Every beast has his day in the sun, but there comes a time when he needs to just chill out and relax. This is tough for a monster who only knows the life of wreaking havoc on the world around him. I mean, at what point does he realize that he’s really not the vicious creature he once was, yet still fancies himself to be? Does it sink in when his scales start to flake off? Or perhaps when he has to be fitted for some polyresin fangs? Or maybe when he finally notices that his prey can not only outrun him, but also has time to turn around and mock him as he huffs and puffs his way towards them?
Yes, retirement for a monster is something none of them wish to contemplate, especially for a carnivore such as this very tired T-rex. Gone are the days of breaking through electric fences and chomping on lawyers in outhouses. No more traipsing through the jungle and having a battle royale with a giant ape. He is so pooped that he can’t even stop baby triceratopses which supposedly aren’t even real. (They do say the mind is the first thing to go.)
So sing sweetly the gentle lullaby of life to this giant soul as he shuffles off this mortal coil into the great tar pit of eternity.
This fella needs to find himself a retirement home, although with those tiny arms, he might have a hard time playing shuffleboard.
Every group has them – that eager beaver newbie who is so anxious for a taste of belonging that they just cannot contain their excitement no matter how austere the cause. Sadly, monsters are not exempt from having a rookie.
It’s not exactly your standard “Bring Your Child To Work Day,” but it’ll do.
Tomorrow’s MONSTER MONTH creature will rear its ugly head from the Jurassic Age!
Deep in the steamy backwood bayous of the kudzu draped American South, the silent stench of the sweaty air is only permeated by the high-pitched whiny buzz of a mosquito in search of its next source of sustenance. Any intrepid guest to these weary waters proceeds with caution for there is no telling what camouflaged evil lurks in the ooze of the rising mists. Suddenly, wafting in and out of the silence is a low toned chortle that seems to emanate from every direction, a bone-chilling sound that grows like a fast spreading cancer into a riotous laughter. Then, you see it – a creature far too terrifying to even imagine – the mythical orange demon of the Everglades!!!
But what is this devilish hellion cackling about? Is he laughing because he knows your trousers are not exactly wet from the swamp? No. He’s seen that before. Is it because he knows you wish to run, but will be overcome by his swift aquatic maneuverings? No.
And then the sad sinking feeling hits you because you know in your heart of hearts, this ferocious beast of unearthly color is laughing at the stupid fishing hat your mother made you wear.
You know you’re in trouble when even nature makes fun of you.
So, dry off and come back tomorrow for another in this fine line of the creepy and crawly!
You know, there’s nothing like holding a palette full of paint in one hand and twirling a brush with panache in the other to really make one truly feel alive.
All our zombie artist’s paintings resemble Edvard Munch’s “The Scream.” Not because he particularly likes that piece, but because that’s the pose all his models seem to make.
Hope you enjoyed today’s monster fresh from my sketchbook! Tomorrow’s beast will come to you in brilliant technicolor!
Sadly, even the monster world can’t escape eyeglasses tape and pocket protectors…..
Even geeky alien-like monsters have their Star Wars priorities straight. Of course, this guy WOULD take Greedo’s side – they’re probably distant cousins.
I hope you have enjoyed this week’s batch of monsters! Come back again on Monday for another round of five beasties!
Prior to this year’s Monster Month, I shared with you some of the art I created as a character designer for the new Zhu Zhu Pets movie, The Quest for Zhu, that came out on DVD last week. The drawings showed lots of cute little hamsters with their big eyes and button noses. What I didn’t tell you was that the movie also contains a few monsters, the most villainous of them all being the evil Mazhula!
Mazhula has a head inspired by a cobra, body of an alligator, and the personality of a jar of mayonnaise that has turned. My colleague Stephen Silver conceived her basic look, and I began to define her behavior and personality with the following drawings….
I wonder if she realizes she has two fingers pointing right back at her?
Early in development, Mazhula’s tail was going to have a perpetual blue flame, but who wants an eternal flame near their backside, especially on burrito night?
You wouldn’t catch ME licking a hamster like that. I’d have no idea where it’s been!
While the above were character study sketches, towards the end of production I did one more detailed drawing of the evil Mazhula that can be seen during the end credits of the Zhu Zhu Pets movie. Mazhula has this ability to shoot electric fireballs from the palms of her hands, but when she does so, she depletes her own power. To recharge, she plugs her tail into a spittoon-looking device that is an electrical outlet for reptiles of her caliber. The following drawing is based on a moment in the movie that was storyboarded by my friend Mike Kunkel (known for his comic book a few years ago called Herobear and the Kid).
Click on the sleeping Mazhula if you DARE!
Return tomorrow to see how a monster deals with far-sightedness!
He can’t help it that he was born this way. He’s really an alien with a heart of gold, but no one will really give him much of a chance. All this guy really wants is to make it big on the music scene. You should hear him sing an old fashioned love song, coming down in three-part harmony!
Mealtime can be interesting with three mouths to feed.
Back in 2004 I was contemplating getting into using the watercolor medium. For many years I created illustrations with colored pencil and gouache, an opaque water based paint. Watercolor paint started catching my eye to the point of inspiring me to give it a try. But what would be a worthy image on which to test this new medium? The first piece to drip out of my brush involved an alligator and a bunny rabbit, but then….. MONSTERS!
In the classic Frankenstein movie with Boris Karloff, there is a moment when this big lumbering beast comes across a little girl. As an audience, you know what this behemoth is capable of, and the little girl who is none the wiser just sees a potential playmate. What if some monsters got snagged into playtime with a fearless little girl who just would not let them go? Instead, she is the monster, and they are the victims. With that backstory in mind, I created this piece which turned out to be the launch of my interest in fun monster art:
How DOES a monster politely excuse himself from a tea party anyway? (Click on image to see it larger.)
Some of you may have seen the above painting on my website, but what you have NOT seen before are some of the preliminary sketches from my sketchbook that were drawn in the quest for just the right combination of monsters to be tormented by this situation. An illustration doesn’t just fall into place with the first critters that come to mind. Below are a few beasties that didn’t make the cut:
Manny, Mo and Jack here look fun and all, but just weren’t the right tone for the final painting.
Kukla, Fran and Ollie here also were not quite what was needed for a tea party.
The six fellas above were just a few of the dozen and a half heads that came out of my pencil. Three faces were needed, and three faces were found, but not all in a row. Scattered amongst the many pages of exploratory monster drawings were the three you see below – the three that made it into the final painting:
Capt. Geech and the Shrimp Shack Shooters are the three that made the final cut.
So, there you have the genesis of my interest in monster art! I also happen to love the Muppets, so that might help explain a bit of the ol’ Henson influence that may come through now and then, too. Come back again tomorrow for another strange creation that’s a vision, but only an illusion – a monster that has nothing to hide.
