Bird's Beginning

It's the second week of quarantine for us, so to keep me from spinning my wheels too badly I decided to embark on a fun 3D project :)

This is a more involved project, as I will be doing a fair bit of experimentation! But I am happy to employ my 3D modeling skills to creating a cute little bird for a video game :) The goal is to create it in parts, keep it low-poly for minimal lag, and to script some simple movements to him. Bonus if I can eventually make him chirp too!

Below are a couple screenshots of my work in progress! You can also see them on my Instagram>>

The screenshot above was taken just after I unwrapped, and had a mess of UVs to size and organize :) Below, You can better see my model in different views, and my final arrangement for my UV map, as it is currently :) As I do a test paint soon, I will see if it needs any editing- hopefully not! :D



 I forgot to take screenshots as I was modeling, but you can see the wireframe in these anyway. I will be painting him up soon, so he will look more handsome than his current grey blob-like appearance :P

That's all for now folks!

As always I wish you well, but today I send an especially sincere wish for good health to you and your loved ones. Take care until next time, when I hope to bring you a little cheer in the form of a little painted bird :)

Emerald Flora Dress: Art-Wednesday

I had artist's block the other day, and it lead me to try something a little different! I chose three images from my "inspiration bank" of random photos/artwork/architecture and fashion that I find personally inspiring. From those three, I made my own mash-up of the images and my personal style.

Hope you enjoy!

Finished Illustration:  Girl in Green Dress

(Click an image to view larger)

Left:  An initial sketch.  Right:  Value study & pattern exploration

All images © 2016 - Brianna Elizabeth Leahy

Zebra & Horse Pendants: Art-Wednesday

This week I dreamt up a new pendant idea for my upcoming Etsy Shop (which I have changed the Shop name to UnderSea&Stars)! I wanted to create a Sahara friend for my existing elephant pendants, and also horses & unicorns. I am planning on using the same basic silhouette for all three, and embellish them with accents and paint to distinguish between them.

Below you can see my initial concept digital painting, clay sculpts, and two paint-tests I have done so far. I really like how the naturalistic paint test went for the zebra best so far, but will finish with the red one in the near future!

These guys will be available at my Etsy Shop's Grand Opening (excited to choose a date soon)!

Initial Color Zebra Digital Concept Sketch

Sculpts start with my self-made mold, which creates horse-ish blobs.
I then trim the clay and hand-sculpt, getting the right proportions & crisp edges. 

Completed paint-test for Natural Zebra Pendant

Paint-test in progress for Colorful Zebra Pendant

Mother's Day Quail Gift: Art-Wednesday

This Mother's Day, I wanted to break from tradition and get my mom something different. She is a coffee addict like me, so naturally we went out for coffee on Mother's Day, and I surprised her with this!

A reusable coffee sleeve handmade from: felt from recycled plastic, thread, a button, and a bit of elastic. I am very happy with how it turned out, and so was my mom! She loves quails!

You can see my process and the final piece in the pictures below! I designed the quail in photoshop first, printed and cut the pieces to create a template, and then sewed them all together and used the thread to add detail!

Love you mom!

       

Mini Art Cards: Art-Wednesday

I am happy to announce that I have hatched a new Etsy shop artwork idea! I am currently (albeit slowly) creating a collection of miniature art cards! Each card will come with a matching patterned envelope, and will be part of a themed set of three.

To start, I will have the following themes:  coast/ocean (pictured below), woodland animals, and flora. At 3" square, they can easily fit inside standard invitation envelopes for sending to friends, and will fit in pockets for surprise hand-delivery!

I look forward to releasing them on my Etsy shop soon! I will write here on my blog when they are as well.

        

Miss Bear Portrait: Project Process Art-Wednesday

Meet the sweet Miss Bear! A digital illustration completely done in photoshop, I thought it would be interesting to some of you to see a more in-depth look at my digital process! So below her portrait, you will find my three main stages that I use in my drawings. Thank you for looking!

1) To start, I do a number of warm up sketches in the size of thumbnails until I find one that match my vision. They are usually very rough and messy. Eventually I work up to a drawing I am happy with:

 

2) I refine my design on a separate layer above my sketch, getting clear edges and planning colors:

3) On another layer, sandwiched between the existing two, I start painting! On the right, you can see my color palette for the bear. I continue with this process until the whole canvas is painted. I add another layer on top for subtle warm and cool tones. The very last step before I am done is an extra pass to clean up edges!

Thank you for reading!

Portrait of Vladimir, Companion of the Year! Art-Wednesday

I had the pleasure of being commissioned to create a custom portrait Vladimir, a very special clinic cat! March 5th, he was inaugurated into the Animal Hall of Fame as Companion of the Year through the Oregon Veterinary Medical Association! 

Vladimir began life as a stray, became a barn cat, and then grew to become the "Greeter" at "All Creatures Great & Small Veterinary Clinic", a post he has happily kept for the past seven and a half years! A truly lovely & sweet gentleman!

I created the following digital painting for his award ceremony & the human team of "All Creatures Great & Small Veterinary Clinic".

Below is the finished illustration, followed by a couple in-progress photos.

(Above):  Finished portrait of Vladimir the Companion of the Year 2016!

(Below):  Work in progress screenshots from my Wacom Cintiq Companion

Click to enlarge!

(Left):  A sketch start.  (Right):  Getting closer, with detail work

                       

Sculpting Mini-Elephants: An Art-Thursday

Hello! Happy Art-Thursday :)

I was recently reminded how much I love and missed sculpting! An old friend of mine visited, and we reminisced about how we used to make sculpted-creations for each other as gifts! So I was inspired to make her this little guy for old time's sake:

 

Baby Grizzly Sculpt

(Click to enlarge)

I enjoyed the process so much, that I decided I would create more, even smaller sculptures! My first thought was of a tiny elephant, and how sweet he would be as an animal totem pendant! I thought it might be fun to see my process through the elephant's creation, so without further ado, here it is:

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1.  Concept 
First, I go on my trusty computer to look for reference, this time of asian elephants. I chose asian elephants specifically because I remembered loving their structure and colors. Based on my reference (pictured left), I came up with this quick pen and digital sketch (right) for my elephant pendant:

 

Reference & My Original Concept

(Click to enlarge)

2. Sculpt
This little guy (pictured left) was my first draft. I used a small bunch of floral wire to bulk his body and give me a good handle to hold him by as I sculpted. I used Super Sculpey polymer clay and a myriad of wood and metal sculpting tools, and my hands to sculpt his body.

Once his sculpt was finished, it was baking time! The middle image shows him at the baking process, and the start of my casting a mold of him. I used Sculpey mold maker.

In the photo on the right, I have some of his family! It was my very first time creating a mold, so the elephant brethren on the right were very roughed out by the mold, and then I took over the rest of the sculpting by hand.

 

Elephant Sculpt Process

(Click to enlarge)

3. Hook & Paint
For the necklaces, I add a hook to the raw clay elephants and bake them in the oven already intact. Then it is painting time! I use all acrylic paints, and the (almost) finished product can be seen below! The last finishing touch I'd like to experiment with is adding a varnish to protect the paint further and make him look A+

Elephant Pendant, First Draft

(Click to Enlarge)

4. Review
I am always looking for ways to improve my work, and these guys are no exception! I am pretty happy with how they are looking so far, but like I said, I'd like to give them finishing touches. I will definitely experiment with varnish, and I would like to make the next group a little more pudgy in the body, and work on an even smoother surface finish of the sculpt.

I will post an update later with my improvements! But for now, this will conclude our Art-Thursday!

Thank you for reading, and check back next week!