September 2024

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digital fanart of Caleb Widogast and Nott the Brave from Critical Role, done in a rough painterly style. Caleb is a light-skinned freckled human of average build, his face lined with stress-wrinkles. he has chin-length red hair, swept back and slightly greasy, a full beard and some dirt on his face; his white shirt has some obvious dark stitches at the shoulders and his arm wraps are rather stained. Nott is a goblin with gray-green skin, large slitted yellow eyes, a dark nose resembling that of a feline, big pierced ears and long dark hair in a messy bun. she's wearing a black roomy shirt, and there is silver wire glinting in her hair. they are seated at a table in a warmly-lit tavern, writing in a book placed in front of Nott. Nott is sticking her forked tongue out in concentration, the hand not busy writing holding a whiskey glass. Caleb has one arm extended in order to reach the book, while the other seems to be placed on Nott's back, and he's looking up with an alarmed expression. the subtitles at the bottom indicate that he's addressing someone off-screen with "What are you doing with my cat?"ALT

i’ve been rewatching cr2 once again, and was inspired to do another mock movie screencap study 🤭

tip jar

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digital fanart of Essek Thelyss from Critical Role, done in a painterly style with wide brushstrokes. he is depicted as a young-looking slender drow, with lavender skin and short white hair, the curls falling over his forehead. he is wearing an outfit loosely inspired by Chinese hanfu. it consists of long and wide high-waisted pants made of shiny iridescent peachy orange silk, held up with a dark ribbon tied in two knots, the loose ends falling down the front; a similarly-colored wrapped-front shirt, with a white underlayer peeking from underneath; and a terracotta brown coat with a hood. his arms appearing out of the arm slits of the coat are covered in leg-of-mutton sleeves. Essek is standing against a loosely sketched grayish-periwinkle background of grasses and branches, lit with a warm rosy light as if from a rising sun. he is carrying a woven basket full of fresh peaches in his left hand, while his right arm is supporting a red and white cat against his chest. he is smiling fondly and looking down at the other two cats gathered around him, their tails held up and curled in excitement.ALT

some of you might remember that in my 2023 art summary the september piece was pixeled out due to being part of an unfinished project. this is the painting in question!

it’s one third of a series of Essek portraits, inspired by a conversation with @saturdaysky about the universe needing more Esseks wearing fun colors. black & purple is a timeless classic, but i like to think that Hot Boi can and does rock colors outside of what would be considered nude tones for him 🤭

hence,

part 1: peach! 🍑

one of my favorite colors, and one that was a fun challenge to make work with Essek’s lavender skin tone. as i was drawing i was thinking of Essek bringing a basket full of fresh peaches from his travels to his partner, and the kitties being the first to greet him as he arrived home 💜

tip jar!

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zmeess:

digital fanart of Essek Thelyss from Critical Role, done in a painterly style with wide brushstrokes. he is depicted as a young-looking slender drow, with lavender skin and short white hair, the curls falling over his forehead. he is wearing an outfit loosely inspired by Chinese hanfu. it consists of long and wide high-waisted pants made of shiny iridescent peachy orange silk, held up with a dark ribbon tied in two knots, the loose ends falling down the front; a similarly-colored wrapped-front shirt, with a white underlayer peeking from underneath; and a terracotta brown coat with a hood. his arms appearing out of the arm slits of the coat are covered in leg-of-mutton sleeves. Essek is standing against a loosely sketched grayish-periwinkle background of grasses and branches, lit with a warm rosy light as if from a rising sun. he is carrying a woven basket full of fresh peaches in his left hand, while his right arm is supporting a red and white cat against his chest. he is smiling fondly and looking down at the other two cats gathered around him, their tails held up and curled in excitement.ALT

some of you might remember that in my 2023 art summary the september piece was pixeled out due to being part of an unfinished project. this is the painting in question!

it’s one third of a series of Essek portraits, inspired by a conversation with @saturdaysky about the universe needing more Esseks wearing fun colors. black & purple is a timeless classic, but i like to think that Hot Boi can and does rock colors outside of what would be considered nude tones for him 🤭

hence,

part 1: peach! 🍑

one of my favorite colors, and one that was a fun challenge to make work with Essek’s lavender skin tone. as i was drawing i was thinking of Essek bringing a basket full of fresh peaches from his travels to his partner, and the kitties being the first to greet him as he arrived home 💜

tip jar!

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commissions open!

i am opening five slots! this is also not going to be a wait list—i will be contacting those whose requests i’ve decided to take on within a few days. if you’d like to commission me, please fill out this google form, and make sure you have read my ToS. thank you for your continuous support! 🫶

UPD: all slots taken! 💜 will be emailing everyone soon.

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zmeess:

digital fanart of Caleb Widogast and Nott the Brave from Critical Role, done in a rough painterly style. Caleb is a light-skinned freckled human of average build, his face lined with stress-wrinkles. he has chin-length red hair, swept back and slightly greasy, a full beard and some dirt on his face; his white shirt has some obvious dark stitches at the shoulders and his arm wraps are rather stained. Nott is a goblin with gray-green skin, large slitted yellow eyes, a dark nose resembling that of a feline, big pierced ears and long dark hair in a messy bun. she's wearing a black roomy shirt, and there is silver wire glinting in her hair. they are seated at a table in a warmly-lit tavern, writing in a book placed in front of Nott. Nott is sticking her forked tongue out in concentration, the hand not busy writing holding a whiskey glass. Caleb has one arm extended in order to reach the book, while the other seems to be placed on Nott's back, and he's looking up with an alarmed expression. the subtitles at the bottom indicate that he's addressing someone off-screen with "What are you doing with my cat?"ALT

i’ve been rewatching cr2 once again, and was inspired to do another mock movie screencap study 🤭

tip jar

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digital hips-up portrait of a young-looking drow. she has grayish-purple skin, violet eyes and kinky white hair with braided sides, the top of the short mohawk puffing up and slightly to one side. she appears to be rather short and slender, with a curve to her bust and hips. she is dressed in a short-sleeved black tunic, cinched at the waist with a wide elaborate belt with a pattern of yellow, green and blue triangles and diamonds on it; there is a purple cowl and multiple colorful necklaces around her neck, and silver bangles on her wrists. she is standing up straight, arms slightly bent at the elbows and her hands at the chest level and to her sides, palms up. there are multiple shards or dark glass floating in an arc over her palms, the two largest pieces superimposed over her head, parts of her face visible through the transparent glass. she is looking at the viewer with a severe and defiant expression, her chin held high.ALT

commission for @firefright, their drow hexblade warlock of the Lady of Pain, Shadow! always in love with drow OCs, thank you for commissioning me 💜

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zmeess:

digital hips-up portrait of a young-looking drow. she has grayish-purple skin, violet eyes and kinky white hair with braided sides, the top of the short mohawk puffing up and slightly to one side. she appears to be rather short and slender, with a curve to her bust and hips. she is dressed in a short-sleeved black tunic, cinched at the waist with a wide elaborate belt with a pattern of yellow, green and blue triangles and diamonds on it; there is a purple cowl and multiple colorful necklaces around her neck, and silver bangles on her wrists. she is standing up straight, arms slightly bent at the elbows and her hands at the chest level and to her sides, palms up. there are multiple shards or dark glass floating in an arc over her palms, the two largest pieces superimposed over her head, parts of her face visible through the transparent glass. she is looking at the viewer with a severe and defiant expression, her chin held high.ALT

commission for @firefright, their drow hexblade warlock of the Lady of Pain, Shadow! always in love with drow OCs, thank you for commissioning me 💜

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a digital shoulders-up portrait of the Austrian philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein, based on a famous photograph of him standing in front of a chalkboard. he is a thin light-skinned middle-aged man with short brown hair, dressed in a button-up shirt and a blazer, facing the viewer and looking at them with piercing dark eyes. the painting is done with broad brushstrokes and employs a slightly surreal color palette of shades of dusty and navy blue, brown, dark purple, and pale lemon yellow.ALT

commission for @devils-musings, who is writing a screenplay about Ludwig Wittgenstein and requested a rendering of a photograph of him in my style to help them stay inspired! it’s not often that i get to paint portraits of real people, especially historical figures, so this was a fascinating challenge. thank you so much for commissioning me 💜

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a hips-up digital painting of a young light-skinned elven woman. she has long straight sun blond hair and hazel eyes, and is lean and slender. she is dressed in form-fitting dark clothing with leather bracers and a belt, which has vials of various colorful liquids hanging off of it. she is wielding two daggers in a reverse grip, with a severe expression on her face. bright yellow light is illuminating her, and the background behind her is blue, contrasting vividly with the color of her hair.ALT
a hips-up digital painting of a young pale-skinned human man. his eyes are green and he has a handsome and slightly tired face with a square jaw. he appears tall and like he has a relatively large build under his well-tailored suit, which is dark and embroidered with a gold damask pattern. there is a heavy green cloak with a fur collar thrown over his shoulders and whipping in the wind. his accessories include four golden compartment rings, one of which is open, a golden flower pin over his heart, and an elegant golden circlet over his brow, with his long and luminous light blond hair woven in small braids around it, though most of it is down and moving with the wind. he is reaching forward with one hand, palm up, and seems to be manipulating rivulets of water that are curling in irregular rounded shapes above him. the liquid casts an ethereal blue light onto his face and collar.ALT

two commissions for @kiseopingu, her characters Gabrielle and Helrin! thank you for commissioning me 💜

(click/tap on these fellas for more detail and better quality!)

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zmeess:

a hips-up digital painting of a young light-skinned elven woman. she has long straight sun blond hair and hazel eyes, and is lean and slender. she is dressed in form-fitting dark clothing with leather bracers and a belt, which has vials of various colorful liquids hanging off of it. she is wielding two daggers in a reverse grip, with a severe expression on her face. bright yellow light is illuminating her, and the background behind her is blue, contrasting vividly with the color of her hair.ALT
a hips-up digital painting of a young pale-skinned human man. his eyes are green and he has a handsome and slightly tired face with a square jaw. he appears tall and like he has a relatively large build under his well-tailored suit, which is dark and embroidered with a gold damask pattern. there is a heavy green cloak with a fur collar thrown over his shoulders and whipping in the wind. his accessories include four golden compartment rings, one of which is open, a golden flower pin over his heart, and an elegant golden circlet over his brow, with his long and luminous light blond hair woven in small braids around it, though most of it is down and moving with the wind. he is reaching forward with one hand, palm up, and seems to be manipulating rivulets of water that are curling in irregular rounded shapes above him. the liquid casts an ethereal blue light onto his face and collar.ALT

two commissions for @kiseopingu, her characters Gabrielle and Helrin! thank you for commissioning me 💜

(click/tap on these fellas for more detail and better quality!)

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zmeess:

digital fanart of Essek Thelyss and Caleb Widogast from Critical Role, styled like a painted couple's portrait. Essek is depicted as a slender drow with lavender skin and soft curly white hair that reaches just past his chin, while Caleb is a light-skinned bearded human of average build, with ginger hair that is brushed back and is straighter than Essek's, but is of a similar length. they're both wearing comfortable clothes. Caleb is dressed in beige trousers, a simple linen shirt with its collar open and the sleeves messily rolled up, exposing the regularly spaced long-healed scars on his forearms, and he has his underarm holsters on. Essek is wearing rather nondescript brown pants and shirt that look like lounge wear or sleep clothes, with a simple but elegant house robe over them, its split sleeves too showing his naked forearms. Essek is sitting down on a chair, while Caleb stands behind him and slightly to Essek's right. Caleb's left hand is resting on Essek's left shoulder, his right hand in his pocket, while Essek's right hand is folded neatly on the thigh of one of his crossed legs, and his left is reaching up and touching Caleb's hand on his shoulder with the tips of his fingers. they are both relaxed and smiling gently in a slightly shaded room painted in tones of brown. next to Essek there is an edge of a table with two books stacked on it, and behind them is an open window, showing soft blue and pink sky, the sun lighting the edges of their shoulders and hair with bright golden highlights.ALT

a soft portrait

tip jar

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digital fanart of Essek Thelyss from Critical Role, somewhat evocative of formal full-body equestrian portraits. he is depicted as a young-looking slender drow with light lavender skin, standing contrapposto, with his back straight and chin held high, looking at the viewer with a cold haughty expression. he is wearing a lavish winter outfit consisting of black leggings, gray flat-soled boots, a cherry red coat and a darker cloak worn over it. the coat has an asymmetric hemline and leg-of-mutton sleeves, and is decorated with a wide iridescent mint green sash tied around his waist, the two ends of it falling down his sides. the very long embroidered cloak, draped artfully on the snowy ground around Essek, has a very tall stiff collar and a large fur mantle accentuating his shoulders. he is wearing a cylindrical fur hat, his curly white bangs falling over his forehead from beneath it, and his pointed ears with minimalistic silver cuffs visible. Essek's icy light purple eyes are made even more striking by lines of red paint on his lower lash line, and his lower lip is painted white. his right arm is resting on the shoulders of a young moorbounder, which is sitting down next to him. it's depicted as a large panther-like creature, muscular and sleek, with a nose consisting of two vertical slits, short ears, and large tufts of fur around its neck and shoulders. it seems calm, looking at the camera with large turquoise fish-like eyes. behind them, there is a suggestion of a clear horizon and gray stormy winter sky, with greenish early twilight lighting.ALT
a close-up of the above image, showing Essek's face in more detail.ALT

i’ve fallen so far down the rabbit hole of life that i totally forgor i was supposed to be posting my colorful Esseks project! (wherein i paint Essek wearing all sorts of fun colors outside of his signature black and purple, because i can, and because he should)

part one was peachy orange, anddddd

part two is cherry red 🍒

it was also painted last year and was inspired by conversations about equestrian portraits, the potential Kryn versions thereof, and young and impudent Essek wanting to impress people. which very well could have resulted in him commissioning a formal portrait of him standing next to a mighty cat steed (juvenile so as not to take up 90% of the portrait) in his youth 🤭

tip jar!

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Do you have a commission newsletter or waitlist? I keep missing your openings!

i don’t currently! i’m actually trying to work out a more efficient system of taking on commissions. having a waitlist can be a bit inconvenient for both myself and potential clients since i work on long timelines and often by the time i get to someone on my waitlist, they’re no longer in a place to go through with the commission; while opening a set number of slots every once in a while works perfectly for me, but might be very frustrating for folks that have been trying to get on this here train for months and have simply been missing my announcements. i’m figuring it out! i might do something new for my next opening. thank you for your interest in my art 🫶

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Hi! Hello! Big fan of your work. Each aspect of your paintings and sketches seem so thought out and organic. It’s a HUUUGE inspiration for me. I tend to have full on minutes long sessions where I just zoom in and try to observe the little details, understand the process. They’re truly magical in a sense. Especially to colors, oh my god the colors.

Is there any specific reason why some of your sketches use two different tones/colors? What’s your thinking process when it comes to that? Would you recommend trying out this method?

hi hi, thank you so much! so glad to hear you appreciate the details in my work 🥺

the only reason for my two/three tone sketches is cause it looks cool! i like colors 🤭 around a decade ago i tried sketching with a lighter colored pencil + refine the drawing/add weight to the lines with a darker colored pencil, and i really liked the result. here’s one of those drawings:

it looks fairly monochrome, but i did in fact use a warmer light gray & dark navy pencils. i drew it after a year long break from drawing (no longer remember the name of the website that hosted the reference photo, unfortunately; it was an artist ref tool), and it just looked nice. i’ve enjoyed sketching/drawing with two colors ever since; i don’t even have a full rainbow set of colored pencils, just a scattering of various colors i bought for the sake of pairing them into aesthetically pleasing duos 🤭 to be clear, i’m obviously far from the first person to have used two colors in a drawing (duh 🤭), this ask just reminded me of the first time i did it in this way.

i think it’s fun, especially if you get a bit tired of graphite pencil/charcoal sketching (i do recommend sealing the finished drawing so it doesn’t smudge!). same for digital sketching, i like sketching digitally in different styles, and colorful overlays/gradient maps is just one of them.

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zmeess:

digital fanart of Essek Thelyss from Critical Role, somewhat evocative of formal full-body equestrian portraits. he is depicted as a young-looking slender drow with light lavender skin, standing contrapposto, with his back straight and chin held high, looking at the viewer with a cold haughty expression. he is wearing a lavish winter outfit consisting of black leggings, gray flat-soled boots, a cherry red coat and a darker cloak worn over it. the coat has an asymmetric hemline and leg-of-mutton sleeves, and is decorated with a wide iridescent mint green sash tied around his waist, the two ends of it falling down his sides. the very long embroidered cloak, draped artfully on the snowy ground around Essek, has a very tall stiff collar and a large fur mantle accentuating his shoulders. he is wearing a cylindrical fur hat, his curly white bangs falling over his forehead from beneath it, and his pointed ears with minimalistic silver cuffs visible. Essek's icy light purple eyes are made even more striking by lines of red paint on his lower lash line, and his lower lip is painted white. his right arm is resting on the shoulders of a young moorbounder, which is sitting down next to him. it's depicted as a large panther-like creature, muscular and sleek, with a nose consisting of two vertical slits, short ears, and large tufts of fur around its neck and shoulders. it seems calm, looking at the camera with large turquoise fish-like eyes. behind them, there is a suggestion of a clear horizon and gray stormy winter sky, with greenish early twilight lighting.ALT
a close-up of the above image, showing Essek's face in more detail.ALT

i’ve fallen so far down the rabbit hole of life that i totally forgor i was supposed to be posting my colorful Esseks project! (wherein i paint Essek wearing all sorts of fun colors outside of his signature black and purple, because i can, and because he should)

part one was peachy orange, anddddd

part two is cherry red 🍒

it was also painted last year and was inspired by conversations about equestrian portraits, the potential Kryn versions thereof, and young and impudent Essek wanting to impress people. which very well could have resulted in him commissioning a formal portrait of him standing next to a mighty cat steed (juvenile so as not to take up 90% of the portrait) in his youth 🤭

tip jar!

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birdverbatimcosplay:

After remaking it twice- it’s finally done! (Still have to add a zipper…but that’s for another night) Hoping to debut it at NYCC 2024.

Essek tunic design by the amazing @zmeess ✨

Essek Thelyss created by Matt Mercer for Critical Role

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zmeess:

digital fanart of Essek Thelyss from Critical Role, somewhat evocative of formal full-body equestrian portraits. he is depicted as a young-looking slender drow with light lavender skin, standing contrapposto, with his back straight and chin held high, looking at the viewer with a cold haughty expression. he is wearing a lavish winter outfit consisting of black leggings, gray flat-soled boots, a cherry red coat and a darker cloak worn over it. the coat has an asymmetric hemline and leg-of-mutton sleeves, and is decorated with a wide iridescent mint green sash tied around his waist, the two ends of it falling down his sides. the very long embroidered cloak, draped artfully on the snowy ground around Essek, has a very tall stiff collar and a large fur mantle accentuating his shoulders. he is wearing a cylindrical fur hat, his curly white bangs falling over his forehead from beneath it, and his pointed ears with minimalistic silver cuffs visible. Essek's icy light purple eyes are made even more striking by lines of red paint on his lower lash line, and his lower lip is painted white. his right arm is resting on the shoulders of a young moorbounder, which is sitting down next to him. it's depicted as a large panther-like creature, muscular and sleek, with a nose consisting of two vertical slits, short ears, and large tufts of fur around its neck and shoulders. it seems calm, looking at the camera with large turquoise fish-like eyes. behind them, there is a suggestion of a clear horizon and gray stormy winter sky, with greenish early twilight lighting.ALT
a close-up of the above image, showing Essek's face in more detail.ALT

i’ve fallen so far down the rabbit hole of life that i totally forgor i was supposed to be posting my colorful Esseks project! (wherein i paint Essek wearing all sorts of fun colors outside of his signature black and purple, because i can, and because he should)

part one was peachy orange, anddddd

part two is cherry red 🍒

it was also painted last year and was inspired by conversations about equestrian portraits, the potential Kryn versions thereof, and young and impudent Essek wanting to impress people. which very well could have resulted in him commissioning a formal portrait of him standing next to a mighty cat steed (juvenile so as not to take up 90% of the portrait) in his youth 🤭

tip jar!

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hi i dont even go here but i just wanted to say the way you do colours is absolutely incredible. beautiful style wow

thank you! 💜

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Hello! I was curious how u picked your canvas color for your different pieces -- i usually see a lot of artists choose it first and then work from there? Do u usually have something in mind before you start, or is it something you choose after that just works with what youve already colored?

hi hi! i choose the canvas color first, based on the color scheme i have in mind for this or that piece. i had to change the background color in a couple of my works as i was working on the rendering/after the rendering was done, but it’s something i do very rarely because it’s a pain in the neck (i render everything on one layer). so i usually try to plan for the future color scheme from the start!

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birdverbatimcosplay:

After remaking it twice- it’s finally done! (Still have to add a zipper…but that’s for another night) Hoping to debut it at NYCC 2024.

Essek tunic design by the amazing @zmeess ✨

Essek Thelyss created by Matt Mercer for Critical Role