Fun_PressOn

 Well, this is my first post-MTGinktober post, though of course I did draw our traditional Vicky-themed materials test before this year's unprecedented single-illustration run.  In any case, I'm just kinda still thinking about Inktober, like, was there a way to make it work?  It just feels irresponsible at this point.  There's so many more pressing things I should be focusing on.  Sadly, all this effort kinda went for nothing.  There'd always be like one new "super fan" every year, but then they'd invariably head out once we stop doing Magic fan art.  Understandable.

But I can't help but think whenever I see someone posting--I can't wait to give this a crack...It's bittersweet, though, cuz it's so physically grueling for me to do each year, yet I still love testing myself--my physical endurance and preparedness (stretching, pain/time management, process honing, etc.), plus the actual production aspects: figuring out what to draw and then actually doing it.  Scaling back would be unsatisfying, as 2021 disappointingly proved, when I tried to force scaling down by drawing in a smaller sketchbook. 

My favorite part was the research phase--sometimes that'd take three hours alone.  Over the years I'd tailored my main Scryfall search to fit nigh perfectly what we're looking for, namely no Universes Beyond, but also tossing hits I can't stand.  I managed to hit every single page at least once of my some 70-page search--there's no page I haven't drawn something from, many twice.  I loved assembling my references and then "casting"--who's going to play the characters in this One Piece spoof?  What props are we using?  It takes so much effort to put each illustration together.

And despite the intensity, I'd always forget how to do it every year, but this was the first time my muscle memory came flowing back almost immediately.  Some years ago, I literally wrote a document meticulously walking myself through every aspect of the process, and it's been invaluable in maintaining institutional knowledge, particularly on best practices so I can focus on drawing, not other minutia.  This practice piece took a lot of checking of my guide, but our actual illustration flowed pretty smoothly.  It was uncanny.  

Anyway, sad that this ten-year experiment has come to a close.  Just wanted to put some thoughts down on it while it's still freshly on my mind. 

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FanArt_ink.Apple

 MTGinktober bites back into Day 1, "Apple," starring Ghoulcaller Gisa and Taste of Death! 

I didn't intend on continuing MTGinktober, but a couple of factors pulled me back in, at least for one more mission--after counting up all my illustrations, I ended on 299!  Ugh!  So an even 300 felt like a nice send-off.  And then I also have this constant doubt that I can still do this--as I often mention, it's physically demanding, and it's relentless.  But then also I had a bit of a fiasco in trying to share last year's run and wanted at least one new item if we were going to re-try posting tomorrow.  Plus I would like to use up my remaining supplies. 

Fun Facts:  I was going to go for the easy Eriette of the Charmed Apple, who I've long wanted to draw, but it just felt too obvious, so I went with a more unhinged route, fittingly a denizen of Innistrad for the season, old/new fave Gisa, who makes her tenth and final appearance, while chomping into that super cool death apple from Taste of Death, which I've also long wanted to draw. 

Easter Eggs:  There's a Wriggling Grub hanging out on the apple, we're sporting Gisa's Favorite Shovel (which makes its third appearance), and it's all set on Foul Orchard.  Okay, and with that, thus concludes MTGinktober.  Thanks so much for tuning in over the years. 

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FanArt_ink.MTGinktober

MTGinktober scoops today, starring a ton of characters, cards, and concepts, and 299 illustrations.

 

I wanted to collect my thoughts on ten years of MTGintober, and just while jotting down loose notes while compiling our annual Library post, my document got to five pages or so, so I'll have to organize those thoughts and post them here when they're a little more coherent.

 

But for now, I will say this has been quite an undertaking, and it has meant a lot to me, not only as an artist, but also seeing people connect with various pieces over the years.

 

So I'm thankful for people tuning in, and am glad to have entertained at least a couple people.

 

I'll update later with some more reflections on what this project has meant to me, and it may take a couple days as I crunch some numbers.  But for now, sincere thanks. 

     

Going to have to post the Library in pieces so you can zoom in, as posting the full file doesn't seem to allow for that, so you can zoom in on the piecemeal pieces at left.

 

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FanArt_ink.Award

MTGinktober gives it up for Day 31, "Award," General Tazri and Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain!

Ah.  Well.  That's it.  MTGinktober is done.  I almost can't believe it.  Probably too exhausted to really feel the emotions, but certainly while drawing this, I felt some sadness, but also relief, I'm not exactly sure.  Anyway, I wanted this one to be special so I packed a lot into it.  It was nice to end it with an Algen piece, as he's obviously been a big inspiration--this is of course based on the composition of Commander's Authority, one of my absolute favorite illustrations in Magic.

Fun Facts:  This is Tazri's debut, and since I wanted a general awarding a captain, I went with General Tazri, but I mainly based the art on Tazri, Beacon of Unity.  This is Jhoira's third MTGinktober appearance, one of the OGs to end it, how nice.  

Easter Eggs:  Got some fresh, last-minute "Expressions of Magic" on our way out--a prize card, the 2023 North America Vintage Championship Black Lotus, as the award.  Jhoira's also sporting Angelic Reward, an Arena intro-only card.  The design on the wing comes from 1996 World Champion, and as is tradition for Algen pieces, there's also a little, swooshy B (ß) there, too.  Joira's shoulder pad design references ten years of MTGinktober, inspired by You Compleat Me. And to call back to our very first illustration, the wings are attached with Venser's square effect.  

Ah...I just wish this meant more. I dunno.  I guess I can reflect a little deeper once I get some rest, but I put so much into this series, I just wish it went somewhere, you know?  Ten years is the longest I've done any one project.  Anyway, that's it.  The end.

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FanArt_ink.Vacant

MTGinktober clears out Day 30, "Vacant," starring Etrata, Deadly Fugitive and Brago, King Eternal!

Dude, I had like no idea what to do with this one.  I kept waffling between this concept and two other strong contenders: Soul's Attendant going through empty motions with a fake smile but real tears, or Gisa reenacting the famous Gravedigger pose and contemplating what the Zombie must be thinking.  Well, I already drew Gisa this year, and even though the Attendant piece prolly woulda been lighter work, however heavier emotion, I went with Etrata to rectify her last illustration.

Fun Facts:  This is Etrata's second MTGinktober appearance, but I wanted to try to do Etrata justice this time, as that piece has always irked me as weak (especially as a finale).  I was also glad to get her in there since I cut her at the last minute a couple weeks ago.  This is Brago's debut, but his Crown has made an appearance earlier this year, though I guess it's Marchesa's.

Easter Eggs: Still knocking out "Expressions of Magic" in these last minutes, and we got some crackerjacks.  The empty throne is from the Chinese "Contradistinction" series, where they mulligan images that usually involve skeletons or gore, so this is the Chinese version of Murder (gotta scroll down a bit for it).  But then the little engravings under the lionhead is  Interplanar Tunnel, our first Phenomenon.  And the arm is Brago's from Brago's Favor, our first straight-up Conspiracy.  

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FanArt_ink.Lesson

MTGinktober notes Day 29, "Lesson," starring Professor Onyx and Aron, Benalia's Ruin!

I kept flipping on who to cast for our Substitute Teacher--an actual teacher; Koth, of earlier meme fame; or Phage, who's already kinda hitting the famous pose.  It's probably funnier having Onyx chew someone out, so we went with that, and she even has a card called Professor's Warning, which was perfect.  But in case this idea wasn't panning out on paper, my fallback idea was Asmo doing an Instagram-style cooking show--that woulda been neat, too. 

Fun Facts:  This is Liliana Vess's twelfth MTGinktober appearance, and of these, Professor Onyx's third, and the character's second appearance this year, definitely one of the heavy hitters, though characters with various distinct depictions--Onyx, regular, and Lil'--do have an advantage.  Anyway, Aron debuts cuz, while B. Aron mighta looked like the actual actor and even has glasses that can play like the actor's goggles, A-ron was right there, but to be fair, we don't see much of him in the composition anyway.  

Easter Eggs:  The blackboard has one of my favorite zone-out jams, "Mans Not Hot" by Big Shaq (DJ Yung Vamp remix).  I figure she'd write her name on the board, so I put nyx-style stars next to that part for added flavor.  And I got to sign the board itself, which felt fitting, particularly with the school-style date.  I was going to depict the exact "You done messed up, A-aron" pose, but it was too similar to an earlier pose this year, however, just a few seconds later we hit this way more famous pose, which I totally forgot originated from this Key & Peele sketch.

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FanArt_ink.Skeletal

MTGinktober gnaws at Day 28, "Skeletal," starring Kaalia of the Vast, Skithiryx, the Blight Dragon, and Tinybones, Bauble Burglar!

I was looking forward to having Liliana, Dreadhorde General hit the David S. Pumpkins pose with two of her background guys, but I talked myself out of it cuz they're technically Zombies--Skeletons are way less prominent in Magic.  So I went with another card that also feels merely borderline-Skeleton, but technically is: Skittles, specifically the Abigail Larson art, which brought in Kaalia, cuz seeing them hanging out in the official art was so cool; I love when creatures are just hanging out in their off time.  But since these two didn't feel terribly Skeleton, we had TinyB bring it home.

Fun Facts:  This is TinyB's second MTGinktober appearance, everyone else debuts.  Also this is only our seventh Dragon we've ever drawn in ten years of MTGinktober, as I don't actually like drawing Dragons.  But these guys just relaxing in a field was such a relaxing draw...we're in the home stretch, and my hand's feeling better, so we're just taking it a day at a time until we cross the finish line.  

Easter Eggs:  I'm still trying to jam as many "Expressions of Magic" as we can before we hang it up, so the little wrench with the butterflies next to TinyB is from our first ever Case--Case of the Stashed Skeleton.

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FanArt_ink.Onion

MTGinktober layers Day 27, "Onion," starring Ghazbán Ogress and Blim, Comedic Genius!

Ever since I read about the terrible circumstances behind Ghazbán Ogress, I felt I wanted give it a more positive story, where she's in charge.  Oddly enough, this made me think of another controversy involving a similarly named person and an unflattering interaction with a person I otherwise admire greatly.  So I coulda made the Onion guy MaRo, since he was the original author, but as I understand, they made amends and are on good terms, so I made it Blim, who does suck.  I didn't study the actual person since I just wanted to base this likeness entirely on the card.

Fun Facts: I almost forgot to snap the initial inks, so this is already a ways along by the time I remembered.  Since MaRo was involved in the creation of the card, for the sake of the illustration's narrative, it's funnier if this Ogress holds a grudge and enjoys torturing a Look at Me, I'm the DCI-blindfolded flannel-patch doll, so I'd say this counts as MaRo's fourth MTGinktober appearance, second this year.  Also, because this story is so extraordinary, I wish they'd give her the full Invitational treatment and let her design her own card, including appearing in it if she wishes.

Easter Eggs:  The doll is modeled after those of I Delight in Your Convulsions, notably hitting a scheme for our "Expressions of Magic" checklist.  She has the dartboard from the DCI card, too.  The background comes from the "Yes...Ha Ha" comic, of course, but I based the bricks on Brenard, Ginger Sculptor's background, a remnant from my research when I was initially just going to draw Asmo cooking up something gross (I don't like onions).  Also, I forgot her fangs in the pencils, but remembered them in time for inks. 

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FanArt_ink.Puzzling

MTGinktober figures out Day 26, "Puzzling," starring Thalia, Guardian of Thraben; The Gitrog Monster; Cryptolith Fragment; and Clue Tokens! 

This was a thrill to work on, and while not terribly intense, thankfully working at a slower pace allowed me not to stress my hand, as I really have been feeling it lately, so I need to take easy as I can.  I hope the effect with the splayed hair worked.  Thalia surrounded by a ring of Clues was the initial inspiration for this, which is loosely based on a digital Thalia illustration I've been working on, but more on that later--we've got ink to ber.

Fun Facts: This is Thalia's seventh MTGinktober appearance, and The Gitrog's third.  He's only ever appeared with her, though she's done her own thing a couple times, but I feel they make a great team going out and solving crimes and stuff--the idea here is they got an assignment from The Chief down at HQ, a reference to my old adventures with Hannes.  I usually base my Thalia on his Secret Lair versions 40 and thank you, while The Gitrog blends several versions.

Easter Eggs:  The Clues to this nonsensical and unsolvable crime are, clockwise from upper right: Paquette's Island's Cryptolith, the Ring, Cryptolith Fragment, the Pendant, the Dagger, the Scroll, the Feather, and the Letter. And as is tradition, in Algen pieces, we sneak a little, swooshy B (ß) in there, in this case, as the Thunder Junction Clue's seal, no not that kind of seal, sorry.  The Kamigawan scroll has my sig in Japanese, though the date is Kamigawan.

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FanArt_ink.Inferno

MTGinktober fires up Day 25, "Inferno," starring Chandra, Awakened Inferno!

Man, my hand was hurting quite a bit, but fortunately this one wasn't too intense, but we're definitely in the feeling it.  Anyway, I was set on a different star altogether--since I believe Wrenn, not Chandra torches herself, but at the very last minute--like after I drew the base and everything and was ready to go into costuming, I swapped out all my Wrenn research for the Chandra file I still had from a previous research session I kept after she got cut at the last minute again.  We always draw Chandra every year, so I was pretty sure I could use it later, and boom!

Fun Facts:  I wanted Chandra self-destructing as this is probably going to be the last time I draw her for MTGinktober, after this champ clocks in her sixteenth MTGinktober appearance.  She's been a real trooper since pulling double-duty in the very first year, and I'm glad to have gotten one more piece of her for the road.  Plus I finally got to draw the Bloodfire Colossus/Solar Blast pose.

Easter Eggs:  The background is based on Furnace Layer, a plane for the ol' checklist.  It's funny, I often hide Fire Nation logos and stuff in flamey backgrounds, but since Avatar's coming to Magic, it didn't feel fair, particularly since I have a No Universes Beyond policy at MTGinktober.  And I kinda chose Awakened Inferno for the prompt (though a sentimental pick, since she's in a couple of my decks), but I generally merge various Chandras, mainly Wes Burt's Oath of Chandra and Grzegorz Rutkowski's Flames Catalyst , but a new element is Hope's Beacon's tears.

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FanArt_ink.Rowdy

 MTGinktober causes a ridiculous ruckus on Day 24, "Rowdy," starring Wakedancer, Serpent Dancers, Gala Greeters, Cabaretti Ascendancy, Gallia of the Endless Dance!

 Man, this one came down to the wire, but this was such a neat concept, I really wanted to go for it.  I accidentally slept through my alarm, though, so I did lose a half hour, which is quite annoying, especially when I know I'll have to be coloring dark hair, forget about when having to draw a ton of characters--every minute counts.  Speaking of every minute counting, I literally listened to "Gonna Make You Sweat" for like five hours straight while penciling this, and easily coulda gone the whole session, but I switched to looping D.AN.C.E. for the inking hours.  

 Fun Facts:  This is Gallia's fourth MTGinktober appearance, including her second dance party, meanwhile everyone else debuts.  It is our second mousey franchise appearance, however.  This also knocks out another "Expression of Magic," the BNG prerelease event set, which I've long been wanting to complete, since I got the Minotaur one last year.  And we also got one of those international Sparklepony editions in the German Gala Greeters (Daniel Lieske's Gala-Begrüßer), which felt on theme for an Algen day. 

 Easter Eggs:  I loved drawing some of my favorite dance poses including the "Stop" pose from Jamiroquai's Virtual Insanity, two poses from Christopher Walken in Weapon Of Choice by Fatboy Slim ft. Bootsy Collins ("The Whiplash" and "The "Wolfman" as I call them), The Carlton Dance, and The Wednesday Dance, which I haven't seen but hear great things.  Since it's an Algen piece, we had to get a swooshy B (ß) in there, so it's on Gallia's hoof, while my sig is on her scroll.  The snake is based on the Jungle Book one. Not normal,

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FanArt_ink.Firefly

MTGinktober flits into Day 23, "Firefly," starring Mesa Enchantress, Enduring Innocence, Bog Humbugs, and Firefly!

I really had no idea what I was drawing until I just went to paper and saw what emerged...man...!  Like, the starry sky paneling thing was all just from drawing the long strands behind a few circles of light.  Anyway, this composition ended up kinda straightforward, but it still came down to the wire cuz it was a lot of tinkering. 

Fun Facts:  Believe it or not, this is Bog Humbug's second MTGinktober appearance, everyone else debuts.  But this also knocks out another goal of mine: drawing a color-shifted card, plus we have our first JP-edition, if I'm not mistaken, since we based the Sheep off of the JP-exclusive version...I'm pretty sure they have name for that dedicated JP series that theysay they'll have going forward, but I can't remember what it is.

Easter Eggs: The rock things in the background come from Mesa Enchantress, and the tuft of grass on the left has my sig.  I included a some anklets since she's cropped in the official art and I felt like we could use some more details--so one was a flower cuz I was listening to the Final Fantasy 7 Soundtrack at the time and Yuffie's theme just came on, and she's apparently The White Rose of Wutai and this is a white card, and then the other trinket is the necklace from かわすみ / kawasumi's Enduring Innocence.

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