Prehistoric Mutant Ninja Turtles

Prehistoric Mutant Ninja Turtles!

This is an ode to prehistoric turtles, interpreted as the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, for ART Evolved's Turtle Gallery!  I really love the challenge of creating something specifically for a topic every two months - it helps hone techniques.  In this case, I was able to work on my digital colouring skills.  The piece is inspired by this image from the recent computer animated movie.  I thought it would be fun to replace the regular Turtles with important prehistoric turtles from the past.  The first oldest turtle discovered, the first turtle with a shell, and early flippered turtles.  For Donatello, I had to choose my favorite, one of the largest and iconic turtle, Archelon.

Raphael

Proganochelys quenstedti - Late Triassic (210 myo)

Germany and Thailand - first full shell - 1m long

Michelangelo

Odontochelys semitestacea - Late Triassic (220 myo)

Guizhou, China - oldest turtle (incomplete shell) - 40cm long

Leonardo

Placochelys placodonta - Late Triassic (200 myo)

Germany - paddle-like limbs - 90cm long

Donatello

Archelon ischyros - Late Cretaceous (75-65 myo)

South Dakota and Wyoming, USA - HUGE - >4m long!

Hope you like it!  Cowabunga, dude!  Pizza Party Time!!!

ART Evolved's Turtle Gallery is up!

Hi everyone,
Check out the new gallery on ART Evolved!  Turtles!  Cowabunga!
I've got a couple of new pieces in there, which I will put up here this week.
-Peter

Meganeura Painting Final

Giants Stalking Giants - 2011

Acrylics on canvas paper - blurring in gimp

The giant dragonfly Meganeura monyi sits blissfully unaware on a branch, as the giant scorpion Pulmonoscorpius kirktonensis creeps ever so slowly towards it's victim.  Fossils show the scorpion to be 70cm (2.3ft) long, and the dragonfly's wingspan surpassed 75cm (2.5ft)!  The Carboniferous provided these prehistoric insects and arachnids with an atmosphere of increased oxygen levels, which many scientists believe led to the increased size of these critters.  

Wouldn't mind one of these beauts as a pet...

Posted in ART Evolved's Carboniferous Gallery here.

Carboniferous Art - Work in Progress

Carboniferous WIP

Meganeura monyi and Pulmonoscorpius kirktonensis

This WIP is being made for ART Evolved's Carboniferous Gallery which goes online July 1st.  Be sure to send in your art to artevolved@gmail.com.

I'll post the finished piece with more info on the amazing arthropods at the end of the month.

Also sent around twitter as my #10oclockart.

One More Win...

Bring the Cup Home Boys!

Go Canucks Go!

Archeopteryx Painting

 

Quick pencil sketch for composition.

Archeopteryx Pair 

2011, acrylic on canvas paper, 9 x 12 in.

This painting was created as a gift for my friends Craig and Rhonwyn's wedding!  With this year being the 150th anniversary of Archeopterxy's discovery, this early birds were the perfect subject.  I have recently been experimenting with a more impressionist style using a more limited colour pallet.  While I am really happy with the painting, I have still managed to use the primary colours - red, blue, yellow.    Hmm, anyone have any suggestions on how to limit my pallet more effectively? 

Parasaurolophus in Love

Parasaurolophus in Love ©2011 

Medium: Acrylic Paints

Now that the Hadrosaur Gallery has gone up on ART Evolved, I can reveill the complete parasaurolophus piece!  Be sure to visit the gallery for a metric ton of gorgeous duckbill art!

The point of this reconstruction was to keep my colour pallet to only one to two colours.  As the emotion of this piece is love, I went with the traditional red tones for the critters.  One of the biggest  challenges I have in painting is that I tend to paint with bold, almost primary colours.  A prime example is my Pterosaur family in their garish blue, orange and yellow. 

I have recently bought James Gurney's book, Colour and Light, in an effort to teach myself better colour choice.  I look forward to pouring through it when I can find the time, and hopefully you will see an evolution in my art.

Thanks for checking this piece out and if you have any critiques, please let me know in the comments section below.

Sneak Peak into a new Painting

I must apologize really for being absent from my own blog for so long.  Life, as they say, gets in the way.  Between work and tutoring, getting back into Basil for a one-night-only Fawlty Towers performance, and preproduction of Cinderella (which I'll be directing), I haven't found a lot of time for art.

So with ART Evolved's Hadrosaur Gallery opening only days away, I wanted to give a sneak peak of a new painting I've been working on for the Time Capsule. 

Detail of Parasaurolophus painting

If you can't tell what this is, it is meant to be a very red Parasaurolophus.  I will post the full painting here at the end of the month to coincide with the gallery.

Happy Easter everyone!

Darwin Day 2011

Happy Darwin Day everyone!

Travel Photo of the Week #4

The Needle in Dublin, Ireland in 2002

Travel Photo of the Week #3

Eiffel Tower, Paris 1999

I love this photo, captured on a warm evening in Paris lit up like a beacon in the night.

Travel Photo of the Week #2

Sagrada Familia Basilica, Barcelona, Spain (2007)

An amazing church designed by Antoni Gaudi, started in 1882 and probably never to be completed.  The Sagrada Familia is an amazing amalgamation of architectural designs and is a must-see when visiting Barcelona.  I love the city and I love Gaudi's surreal Gothic style!  For more of his work, see Casa Mila and Park Güell.

Woolly Mammoth - Final Image

Woolly Mammoth 
(click to enlarge)

This final image was created by pencil drawing, digital colouring, and photoshopping onto photograph background (image by Craig Dylke).  You can follow the making-of by clicking here.

The impetus for creating this beasty was ART Evolved's Elephant Gallery, up now.  Go check out all the other pachyderms by talented artists!  Go!

Travel Photo of the Week #1

Into the Future: Disneyland's Tomorrowland (1996)

Starting of with something weird and artsy and old.  Blurred light effects, motion, colour...

Ushering in 2011

Last night, the world clock ticked over from 2010 to 2011, and with it, the infinite possibilities of a new year ahead!  Time to seize those possibilites...

To begin with, it must be noted that I have been posting less and less here (only 40 posts last year!)  I don't feel the desire to write about my personal life, nor have I done much traveling recently.   Somewhere in 2010, I made a conscious decision to transform "Bond's Blog" into a space to showcase art and give a peek into creation.  I never fully completed that transition.

So my plans for 2011 include creating the formal art communication space here.  More shared art, more artistic updates, and artsy travel photograph-of-the-week type posts to start.  Organization and planning is key!  I am also committing myself right now to the creation and completion of some sort of kids book - something I have been dancing around for the last few years.  It's time to do something about it.

2010 also saw the continued evolution of ART Evolved as a more significant force in the paleo-art-isphere.  The continuation of the every-two-month galleries and an increase in article content, along with the highly successful Pink Dinosaur cancer campaign, has given me huge satisfaction.  I also plan on spending more energy in 2011 so ART Evolved can grow even bigger!

Thanks to all my friends and followers for a great 2010.  Here's to a fantastic 2011!

-Peter

(and a big welcome to the world to Calvin Mellow!)