RVWorld

New Blog

2010-04-16T20:54:00.000-04:00

My blog has moved closer to home. Go to my website and click on blog. It's part of the website now. It would be great if you could pay a visit from time to time.

Sci-Fi Food

2010-04-01T11:31:00.000-04:00

Again, another long weekend for three German covers. The clump of red suns in the first one has already been dubbed "raspberry" in the Ren Dhark Forum. I guess they have a point. The second one seems to be the favorite. Let's call them croissants. You decide if the third one's edible.

Weg ins Weltall Cover

2010-03-11T18:06:00.000-05:00

This is the most recent cover for German client. For the rocks, I used a series of filters, patterns and lighting effects. The client seems to like things as photorealistic as possible. There are three more in the works, two of which will be space scenes.

New SG Covers

2010-02-18T09:32:00.003-05:00

When it rains it pours, I guess. In what was already a busy schedule, I ended up doing these three covers, one per day, to finish off the week. It's a good feeling to get something out the door, provided the client likes it. He did – and they were some of the stranger illustrations I've ever done – as you can see.

New old cover

2010-01-23T16:09:00.001-05:00

Slow posting due to busy schedule. I thought I was already busy when I (maybe foolishly) agreed to taking a job that requires 67 illustrations by mid-February. Ouch.

A Dutch Perry Rhodan sample just arrived with one of my old acrylics covers. They're behind in Holland by 10 years or so.

Bra Book

2009-12-29T00:12:00.003-05:00

Now that the Bra Book is on the shelves, I can show a couple drawings. I don't think much commentary is necessary here.

New Covers

2009-12-22T10:09:00.004-05:00

Here are the latest covers (photoshop, of course), including one sketch. The end product for the book is always round, but when I have time I add the corners, so I have more flexibility when used for promotion. It's just a friendlier format that way.

The blue guy is not sad. He's actually a member of 3 foot humanoid aliens, Utaren, whose civilization had been practically destroyed. I wonder if those pyramids had anything to do with it. Click on the images for a slightly larger view.

Announcement

2009-11-14T11:56:00.003-05:00

It appears to be official. I'll be teaching Editorial Illustration at Winthrop University next semester. I haven't taught a college class in a while, so this should be very fun. It'll be a computer based class, but I'm thinking there'll be some traditional art involved too.

Old paintings

2009-11-12T09:55:00.003-05:00

A few years ago I painted a couple of cow scenes in oils which ended up as presents. The reference photos were taken from a trip to the NC mountains.

Weg ins Weltall 21

2009-10-12T14:23:00.003-04:00

The latest cover for Unitall's recent Weg ins Weltall book. The aliens had to be salamander/human, but the look of the ship was left up to me.

Covers

2009-10-08T19:22:00.002-04:00

These are some educational book covers. The client will place photographs of children on top of them, which is why they have open spaces in the foreground.

New Painting

2009-09-16T18:26:00.002-04:00

A quick acrylic-doodle painting from class today for which I used a palette knife and modeling paste.

Acrylic doodle

2009-08-27T10:17:00.002-04:00

A quick acrylics doodle from class a week ago.

Unitall

2009-08-20T11:25:00.003-04:00

This is the latest for Unitall, the special edition (2 or 3 per year.)

Click on image for a larger view.

Weg ins Weltall 20

2009-08-19T17:45:00.003-04:00

The latest cover for 'Weg ins Weltall' Click on the image for larger view.

Foreign publications

2009-07-22T15:20:00.002-04:00

Illustrations I did many years ago for Perry Rhodan (German publication) are now being republished in other countries. I recently received my copy of this Czech version. I can't read Czech, but I'm sure the title is the same as the original, or close to it. The other version currently in full swing is from Holland. And in case anyone cares, the royalties are minimal :-)

Line Drawings

2009-07-12T15:56:00.010-04:00

I've been doing some line drawings for hard covers recently. Well, not so recently, but they're now published where I can share. BenBella published "The Ticket," a book about a Dallas sports radio station. I did a total of 10 portrait drawings. See sample below. Another book is "Fit Soul, Fit Body," by Mark Allen, a six time iron man champion. Also, if you like sciency stuff, "Vision Revolution" is a very interesting book about the evolution of eyes, color vision, etc. See below- chapter cover with ape.

New Cover

2009-07-01T14:34:00.003-04:00

Another new Ren Dhark cover for the "Weg ins Weltall" series.

Covers

2009-06-26T10:28:00.003-04:00

Ren Dhark has a tradition of circular cover illustrations. That has always led to an abundance of black in the layout, because of the missing corners. I've been able to contribute an updated layout for "Unitall" with a metal frame that goes around the illustration but preserves the circular illustration format. For comparison, here are my latest covers, one for "Unitall" and one for "Weg ins Weltall."

Doolittle in Color

2009-05-26T17:44:00.003-04:00

After a slog and struggle I still ended up fairly pleased with this rare painting. There were quite a few occasions when I wished I could click the undo command. I couldn't get away with not thinking through the process in advance, so I hope to get another chance at a painting soon.

Doolittle Raid

2009-05-04T20:36:00.003-04:00

I'm about to start a rare painting (28" x 40") for the Warbirds & Warriors air show in Monroe, NC. It'll be used as poster and program cover. The image itself is of the B-25 bomber attack on Japan at the beginning of WWII, a.k.a. the Doolittle Raid. It's good to know paintings are still needed on occasion.

Latest Cover

2009-04-17T16:51:00.000-04:00

My latest cover for "Weg ins Weltall."

New Ren Dhark

2009-04-02T10:49:00.004-04:00

Sternendschungel Galaxis has reached #42 in the series. This is the cover for #41 for which the editor asked me to show the iconic Point Of spaceship in the foreground.

Buzby

2009-03-30T14:36:00.003-04:00

A few years ago I designed a bunch of characters for children's animations, one of a variety of things I've been able to work on. (I did the sketches which someone else turned into 3D) This is "Buzby the Bee". You can find more samples at Tinmachine.

New Covers

2009-03-12T09:42:00.004-04:00

Two new books from BenBella Books to which I contributed. The "Ardeur" cover is more of a photo illustration and The Bra Book" is yet to be completed with more interior illustrations to go. You can see three small bra drawings on the cover.

Watercolor

2009-03-10T13:29:00.004-04:00

I can count the number of watercolors I've done in the last few years on one hand. But now that I teach painting, I get a chance to do little demo paintings like this. Very enjoyable.

New Cover

2009-03-02T22:30:00.003-05:00

The latest from Unitall. The illustration was a quicky with short turnaround, but was well received.

RVWorld

2009-02-28T20:53:00.001-05:00

I finally made some updates to this website which was way overdue. This is the place I post all my cartoon style illustrations.

Sternendschungel Galaxis #37

2009-02-28T11:44:00.003-05:00

Some sketches and the final for one of the new SG covers.

Sternendschungel Galaxis #37

2009-02-28T11:44:00.001-05:00

Dog Portrait

2009-02-19T17:25:00.004-05:00

I took timeout and painted a small portrait of a friend's dog.

It was just the right amount of painting to make me want to do more, but for now it's back to the computer.

New Cover

2009-02-13T15:03:00.002-05:00

This is my latest cover for Ren Dhark, Weg ins Weltall.

Savannah

2009-02-01T19:43:00.004-05:00

Laura and I are back from Savannah. We got to see some old friends and professors which was lots of fun. I also met some other interesting SCAD grads who have been very successful.

To my surprise I received Best of Show for the previously posted Tricycle illustration.

Covers

2009-01-23T23:36:00.003-05:00

Some new and somewhat new covers.

30x30 Show

2009-01-09T11:12:00.003-05:00

One of the rare occasions I've made it into a show. I haven't tried getting into a show in a while, because of lack of success. In this case the call for entries came from my alma mater, observing the 30th anniversary of the illustration department. Take a look at other alumni work HERE.

This is my participating illustration:

Perry Rhodan Covers

2009-01-03T15:43:00.005-05:00

Meine original (gemalten) Perry Rhodan Titelbilder sind jetzt käuflich zu erhalten. Hier ist eine Liste der Titelbilder mit Preisen. Meldet Euch bei mir falls es Fragen gibt.

http://ralphvoltz.com/PR/Tibis.html

My original (painted) Perry Rhodan covers are now for sale. Here's a list of covers including price. Contact me if you have any questions.

http://ralphvoltz.com/PR/Tibis.html

I may have a list for Ren Dhark covers soon.

US Xpress

2008-12-29T15:02:00.004-05:00

The zoomify tool in photoshop is very helpful, so I'll take advantage of it here to offer a closer look at a recent poster illustration for US Xpress. Here's the link:

http://www.ralphvoltz.com/Zoom/USX/USX.html

Some old Ren Dharks

2008-12-27T10:51:00.003-05:00

I'll have a new Ren Dhark cover soon with two sketch stages. In the meantime, here are two older ones that aren't on my website anymore, but still consider to be among the more successful ones. The city scene was an acrylic painting. The snake attack image was photoshop painted.

Ren Dhark

2008-11-11T15:55:00.002-05:00

I can't publish all new sci-fi covers on my website, but this is a good place to display worthwhile new stuff. This is from the German series Sternendschungel Galaxis (#36). Digital, as always.

A friend, who is a 3-D artist, had rendered the recurring ship for me, which I can now easily place into covers whenever it appears. I always touch it up to make it blend into the rest of the illustration better, but still a good time saver.

Production art

2008-10-20T16:20:00.002-04:00

I did some digging and found some storyboards and comps I did which would otherwise not see the light of day. Here's just a small sampling.

Photoshop Demo

2008-08-28T18:47:00.006-04:00

Here's a photoshop demo I put together for a recent sci-fi cover. Thanks to Josh Burch for allowing me to use some of his fantastic music. I hope it's easy to see what's going on. I welcome your comments.

If you can't see the video below, try here (YouTube.)

Artikel

2008-08-18T11:03:00.005-04:00

Auf Seite 70 des neusten Terracoms (pdf.) gibt's einen Bericht über meine Arbeit seit der Zeit mit Perry Rhodan. Ich stelle auch neue Bilder vor. Vielen Dank an Werner Hoebart und Frank Zeiger und das Terracom Team.

Beim SFCU (Science Fiction Club Universum) gibt's jetzt das Perry Rhodan Jahrbuch 2007 mit einem meiner Bilder auf dem Cover. Nochmals vielen Dank an Frank Zeiger.

News

2008-08-09T21:14:00.003-04:00

• Look soon for a "step by step" on a new "Unitall" cover I'm working on. Should be ready in 2-3 weeks. That will be in German as well for the Ren Dhark readers in Germany, one of whom made the suggestion.

• Also, it looks like I'll be venturing into uncharted territory. I'll be illustrating the "Bra Book" which will have around 50-60 illustrations. It'll be available in all but one department stores, plus WalMart and Target. It'll contain portraits, editorial illustrations, etc. The author is fashion expert Jené Luciani and publication date is 2009.

Unpublished Stuff

2008-08-09T21:01:00.005-04:00

I illustrated the "Enlightened Smoker" for a book about how to quit smoking. Unfortunately, someone in the chain of publication was appalled about the idea of a smoker on the cover, so it never made it to print. My neighbor is still proud of having modeled for it and it's still one of my favorites.

The sketches for a book about Snape from Harry Potter is another example of a project getting stuck in the mud. The Phoenix and snake could've been nice in color. One was intended for the front-, one for the back cover.

Sternendschungel Galaxis Sketch

2008-08-06T10:39:00.007-04:00

The cover descriptions I receive from HJB, my German client, are rather short and leave much room for imagination. There is an expectation for me to use my creativity and less focus on creating an exact match to the manuscript. This is a sketch to one of the recent covers for Sternendschungel Galaxis for which I got to come up with a whole series of aliens in a "Las Vegas" type setting.

You can find the final color version here:

http://board.rendhark-universe.net/viewtopic.php?t=1149

Acrylic Painting

2008-08-03T11:00:00.006-04:00

This one was done from a photo which I took in the Black Forrest. I'll be teaching acrylics soon at our Jewish Community Center and it's time to put away the Wacom Tablet once in a while.

New Covers

2008-08-02T21:05:00.013-04:00

Three of my latest covers were just posted on the client's website, so I'll take advantage of it and use them for my first post. Their books often revolve around pop culture successes, like Fight Club, etc. Lots of fun to work on.