Lord of the Rings, is a pretty great tale. It follows folks from so many different walks of life, that a reader has no choice but to choose favorites. Lately, I’m listening to the LotR unabridged audiobook, and I find myself dreading the next time the story will shift back to Sam & Frodo. It’s not that I don’t like them, I just don’t care. I’m much more interested in whatever Gandalf is up to.
Everything is cool about Gandalf.
I want someone to make a comic book series on the wizard’s life as a kid, the kind of mischief he got into and what series of events led him to being the way he is. This image is an homage to how BADASS Gandalf the Grey would be if he took the ring when Frodo offered it to him. Then headed straight for Moria to toss a leash onto his new pet Balrogg, before claiming middle earth for himself (and Shadowfax, he loves Shadowfax…).
The graphic novel style approach comes with inspiration from Mike Perkins’ work on a comic book series called “The Stand” based on the Steven King novel of the same name (circa 1990).
Above is the Lineart for Gandalf & Shadowfax, I used a Tablet PC and Sketchbook Pro (deadly combination) over a terrible sketch. Originally, I thought I would leave it like this, but the colored version actually turned out great. Through layer styles and blend modes, I was able to color this image in less than three hours. - Ty
Art Director @ Other Ocean Interactive, a small games studio located on Prince Edward Island, in Canada. He enjoys imagery, imagination and maintains a deep respect for unique design. He secretly moonlights as a comic book artist, musician, photographer and loves his fleet of dogs.
Amazing work!
Love. Love - the colour choices and the shadowing!
Love the rock detailing on this guy's head!
Love. Love – the colour choices and the shadowing!