon that Hellboy fought against, a design that I was curious about. His design was very simple, almost like a symbol. and it lead me to creation my character. Mike Mignola said that he wanted to draw a head inside helmet’s crack, but changed his mind later. I was thinking something else: the armor is not possessed by demon - it is the demon. And if you try to wear it, eventually it would start wearing you instead. It would force its will on your actions, consuming your flesh and bone and metal until you’re done and then it will wait for another poor creature with thirst for power and illusion of control.

The story says that the armor was found scattered, lying in The Swamp. Merged roots, coiled like snakes, had grown inside and around the armor pieces, bringing them together and assembling a body. Entwined, they grew even more. On the top of the armor they wished for a head. The swamp offered the skull of a long dead creature and the roots accepted it. The roots, like tentacles, have found their way out of the skull through its eye holes, crowning their formation with horns. This is how The Swamp built its protector. Its Champion. Paladin. 

Monkey Samurai

I have made a short comic.

Based on a dream of Ned Stark, a famous scene that was happening bellow the mountains of Dorne, beside a structure known as Tower of Joy, although sorrow made it never to be forgotten by the surviving players.

A caption from the first novel of A Song of Ice and Fire, A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin.

It’s been really long time since I have posted anything.

Hellboy with the Fly

I can find a lot of inspiration inside Planet of the Apes story. Lots of images exists within this franchise that I like to combine and get something new and interesting. Spaceship, astronauts, strange planet, desert, caveman, barbarian age, civilization of apes, distant stars etc, etc, are just a glimpse of what is going on inside my head.

Specifically about this artwork, I had the idea about an ape head with a golden crown on which a star constellation is marked. So I have started with a rough sketch...

Then I have defined the shapes and decided the dominant colors...

While painting it, the shape of the head took some modifications in the process. And also, rough lines of the crown has been made...

During the process of illustration, defining the light is very important thing to do. It will define the atmosphere and make the objects on which it falls more alive and true...

With lot of wrinkles and lines on the Ape King's face my intention was to give him age and wisdom. But also roughness, because we can't forget that no matter how intelligent he is, the Ape King is beast too. While I was drawing the cracks on his head, it also associated me on some marble statues, that also was plus to his ancient look. Also, I've defined the final outline of the crown...

Polishing the crown...

After correcting the eyes and giving the final touch to the other elements of the image, I have attached the logo. I intend to have this mark on all future Planet of the Apes illustrations. For logo I was thinking about comics. The final image reminds me a little bit of Moebius, one of my great influences. So I wanted for logo to associate on comics of the 70's and 80's and magazines such as Metal Hurlant/Heavy Metal and similar...

I hope you enjoyed it watching as much as I have enjoyed making it! :)

P.S. It’s interesting that today, when I intended to post this new  illustration of mine, Facebook page Dawn of the Planet of the Apes published the image of Caesar in similar position, poster for the upcoming movie! It’s a sign! O>O You can check that image here: http://www.dawnofapes.com/poster/

'Come sunset, as the sea turned black as ink and the swollen sun tinted the sky a deep and bloody red, Victarion came back on deck. He was naked from the waist up, his left arm blood to the elbow. As the crew gathered, whispering and trading glances, he raised a charred and blackened hand. Wisps of dark smoke rose from his fingers as he pointed at the maester. "That one. Cut his throat and throw him in the sea, and the winds will favor us all the way to Meereen."'

- an excerpt (and inspiration) from "A Dance with Dragons" by G. R. R. Martin

I hope that image is powerful enough as I intended it to be! :) Larger file you can find on my deviant profile: urukkisaki.deviantart.com

Hi guys! From today you can like, share and follow my work on facebook too! Here is the link for those of you who are interested: https://www.facebook.com/ArtofUrukkiSaki Thanks!