The Flying Trilobite's Portfolio

Ent by G Mellow

The Flying Trilobite — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 13:22:28 GMT

Ent by G Mellow

My take on an Ent from Lord of the Rings. Let me know what you think!

Pencil in my Moleskine Folio, hopefully to be published. You can read a bit more about it at my blog, The Flying Trilobite.

Major Billy Barker & his Pterosaur Squadron, WWI by Glendon Mellow

The Flying Trilobite — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 17:39:10 GMT

Major Billy Barker & his Pterosaur Squadron, WWI by Glendon Mellow

Oil on canvas, 2009.

Sometimes as an artist, I get an image full-blown in my mind; that was the case here. Composition, lighting, hues.

I needed some details for the biplanes. So I did a bit of online poking, and found the story of a true Canadian adventurer, perfect to add to my concept painting. Major William George "Billy" Barker was a World War 1 flying ace and Victoria Cross recipient who flew Sopwith Camels against German Fokkers.

Although I could not find any information indicating he fought against the infamous Red Baron, Manfred Von Richtofen, I thought these two ace pilots would heighten the drama in this alternate history. Of course, Major Billy Barker has a trick up those RAF sleeves: his fighting pterosaur squadron, made up of Quetzalcoatlus northropi.

Retrospectacle: Valkyrie concept, pencil drawing wings

The Flying Trilobite — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:49:45 GMT

Retrospectacle: Valkyrie concept, pencil drawing wings

Pencil on vellum-finish bristol.

The drawing I used as the concept for ScienceBlogger Shelley Batts' Retrospectacle blog banner.

You can see a making of the whole thing here.

Ammonite Versus Trilobite fossil traditional oil painting

The Flying Trilobite — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:40:57 GMT

Ammonite Versus Trilobite fossil traditional oil painting

Oil on canvas.

The ammonite is more of a living nautilus shell, but it could have had similar colouration. Convergent evolution.

Predator caught dead in the act.

Pupating

The Flying Trilobite — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:24:30 GMT

Pupating

An older oil painting of mine, it sits in an antique black box wrapped in wire...

DNA Candle Vanitas 3 traditional oil

The Flying Trilobite — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:58:58 GMT

DNA Candle Vanitas 3 traditional oil

Oil on canvas.

See more about this specific DNA-Candle Vanitas at my site, The Flying Trilobite.

Here are some details about this series:

Here is what I said in my first post about this series of images:

Vanitas painting is an old tradition, especially popular in the Northern Renaissance. Usually, it is a still life, depicting perhaps a skull, a broken watch, a candle just snuffed out with the smoke trailing in the air, a book half-read, a tipped over water glass....Pieter Claesz, trained by Franz Hals, is one of my favourite masters of this art style.

The image is one of mortality, with a kind of knock-you-over-the-head symbolism. The message intended is a kind of carpe diem, or "seize the day".

After reading about how telomeres may play a part in the aging process, and that their ends snip off when they replicate, I started coming up with the DNA Candle image. I remember reading something in the 90's that suggested if one could extend telomeres, one may be able to stave off death. The candle melting and the telomere shortening just seemed a natural image. I used DNA as a wick since it is more readily recognisable by most people.

So the ultimate message of the DNA Candle Vanitas is one of seize the day, life is beautiful but finite. The candles are lit and glowing, a loving image and the wax has melted together in union.

Mythical Flying Trilobite Fossil III

The Flying Trilobite — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 02:35:02 GMT

Mythical Flying Trilobite Fossil III

Oil on shale, pencil on bristol and some digital painting with Photoshop and an Intuos 3. Copyright Glendon Mellow 2009.

You can see some making of posts and this image as my 2009 blog banner at my blog, The Flying Trilobite. I also included a post about how much of the painting was digital, which you can see here.

It was trundling toward some crinoids when it was tragically covered in mud and fossilized. Normally I have painted these with bat wings: how do the insect wings compare?

Tra-la-la-lobe-ite

The Flying Trilobite — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 11:31:47 GMT

Tra-la-la-lobe-ite

Traditional oil paint and Photoshop, 2008.

The trilobites known as Encrinurus are sometimes nick-named the "strawberry-headed" trilobites, for the nodules on the cephalon. I thought it would be fun to do a candy-striped one for the holidays. Look for a strawberry variant in the spring of 2009! Maybe candy corn in the fall...

Originally appeared on The Flying Trilobite, my blog. I also showed the pencil drawing here.

Introducing Sara Chasm

The Flying Trilobite — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 11:21:46 GMT

Introducing Sara Chasm

Traditional oils and Photoshop, 2009.

This piece originally appeared on the group blog, ART Evolved: Life's Time Capsule as part of the inaugeral Ceratopsian Gallery.

I have also posted a brief "making of" on my own blog, The Flying Trilobite. I'm happy with the piece, though I created and executed it more rapidly than I usually work, in about three days. I'd love some critiques of it either here or at The Flying Trilobite. Perhaps the white is too much: do I need to yellow out the scene with a buttery evening light?

Darwin Took Steps

The Flying Trilobite — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 11:31:51 GMT

Darwin Took Steps

Oil on canvas paper, with some colour, blending and text in Photoshop. You can see a "Making Of..." post at my blog, The Flying Trilobite.

This image was done to celebrate 2008's Darwin Day, and was featured on the online literary 'zine The Eloquent Atheist, and recently I have offered prints and shirts based on this image through my reproduction shop in support of The HMS Beagle Project. The Beagle Project plans to launch a re-created ship in 2009 in celebration of the 200th anniversary of this great scientist's birth.

This piece was a lot of fun to do. I'd love feedback on it.

Mythical Flying Trilobite Fossil II

The Flying Trilobite — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 11:35:31 GMT

Mythical Flying Trilobite Fossil II

Oil on a piece of shale, with digital lighting and blending.

This image is currently featured as my 2008 blog banner on The Flying Trilobite, and is also available in my reproduction shop.

I wanted a rockier look this time, and painted using more greys and browns. And always naples yellow! I painted the shale with clear gesso so the oil would not soak into the porous stone and cause the colours to dust when dry. I painted the entire stone, to better colour-match the fossil on the surface.

I tried to add more shadows this time, to make it pop a little more into 3-d.