C.O.W. - #058: Highly Explosive - Voting!

[Fozzybar]

ROUND #058 VOTING

Topic: Highly Explosive

Deadline for the voting: Wednesday, 6th September 2006

Posting thread (closed):
http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=75423









------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Supervlieg
concept: Magmaglobber
(Vulcanis Oryx Maximus)
The Magmaglobbers live in small groups near vulcanic areas. They feeds of the warmth of the surroundings to keep their high temperature body near to boiling point.
The Magmablobber start their life with just a hump and a small bump on their head. During it's adolescent period the little mountains on back of the male creatures grow, and their mood worsens. When, with age, their mood is at their worst, their top is litterally blown, introducing them to maturity. The adult males are recognizeable by the craters on their head and back. Because of their bad temper they will regulary explode when agitated and spew lava. With each eruption the lava settles on the edges of the crater and creates a bigger hump. The bigger the hump and crater, the greater the stature of the male in the groups.
Their explosive battles for leadership are a display of spewing lava and burned skin. The magmaglobbers have a very thick skin that is nearly fire resistent. During battle they are usually severly burned and often need weeks to recover. Eventually the alpha male will become too heavy or weak to carry the load of the hump and a younger, stronger male will usually kill him to become the new leader of the group.
http://www.bolman.nl/cgtalk/supervlieg_cow058_3.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Chuck Wadey
concept: Goarnusk
Though it's a mild-mannered creatuer, it's best to take extreme caution when traversing the Goarnusk's habitat. The animal pockmarks its nesting/hunting ground with thousands of highly unstable eggs, the contents of which explode upon contact with air. So watch your step and don't break any shells! This combined hunting and reproductive technique is remarkably efficient because only a small percentage of the eggs are actually fertilized - at which point their chemical volatility is neutralized. In other words, fertilized eggs don't explode, but the vast majority of unfertilized eggs ensure that few are intentionally tampered with. The Goarnusk's wide foot pad for even weight distribution, heavy mucus production, and motherly touch allows it to crawl where it pleases with rare fireworks. The remains of heavy footed creatures keep the scavenger well fed.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v692/ChuckWadey/cow/Cow58_final.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: KaWaii
concept: Exile
It's a very beautiful bird with amazing colors. It's a real sight for bird lovers to see it in nature. However, because it's dangerous, there are very few people around who actually have the guts to find one of these. No one hunts them because they'll just explode if you shoot/eat it. It's lifespan is only 3 years. While in it's 3rd year, it'll reach it's most beautiful state. The 3rd year is the year of mating.
These birds are very aggressief and they like to defend their territory. It'll fly up and shyt on it's target. Yes, nice guess, it's shyt is higly explosive. Though not strong enough to blow you to ashes, it can still easily blow away your arm. Most creatures dies when they get a shot in their heart or head. (headshot ! XD)
http://www.kawais-domain.com/Arts/Exile.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Stephan_R
concept:
So the lava larva of sunpatch pigeons like to pop their shells,
but just before the young are sprung the mother gives a yell,
The shriek from the heat by the mother's beak is all the young can hear,
as they peg their heated egg and fire sears her rear.
Oftentimes a sneaky face might sniff a sunpatch chick,
but the heated shell will surely burst with fire raining thick.
So mommy sunpatch pigeons have to hunt for the highest hill,
so exploding eggs will find a way to catch a filling kill.
http://www.steveroyer.com/sketching/cow_58.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Panagos
concept: Anger Buffalo
The Anger Buffalo is often restrained, even docile. But those that know of its bizarre temper give this creature a wide berth. no one knows what sets off the Buffalo's highly explosive temper. one moment it can be roaming peacefully, and the next it becomes irate - it's entire demeanor changes as it sniffs the air, and it's massive muscles clench as it glares about, looking for the source of it's annoyance. And then, before you can blink, it's charging, trampling, goring, biting and kicking anything that moves within it's line of sight. And if there are no living creatures in sight, the Anger Buffalo will actually seek out a being to vent it's frustration on. And when it finds one, look out.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v400/Panagos/AngerBuffalo.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Chuck,mate.
concept: Carnaross Timida
Carnaross Timida resides on the dark rocky parts of planet Ark. This slow paced herbivore
Uses hydrocarbon deposits, naturally created in it's intestines, as a defense mechanism whenever it feels threatened or cornered. This fossil fuel than gets ignited
By a neuro-electric reaction, exploding and burning rapidly, manufacturing a death-shower of flames. Surprisingly enough this intense creature survives these outbursts due to it`s naturally thick armor-like hide, that only gets stronger and tougher after any encounter with fire.
http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/5033/chuckmatecow58small2uk9.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Cloister
concept: Vengence of the Dha-ol
He was there at last. The final delivery was done. He could feel his trap spring behind him and the distant pain was strangely comforting. For years he had served the humans, carrying their precious gas to whatever need. It had been bearable – a life in servitude but not in anguish… Then the injections had started, and the following growth. His body had become longer, heavier, and the days wearisome. Memories of kin lost in the old days had started to visit him through the cold nights, and in familiar voiced they screamed out for vengeance. He looked down upon his masters a final time as the first explosion roared in the distance. He had taken a different path this time, and was laid out straight through the five settlements. It would come to an end with this, of that he was certain. As the sky was lit up he did not look back. He had seen the lights of the dying enough when the humans began their strafing. That was a very long time ago, but he still remembered the dreadful explosions, and knew they were achingly beautiful.
Facts:
The Dha-ol lives in the soft and ancient deserts of the planet Sohora. The bottoms of the great lakes (i.e the deserts) are full of the natural gases, from which the Dha-ol gets their main energy. They stick down their long hollow tongues into the sand and inhale the gas as well as any liquids they come across. The un-modified, mature specimen is highly intelligent and highly explosive. They reach about a mile in length, and can live to be a thousand years old.
http://www.brandow.se/Page/bilder/Postas/GasTrain3b.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: cowboy surfer
concept: Novo Masticate Luminite
The Novo Masticate Luminite was only recently photographed by the Hubble telescope during long range nebula research. Following rigorous observation it was discovered that this enormous creature feeds on dying stars, showing a preferance for red giants when the food source is in abundance. Its prefered habitat seem to be the ancient star field nebulas where it can consume the super nova energie. The incredible energie of the exploding stars is absorbed by the Novo and can sustain it for millenia although it will consume whenever the oppertunity arrises. It can expand the plates of armour to contain even the biggest of explosions which are held together by the strenght of the inner membrane.
Scientists are now working on a way to capture and tame one of these enormous beasts.
http://i99.photobucket.com/albums/l319/cowboy-surfer/supernovaeater3.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: rillani
concept:
This colony of orange anemones has a ball at the end of each anemone's stalk. These balls are presurized, and their skin is very thin, making them apt to break open and explode. This, however, serves as an advantage for the colony, as each ball contains a sticky web that can capture large, bumbling fish. After attempting to struggle away and eventually tiring, the fish is then pulled into the ball and digested. The little yellow fish hide among the anemones for protection, and they serve to lure predators into the anemones' trap.
http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m61/rillani/explodinganemonessmall.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: cognition.sb
concept: Jelly Mine
The aptly named Jelly Mine is a freshwater filter-feeder with a hidden danger. Their bodies consist of 40% sodium, which is encased within an oily liquid contained by a thin jellylike substance. They're completely harmless by nature, but highly explosive when trodden on by animals/people or crushed by vehicles. In this scenario, their jelly exterior breaks exposing generous quantities of sodium to water. This metal reacts violently with water, and the explosive consequences are likened to that of a miniature landmine.
http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f107/cognitionsb/20060829-high-exp2-SBoxer.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Orifice
concept: Sky Fire Perch
'Its the 14:th of July and the year is 2531. The morning mist is thicker than usual in the vast skyscraper landscape of Los Angeles. People are just starting their regular morning doings. Old ladies sweeping their balconies, moms shouting at their kids, fathers frying eggs for their kids... Almost no one's outside. This summer had already broken all the heat records. The heat bring many aweful things to the city. Stench from the sewer districts now spreads throughout L A and the dust is denser than ever. But worst of all is the frequent attacs from the Sky Fire Perches. They used to come once or twice a year, but they seem to benefit from the heat and now they can be expected almost once a week. The attacs are now so common that special Perch-alarms have been installed all over the city. Now people are always on the look out and sleep with one eye open. So as Armon stand in his packed kitchen making some nudles, he is constantly lookin out of the window. He sits down and eat with his whife and two children and start to relax as they small talk about every day things. But they all fall silent. In the distance they can all hear the unmistacable sound of an alarm cutting through the morning mist. A sound they have gotten used to fear above all others.'
The Sky Fire Perch is a creature developed unnaturaly fast from fish somewhere between the year 2050 and 2450. They eat huge amounts of food at a time, mostly metal and stone, and then stay fairly inactive in the warm oceans of the Atlantic. They work together to help their big comunity of Perches. As they attack, one or two in each flock starts a cemical process in their body, making them expand as baloons and also becoming incredibly hot. Signs of this can be seen, as the heat leaks out in the thinner places of their bodies. As the heat increases they get a trail of smoke behind them as they dive down towards the houses exploding into roofs and walls. Up to hundreds of other perches shoots towards the debree now laying all around the impact spot. They need the metal and stone in small parts to be able to eat and digest it. This led to this strange and somewhat macabre behavior.
http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/2665/cowboomvisa2mc8.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Maieth
concept: Loricatus Praemius
Loricatus Praemius (literally, 'exploding armour') Is a fairly large and highly defensive, bug like creature. It is very slow moving, crawling along on its four, blade linke limbs. The body of this creature is encrusted with many armour-like scales, each one rising to a long and extremely sharp spike. Beneath each of these plates is then a large gland which produces a highly volatile chemical. The gland is surrounded by a mass of blood vessels. When endangered, the creature forces warm blood to these areas, quickly raising the temperature around the glands by several degrees, this sudden change being enough to ignite the chemicals inside. the ensueing explosive reaction is forced up beneath the scale which is ejected at tremendous velocity, effectively turnign the creature into a living nail bomb.
The scales will eventually grow back, but this is a slow process, leaving the creature victim to further attacks, hoever, the glands heal more quickly and even without the scales, their explosive discharge is still a very effective deterrant to would be predators.
One particular band of predators, however, has found a singularly fascinating method of hunting these animals. They attack in groups and will sacrifice one member of the collective to the kill. Usually thi is an elderly or infirm member of the group. This individual will atack Loricatus Praemius directly, enciting the following explosive reaction, and the attacker is almost always killed. This, however, leaves the creature totally unprotected until the glands refil and reheal, and entirely vunerable to the rest of the pack.
http://img165.imageshack.us/img165/8865/highlyexplosivent8.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: dragon4lunch
concept: Dorakka
Here is the Dorakka, a scavenger as I stated a few days ago. His excrements harden up quickly and a chemical transformation occurs in the inside, whereas the outer shell is very salty. Deer like to lick this salt and when they do so, their saliva triggers an explosion! The Dorakka hears the explosion and returns to the scene, ready for a meal! His hearing is not too good so this creature has a habit of returning to areas it has taken a crap at before!
Note that the deer the Dorraka is eating is surprisingly well intact, considering it just licked a bomb that went off! It's unrealistic, but I didn't want to paint a bloody mess. Logically Dorraka crap explosions can't be too powerful, otherwise there wouldn't be much of a meal left, right?
Also, if this creature was in a game or movie, the poop of course would explode simply by touching it, because a hero is unlikely to lick a red ball of strange excrements.
In other words, don't lick my salty crap! Hehehe...
http://www.trickstertoys.com/additional/dorakko.jpg

[Fozzybar]

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Michael Jaecks
concept: Cynabian Monthra
Ancient cynabians had some very different myths about the origin of their souls and the nature of original sin. First and foremost, they believed all intelligent beings were born as selfish animals and were given their lives to learn to be good, selfless and compassionate. Cynabians believed their souls originated in hell, not heaven. Deceased cynabians condemned to hell after death were called monthra. Monthra wandered the featurless wastelands of hell growing bloated and heavy with spawn. A foul, necrotic plasma filled their bellies as well. Eventually the monthra would swell so big they could no longer move. Monthra would grow dozens, sometimes hundreds of festering soulspawn on their bodies. In time, the plasma in a monthra's belly would detonate, releasing and spreading the soulspawn across the landscape. Those soulspawn that surived the blast and crawled their way back to the parent feasted upon the remains, gaining their sentience. Soulspawn that canibalized their parents flesh were then ready to be born as living cynabians.
The only spiritual escape from this cycle was making good use of their lives to learn kindness, civility and rationality. As such, cynabians considered parenting, education, ethics, moral law and spiritual growth to be high cultural priorities. Criminality was rare and unrepentant offenders even more so. But there were always a few to repopulate the hordes of the monthra.
http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a379/neorepto/1amichaeljaecksCOWexplosivefinal-3.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: JakkaS
concept: Kucuk
Kucuks are very calm creatures. They lives in the scrub forests and steppes of Planet Cuma. These small herbivorous animals spends whole days on their feeding-grounds in search of juice leaves and roots. Because of open and nearly wooded spaces, predators very often attack them. However, they formed very interesting self-defense mechanism. In the back of their body, their carapace transform into some sort of pipe’s web, that contains chemical substances. In the moment of great danger they relies this substances. When they mix, explode. Explosion is so strong that can blind, stun or even kill the predator, while the potential victim disappears in the volumes of smoke.
http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a314/JakkaS/C-4.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Moai
concept: Torpedo Fish
When the ultra-conservative Yodd Dynasty took power over the Imperium in A.F. 4063 and outlawed all forms of genetic manipulation, the Splicers Guild had two choices: comply with the Dynasty and loose their culture, or defect from the Imperium and face the Dynasty's wrath. They chose the latter, and fled to the distant ocean planet Vorakka Nyu, altering their own biology to survive on the alien world. Unfortunately, the Yodd Dynasty launched a crusade against the Splicers, and the formerly peaceful waters of Vorakka Nyu were soon prowled by Imperial war submersibles. Vorakka Nyu was an extremely resource-poor world, having almost no metals or fuels readily available, so the Splicers employed their skills of genetic engineering to create a biological weapon. Drawing from the genetic stock of indigenous shark-like species and a variety of explosive wasp from their former homeworld, the Splicers created the torpedofish.
Torpedofish are bred in the thousands in vast underground hatcheries. At birth they appear almost identical to their wild counterparts, but after feeding voraciously for a single day they undergo a dramatic metamorphosis. Their mouth openings seal over and the mouth cavity and cranium devide into three separate chambers, each one filled with a chemical that, when combined with the other two, produces a powerful explosion. Once this occurs the torpedofish have a very limited lifespan and must be put to use quickly. Once released, they are attracted to areas of great noise and water displacement, both of which correspond with Imperial submarines. Designed to cut through the water with minimum resistance, the torpedofish propel themselves at over ninety kilometers (sixty miles) per hour. When they collide with their target, the impact is usually strong enough to shatter the skull and rupture the chemical chambers within. The chemicals combine, explode, and leave a highly corrosive residue, furthering the damage to the target's hull. The six foot long torpedo fish explodes with nearly twice the force of an Imperial torpedo of the same mass, a testament to the Splicers' skill as chemists.
The Yodd Dynasty's navy suffered tremendous losses from these highly efficient, highly explosive organic weapons, but it soon retaliated by poisoning the waters of Vorakka Nyu. The Splicers immediately reconfigured their own genes and the genes of the lifeforms upon which they depended to become impervious to the poison, but the Dynasty released ever stronger poisons to match the Splicers' self-imposed evolution. It was the beginning of one of the strangest arms races in the history of the Imperium.
http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b320/metalukesurfer/torpedofish.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: smoscar
concept: Nitro-Crab
This creatures lives mostly at beaches and soft grounds. This creature can create chemicals that are similar to nitroglycerin on its back so when it feels danger or some kind of threat they hide in it's shell and then dig a hole in the sand, it may seem at first sight that it is still hidden on its shell but then its shell explodes making it seem a suicide creature...fooling is its real game
http://www.geocities.com/jimmyextrememx/crab.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Tom Garden
concept: Briloth
It mostly lives deep in the seas....and lives off of the puillour fish - an flatfish which eats the algae from the rocks of metallic rich underwater caverns. And in these cavern-rocks are traces of rubidium - this rubidium is safe for the puillor fish to eat, but not for the Briloth. So it has managed to evolve a system which filters it out the rubidium traces and collects them in special sacks inside its internal organ system.
now......hunters have learned that by hunting and exposing these rubidium sacks to water, or indeed - just the moisture in the air brings down the mighty beasts with a giant explosion - as rubidium is the MOST reactive alkali metal, and well - lets just say if you had a pea sized amount near water.....you would want to be holding it with a robotic arm while you were behind a blast wall!!!
You just never know how much rubidium a Briloth could have in their sacks, it builds and builds until some amounts can cause lethal explosions....so beware hunters you could be in for a nasty shock!!!!.......or a tasty dinner!
http://www.tomgarden.co.uk/Webpics/COW_10.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Tyranx
concept: Traseelik Incendia
The Traseelik Incendia, also known as Hellticks are a native species to the planet Chartes. While they have always been bad tempered at the best of times, the number of attacks involving these terrible beasts has shot up exponentially in the last couple of years. Even though they are in the midst of a media campaign in order to bolster their image among their shareholders and the general public, the TriCorp Mining Megaconglomorate is well known for turning a blind eye to the welfare of the environment.
The Hellticks are most well known for their fiery and explosive spit which they use to break down rock in order to get to the precious ore beneath. They can shoot their spit like a water cannon with incredible precision. They spend most of their lives underground eating ore veins, the same ones that TriCorp is after. Their great size, Incredible resistance to physical damage and ability to pop up out of the ground practically anywhere make them a serious threat. Tri Corp has labled the Hellticks "pests", but they will soon come to reevaluate their business practices, because as the ore supply dwindles, the ticks are forced to find new sources of nourishment, and with millions of vehicles and thousands of smelting plants scattered throughout the planet, they will have plenty to feast on for the forseeable future.
http://tyranx.com/concepts/highlyexplosive.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: aspenboy
concept: Bomb Eater
This spiecies is in fact a very devastating biological weapon. He enjoys eating tons of gunpowder, bombs and dynamite. After he fulfills his hunger, he's able to throw bombs at very high velocity - this makes bomb-eater a great siege machine.
http://salvador.cba.pl/gfx/COW-highly-explosive-18.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Joey-b
concept: Butterfrog
Its a Butterfrog, it will reach the age of 3 month after being born of the eggs from a frutterfly.
after the frog reaches the age of 3 months its just gonna sit and wait for well..
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y260/b-yeoj/cowHIGHLYEXPLOSIVEJoey2.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Jabo
concept: Bangbug
The Bangbug is a hermaphrodite living in the Amazonas-region. The pregnant bug carrys the auto-fertilized eggs under it's belly. Shortly before the babies are hatching out of their eggs, a hormonal impulse leads to a chemical reaction and the eggs explode, throwing the adult across the forest soil. This is believed to be a defense mechanism. The loud bang (comparable to a middle-class china-cracker) scares away predators, thus giving the babys a head start in order to hide in the woods.
http://www.drain5.com/pics/ART/cow/cow58_highly_exposive.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: ScaryPotato
concept:
http://i84.photobucket.com/albums/k35/BigScaryPotato/Complete.jpg

[Fozzybar]

artist: Hurricane
concept: Hell Grapes
The Hell grapes enter the planet through a comet, the embeded embryo grow into the ground. The embryo develops into a massive rootsystem and it searches the surroundings for gaspockets or creatures to devour. When they get to mature state they start to grow upwards and small sacks fills with gases from it's nourichments. After a couple of years the embryo has moved away from the ground into the air where it extends its roots, moving over large areas totally eating up all living things until the planet is dead.
http://www.bjornhurri.com/sb/06/August/hellgrapes_done.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Andronicus
concept: Firebat
Used as a means to attract a mate – the light producing chemical reaction within the firebat’s abdomen has been known in some cases to become overactive to the point of spontaneous combustion.
http://www.xenobiota.com/corkin/firebat.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Lady Medusa
concept: Wart tail
It grows highly explosive warts on its tail to protect from bigger predators.
It doesn't use its warts to capture its preys however, then it'll use its venomous fangs.
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y18/vrd/Explosive.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Banck
concept: Firebird
...hunts with its explosive eggs!
http://i102.photobucket.com/albums/m91/BANCK/higlyexplosive.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Kittay
concept:
The Explosive Fueled Catopollis is a strange creature. With a body rather like that of a caterpillar, an eyeball that can see from every angle, and legs that let it scuttle about freely. But perhaps the most interesting thing about it is it's internal systems. When the Explosive Fueled Catopollis eats it's food is turned to a kind of acid and sent to a chamber in it's bowel system. This acid is highly explosive and when it reaches a certain level inside the Explosive Fueled Catopollis the two orifices located on it's back end pop and let out small explosions. Quite a fancy way to poop, really.
http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f312/Mewsakura/ExplosiveFueledCatopollis-1.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: BlkCelebration
concept: Chamiz
The Chamiz is a now extinct creature. Few fossils of these creatures remain. These creatures migrated for several years searching for a warmer place to inhabit. When they found the right place the only food source in the area were the berries grown from the Agra plant.
Since they had no other choice the Chamiz had to consume the berries. The Agra berry proved to be the end of their species. The delicate digestive system of the Chamiz was not able to digest the berry and caused a chemical reaction that made their stomachs explode!
Needless to say, after only one day of living in their new habitat the Chamiz became extinct.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v141/depecheboy/explodingator.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Krusty
concept:
I haven't been able to locate a name yet for this race of beastie but what i can tell you is that they are extremely volotile. The way they are designed minimises the amount of movement they create. They use their large front legs to drag themselves along whilst the small back legs provide stabilty and balance. So as a result they kinda shuffle along whilst maintaining a careful equalibrium. If they were to hop or amble along at a quicker pace it would be a case of hop hop boom.
Within their large pouches at the front the contain a highly destructive liquid used for protection against those who may attack and for the females in which to raise their young. Although you cannot see, inside the mouth a flap covers the the pouch so that they are able to eat without contaminating the contents within. When threatened they are able to lift this pouch and regurgutate the liquid onto their un suspecting foe. The females raise their spawn within the liquid as it is the safest place for them, they also feed upon it. The liquid is constantly being re produce by glands within the pouch.
http://community.conceptart.org/gallery/I/2005/01/01/12625.jpg

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------



------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
artist: Marco Mazzoni
concept: Blue Gonard
It would appear that during their mating season, the reproductive organs of the male Gonards will swell to the point that procreation is no longer possible... at least not in a manner that I have ever witnessed.
As the testicles swell to mammoth proportions, the Gonard will begin to ascend to great hights over a vast group of females with no apparent strain on their wings. During this event, a blue glow from within the testicles will be visible, giving this strange subspecies their name.
At some point during their ascention, the sex organs will explode in a spectacular ball of blue flames, spreading clouds of seed onto thousands of females that wait on the ground below. It seems that the larger the testicular expansion, the higher the ascension and greater the explosion. This greatly increases their chance or reproduction and leads me to wonder whether or this breed of Gonard is capable of producing a methane gas mixture to creat this effect.
http://www.butcherfx.com/stuff/CA/Blue%20Gonard%20.jpg

[Fozzybar]

OK - before voting/posting read this!!!

1. Please give c&c or a reason why you voted for the image!

2. Feel free to comment on any or all entries, the artists will appreciate it!

3. No voting for your own entry!!! If a participants votes for his own entry, every member has the right to call him a stupid lame morone in this thread! And i will delete his/her vote anyway...






not accepted entries:

All WIPs

surfacemonkey
Your sketch is not enough for being accepted, i visited your sketchbook, your skills are offering a lot more :)



close to rejection:

rillani
I saw some of your artworks at your deviantart gallery, and you actually can do better...next time i won't accept an entry at this level from you ;)

special note:

None

[Fozzybar]

new round is on:
http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=76102

[Gkstudios]

I voted for Kawai, his Idea is very interesting and so is his concept a paradise like bird which looks beautiful but is very dangerous as well it doesn't look dangerous at all but it can harm you.

And it isn't yellow or orange like most concept's I have seen here the poo is green and it can explode. Which can be a camouflage very cool.

I didn't vote for Tyranx and Supervlieg but it was very close diffucult to make a choice. But it's very obvious those creatures can spit fire. I guess I liked the idea that the bird is dangerous regardless it's look.

Tyranx great picture rough pencils I like it.

Supervlieg nicely rendered the vulcano seems a bit off it seems like it's bended I told you this already

BlkCelebration
fat creatures heehe cool!!

Maieth
though choice I liked teh spiky thing insect lik hedgehog mix awesome design
could use more detailed rendering

Jabo
great shapes, Looks balanced has equilbrium. But it's missing something perhaps the angle

Banck
funny as hell I like it good concept. Angle shows what it does hope to see more from you.
Marco Mazzoni
haha man those humangous balls are just scary and to painfull haha great idea. But i don't want to lose mine :p

Krusty
Could have used somethig to establisch it 's explosive ability or something like that. Cool frog though.

Hurricane
makes me think of the matrix and crossover with alien.
Nice colors
Tom Garden

I like the creature design scary thing. nicely done with the depth work on your shading though

JakkaS
man that's one crazy looking pic the skill is just dripping of your picture.
nice usage of brushes. Expression is just a little to cartoony for me. Perhaps i am kinda to serious :p

ScaryPotato
Excellent Design it's just delightfull to look at. and it;s in the sea !!did a great job. Could have used some more debree near the lightsource since deep in the sea there's lot of debree.

Michael Jaecks
That's just scary to scary it's a bit humanoid but it's womb or whatever it is is just awesome. Nice rendering!!!

dragon4lunch
That's just a dope Pic nothing more to say I like the idea and all. Also a competator almost chose you.

rifice
orginality what can is say I like the way you showed your progress.!! keep it up also nice that you showed more different kind of variations very smart way too show your creativity

smoscar
Good concept smart and explosive keep up the good work.

cognition.sb
Scary looking thing !!!

Chuck Wadey
Great Thing but not as strong as your other concepts.

Good Thing for the people that participated better luck next time.
keep on COWING

[ScaryPotato]

Man there are just so many great looking entries here! I missed seeing Marco Mazzoni's Blue Gonard until now, and think he'll get my vote. Nice colour contrast, good composition not to mention a true purpose for being highly explosive by nature.

[cowboy surfer]

I have voted for Panagos and his Anger Buffalo because it is beautifully poised on the verge of loosing it.
It was a close thing. Supervlieg, looked amazing and good concept. Tyranx, my fav looks wise but concept not so hot. Jakkas, again looked awesome nice concept a bit cartoony for the win though.
Well done to everyone who entered you all made it a close fought thing for me.

[KaWaii]

OMFG, too many entry's this week. I have pain in my fingers just giving out crits. And the choice for my vote is soooooo hard... I hate you all...

Anyway, these crits comes straight from my mind. You can hate me if you want :)

Supervlieg
You have my vote, a beautiful piece with a cool looking higly explosive creature. Keep it up !

Chuck Wadey
One of the candidates who almost got my vote. I love snails, and your piece is just great. One thing though, I can't see how big the snail should be in your picture :/

KaWaii
That's definetly a WIP, get your arse on a chair and start drawing for Greek Crawler early this time. Won't get away again.

Stephan_R
Very nice colors. Makes me think of my own piece haha. About the exploding stuff. The explosions are really bright, I personally think they should give off some light in your surroundings.

Panagos
Another good piece. I only have some suggestions. Maybe it would be more "highly explosive" if you had make a piece of him in beserk mode. Also, the background makes me think it lives in a castle :/

Chuck,mate.
Very stylish. I saw you finished your piece for a long time before the deadline, why didn't you add more stuff? T_T

Cloister
Kinda hard scene you chose. There is some problem with the lighting I see now. You can see a great white shining light from the background but only the creature is affected. Forgot the environment? And there's a little scale problem I think, can't tell why :/

cowboy surfer
Not sure, it's a good overall piece. Maybe a little overkill coloring for a space piece :/

rillani
Your idea is cool. Really like it's hunting method. But I think it's more a plant than creature.

cognition.sb
When not reading your description, it's hard to tell it's highly explosive. Maybe because it looks like a jelleyfish. Nice painting though, I wouldn't be able to do it like that :).

Orifice
Omg, raining fish invasion. Somehow you brought me a big smile on my face :P Cool stuff !

Maieth
Sweet creature, really cute. Wouldn't say it would blow some needles in my eyes...

dragon4lunch
I like your creature. It's face looks like it's telling "what a stupid animal hehe". Really need more blood (lots off) overall. The whole freakin neck is gone haha

Michael Jaecks
One of the sickest piece I saw this week. Can't look too long at it, gives me chills brrrr...

JakkaS
Your creatures always have some special feel with them. Great work again ! Close to get my vote.

Moai
Still looks kinda simple. Maybe it's because it's all red. Maybe more contrast will help :)

smoscar
Still looks kinda klat, I want lighting ! :P

Tom Garden
Really like your creature. Like your last ones. This one needs more love hehe

Tyranx
Holy hell, you blow my out of my window ! Awesome rendering. You didn't get my vote because I just don't get "the feel" of the creature and it's not really explosive looking :/

aspenboy
You can make nice stuff I can see. Need more love in your work.

Joey-b
The funniest creature reward is for you :) Like the frog.

Jabo
Nice work. What can I say?

ScaryPotato
I can't really see what's happening at the light thing without the description. Furthermore good work !

Hurricane
Beautiful. But you can't really say it's a creature :/

Andronicus
Your work is great. The only problem is your creature. It looks like a normal firefly to me :/

Lady Medusa
Again just like Panagos. Maybe a beserk mode pick would have more effect.

Banck
Same idea like mine. Both birds shytting you to death :) Needs more love.

Kittay
Need more detail, keep it up !

BlkCelebration & Krusty
Both looking nice already. Need a litle more time on it.

Marco Mazzoni
I just had the same chills like when I watched at Michael's piece. Omg, your wicked XD


GK Studios, where's your piece man!?

[Syhn]

So many fantastic entries, it's really difficult to choose. In the end, I think I'm going to put my vote to Tyranx. I love the epic composition, the mood and color scheme, and the design of the creature itself.
Again, everyone did a wonderful job, some really awesome designs on here!

[Simon Boxer]

cognition.sb
When not reading your description, it's hard to tell it's highly explosive. Maybe because it looks like a jelleyfish. Nice painting though, I wouldn't be able to do it like that :).

Mmmm, I thought it was appropriate for the 'hidden danger' angle. Hopefully people read the concept, I guess I could've included diagrams... Meh.

Cheers for the comments though.

Voting for Chuck Wadey - love the concept, seems believable and not a very generic approach to the topic. Great lookin piece, too.

Marco Mazzoni also did a top job in my opinion. Great stuff.

I won't rehash my general thoughts, I pretty much spammed up the actual thread with comments.

However, I must've missed Panagos' entry before - Nice work, interesting take on the concept.

[Moai]

KaWaii- I made it a simple design and picture on purpose. I didn't want to overwhelm myself, because I'm new to photoshop and I'm stuck using a mouse.:blah: I'll kick it up a notch this next round, though. :rendered:

I'll vote and comment/crit this afternoon. It was great fun CoWing with all of you!

[Stephan_R]

Superv: Had to vote for Chuck Wadey! Lots of awesome characters and illustrations, but Chuck I just love the idea you have with a two shelled snail... and leaving naty, sticky goo bombs.

Dragon4Lunch: Really great idea! You might have been able to tighten some of the lines and colors to make the piece have some more depth BUT I really liked it man good job.

Maieth: pretty fun lil guy :) looks like it could easily be on a pokemon/yu-gi-oh card.

Orifice: for some reason this is funny to me, but the piece seems to be serious. Kind of got a vehicle-animal going on which is interesting. Not sure I get "explosive from the piece.

Cog: you know I love your stuff, this seems a tad unpolished coming from you. Great idea, design and colors as always.

rillani: Maybe a lil too close to reality? I like your colors though ;)

cowboy surfer: Such a fantastic idea! The scale and thought of the beast is great, very unique compared to the rest. As far as the illustration, it seems like you have the same trouble I do with thinking about the details seperately rather than the lighting as a whole. Anyway I was glad to see something different!

Cloister: Pretty goth man, really creepy. Nice idea too, like a spider/alien queen thing going on.

Chuck,mate: Your style is gold man, you need to make an art book... I'd buy it for sure. The creature seemed a lil similar to some other entries but your style and colors make it stand out. (You know i like your stuff!)

Panagos: Pretty nice creature! I don't know that it speaks "explosive" but mine didnt really either. I like the blue stripes, but it seems like you could have tightened the lines a tad?

KaWaii: Kind of came off similar to some other ideas, but fun colors and energy for sure.

Chuck Wadey: You too need to make a creature/character art book and I'd be all over it. Your style is so unique, I can't quiet figure you out. I love the color choices and line work so much... but the creatures themselves are always amazing too in their poses and designs. Please accept my vote :)

ScaryPotato: way too close to the real thing for my taste, but great lines, colors and lighting.

Jabo: Babgbug is pretty cool, great colors, great details, good idea. I feel like I've seen this type of thing a lot though. Anyway cool.

Joey-b: Pretty funny picture, but like potato's work it felt too close to the real thing because there really are exploding toads. I'm sure you can push yourself and I look forward to the next one ;)

aspenboy: Haha :D not necessarily believable but cute.

Tyranx: you make me sick,you really do. Unbelievable film quality rendering in all your submissions. I think this creature could have fit in several creature titles, and didnt scream "highly explosive" from the image itself. Fantastic rendering.

Tom Garden: I like the change of idea from explosions with fire to explosive attacks, and the layout feels almost like a rendering from greek mythology.

smoscar: lil too close to reality like some others, you picked a good creature and colors... but I look forward to seeing you push your creativity more in the design. I do like the retreating into the sand and leaving a shell behind to explode.

Moai: Pretty bizarre lil squid creature, reminds me a nerf football I once saw in the store hehe. He doesn't seem nearly as exciting in design as some of the others but then again nature isnt always that complicated in its design.

JakkaS: For some reason the shell didn't feel like it worked well with the goat thing, but the more I look at it I just enjoy all your work and can appreciate it. The rendering is brilliant as usual! Colors, pose everything is always setting the bar.

Michael Jaecks: Kind of nasty and disturbing haha, I like the whole pose and interesting idea.

Hurricane: I think you might have been my second choice. I liked that you took things in a whole different direction, with a great mood and idea!

Andronicus: Oh man my gut feeling was that if you were able to flesh out the illustration and description just a tad further you'd have one wicked creature!

Lady Medusa: I always love explosive warts.

Banck: hehe fun :)

Kittay: I like where this was going, it seems like you had to rush it all to get it in on time?

BlkCelebration: Love the colors and little style choices you made for the designs. Maybe a lil too close to just being a pig I dunno.

Krusty: Cool frog, I didn't get a strong explosive vibe from it though.

Marco Mazzoni: This one was in my top picks, I like the colors, design and idea. Very cool.

[aspenboy]

Chuck Wadey - You have my vote. Very nice rendering, and cool concept - it has a kind of evilish look & feel.

Supervlieg & JakkaS - also perfect pieces! Unfortunately, i have only 1 vote - it was truly hard to decide.

Maieth - You were also a candidate for my vote :) I like the design of your creature, and a clear lineart.

All of you made a great job, so congratulations to all!

[Jabo]

Too many, too good. There is no entry this time I'd say I didn't like. So here comes my comments:

Supervlieg: Beautiful colors, great shape. As always you had posted as one of the first and you're sketch influenced me alot in my design. I like your description too. The only thing I can crit is that I'd like to have seen your bottom thumbnail as the main piece instead of the relaxed pose.

Chuck Wadey: Epic composition, great depth, supersolid techniques. If it wasn't for the absence of explosion in the picture, I'd probably given you my vote.

KaWaii: A little too sketchy, and somehow the mix of bird and explosion and shit doesn't convince me. The bird itself is beautiful though, wish you had put some more effort in the final steps, especially the environment is far from final.

Stephan_R: This one's weird! I like it alot. the idea of slicing with the explosive element is really cool. It's a little too far on the character-side I think, especially the arms look humanoid. Execution: AAA.

Panagos: Different approach at the topic. I'd like to see a proper background there. And its looking out of the image, which is not good in terms of composition. The design itself is cool, but it's too far away from the original idea.

Chuck,mate.: I liked that one from the moment I first saw it. Of course the execution is cool. What I do not like is the paper texture you added later in the process (?). Really cool design. I especially like the anatomy and pose of your beast.

Cloister: Great design, the face is genuine. I thought alot about this one. The environment didn't kill me, the repetetion of the sack is a little to regular. The lighting on the floor tiles doesnt fit the rest and really hurts the superb lighting on the creature as it pulls the eye away from the face. Personally, I wouldn't have added too much texture to the sacks in order to put some action into them.

cowboy surfer: Reminded me of the Nuclear Planet Devourer at first sight. A little too regular. Again, this one faces the border of the picture, which leads the eye away from the center.

rillani: Well. Orange Sea Leviathan again... :D A little vague, and the colors could need some tweaking (even a little tone correction would have done the job). Well, yeah. Out of focus for me, not really a creature.

cognition.sb: This one is soooo fucking sexy. The idea is different, but it works goddamnit. It really looks dangerous, which is why I like it so much. Also the simple form isn't boring due to the nice texturework. Me like!

Orifice: LOL, watching the wips of this was funny. Until the last steps I thought "Will he manage the turn from airfighter to living creature?". He made it in the end and I really like it. The background-fish's shape bugs me. But there's some hot action in it.

Maieth: Looks dangerous but cute at the same time. I'm not sure about the contours and a background would have helped alot. But the design and composition is well done.

dragon4lunch: Extra-points for funny idea, very convincing aswell. I think the values could need some treatment and the smoke distracts the eye. The design of the creature is convincing aswell. Like it.

Michael Jaecks: Haha, this one made me laugh. Very close to character too, and the monochrome is a little boring.

JakkaS: God, stop him.

Moai: Explosive sperms, that hurts! Cool design, nice colors, but no background (I like backgrounds as I love environments, pardon me). A little more work on the picture would have been cool.

smoscar: Too vague I guess. The thumbnails upstage the main concept.

Tom Garden: Scary as hell. Do I smell Orange Sea Leviathan here? I like it!

Tyranx: See Paragraph 16 - JakkaS.

aspenboy: Can't see the pic?

Joey-b: Dito.

Jabo: You suck!

ScaryPotato: Hehe, cool. The fish seems to disappear in the background. But I like the warm lighting.

Hurricane: I thought "So he's gonna add the creature later?" when I first saw it, until I realised this is the creature. I have to say that this one is below your usual stuff, man. The masterful execution saves it!

* pit stop: You kill me! *

Andronicus: Too dark, but the design is really really cool. Also, the approach is nice. There's much defense and offense weaponry on the creatures of this thread, but this one's the only sex-weapon. Me likes!

Lady Medusa: I liitle sketchy, but I wouldn't want to come too close to this tail.

Banck: Made me spit coffee over my expensive keyboard. Thus, no vote for you! :D

Kittay: wip wip.

BlkCelebration: Haha, explosions without fire. This is new. Nice concept.

Krusty: This screams wip. Also, a little boring. Show some action.

Marco Mazzoni: Love it! Full stop.


*-~ oOo ~-*

Ok, now this is what I have to say. I actually had to have a slash twice while writing this, so many cool entries.

I voted cognition's jellyfish. Why? It's different, it's done very well and it scares the hell out of me.

Oh, and thanks for your comments folks. I wanted to comment this cow for days but had no time for it. So here you go.

[Orifice]

Heres the CC delivery! I shall appolagise for my crappo english now so that you dont go wtf when ya read this... Well ENJOY I guess... Whatever them kids call it these days...

Supervlieg: Nice use of worm and cold light there, i like the light alot! though the design isn't really my cupo tea I like it. Skillfully done!

Chuck Wadey: Well done, well done. I like the watercolor-style of it, and I can really imagine how this thing has grown old and strong in the swamps... Good work.

KaWai: I like the concept. A good idea. But I think the lighting might have needed a little more work, a more defined light source. But itsall good. I like the name too, I imagine he is quite exiled. I wouldent wanna make friends with him anyways!:D

Stephan R:I really really like this. Its my cupa tea with cream. A very cool style of it too with them brushes and whatnot. But the creature design is the best, the wings on the far back, the handlike legs, the head, the blue eyes. those wings is just genious. So ya got my vote. good work.:)

Panagos: You managed well on what I guess your goal was. It really looks fearsome and extremely muscular. Though a bit blurry n stuff. In my eyes, the fun in this topic was in the actually exploding part. So alittle dissapointed there, hah.:)

Chuck,mate: Its a real cool concept, I like the stonyness of it. Very good work, though I would loose them photoshop-filters. Makes it a tad flat and cut-out-y. But I do really like it, good work.:)

Cloister: I like the feel of it. the concept is cool too, yes, I really enjoyed that. Though some small, n I mean small crits would be that I wouldav chosen the yellowish color you experimented with. The city in the background looks a bit "fluffylike", which I by experience know is hard to not do. But I like it.

Cowboysurfer: I se where you were going with this, and the idea is better than the result. My main qualm is the lighting which is kinda equally ditributed all over its body, and not from a set direction. But space is really hard to do it seems, I've never done it myself, but it seems like a real bitch. Hard to do lighting that looks right with sucha dark enviroment... Well its not that bad after all, eventhough my crits. Choose an easier concept next time!:)

Rillani: As Fozzy said, I think you could do better. Its all a bit blurry and to little contrast. You are better than this! Thats really a compliment so you should take it as one.

CognitionSb: This is one of my favourites. Its a really good idea, and a genious design. Reallu like that mouth comin out of the "walls", and cool indeed with that bubble. Me like.:D

Orifice: Now thats just dumb. You must be high on marzipan too come up with something that stupid. Flying fish... Pshhh... And that background city looks like it has been drawn by an 8 year old. DAWG! an 8 year old DAWG! try better next time duuuude... You deserve NO votes. N it looks like youre not getting any either, doofus.

Maieth: I really like this, its a cool concept and design! The design is my cup'o'tea all the way, the legs, the eyes, its all good:D

Dragon4lunsh: This is defenitely one of the cooler concepts. That creature looks like some aborted experiment. In a good way. I like his grin alot! He's brutal,wheird,evil,deranged,dangerous and he knows it. good job!:)

MichaelJacks: This is one of the wheirder ones in my eyes. Its a good concept, with the mother dying as food for her kids... You must be a quite evil man comin up with this!:S Would like a colored one though, liked the tripstyle colors on some of your WIPpys.

JakkaS: one o the faves fcourse. Nice warm painting style, and that expression is gold. Enjoyed that alienface you also posted! good thing with the blue details, very good work overall!

Moai: Looks like you could work on it a bit more, mainly shadows and an enviroment would be great. Liked the sketches alot, especially the shark one. keepidupp.

Smoscar: seems to me like a bit of a hasted pic and concept. could work it more, more contrast n all that jazz... not too bad though.

TomGarden: I like the idea here alot. though it seems a bit unlighted. more light and contrast and a bit of rain would be cool. those seamen might be in enough trouble already, so maybe not a rainstorm afterall... :D

Tyranx: One of those almost-got-my-vote:ers. Sweet colors and lighting. Very cool with all that motion n whatnot. One can really feel the panic and panicful shooting. Good work indeed dude.

AspenBooooy: Its a fun idea! I like the illustrative look of it, "its a good thing"!

Joey-b: Also a nice illustrative piece. needs some defined ligh.. but i like his sick-lookin face. queezy.. queezy!

Jabo: I love the eggs! Cool idea and pretty good work too! the bug could use just a little touch ups. but its all good.

ScaryPotato: I think you could've come up with somethin more radical. I do like the angler fish though... Ah wth, its pretty good. though you should fit the creature better to the background...

Hurricane: I really like this, a simple but nice,scary idea. Real moody indeed.

Andronicus: A good idea, but could use polishin. More light to it, you cant really se whats goin on.. its a good idea though. I bet it would be a good one with better lighting.

LadyMedusa. Its a good design, but a bit hasted.I like the kind of dinosaurs you got inspired of, so ofcource i like it. the feathers are nice too. would have chosen more earthy colours with a touch of some bright one though. The classic.

Banck: thats such a hillarious pic. It makes me all worm inside for some reason. Good stuff. I still insist one wanting an expression of horrible pain on its face... that would be le iceing.

Kittay: should have given it more work. Not much time for you there though. backgrouund would be nice, and a defined light source.

BlkCelebration: One can se that the time was short, but thats a fun one too. looks real depressed there, poor critter. thats always fun...?

Krusty: could use more shadows. Keep workin!:)

MarcoMassoni: I like thisone. The idea of the blue explosions is great! looks cool! Hope to se what you come up with in the next round with more time.

[Cloister]

C&C (Not D&D then?? Man, I lack those dices...)

Supervlieg: Beautiful paint-job. Perhaps just a percentage too saturated for the mild background. The lava stream turned out great, but the inside of the big crater looks a bit clean, imo. I still get the impression that the entire creature is leaning over our way. The lower leg-part, for example, is shorter on the closest back-leg than on the furthest one. Otherwise, you managed to get it is serious and amusing in the same time, which I like a lot.
I also very much appreciate the focus on the creature you choose this time… an example that I’ll try to follow. Close to getting my vote this time…

Chuck Wadey: I have already mentioned about all the things I can about your entry. Nice detail, interesting creature, good natural-media-feel, but all the detail together with the rough grainy-ness blurs things together, I think. You’re very much an interesting player here.

KaWaii: Nice angle, but the colours don’t really land on the creature, as it is now… and the transparent wing-like decorations needs more work, I think… Still, a good way forward from your initial sketch. The interaction with the cattle works really fine. (You’re right about the light in my piece. I wish you had seen it earlier… and I can’t believe I missed it myself!!! Thanks!)

Stephan R: Very amusing and warm, despite the death. The pose of the lucky little one is great and the clouds are positively surprising. And I like how the cut through the dead one is done with just a twirl. I must try something colourful and comical as well one day…

Panagos: Good pose, and a good job making the chess-floor dirty enough to go with the beast. The hide/fur is a bit too simple or uneventful for my taste, and the tattoos too scribbly to make me watch them. There is something blurry about the image, which doesn’t really cope with my preferences. The pencils you posted on the other hand are very much my melody.

Chuck, Mate: Nice red-glowing atmosphere, and a nice wavy line-work. The composition is very stable, but the creature looks a bit random imo. (The not a line-texture-thing is still there…)

Cloister: Acceptable entry. Probably a rather good idea and a moderate execution. But you shall have to shape up a great deal, and think things through a lot more, if you’re serious about this cow-thing. (This competition is not only addictive. It is truly inspiring.)

Cowboy surfer: Keep it up, and go easy on the textures.

Rillani: Interesting idea, but the image is very unclear without the description, and feels like almost any tropical underwater-scene. The image is rather blurry. Try to get at least some parts a little sharper – something for the eye to hold on to.

Cognition.sb: Beautiful painting. Nice texture-work. I love the smoothness of it, but it’s too every-day for me. Convincing creature, impressive execution, but a bit simple in its construction and not an eye-catcher in this context…

Orifice: So, it’s a flygande klumpfisk… that explains a great deal. Seriously, I think it’s very imaginative and the golden texture on top together with the lines on the belly did wonders for it. I agree with the others: the background steals a lot from the creature due to contrast and likeness in colour to the fish-ship. Very interesting, yet the same. (I taught art at frölundagymnasiet for four years, and in those years I only met one pupil matching your talents.)

Maieth: A clean design and a clean execution, but the creature doesn’t send me flying.

dragon4lunch: Interesting image in many regards. It has a raw and unpolished look that brings the creature a very prehistoric look. I hope you’ll excuse me for this, but in my eyes you right now seem to be at that stage in a bands life when they make the greatest records, because they are not yet skilled enough to dump ideas that the fully trained artist discards as imperfect, naïve or uncertain. This should be taken as a compliment… and not all artists loose their sting in their fullness. Hang on to it. There is a lot of love and skill in your entry.

Michal Jaecks: (The most fantastic/horrible thought struck me the other day. What if it actually is Michael Jackson posting threads at CA??) Your style is very original and this one I think is really weird. Those horns would look great on any brutal demon, and those eyes fit perfectly on any doll from the muppet show. It’s bizarre, funny and intriguing. If I did not now better, I might ask you for your sexual orientation ;)
Finally: A big applause for snatching the first entry form Superv.

Jakkas: Another great entry. (Btw. I saw your orange-sea-leviathan the other day. Stunningly beautiful, and should have kicked Tyranx’s big time if I had voted then.) With this cow, I’ve already told you: You need more space to the left! I wish you would trust me on this one… The rest is close to perfect, nothing to add… (Almost got my vote.)

Moai: Who can turn down a missile shark? It would have been nice to see some variation in the red, and a little less saturation on the blue things. Good shape, though!

Smoscar: I like the idea with the trap, but the creature looks like the regular thing to me.

Tom Garden: The pose is rather stiff for a long swimmer. I can see you have thought about light, texture, colour and material, but the way you’ve applied them on this one, isn’t really working imo. It’s kind of blurry. I might sound harsh here, but I see you’ve got great potentials, so I know you’ll be all right.

Tyranx: Really took me by surprise this one. The realistic blurs, the angle and the light is all very professional. I’m really tempted to begin trying to ape this, but I think my path’s different. This is mainly a power-and-action piece with a harsh environment. It is right out magnificent, but it is also the opposite of what Jakkas does, with his colourful tenderness and devotion to every inch. In the long run, I’ll most certainly prefer the intimacy of Jakkas’s style… but this time you’ll get my vote for the pure power you wield so elegantly.

Aspenboy: A confident pose, a nice hand-job (sorry; a nice work on its hands), and a funny idea. Painting-wise, it can get better. Some variation of skin-colour would have been nice.

Joey-b: A frog… yes… I think you chose the right colour-scheme but the contrasts turned out a bit too sharp. I like the miniatures better than the big one.

Jabo: Very clear and stylish, It says you know what your doing, but except for the egg-belly, which I like a lot, the creature looks like a common insects, and insects in particular need originality, if they are to stick out

Scary Potatoe: I still love that bait!

Hurricane: A moody light, a clean drawing, and a good idea. Variation-wise it lacks… something.

Andronicus: Too dark, (looks interesting, but I don’t know)

Lady Medusa: If you did this one digitally, you’ve managed to find a good crayon-feel. Perhaps you could add some contrasts? The pose is fine, but it feels rather plastic, and I think it needs some variation in the skin-colour to gain believability.

Banck: Amusing…but… A bird, is it?

Kittay: Looks like a caterpillar with two anuses and a light-bulb. Perhaps the explosions come a bit too close to flowers.

BlkCelebration: I love the evil grin and the colour of the swine! The stalks in the background also draw my eye. Its legs and tail would benefit from some roundness in form

Krusty: Another amusing frog… Is this a conspiracy? You’ve put some work in the skin, which takes it up a level.

Marco Mazzoni: This is very nice. I’ll be on the look-out for your stuff. Looks simple at first, but has some real sensitivity and mystic vibes waved into it. Definitely worth studying… Those are lovely little gargoyles! You know the likeness in shapes of the two bulbs takes off some depth, but I can’t keep my mouth shut.




-----EVERYONE: Thanks for the feedback and the inspiration of this great round! The only thing I might complain about is again that I would like the topic to be guiding our concepts more. HIGHLY explosive is not exactly something I see in all entries here. (Slightly explosive or simply explosive would suit many entries well) Ah, what the heck, I guess I should be more than pleased with seeing so much good stuff being painted…

I might have been a bit harsh in my c&c, but don’t go whining about, shoot right back at me! I’ll probably stay around for some time. Hell, this is funny!!!

Tyranx will get my vote. Jakkas and Supervlieg came close, and Marco drew my attention big-time.

[Nefarious]

Supervlieg: Nice work, I like the effect of the colored lighting against the bumpy skin.

Chuck Wadey: I like the dark style and the detail of the shell near the foreground. The depth of field effect gives some nice punch, but could have been used to better indicate the direction and depth of the second shell in the background.

Tyranx: Love that perspective, it really gives a nice sense of action.

[fooxoo]

Vote vent for hurri, because those things just creep me out .. was between him and Marko Mazzoni whose creatures are damn interesting.

Sweet shit everyone!!!

[Michael Jaecks]

From Cloister:

"Michal Jaecks: (The most fantastic/horrible thought struck me the other day. What if it actually is Michael Jackson posting threads at CA??) Your style is very original and this one I think is really weird. Those horns would look great on any brutal demon, and those eyes fit perfectly on any doll from the muppet show. It’s bizarre, funny and intriguing. If I did not now better, I might ask you for your sexual orientation "

hee hee hee. I got a kick out of this one. So, about knowing better about asking for my sexual orientation... does these mean you know better about my sexual orientation or know better than to ask? ;)

All in all I'm glad I yanked the color-festival I was having with my entry and went monochrome, because now people think its creepier. And that's good. To be perfectly honest, I really thought the bloating part was its belly in the original sketches, but people are reading it as a womb or worse yet exploding bollocks. So I've decided to coin a new word for that bloating organ; its called a "testuterus." Testuterus. When the monthra's testuterus explodes, its not so comley visage grimaces, and its internal ichor evaporates in the blast.

[Jabo]

Sure about those pills you took this morning?

[Stephan_R]

Chuck Wadey would ya make some tutorials some time to show your style please?

Thanks for the response Jabo, Orifice, Kawaii and Cloister! It's appreciated... what I need to do is focus on something that might be cool enough to win AND have fun making it. Right now I'm just having fun :)

[gorillagrin]

Whoa I can't believe how many entries there were for this round. Everyone loves explosions!

My vote had to go to Jakkas since I loved the creature and the 'explosive' nature was immediately apparent in the concept.

Second choice would probably have been Marco for the hilarious concept and nice execution.

Chuck Wadey I loved your creature.. probaby my favorite design out of all of the entries in fact, but I felt I had to read to much into the description to relate it to "highly explosive".

Tyranx, same thing, awesome creature and atmosphere but the topic didn't come across as clearly as it could have.

Nods to cognition.sb and Stephan_R for really nice work as well.

Wish I could comment on all of them but I've got to get back to work!

[Supervlieg]

Supervlieg: You forgot the enviroment, and maybe it would have been better to show the exploding version of your creature as the main pic.

:xpld:Chuck Wadey: Excellent design, and great exection. Without looking a the the title, it would be impossible to label this as highly explosive. Maybe a few of those little balls exploding in the foreground would make this more obvious. The slughouse in the back seems a bit detached, the atmospherics give it a look like its a bit too far away. But killer entry anyway.

:xpld:Kawaii: Nice one, youre growing every week. Just take care of the smudgy look of your pictures. Try working out the details on the things in front more. And be sure to hide those giant brush strokes in the back. And start early to give you more time to tweak and tweak.

:xpld:Stephan_R: Nice and explosive colors. Like I said, the exploding eggs should have been more of a focus. I tend to look only at the bird because of its great coloring. I like the style you choose for this one.

:xpld:Panagos: That is one mean bastard. However, it would be a bit better if you caught him in mid-explosion. The perspective on the floor seems a bit off. The way the horns are in perspective, I would expect more perspective shortening of his hind arm, also that shoulder should dissappear more behind his head. And The fore-arm is a bit too short too.

:xpld:Chuck,mate: Great colors and style, the textures are still a bit too flat, and they make the whole creature flat. The smoke is better, but still needs some work imo.

:xpld:Cloister: Nicely executed, but some things keep nagging me. The forehead of the creature is a bit large, giving it a childlike look. And those arms dont look like they could drag him out all the way he seemed to have walked. Not sure about the shadows, the big shadow of the creature is opposite the shadow of the man to the left. You would think the creature would also have this sharp shadow on the other side.

:xpld:cowboy surfer: Nice but needs more work imo. The creature is a bit flat. Try more shadows and atmospherics to give it a sense of depth and scale.

:xpld:rillani: Looks a bit blurry, try defining your strokes a bit more. The colors are nice, but overall they come across as a bit flat.

:xpld:cognition.sb: I like the route you took with this one, yet it doesnt convince as a highly explosive being. Nice work on the transparencies though.

:xpld:Orifice: Flying fish ahoy, nice idea. But as a creature it's a bit crazy. How come fish decided to fly and eat metal? Also the top that blows off could have been more bulging on the frontal fish. It's head looks quite narrow. Nice details in your sketch though.

:xpld:Maieth: Living needle bomb, nice one. I would love to have seen this sucker in mid explosion. You could have added a few more highlights to give it this special bug-like shielding. Check some refs to see how those highlights work.

:xpld:dragon4lunch: Nice creature, I like the dumb look you gave it. Goes really well with the image of an animal living on creatures that are stupid enough to eat its poop. However, you seem to struggle with the background, and this distracts a bit from the piece. It would be better to settle for a single color, or to stretch the background to fill up the whole rectangle instead of this semi circle. And please dont ever use photoshop beveled arrows in such a natural looking sketch again.

:xpld:Michael Jaecks: Wow, that sucker is Bad, A real Thriller. Its gonna be hard to beat it. It has a very Human Nature, but is still convincing as a creature. To bad you stuck with a monochrome version. It would have like to seen the colored version taken to the max.

:xpld:JakkaS: Great work, I like the signature "Jakkas open mouth, full set of teeth and tongue out" expression you gave it. The backside seems a bit underdeveloped in comparison to the marvellous head and limbs.

:xpld:Moai: You should stop eating, or going out or whatever, and spend that money on a tablet. You'll put it to good use. The creature looks good, but the way the brushstrokes are all very much the same show the use of only a mouse.

:xpld:smoscar: Nice idea, try concentrating on getting sharper strokes, and more variation in your colors. Add some shadows.

:xpld:Tom Garden: Nice creature, but a bit smudgy in execution. The tail is a bit hard to read, should fade more to the background colors imo. I think this one should have been made a bit more high res. The water wrinkles are unconvincing and distracting.

:xpld:Tyranx: Wow, great piece. Excellent placing of details to even out the fast strokes. I like the dynamic shot. The creature doesnt really look explosive though. The top of its head is a bit hard to read, does it go to the back, or is it really wide? The smoke seems to be going in the wrong direction, even if its to show of the gunblasts.

:xpld:aspenboy: Nice creature, and I like the little explanations. A bit more highlighting would make it pop more.

:xpld:Joey-b: Spontaneous explosing frogs, how can I not like it. Good one. Try working in higher res next time so you can add more detail and texture. Oh and no more self voting you naughty boy.

:xpld:Jabo: Nice creature. There is very little to crit here. Maybe vary a bit more in the colors of the body.

:xpld:ScaryPotato: Nice one, but the colors need a little more intensity to come at the viewer. And some more blue hues would emphesize the underwater setting:

:xpld:Hurricane: nice piece, I would think the foreground balls need more color variation. Although they have much detail the most frontal area is a bit bland because its a the same pink hue.

:xpld:Andronicus: Nice one, but on dark monitors most of the detail gets lost. Also the back could have been bigger, and more explosive like looking. The head is hard to read.

:xpld:Lady Medusa: Nice creature. Try some shadows on the creature, and vary the colors accordingly. The background is too distracting because of the big strokes and makes it look unfinished. Either go for a plain color (not white) or give it more love.

:xpld:Banck: Nice and simple. I like it, even if the description could have been a little more extensive.

:xpld:Kittay: Looks okay, but needs more work. Try some references of worms, and try to look at their skin to see whats going on with highlights, reflections and translucensy. Try to replicate that with a few speedpaints.

:xpld:BlkCelebration: Heheh, nice detailed creature. He certainly he looks like he ate too much. Maybe a some veins, or cracks in the skin would have made the imminent explosion that more obvious.

:xpld:Krusty: This basically looks like a frog with some big ass mick jagger lips. You could have taken this concept a bit farther and shown us something a bit more, ehm, unexisting. The piece could do with some shadows and color variation.

:xpld:Marco Mazzoni: Probably best idea concept wise. The colors look like they could be blended a bit more. Oh and those balls better be light as feathers, otherwise those little wings could never lift those creatures.

Wow, a lot of entries this time. If this keeps on, these feedback sessions will take days to write up. Its hard to decide who to vote for. The best executed pieces dont seem very explosive, and some explosive ones could have been a tad better. The best of both worlds is Jakkas, so he's got my vote.

[carotello]

HOLYMOTHEROFGOD!!! Tyranx, you sonofbitch. You had to sneak up on us all like that and drop a big gazoonga like that. I had to change my panties after I saw it.
It's coming! and little man in trailer can't do nuthin' about it with that pansy machine gun! That's great! Great beasty, and as always great execution, but you already know that.
Chuck Wadey was my next choice, but his entry is a little quieter, and maybe my current need for excitement unfairly allowed Tyranx piece to snatch my vote away. Chuck's is a beautiful design and very original creature, and I love the colors, and the execution. I have to admit your pieces are always just a tad too busy for my personal taste, but this one was just right...

[hurricane]

my vote went to Tyranx´(supprised?) for the heavy action feel in the scene. the creature design isn't super good, but it sure does the trick!

second choice was Jakkas, good stuff !!

thank you all for the feedback and i feel bad not giving super critique...next time!

personally i really enjoyed inventing this planet killer but hey, everyone has their own taste hehe

thanks for the votes!
<3 !

[Kittay]

Well, I voted for Orifice because I thought the concept was great and the picture was quite well done, too. I didn't vote for myself yay!

ANYWAYS, my picture WAS finished for this but I hope it's ok if I intend to keep working on it for practice? Just to clear any misunderstandings up before they happen.

I had to edit it because I just not noticed I had other crits! And thanks so much, it helped alot! I WILL keep working on the picture, too on my own, I think.

Supervlieg: Thanks for the crit, I think I'll work on that and maybe work on the piece more on my own.

ScaryPotato:Yeah, I'm still learning especially with colors and I'll definately work on my sketchiness.

KawaiiThanks! I will.

Cloister:I'll take note of that. And that was kind of the idea? Atleast the two anuses. And I figured it looked like a lightbulb, but I kind of liked that about it.

Orifice Yeah. I didn't have too much time, I was really worried I was going to miss the deadline so I kind of threw it together the night before. And I will work on that!

Jabo: Hah >.<

Stephan R.:Thanks, yeah, I was pretty rushed.

[Moai]

Stephan_R- I noticed when I was doing it that there's a definite resemblance to a nerf football. Hey, if a design works, it works! Simplicity was my goal when making this creature, both from a plausable design point of view (complicated shapes don't make good projectiles), and so that I could finish it by the deadline! I'm a slow worker.
Jabo- Sorry about the lack of a background. Like I told Stephan, this digital art stuff takes me a while, so I wanted to devote all my time to the creature. Thanks for the comments!
Orifice- I'm glad you liked my sketches! I actually did spend a lot of time on the final picture, but once again, that's probably due to my working speed. Some more time would have been nice, but you know...life.:blah:
Cloister- The "blue things" are its eyes. Note to self: make eyes look like eyes! And next time I do a single-color creature, I'll be sure to make the colors more varied. Thanks for the crits and compliments.
Supervlieg- Thanks, and I'll get that tablet, I promise. Birthday money is still coming in. If I don't have it by the end of September, I'll throw the money down to get one, even if everyone west of the Mississippi except me has fallen deathly ill and the entire economy depends on my paycheck. :P

Thanks so much for the feedback! I'll go through the list with my own comments and critiques when I get the chance. See you next round!

[Kitiker]

Stunning contributions this week. I've been a huge fan of COW since its inception and was hoping to finally contribute this time. I'll do all I can for next week.
Had to vote for Chuck Wadey- just a beautiful illustration. I'm seconding Stephan_R's request for a walkthrough, I love the style.
Wish I had time to discuss them all. Good job folks.

[Bruce Jensen]

Michael J: I've got to enter the color over tone debate that your piece spawned. My 2 cents is that working color over a monochrome painting is a perfectly good technique. The main advantage is in nailing down a good value structure to the painting. Keep in mind though that most saturated color exists as a mid-tone though. Your painting for this week is either very dark or very light. I suspect that was part of the difficulty in getting the color to really sing, and led to some of the dodge/burn multiply/(divide?!)
commentary. Personally I like to leave a little room at the extreme light and dark ends of the value spectrum for accents.


Voted JakkaS. Always brilliant rendering, and a nice use of the concept.

Chuck Wadey makes a great 2nd. If only the 'explosive' nature was more evident in the piece.

Wish I could offer more commentary- but it's back to work for me.

[Chuck Wadey]

First, I don't think I've ever seen one of these votes be so tightly contested by so many people. We're kicking ass - congratulations everybody. Second, writing comments to everyone has taken me almost as long as doing the painting to begin with - I'm cutting my comments short in the future. Everyone who wrote something to everyone else deserves a vote added to their tally. Third, I'm planning to go M.I.A. in the next few weeks while I get some "real" work done. I'll be back - see ya soon...

Voted... still deciding between Orifice and Marco Mazzoni; both far-out creatures well painted. Of course it could go to many (Supervlieg, Stephan_R, Cloister, JakkaS, Tyranx, Marco...a few standouts).

Supervlieg - Smooth. The black and orange is very striking and matching the background color is crafty. Looks like he just lives in the forum.

Talk about quadrupling your workload, but I'd love to see a group of these guys with different sized humps like you described. The grizzly old guy with the largest hump would be amazing to paint, you could do anything with the shape of his back - just imagine it!

I just read Jabo's comment about painting up the bottom thumbnail and I have to agree. That might have been more awseomer.

>Maybe a few of those little balls exploding in the foreground

Yeah, I put an explosion in the background but no one notices because it's so light. Cloister was the first to mention the back shell detachment and he was right. Now I've heard it 3 times - I should have fixed it.

KaWaii- Too bad you took down the earlier drawing, I wanted to go back and compare. You changed the birds angle, right? If I'm remembering it right, the bird's structure was easier to understand in the original drawing. Did it have two sets of wings before or is that new? Also, I can't tell if the wings up top are supposed to be indicating transparency or motion blur. The bird's face is really mean, though. It makes me laugh how much he wants to kill things.

>One thing though, I can't see how big the snail should be in your picture.

I know, huh! I told me wife that I wanted to paint in a ten year old kid holding one of the eggs up to his ear and shaking it - but she said it would ruin the picture. Ultimately it just came down to time.

Gkstudios - I just noticed your drawing in the other thread. Too bad you couldn't finish, it was starting out pretty dern cool.

Stephan_R - I'm still amazed by how well you got the glowy eggs to pop on such a light and saturated background. It's really a pleasure to sit and look at. I'm wondering if you ever flipped the canvas horizontal while working on this because the squish of the bird's face seems to have a little trouble. I know it's intentionally flat but I think I'm picking up a little unintentional skew. Maybe it's too slight to mention, but I did - sorry. And awesome brushes, did you just make them as you went along?

And, Gack! I just realized that I voted for you last week. You're vote today better not have been payback. Thanks anyway and I'll print you an art book from my inkjet (not really though - I don't have enough paintings. Why do you think I'm doing all these activities?)

>make some tutorials?

I've saved a lot a steps from my recent entries. I'll have to put them together in some incremental form for mass accessibility.

You're having fun and stocking your portfolio (that's the important part). And you could have won last week.

Panagos - This guy is cool, for sure. My problem is that the only place we see that tight hard edge is on the "tattoo"(for lack of a better word) and on the floor. I think cleaning up a few more edges on the arms and horns could really pull this piece together. Also, take another look at his face mirrored to make sure it's solid, I'm not 100% sure.

Chuck,mate - My mate. It's hard not to comment on the flat texture which you say was an error and you must be tired of hearing about it - but I think a little wash in some of the shadows and a few opaque highlights could easily knock the flatness back to the point where no one sees the texture anymore. But yours are always cool anyway and you do so many of these weekly activities - so whatever. Keep at it. How can your name be both Chuck AND Pat? I'm so confused...

Cloister - I already gave you my 2 cents - and it's still a cool painting. I'll work on keeping you interested. You gave me some good suggestions that I've yet to act upon. Thanks.

Cowboy Surfer - Alls I'm saying is that if they are fins I'd have positioned them higher so that they don't look like they're walking. And if they are legs - why are they legs? Otherwise a huge rocky creature eating stars with glowy vents on its back is awesome. Smokey fire breath nicely done as well.

Rillani - I already said how soft it is. Not sure if you changed anything but it's still pretty soft. It looks very photographic when I look at it out of the corner of my eyes. Maybe the front two "goldfish" are the only things that really need a hard edge - but we need to focus somewhere.

Cognition.sb - Great painting skills. The membrane material looks right on. Very believable animal. Not that exciting. Maybe this was a good case for submarines, scuba divers and manatees in the background. Or an explosion.

Orifish - You deserve some of the criticism you're getting about not fantasy animal enough (i.e. - just a normal fish head). But this is so off the wall and insane that it's one of my favorites. In fact, the perch head just makes it creepier. I may have to vote for this one. What's this thing you keep saying about cups of tea?

Maieth - It makes me wonder if all your work is so graphic. Could work well on a t-shirt or, of course, in a videogame. I might like to see more detail in the line work with either a smaller pen or larger drawing. Eh (shrug), but it's cool anyway.

Dragon4Lunch - This is such a bizarre creature that it definitely deserves consideration. Your painting feels, sooo much, like you built it in clay and then photographed it. It screams stop-motion animation. I guess that means that your painting is very volumetric with great form but feels unreal at the same time. Or it's so real that it's unreal.

Michael Jaecks - You have the right mix of hard and soft so it's easy to tell exactly what's going on. His inner elbow is the only place where it looks unresolved and hard to see what the form is doing. The leg problem is just from not being sure what you were going to do in the drawing - you rendered it fine even if the position is strange.

I'm unsure how I should read the eye because I can see it as one eye with 3 pupils and it looks pretty cool, or I can see it as 2 cartoon eyes and then it's a little silly. Not sure which it's supposed to be. I really like your write,-up as well.

Before when I was talking about burn & color overlays, etc.: I wasn't commenting on your particular painting or criticizing your color, I was just replying to the general topic.

I'll give you extra points for inventing the word "testuterus", though I hope never to use it again or ever hear it spoken.

Jakkas - This is so beautiful again, I thought you were going to take all of the votes. Because of the leaves and palette, it can be the creature of Fall. Now you need to do a Spring, Summer, and Winter. A Jakkas calendar would be sweet.

Moai - I'd be curious to see some of the technology involved in your world. How is the Torpedofish released? I want to see wrecked imperial submarines. I know all of that stuff is off-topic but there's not much to say about the fish. I looks like it could do its job well. Maybe being red makes too easy to see and avoid or shoot. I give you my sympathy for having to use a mouse.

Smoscar - Next time go crazy with your critter. Don't be so safe. Sure the idea of an exploding crab is far out, but the visual, so far, is pretty normal.

Tom Garden - The tail could use some atmosphere to push it back where it intersects the head. I think creating that depth is the most fun thing to do in painting - so enjoy. It's a cool looking creature that could use just a little tightening up. With the fishermen, your painting tells a story. It's cool.

Tyranx - I'll take this opportunity to rest. You don't need any advice. No, I'll axe you a few questions instead. Among many other things, your selective use of blur is so effective. Are you just brushing it on by hand wherever you want it? Any fancy blur tool? I tend to shy away from blur because it has to be done just right (or just not the same all over). Tips? Also, your painting has speed (the good kind) all over it. Did you paint that as fast as I think you did?

I would like to stroll through your .psd if that's still an option. I'm guessing I won't see many layers. Hmmm?

Aspenboy - Since his stomach/chest area is such large green-gray mass, it's a nice opportunity for subtle hue shifts or color variance as the surface curves in different directions. For example, go more yellow around the top / shoulder plane - like you did around the mouth, and more blue on the lower side. Too much of this color shift would be nasty, but just a little adds interest. Thanks for the compliment and vote.

Joey-b - You can definitely handle the paint (I like the subtle hues in the background), but next time give us something completely different instead of turning one creature we know into another creature we know.

Jabo - There's already a lot of action in this painting, but if you wanted to kick it up a notch, you could rotate the camera angle in order to see the eggs and explosion drop away behind the bug. Right now the motion blur indicates that the bug is moving forward with incredible speed and the eggs and explosion are keeping up with him. Having all these elements in line tends to de-emphasize the action, I think. That said, bug himself is nicely done.

> If it wasn't for the absence of explosion in the picture...

There actually is a light explosion in the background on the left side - but it's an afterthought because my wife made me put it in. I don't blame you for missing it. Now where's my vote?

ScaryPotato - Very nice drawing/painting. Very nice writing. We're probably just wanting some creature that's more fantastic (fantasy-ish, make believe). I'm not looking up a picture of an angler fish but your painting is pretty much what I remember them looking like.

Before I read your write-up, I thought that the exploding victim fish was a part of the A P Bombus. Now I realize that it's a separate fish and it's being attacked. You could have had the two fishes physically separated and the explosion would have still read as an attack and the action would have come across more clearly.

Hurricane - Very nice painting. The tight little embryo veins are my favorite part. Unfortunately, the creature reads so much like a landscape that you'll probably take a hit on the vote count. I'm sure your portfolio doesn't care about that.

Andronicus - Cool critter, nicely painted, very moody, almost photographic. It's so dark that it's hard to make out what we're looking at. I think we'd all like it a lot more if we could see and understand it better.

Lady Medusa - I think someone else already said that the feathers up top are cool. They are cool. The drawing is solid, you have edge control - I guess I'd work on the color. All the colors seem to be at the same saturation level: high. You can go grayer in a lot of places, it doesn't all have to be so
pumped up. Save the saturation for where you think it's important - it'll feel more sophisticated.

Banck - Such a hilarious composition. The whole time I'm thinking "what did it just blow up?" With the explosion cropped in the bottom corner, I'll never know. Funnier that way I suppose.

Kittay - I see you've drawn the catopollis from an exact side view because only one set of legs is visible. Let's see you try to rotate a creature and draw it from a more informational angle. I'm afraid that the exposed eyeball could get damaged by the rear end explosions. I guess that's why it's on the opposite end, huh?

BlkCelebration - What do you have against the Chamiz? They were such a nice species and met such a cruel end. I want to tell that guy in the background to stop eating.

Krusty - This guy is very well painted with nice subtle hue shifts (especially in the stomach/pouch area). I'd like to see a stronger edge (more value contrast) where the forearm meets the rear section because it's blending together a little right now. A crazier design would be nice next time because this creature's uniqueness is being expressed more verbally than visually.

Marco Mazzoni - Beautiful. Yours is definitely vote worthy. Nice touch where blue particles go green as they come out from under the shadow of the explosion. An original creature design expertly painted - what more can we ask for? Great name as well.

Andronicus - Sorry I didn't notice your comments in the other thread until now. For this guy I started with color right off the bat, first laying in the warm watercolory wash in the background and then transparently adding the cools in the slug. And so on and so forth. A lot of times I do go grayscale
for the first quarter of the painting - but I think it's best to start with color if you can. I did most of the painting in one sitting of 4 hours-ish (same time spent as in this comment novel), then kept fiddling around with it at the end for a couple hours a day for 3 days (that end part seemed to drag out
too long because I felt like I was basically finished after the first sitting). Sometimes it's hard to stop. Look at Tyranx - looks like he whipped it out in about 15 mins.

Bruce Jensen - >color over a monochrome painting is a perfectly good technique.

Agreed. I just think you should be aware of some of the possible pitfalls of the technique so that you can avoid them while you're doing it.

[Tyranx]

Thanks for all the kind words guys ;) :bashful:
Hey Chuck Wadey, I have had some trouble trying to get the damn psd up on my site. Its at work so I'll have to wait until tomorrow to try again. You'd be surprised how many layers there are, for this piece I did ALOT of experimenting, and one of those experiments was the use of blur, which if you look through all my other work, it is missing.

I think it took me 5 hours overall, my home comp was slowing down alot too though. Some tips... hmmm, when using blur keep in mind that the point that is furthest away from the joint will be more blurred. (a mans hand as he throws a baseball for example) I tried to keep the blur to a minimum overall, I'm still new to it, so I didn't want to overdo it.

Well I hope that explains some stuff. Loved your piece btw, its still a tossup between you and JaKKaS, I'll decide later. :)

Carotello - lol thanks ;) sorry about the panties.

[purplerose]

Some really nice entries and concepts to boot, but I voted for Supervlieg because I really like the fact that their attitudes are highly explosive as well as their appearance.

@Michael Jaecks: I wonder how long it would take for the Cynabians to become extinct?

[KaWaii]

Crowded in here ^_^. Let's move on to Greek Crawler !

Cognition.sb:
Yup, I read you description. A great idea and perfectly clear to me :) Dun wrry bout it too much. Just though maybe an action scene would really bring out the "Highly explosive" feel.

Moai:
O, ok, looking forward to your new piece :)

Stephan_R:
Thnx, I'll keep it up.

Jabo:
Yes, I really regret not putting enough time into it. I'll convince you next time !!

Orifice:
I see what you mean, will try keeping an eye on it thx.

Cloister:
Thx ! ^_^. And I'll try to be more active on the WIP's.

Supervlieg:
Great tips ! I'll help a lot thank you !

Chuck Wadey:
Thanks for the CC's. Maybe I should have included the WIP. (Supervlieg style :P) the WIP:

http://www.kawais-domain.com/Arts/Exile1.0.jpg

[aspenboy]

Whoa! Thanks to everyone who gave me any comment! I'm still surprised how much can I learn from CA forums, and how helpful the CA community is.

Sorry for not commenting every single work, I was short on time past few days. Besides, my english really sucks, so it's hard for me to give any constructive comments :D

[Maieth]

60 votes, 35 commetns, lol. No fair, i wanted to thank te randomer that voted me :) didnt realy expect one to be honest.

K, crits:

Supervlieg Really nice, one of the best. Hard to find fault, but if crits are wanted im sure they can be found: I think theres just a couple of things really, 1stly the horn/beard i cant really make out which it is, but im thinking a horn for its solidity, in which case im not sure it shouldnt pick up more ight from beneath the creature. Other point is the legs a=on the farside, their lighting seems a bit too solid for me, especially on the backs of the feet,and maybe a little sketchy at the top of the back right thigh.
Still, great concept, beautifully rendered, and the lighting is spot on otherwise.

Chuck Wadey Beautifully renederd, love that watercolour style. Cant say that highly explosive comes across though wihtout the description (hypocrit, i know)

Kawaii Nice idea, i think the background is too bright. A strong point of your idea was the colours of the bird and in this final i think it comes across as a very bright and colourful piece, instead of a very bright and colourful bird. Mybe tone down the background a bit to bring out the creautre, and perhaps a little bit of macro work on the explosion down on the ground.

Stephen_R Pretty one. Makes me smile. Particlularly like the less realistic sky. tis nice. Eggs aren't immediately obvious as eggs. Maybe a bit bigger? colourful to say the least :D

panagos Nice to see someone go for the highly explosive temerament. As far as crit goes, maybe tighten up the horns? The body is nicely deatailed and fairly sharp but some bits, the horns, the hair seema abit blurry in comparrison.

Chuck,mate Definately fills the title. Good lighting,nice concet and good render. Going to bring back an earlier comment and mention the back leg, i think its just a bit too flat. a slight shadow or highlight, maybe around the knee, could help it out?

Cloister I'm going to be a pain and just go with supervlieg. He already said what i noticed. Except the shadowsa, though an improvement, i dont think they take anything away form the piece. From wips, i think i liked the earlier headdesign a little more.

Cowbuy Surfer Blending. Good creature, good background, but the two don't quite fit. You could have almost poasted him on top. Im ot sure what the remedy to this would be, but for the moment i think th creature stands out a little too much. (sorry to be so picky)

Rillani A ncie idea, somethign you expect might actually be found in the unchartered oceans. Looks a bit blurry, maybe some harder brushes? Also the background of the sea is too flat i think. A bit lighter at the top, well, paler, and darker at the bottom i think, to make it a little more aquatic.

cognition Lovelly render. I really like the amorphous shape of the outer jelly. I think if i'd done it i'd have ended up wth somethign more symetrical, too symetrical. So well done on picking that up. Great idea, great render. Um, faults... The sea floor? looks very close to the earlier WIP, where other parts have benefitted form some really good polishing up. Close one for the vote.

orifice nice idea well portrayed. Very, um, differnt. But it looks great anywho. For a crit, i'd say teh buildings are a bit too rough.the near and distant ones are ok, but some in the midground are a bit too sketchy, one or tow lines have ended up as curves and they stand out. Good work on the heads, the change and improvements really worked out.

maieth (yeh, thats me) needs a background, however simple. And highlights.
(( chuck w: funny u should mention the graphuical look, it seems to be the curse of my computer work, i am, by nature, a sketcher. work always starts out the same, but end up looking hard edged and graphic))

Dragonforlunch Have to say, im not keen on the backgound. the random blue blob that was there before kind of worked better. The construction of the image ledas the eye to the volcanoe when we choul be drawn to the creature i think. He's great though. really unusual shape, it looks brilliant. And the carcass adss something. Just the right level of detail fo us to take it in wihtout it drawing too much attention.

Michael Jaecks Creepy.Not sure on the monotone look.Good idea though, and the positioning is fine (too fine? i mean, how the hell you referance pregnant horned monsters anyway?) Maybe his (her?) eyes look abit too comic? On a dark and serious looking piece, they look a bit too jokey. (althgough have just clocked they could be nostrils and his dface is all screwed up in pain or something.)

jakkaS You're a git. Brilliant render. Jakkas has won too many of these and should be banned ;) (jks)
Actually, i can find somethign to crit.Its those legs again. Front right leg in the background, it just looks too sketchy.Doesn't fir with the level of detail in the rest of the piece. Very close on the vote.

Moai nice conept and good render, but i'm not sure on the colours. For a large sea creature it seems a bit too bright. Somehting muted and more, fishy, looking would have looked better i think. particularaly good shading on the tail

Smoscar Good idea, but the final looks a bit rushed. Perhaps this is the low contrast? there seem to be no straong shadows anywhere, maybe lok at that: makeing highleights and shadows stronger.

Tom Garden A creature not intentionaly explosive...nice. I like the concept and the design, not sure on the finishing of the render. some areas looka little blurred or maybe rushed. better than most, but ive seen you do better still in past entries.

tyranx blame others that you didn't get the vote ;) it was close, but once someone pointed out that extra joint in the foreleg, i cant stop noticing it. other than that, its great.

Aspenboy Definately one for the gaming world. Nice idea, nice render. I kond of like the softer, simpler look to it, like it could be an illustaration in a childs book (that sounds bad, lol, its really not). Nice detailing on the hands and, um, tail. Honestly, for the chosen style, i cant find fault.
For a concept illustration, maybe a touch too soft around the edges, but as i say, thats a stylistic choice on this one i think.


k, going to speed it up, am takign too long


joey b Darker backgournd is a definate improvement. Touch up the rendering on the main image maybe? also, Concept is maybe too close to nature in so far as it looks like an ordinary frog to most extents.

jabo great colouring. Blue vs firey always works wonders when its done right. Nice concept. crit would be that the design of the head is pretty unclear.

scary potatoe Beautifully smooth, clean render. nice. For me, its too close to somethig that already exists in nature though. Subtle change of lighting on the background is really good.

hurricane really really creepy. but great. close one for the vote. my only crit is the black stems/roots in the top left corner, they seem a bit too stark and don't merge well tiht he 'grapes' it make sit lok a little like a dead tree that is in the foreground instead.

Andronicus nicely lit. parts of the creature could benefit from a lighter composition i think. Too much is hidden by shadow.

lady medusa nice idea, but the render isn't top notch. I think maybe the background has somethign to do with it, its a ver y rough, bright surrounding and looks rushed. a background for the sake of having one.

banck simple, cute, nice. pretty explosion, nice rough clouds. I think the face needs work.

kittay very sketchy. could do with being a lot more ploished, smoothed out. And it has a lightbulb over its head...? (i know its not goin to be meant to be a lightbulb, but always remeber to to take into consideration waht other people might see)

BlkCelebration i love the piggy face, but the limbs and hand could have maybe done with the same attention

krusty I think the big point is that it's not immediately apparent that the animal is exploive.volatile. careful not to rush the background too. I suck at them and took the easy route of not doing one, but if you feel your piece needs one, give it a bit of attention. here simply sharpening up the tips of the grass blades would have cahnged things a lot. ;)

marco mazzoni last one that was close for the vote. I love the name, made me smile in a schoolboy kinda way ( fro none brits, gonads=balls. blue balls, well, look it up, its a slang term. funny anyway)
Nice render and pallette, and that explosion is just beautiful. Great concept. Maybe would benefit from a little more time and attention to just polish and sharpen it up. But really cant find any glaring faults. My second choice i think

But the winner is Supervlieg. Well done matey.

Thanks for the feedback guys.

[Joey-b]

hmm i cant choose between supervlieg, jakkas and chuck wadey so i voted me haha

Kawaii - hurray i won i won haha thanks

Stephan R - thx, yeah thats why im doing this.. to make me push my creativity thank you

Jabo - hmm.. i can

Orifice - haha, hmm yeah

Cloister - u mean like to high contrast? or to much black. well glad u like the small ones though hehe

Supervlieg - hehe glad u like it, yeah im workin on higher res atm.. but my comp is not 2... well it kinda slows down to much.
and uh.. Oops fore the self-vote hehe aww well.. i just couldnt choose, great piece u did btw

Chuck wadey - yeah i could've done more now that i think of it.. ill just have to try harder next time, thx for takin ur time

Maieth - thank you, good crits ill keep m in mind for my creek crawler hehe

.. i hope to make some time to comment on all u guys sorry if i dont.. but damn so many works.. respect for those who do

[Cloister]

Joey-b: What I think I meant was, that it looked as if you had raised the contrasts, which resulted in a too dark image (except for the highlights)... I'm on a portable computer at work right now though, and as I look at your pic on this one, and in a light room, it looks more greyish... and of course I cannot know what you did... It was more of an overall feeling, really.

[Michael Jaecks]

Hey guys, thanks for all the crits. I take it all to heart, and try to assimilate everything thats said.

One thing I might try in the next round is finishing in black and white and then adjusting the brightness and contrast so theres not too much light and too much dark before I start to color. Then as I do the overpainting phase, I can ratchet that up where it needs to be without killing the color.

One more question: can anyone talk about the color profiles they use in their software? Do you use cymk or rgb, and do you restrict yourself to the web-only color profiles or use all the colors your software supports and let the web read it as it will...? I really would like ot get that aspect under control. I'm tired of hearing my ideas of taupe and mauve blind people. ;) I've tried calibrating the monitor, but truth be told its as bright and as contrasty and saturated as it will go, and things still look more muted to me than most others.

The silver lining to that cloud is that I can tell you all without exception, your colors look great all the time. :)

[Orifice]

GKstudios - hey thanks for the comment!

Kawai - Its nice to know that people laugh at what I do. thank you sir.

Stephan R - Yes, thank you alot. I thought that it was pretty clear atleast...

Jabo - Yeah, the situation was critical for a time there... I partly agree with you on the other fish. I dislike the head of it, but kinda like the rest. and thank you for kinda liking!:D

Cloister - Flygande klumpfisk ohoy! And thank you for the nice comment. yeah, the gold and lines worked out good. I agree with the background thing, but I just like earthcolored cityscapes too much.:) (woa, thats cool! didya teach artstudents or others there?)

Supervlieg - Haha I know, I didnt really solve the eating problem in a fantastic way. I came up with the diving-exploding-thing first and though it was a cool idea. hard to come up with a good reason why they would like to die once a week...:) Good crits.

Chuck Wadey - Yeah I know, its a bit unaltered, the head. But Im really glad you appriciate the crazyness of it:) Thanks alot for the vote too! And yes hahah, I wrote the comments 3 at night in my timezone after startin school 8:20 in the morning. Tiredness makes me loose 70% of my vocabulary. hah, wont happen again.;) Btw, writing my comments only took me like an hour. Thank you for takin time to wright that much!

Maieth - Thanks alot for liking. And indeed, the cityscape could use some work. I hasted it through a bit and then told my self time n time again to do it next. never did. oh well.

Yes, and thank you: Chuck, evildisco, Kittay, Matdesign, Torison for voting! And anyone else who possible have not vpted yet! Hoorah!

[fughi from yuggoth]

votet for chuck wadey because only he and dragon4launch had realistic concepts which are really explosive and i like the idea that the unfertilized eggs explode more than kot exploding....what happens if the creature eats the wrong stuff and the chemical reaction is not the same as usually or maybe explode even in the stomach?in contrast the eggs maybe can change after a few seconds or minutes giving time for security.
like the round,but the topic was really difficult ,so many of us don't really have a fitting concept and look at me, i have nothing done that was likeable enough for me to post ;-)
many have made good images but the ideas don't really seem believable to me
also i like panagos solution,hope u'll get some votes:)

[Moai]

Chuck Wadey- My orignal pencil sketch had the torpedofish pictured here in the bottom half of the picture with two imperial submarines coming towards us from the background, and several other torpedofish streaking towards them and exploding. But I knew I'd never finish that in time, so I cut it down to just a depiction of the creature itself. But you want to know more about the technology of their world? The truth is, so do I! I created a world with many interesting possibilities, I think. What I can tell you is that the orignal "shark" from which the torpedofish derived is a much lumpier, more sluggish creature (I included a little sketch of it below). The torpedofish are bred by a "queen" creature that looks very similar to the original shark, only much larger and more bloated. When first born, the torpedofish have an open mouth cavity and lack the melon-shaped head of an adult, which comes from the buildup of explosive chemicals within the cranium. As for how they released, I don't really know! Perhaps there's a system of underground tunnels and release sites. Thanks for your sympathy about the mouse, though. It's actually not that bad if you know the shortcut keys, but like Supervlieg commented, each brushstroke looks pretty uniform. Trust me, once I get a tablet and some more practice, you'll get your wrecked imperial submarines!
http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b320/metalukesurfer/orig.jpg
Maieth- Thanks for the compliment on the tail! I wasn't too sure about it myself. Anyway, the creature itself actually isn't very large. I imagined it coming in sizes from three to six feet in length, but that's not apparent in the picture or description. Both you and Chuck seemed a bit unsure of the color. I didn't really think about it, I just made it the color I felt it should be. I'll have to think about that.

Okay, enough about my own piece! Time for some critiques and comments!

Supervlieg- It's a good piece, technically perfect, but for some reason I don't like it as much as your other creature designs. However, I think the blue-green light coming from the left is beautiful, and its glowing anus was a nice touch. That was a weird thing to say.
Chuck Wadey- You have a very rich, beautiful style, and a recognizable one, too. When I saw this, I said, "Hey, that looks like the same guy who did that squid theif over and ChoW." And of course, it was. Your entry is a very strong contender in this week's vote. I like the "motherly touch" bit in the description. The only flaw I can find is that the other shell spiral fades to much into the background.
KaWaii- The idea was good, but the picture is only okay, sorry. :[ The bird has every color on the rainbow, which, contrary to what one might think, does little to stimulate visual interest. The colors are bleeding into each other and into the background, and I don't know what those pale red outlines are. Are they another pair of wings that you didn't have time to finish? This is a harsh crit, and I'm sorry. But besides all my harshness, the painting really isn't that bad at all, considering the complexity of what you depicted.
Stephan_R- Several things in this picture give me joy. That spiral cloud brush is awesome, and subtle enough not to get in the way. The bird's expression is another, a combination of weariness, serenity, humor, and motherliness. Another is its arms, just folded up against its chest. Yet another is that little salamander peeking over the hill on the right. Lovely painting! The only nitpick I can find has to do with the longer feathers on the outside edges of its wings, which don't look as good as the other, smaller feathers. Oh well, it's nothing to worry about.
Panagos- Looks like something from a redesign of The Beauty and the Beast. I like the little blue lines. My only crit is that having both of his forelegs so close together makes him look a bit awkward and unbalanced.
Chuck, mate- I'm a bit torn about the design of the creature. I like its head and front legs, but its rear legs are a bit too contorted and club-like. Also, the papery texture over it has a flattening affect, and its rear leg isn't nearly far away enough to be that faded. Besides that, it's a well-done pic! That explosion in the background looks really nice.
Cloister- I said it before and I'll say it again: your description is the utmost in eloquence. The picture is good, too. One can't help but get a Frank Herbert vibe when looking at it. It's a shame you didn't revise its leg joints or colorize the explosions, though. But besides that, it's a very nice piece. Its face is quite alien, yet human enough for me to have empathy for it.
Cowboy Surfer- Your creature looks more like a young Pokemon than a supernova-devouring space monstrosity. The rendering is too soft and fuzzy, and those stripes on its back could have been more irregular. However, that's a well-done nebula in the background, and the creature really isn't that bad, despite my harsh critique of it.
rillani- The picture is far too fuzzy and indistinct, and the colors look a bit to much like the default colors on microsoft paint. On your next painting, tighten things up quite a bit, please.
cognition.sb- Sodium! You've seen the "Party Beach" episode of Mystery Science Theater, haven't you? Anyway, its a lovely little picture and creature you have there. Personally, I really liked the sketch version, but it's pretty amazing how you polished it up.
Orifice- Nice little short story you worked into your description! I think your sky perch are some of the most original creatures I've seen here. Those little striations on its belly are a really nice touch. I for one don't mind that the creatures are the same hue as the city, but I do think that the sky is too turquoise.
Maieth- Looks like something you'd find in a Metroid game! Or tossed by a Lakitu in on of Mario's nightmares. Anyway, the earthy color scheme looks good, and the foreshortening makes the depiction even more dynamic. Its face also has a very inscrutable alien expression. Looking at this, I'm glad I didn't decide to go with my own four-legged crustacean! It wouldn't stand a chance against this.
dragon4lunch- I'm making no promises, but I'm thinking very seriously about voting for you. The reason is the simply wonderful creature design. In the topic suggestion thread I offered the idea of a land shark, and this thing fills that space beautifully. I dig its mohawk (even though it could have been integrated with the creature a little more clearly), and I was quite pleasantly surprised to notice those little hooves. Since I'm always posting wikipedia links to obscure extinct creatures, here's another one: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesonychid. Believe it or not, there have been hoofed hunters before.
Michael Jaecks- Just as my piece reminded you of Wayne Barlowe, yours does the same with me, if only because you've done some serious creative thinking about hell with this piece. It's very interesting to read about an alien version of the inferno. The painting is well done, and I think the monochrome was a good choice. I like the asymmetrical horns, the exploting monthra (intresting word), and the tri-pupiled eyes peering out from the creature's birthing sack.
JakkaS- Once again, very nice design and execution from you. The expression on its face is wonderful, and the thickness of its legs and hooves was a good design choice (after all, it has to carry around that big ol' shell). Wonderful use of color and detail.
Moai- Hey, how did I get to be right behind JakkaS? Oh well. I'm happy with the creature design and satisfied with how the picture itself turned out (though the next one will have to be better). I also unexpectedly created a backstory that I found pretty intriguing. Expect that universe to be revisited in future.
smoscar- My advice to you is to do some serious study on color and value. The contrast on this picture is too low and the colors are a bit too dull. The painting style is also inconsistant, with the creature being somewhat blurry and the highlights on its shell being very sharp. Follow this advice, and don't stop submitting those creatures!
Tom Garden- Sorry, but this picture looks below your abilities, Tom. It certainly doesn't match what you created with your sand hunter. The ripples and splashes on the water don't look quite right, and its awkward that the part of the creature out of the water is held rigid while the rest is sinuous and curved.
Tyranx- Intresting description, and grand, epic piece. You should go do art for George Lucas or someone, since this is the same style as a lot of the Star Wars are, and just as good. My only crit is that the texture of the upper portion of the creature is very regular and flattens it out somewhat.
aspenboy- The cartoony approach was a refeshing change. The green backfround is pleasing and the pebbly texture was handled well. My only crit is that its left armpit needs to be moved down some, which was what caused by to comment that its arm looked flat earlier.
Joey-b- I'm sorry, but it doesn't seem like you worked very hard at all on the concept portion of the activity. It's just a frog that hatches from a butterfly egg, then sits for three months before exploding into another butterfly. Why? How? The picture is pretty good, though, if not very imaginative. When the frog explodes it summons the eye of Sauron, apparently! :D
Jabo- Nice picture! The color and texture work is lovely, and those are some of the best looking eggs I've seen in this activity. I also like its skinny, twig-like limbs. The only fault I can find is with the reflections on its carapace. Those yellow highlights are too strong and, well...to yellow, in my opinion. But that's more or less a nitpick.
ScaryPotato- It's a nice, very clean picture, but besides the explosive tip of its...whatever you wanna callit, lure or antenna, it looks more like a drawing of a real animal and less like a CoW.
Hurricane- Your picture has that same unsettling, apocalyptic feel as the War of the Worlds movie. It's a nice picture, and an interesting description, but the creature design isn't extremely interesting. It's not very uninteresting, though, either. I don't know what I'm saying. Good pic, whatever I'm thinking.:dur:
Andronicus- The picture is a little too dark and there's something about the way the creature is drawn that bugs me. Like you went straight into detail without finalizing the sketch first. It's difficult to put my finger on it. Nice picture, anyways.
Lady Medusa- I believe I covered it in the previous thread. The creature design is good, but the line needs to be a bit unfuzzed and the contrast could use a little extra.
Banck- The clouds and explosions look really good, but the bird could have used more study. It's shape isn't very good, and the details are kinda iffy.
Kittay- Since the creature isn't seen from an exact profile view (I think) and is moving, we should be able to see the other set of limbs. Also, don't be afraid to put some stronger colors in there. The lightbulb eye is rather strange as well.
Blkcelebration- What a nice, simple, whimsical little piece. The coloration and creature design are very good, and I liked the ironic description. I can almost hear mother nature shrugging and saying, "Huh. I could've handled that better. Oh well."
Krusty- Another case of more contrast needed, specifically on its big white belly. The photoshop brushwork is a little too apparent, and that little soft blue mark in the upper right doesn't look like it should be there. There are also some distracting too-hard and too-soft edges on the frog.
Marco Mazzoni- There's always one centered around testicles...:rendered: Anyway, this is a great picture, very well done. The pale oranges and blues work really well together, and that explosion is excellent. And it seems that you submitted it right before the deadline, too! Good job.

Good job, everyone. I'm very sorry if my crits seemed a little too impatient or harsh, especially towards the end. As always, it's great fun to share ideas with all of you!

Edit: Voted for dragon4lunch. Good job!

[voraz]

3 favorites were Orifice, Jakkas and Tyranx.
ended up voting on Tyranx's piece
great work all

[dragon4lunch]

Moai gave you my vote. While your piece is not as rich as say, Chuck's, (who has the crazy painting action going on!) I like your creature better and the center of the creature is so pretty, it's smoochable! Nice job! And also thanks for the nice crit and all. You're a good member and contributer to conceptart.org! I'm glad you didn't leave the background completely blank - even though of course it's the bare minumum right now :)

[Moai]

:bashful: Why thank you, dragon4lunch! I wasn't expecting to get any votes this round, so it was a nice surprise to check on the poll to see who's ahead and seeing that my vote bar was three millimeters long instead of just two. I'm glad you like my creature. Just be gentle if you smooch it; you don't want to rupture any of its chemical chambers.:P

[Tom Garden]

HELLOOOO

WOW - very impressed with the amount of people now reviewing all the artwork!!! its VITAL! :D

thanks for all the votes guys.....uh....wait oh.....right - yes - i DID do a pretty shit one this week....well

what can i say - i KNEW when i submitted this that i didnt like it - thanks for all the comments, all are spot on - and i might further refine this. Didnt get as much time on it as i wanted, and was another late finisher, which often means my quality slips. Better get cracking on a creek crawler :S

:)

[Pavel Sokov]

i think Stephan R is heavily influenced by cock, because thats what his bird looks like.

i voted for cloister even though i dont feel he has the best piece artisticly wise. his design is very intriguing though, and the story was very inspiring. basically he made the most interisting creature with emotions out of the ones listed, so that took my vote.

[Cloister]

:tihi: &#180;......I got my first vote!!! He, he. Perhaps I'll get drunk tonight to celebrate!.... No, no, no...I'll paint of course... (thanks a lot manslaughter, I hope you chose your victims with as careful and tasteful consideration).

Many good points have been made on my entry, by many of you, for which I am very grateful. As for the light in my image I had two different ideas on how the piece should be lighted... and ended up mixing them in a way that is unrealistic and stupid... but if I explain myself further I'll end up looking defensive and ridiculous... instead I'll do better next time. Thanks for the crits and comments everyone!

Orifice: No, they did not have an art-programme there at the time, but had about everything else (focus on friidrott, and fordon).

[vigostar]

Fuck between Chuck W., Jakkas, Tyranx and Fozzy.. Shit..... I think its a four way tie but, in this game i think you have to choose... chuck gets my vote.. fantastic design, use of color and texture... Just superb

[Johanna Saarenpää]

Voted for Chuck Wadey, it was a though choice since there were so many good concepts.

[Vulgar`]

v - Cognition.sb

Jelly mines are victorious.

[Mydrim]

I am new on this site and I am just amazed by this C.O.W. Really great event, and I see it already has a tradition and group of established great artists... So enthusiasm, so talent here... Well, I hope the next week I'll join this fun too, altough I have nor a theoretical chance. (The theme will be displayed on Sunday?)

Really difficiult to vote, finally I hardly filtrated some "best" for me, which are: Tyranx's, JakkaS's, cognistion.sb's and Marco Mazzoni's work. And well, just decided I'll click on Mazzoni- great drawing, moody colors and original idea.

[brokk]

Brilliant round, increadibly hard to choose again. It was between Supervlieg, Chuck Wadey, JakkaS, Tyranx, and Marco Mazzoni. I went with Chuck Wadey.

Kawaii, Stephan R, Jabo, Orifice, Cloister, Supervlieg, Chuck Wadey, Maieth, and Moai, thank you very much for taking the time to crit and comment on everyone's entries. Even though I didn't enter this round, reading your comments on the entries is insightful, and helpful. Cheers.

[Fozzybar]

Fuck between Chuck W., Jakkas, Tyranx and Fozzy..
hmmm...you probably mean Michael Jaecks, since his work is right under my avatar in the second post (happened a few members before)...unless you found a way to hack my pc and looked at my wip i had for this round :D

[Fozzybar]

Well, I hope the next week I'll join this fun too, altough I have nor a theoretical chance. (The theme will be displayed on Sunday?)
It's already online:
http://www.conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=76102

here is the subforum for all COW threads, so you can see when a new one starts...always 8 days after the last one:
http://www.conceptart.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=81

Welcome and looking forward to see your entry ;)

[Michael Jaecks]

Hey Fozz: I'd love it if he meant me, but vote-wise I'm guessin' he's talking about SuperV.

(scribbles)
"Note to self: monochromatic testuteruses do not sell."

[Supervlieg]

Hey Fozz: I'd love it if he meant me, but vote-wise I'm guessin' he's talking about SuperV.

(scribbles)
"Note to self: monochromatic testuteruses do not sell."

Its hard to say, I also get confused sometimes when I see fozz name above some entries. After a bit of thinking I usually figure out whose it is.

[Fozzybar]

hello...IT'S ME!!!

*waving hand with comb*

[SquirrelHunter17]

Lots of great peices this time around, it was a hard choice, but once again, Tyranx has blown me away with his mindnombing skill and artful description.

[BlkCelebration]

This was a great round, I wish I would of had more time to refine my piece.

I really appreciate all the comments. :)

I voted for JakkaS, I love the expresion on the face of the creature as well as the style in which the whole thing was rendered. The anatomy of the creature is very believeable.

I'm gonna try to say something about each piece now, forgive me if I'm repeating what others have said :P

Supervlieg: Great piece, love the tight painting very crisp. The small images on the side are a nice touch.

Chuck Wadey: Wow awsome job on this. Interesting concept, I wish I could of seen a few of those suckers exploding :tihi:

KaWaii: Great perspective going on in this piece. Maybe it would of benifited from a little more time. I like the colors in the feathers.

Stephan_R: The color usage is great in your concept. I like the illustration in the bottom too. I especially liked how you showed the lizards getting their cut in half.

Panagos: I really like the concept behind it, since not everyone chose to go this path. Its a little to humanoid for my tastes, but I find your piece very strong.

Chuck,mate.: I was very close to voting for yours, I like the color scheme on your piece. The creature is very believable,love the design, and the explosion in the bg was a good touch.

Cloister: Interesting concept, I like the translusence in the creature's body, and the perspective is well done.

cowboy surfer: It's a solid concept, however the image is a big bluryish (maybe its my monitor).

rillani: I like this one a lot, but it feels a bit unfinished to me. With a bit more time spent, it would of rocked much more. I really liked the color choice.

cognition.sb: Another close-to-vote piece. It's simple but I liked the style that was used to paint. The concept idea was very good too.

Orifice: At first I was a bit unsure about your piece, but the finished product is very well done, The whole piece works well, scenery and creature together.

Maieth: Nice, it looks proffesional, just like a concept artist would do. I could see this guy used in a videogame. Coloring is tight, and the side image gives a nice sense of scale.

dragon4lunch: Love the creature, looks like he enjoys watchin those poor suckers exploding. Great job with the creature, however some of the background elements are a bit distracting.

Michael Jaecks: I liked the idea behind this, and the way it was colored. This one was a bit humanoid too, but It is great still.

Moai: I could see something like this exsisting. The xray was a nice addition. Yours could of used an example of how the exploding part works. (it crashing into somethin).

smoscar: Looks a bit too much like a regular hermit crab, but the concept explanation in the image itself is well done and believable.

Tom Garden: Great sense of scale and nice creature design. A bit more detail on the head area would of made it a stronger piece.

Tyranx: What can I say that hasn't been said before? Very cinematic. Awsome all around.

aspenboy: I hope thats not all he eats! Ha, hes getting no nutrients at all... made me chuckle.

Joey-b: This fella doesnt look to happy with whats about to happen. I liked the way you colored it, however those white and grey bars on the right side are a bit distracting.

Jabo: I like the action going on in this one. The bottom part of its body is well done.

ScaryPotato: Not much different than the angler fish, but I like the lighting and the texture on the fish.

Hurricane: I liked this one. Very grotesque. Some stronger highlights on a few of those things would of helped kick it up a notch. Very well precented.

Andronicus: Although I liked the lighting very much in this piece, I think It would of benifited more if you had shown a clearer image of the creature.

Lady Medusa: Looks a bit unfinished but I liked the concept, those warts look painful.

Banck: Very humourous and well painted, but its lacking some originality creature wise. I wanna see your next piece. Good rendering on it though.

Kittay: The concept is well thought out, however this one is a bit unfinished. Perhaps something of a background to give the creature a better sense of space.

Krusty: I love the expression on its face. If you ever finish it post the completed version :)

Marco Mazzoni: This one was awsome, almost voted for it. It's funny, but looks killer...The explosion is impressive, I like how the blue reflects on the creature.

[jackenstein]

So far, my two top picks are almost neck and neck.

I loved the angle and intensity of Ty's piece, but Wadey's piece just seemed to me a more interesting concept: a creature with the ability to lay it's own land mines.

[JakkaS]

Hey guys. Thank u for comments and votes!
I have voted for Chuck Wadey and de runner-up was Tyranx.

Congratulations Tyranx :D

[Tyranx]

Thanks ;)