Day 11: Hellraiser (2022) - 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022

31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022
Hellraiser (2022)

Yikes!  Cutting a bit close to the wire this time...  Anyhoo, this time it's the new Pinhead the 2022... Remake?  Sequel?  Requel? "Hellraiser".  Overall, it was pretty good horror movie with several new variations on old Cenobites.  Jamie Clayton makes a good and visually interesting new Pinhead (although, Doug Bradley is still the top... there were a couple other guys who played Pinhead, but they kind of reminded me of Uncle Fester from "The Adams Family" in some sort of sewing accident).

There were a few of the usual horror tropes of dumb young adults standing around while danger slowly approaches, and a couple times when the Cenobites just seemed to be wandering around in the background like they lost their car keys rather than being summoned to this world for a mission.  But, where would horror movies be without those cliches, I guess?

And, yeah, the pins in the Pinhead painting are a little short.  Sigh.  Good thing I choose to do them in acrylic paint rather than digitally so it would be almost impossible to correct them all without having to repaint a significant chunk of the painting over again.  😓😰😱

Well, enough talk--I gotta get going on the next post(s) if I wanna "Beat the Reaper" for 31 HELL-O-Ween posts in 31 days!  Onward!

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STEP ONE:  Here are the pencils on an 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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STEP TWO:  Here's the first (and probably part of a second) pass with acrylic paint.

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STEP THREE: And here's the finished painting.

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Done with Acrylic Paint on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 10: Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988) - 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022

 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022
Hellbound: Hellraiser II (1988)

Once again, done in plenty of time!  By which I mean an hour-and-a-half to go.  I'd hoped to be a little further along and start getting ahead of the situation, but of course the "Real World" has been interfering.  Curses!

Anyhoo, this post is Dr. Channard from "Hellbound: Hellraiser II" from 1988, after his conversion to a Cenobite.  Previous post, Frank, makes an appearance, where his punishment in H-E-Double Hockey Sticks is to be like Tantalus--all he desires is literally just out of reach and disappears as soon as he moves toward it.  Julia, Frank's partner in crime, also makes an appearance as well in the flayed, female form, so I guess that's an aesthetic choice for the series--people without skin walking around.

Dr. Channard becomes a Cenobite and decides he's taking over and kills Pinhead, Butterball, Chatterer, and the Female Cenobite (nicknamed "Deep Throat")... Don't worry, they get better and the Channard Cenobite gets his comeuppance. 

There is also a lot of world building in "Hellbound: Hellraiser II", some of which is interesting.  The special effects can be hit-and-miss, although there is a certain quaintness to the obvious matte paintings and stop motion animation like something from Tim Burton's production company.  Still, it is one of the better in the "Hellraiser" franchise for all its foibles.

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STEP ONE:  Here are the pencils on an 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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STEP TWO:  Here's the first (and probably part of a second) pass with acrylic paint.

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STEP THREE: And here's the finished painting.

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Done with Acrylic Paint on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 09: Hellraiser (1987) - 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022

31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022
Hellraiser (1987)

Hey, hey!  Done with plenty of time--as least an hour-and-a-half!  Anyhoo, I was a fan of Clive Barker's writing back in the day, and did like "Hellraiser" as a horror movie.  It was visually interesting and embraced that aesthetic.  In this case, rather than one of the Cenobites, I figured I'd do a painting of Frank, as he is being reformed bit-by-bit after his escape from H-E-Double Hockey Sticks (or where ever the Cenobites reside).  There is something horrific about a flayed man in a bloody business suit.

Onward to the next one!

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STEP ONE:  Here are the pencils on an 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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STEP TWO:  Here's the first (and probably part of a second) pass with acrylic paint.

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STEP THREE: And here's the finished painting.

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Done with Acrylic Paint on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 08: Young Frankenstein (1974) - 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022

31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022
Young Frankenstein (1974)

Young Frankenstein is the Doctor, the Young Monster is actually... Oh, wait, never mind, I did that joke already.  While not a Horror movie, per se, it is a parody done with such care and attention to details, that they used the actual props from the original James Whale movie of "Frankenstein" (1932).  It is a great comedy with so many great lines.  In our office, I used to call out "Puddin' on da ritz!" to a couple co-workers in the know, followed by "Soooper-duperrrr!"  Also, Marty Feldman as Igor (pronounced "Eyegore") was awesome, with the response to where he got the brain for the monster: "Abby... Someone".

Slight tangent: I generally like parody songs (and movies, comics, books, etc.).  There is a parody of the Kim Carnes song "She's got Bette Davis Eyes" by Bruce "Baby Man" Baum, "She's Got Marty Feldman Eyes".  It was a regular rotation on "Dr. Demento" back in the day (a syndicated radio show which played all manner of novelty songs, and strange ephemera) and I was delighted to hear it every single time!  Give it a listen, won't you?  😁

Great stuff!

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STEP ONE:  Here are the loosely sketched digital (blue) pencils on a 2,000px x 3,000px canvas.

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STEP TWO:  And here's the first with a digital brush in Clip Studio Paint called "Wet Chet". It's sort of a cross between a gouache and charcoal brush.

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STEP THREE:  And here's the finished digital painting.

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Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint.

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Day 07: Society (1989) - 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022

31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022
Society (1989)

This time it's a bit of satirical horror in which the rich quite literally consume the poor (no one said the satire was subtle).  In "Society", Billy learns the rich (and his family) aren't just a different Class, but a different species altogether.  This particular scene is from their, um, orgy of sorts, where the rich all merge together and absorb the sacrificial poor, working class.  The movie is fun and mildly amusing with a lot of grotesqueries by the end, mixed in with the 80's style rubber suits and puppetry.

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STEP ONE:  Here are the pencils on an 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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STEP TWO:  Here's the first (and probably part of a second) pass with acrylic paint.

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STEP THREE: And here's the finished painting.

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Done with Acrylic Paint on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 06: The Ring (2002) - 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022

31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022
The Ring (2002)

Hey, it's the movie that launched a thousand J-Horror Movies in America: Gore Verbinski's "The Ring" from 2002.  And how could someone named "Gore" not do a horror movie, I ask you?  Creepy ghost girl with long hair obscuring her face for 99% of the time... Check.  Semi-creepy video tape that reminded me of work from The Brothers Quay and Jan Svankmajer... Check.  While it wasn't really scary, per se, it did have a few cool moment.

One effect I really appreciated from the movie was the flicker effect that still went through Samara, like a living television with poor reception.  There was a 30's style detective character in William S. Burroughs' that I read a long time ago that was described with the same flicker effect like an old movie, which I found such a visually interesting idea (I think it was in the "Nova Trilogy"?  It's been a long, long time since I read it).

And I'm sure it's just a coincidence that Nosferatu, Frankenstein, Mummy, Werewolf, and a Ghost, just happens to mostly correspond to the General Mills Monster Cereals.

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STEP ONE:  Here are the pencils on an 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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STEP TWO:  Here's the first (and probably part of a second) pass with acrylic paint.

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STEP THREE: And here's the finished painting.

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Done with Acrylic Paint on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 05: The Wolfman (2010) - 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022

31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022
The Wolfman (2010)

It's one more of the classic monsters, if you will, before I start moving on to other ones: The Wolfman/Werewolf.  In this case, it is from the relatively recent "The Wolfman", with Benicio del Toro and Anthony Hopkins.

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STEP ONE:  Here are the pencils on an 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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STEP TWO:  Here's the first (and probably part of a second) pass with acrylic paint.

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STEP THREE: And here's the finished painting.

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Done with Acrylic Paint on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 04: The Mummy (1959) - 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022

31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022
The Mummy (1959)

Hey, hey!  Before Terminator, there was "The Mummy" (1959).  An unstoppable, remorseless, killing machine.  On to the next one!

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STEP ONE:  Here are the pencils on an 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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STEP TWO:  Here's the first (and probably part of a second) pass with acrylic paint.

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STEP THREE: And here's the finished painting.

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Done with Acrylic Paint on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 03: Frankenstein (1931) - 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022

31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022
Frankenstein (1931)

Hey, it wouldn't be HELL-O-Ween without a Frankenstein post, would it?

Also, I would be remiss if I didn't bring up the great joke from Joseph Scrimshaw.  In this case, rather than just steal his joke, I found the Tweet directly from him:

And here are a couple process picks from the Acrylic Painting.  Onward to the next one!

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STEP ONE:  Here are the pencils on an 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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STEP TWO:  Here's the first (and probably part of a second) pass with acrylic paint.

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STEP THREE:  And here's the finished painting.

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Done with Acrylic Paint on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 02: Nosferatu (1922) - 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022

31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022:
Nosferatu (1922)

Hey, what's 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween without "Nosferatu" (1922)?  And on the 100th Anniversary of "Nosferatu", no less!  So, Happy Anniversary to Count Orlock--he doesn't look a day over 650 years of age.

"Nosferatu" is still one of the creepiest and most unsettling representations of Vampires on screen.  Lurking, skulking, and a shadowy presence (literally), and the fact it is a silent movie adds to the unease watching it.

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STEP ONE:  Here are the quick pencils on an 8-1/2" x 11" piece of heavy cardstock.

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STEP TWO:  And this is the first pass with acrylic paints, just to establish the general lights and darks and some modeling of the figure.

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STEP THREE:  And the final painting.  I used some black and white colored pencil to add some finishing touches and texture to the painting.  Oh, crud, I just realized that I forgot to re-add the buttons on Nosferatu's jacket which I had painted over.  Ah, well.  Maybe if I don't say anything, no one will notice?  Oops, once again it's me and my big mouth always getting me into trouble.

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Done traditionally with acrylic paint and colored pencil on 8-1/2" x 11" toned cardstock.

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Day 01: Return of the Fly (1959) - 31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022

31 Days of HELL-O-Ween 2022:
Return of the Fly (1959)

Oh, hi, I didn't see you there.  It's time again once again for "31 Days of HELL-O-Ween" in which I try to do 31 pictures from various horror movies--posting daily--in celebration of HELL-O-Ween!  And, of course, each year something seems to come up which adds further obstacles to finishing this self-imposed challenge, and this year I have several.  We shall see if I prevail or I get to use the much-threatened blank page of "The Invisible Man" or "Slenderman" as a stick figure.  We shall see!  Hmmm, Y'know I sure complain a lot for someone who has no one to blame but himself for all this...

Anyhoo, this opening bit involving myself as the human-headed housefly from the 1959 movie, "Return of the Fly" (don't worry, in the movie he gets better).  Sure, the original "The Fly" had marginally better effects (and was shot in color, as opposed to "Return of the Fly" in black-and-white), but the fly head in "Return of the Fly" will always be the iconic one I think of when I think of this movie series.  "But," I can hear you asking, "If the movie is black-and-white, why are you in color in the bottom panel?"  Good question!  And the answer is...  (mumbles and incoherent muttering)

I have an inordinate affection for crappy B-Movies--I watched them as a small kid every chance I could get.  Anything involving monsters, aliens, or robots, and I was all in.  Yeah, it really doesn't say much for my upbringing.  But, it was either that or go play outside.  I stand by my choice!

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31 DAYS OF HELL-O-WEEN:
The Take-Home Game!

Once again, here are some logos for those of you who (for some dumb reason) want to play along at home!  It doesn't have to be daily--heck, just do one or two for the entire month--that's just as valid.  I'm just a dum-dum that does stuff the hard way.  There's no glory, no fame, and no fortune (trust me, this is the fourth year and none of those are anywhere to be found).  It's just for fun.  Sorry, I meant "fun".  If you do wind up using them or posting anything, send me an e-mail of the link and I'll check it out!

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STEP ONE:  Here are the first pass with pen-and-ink and gouache (opaque watercolor) painting.  I had some pencils, but I did them so light they didn't scan for sour apples, so here's this stage, instead.

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STEP TWO:  And this was the finished painting/pen-and-ink before I imported it into Clip Studio Paint to colorize the bottom panel and engage in some digital chicanery to clean it up a little bit.  I did include the word balloon which was done in CSP.

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STEP THREE:  And here's the finished image.  Onward to tomorrow's image!

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Done in pen-and-ink and gouache on 11" x 14" (140#) watercolor paper and some digital fixing and coloration in Clip Studio Paint.

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Moss Piglet (September 2022): Comic Stips

Moss Piglet (September 2022):
Comic Stips

This year, I've been contributing to a small art magazine out of Wisconsin, "Moss Piglet".  It's a round-about tale involving my High School Art Teacher getting in contact with me to see if I was interested in doing an Art Show of former students (I was and did participate in the Art Show back in July), and he suggested sending work to "Moss Piglet", as he was friends with the publisher and he contributed to regularly.  It seemed like fun and I've been contributing ever since (although, through a mistake on my part involving a deadline, I did miss the Cryptid issue in March 2022, which I was looking forward to participating.  D'oh!). 

Each month they have a prompt/theme and the various artists and poets work around it.  September's was "Comic Strips", so that was something right up my alley--and fits with the Blog here a little bit.  In this case, I thought it would be fun to do a series of self-referential comic strips based on various comic strips throughout history ("The Yellow Kid", "Little Nemo in Slumberland", "The Far Side", "Zippy the Pinhead", and "Peanuts").  And, of course, egomaniac that I am, inserted myself into the story, as well.

I used Clip Studio Paint to create the strips and added a series of newsprint-style textures from Retro Supply Company over top to give it a Sunday Paper feeling to the cartoons.  I will admit that the idea behind the cover was better than the carry through.  I mean, it's OK, but it was so much better in my head, of course, with comic characters coming out of their strips to look at a Sunday Paper, etc.  Also, the "Zippy the Pinhead" pilfered a bit of Grant Morrison's "Animal Man" with the "I see you!", and I did use the same joke twice with characters pointing to themselves on the page.  And the self-portrait on the last page/panel... eh, it could be a lot better, but ran out of time, alas.  Ah, well.  I had "The Yellow Kid" joke of "I was in 'Moss Piglet' and all I got was this lousy T-Shirt" done before the self-referential comics idea and it looked a little plain all by itself, so I added other older comic strip characters in the background to fill it out a bit.  And, yes, I actually have used "Hully Gee!" as an interjection every once in a while throughout most of my life because of "The Yellow Kid".

[Aside: While getting together some research for the comic strips of yore, I read some "The Yellow Kid" strips and was fully expecting it to have some racist content from the time period it was written... but, Holy Smokes, while the strip was amusing and imaginative at times, anytime there was a black character... YIKES!]

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For those of you interested, here's the link to the Homepage for "Moss Piglet": https://www.krazines.com/

You can also view previous issues online at: https://www.krazines.com/archives.html

Feel free to subscribe and tell 'em John D. sent you.

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Done digitally in Clip Studio Paint.

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