The Chronicles of Ademar

In the first update to this site in quite a while, I’d like to officially announce that the production of the first issue has begun. As a preview of what the final product will look like, I will be posting the first several pages of the opening scene as a sample. As mentioned in previous posts, this book will be done entirely traditionally, with the art finished in ink wash and watercolors. Expect to see more of these as time goes on.

Click the thumbnail to view the page:

A quick look at Emperor Ademar’s royal costume. I wanted his clothing to include some sort of representation of the society’s embrace of nature — much like how the castle itself is a monument to this same idea — so after toying around with a few concepts, I decided to incorporate live greenery into his clothing.

Ademar has vinework that begins just below his tail and twists completely around his body, spiraling upwards and reaching towards his right shoulder. His crown is also a living accessory, with the branches and leaves’ looking similar to antlers. All of these elements bring a sense of life and fertility (of the land, specifically) to his appearance.

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Here are some quick facial expressions for Emperor Ademar, showing a bit of the range of emotions he can go through. These pages are always fun to do since they really help you get a better feel for the character’s personality in a short amount of time. I plan on doing a few pages’ worth of expressions for each character in the book.

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This entry is entirely too large to fit into the standard post size of this blog, so I am instead linking to another hidden folder on this site where I have all of the information hosted.

Included on the following linked page is an encyclopedic entry on the Grobian Beetle, which are the large native insects that exist within the world of Ademar. They range in size from a small car to a school bus, and can be controlled through secret means to serve as both military sentries and protective armored transportation. Since the shells are completely impenetrable, they are both feared and respected by the people… but mostly feared, as they are inherently untamed.

Be warned: the entry below is a very lengthy read, and is intended to present the entomological side of the Grobian as if the species really existed.

Click here: A Study of the Grobian Beetle

Hello everyone,

I would like to post a quick update to those who were wondering on the status of the first issue. The Chronicles of Ademar is now in full production, with the pencils now being put together for the first issue. I’m estimating the page count to be around 30 or so for Issue 1, and I will be specifically working on speeding up my production time when it comes to my watercolor painting techniques. I will keep you all posted as to the completion rate of the pages, as well as news regarding the first issue’s pricing as it gets closer to being finished.

As mentioned in the FAQ, I will not be posting the final pages online as they are completed. It will only be made available in book form. However, I WILL be publishing preview panels and sample images from the pages on here, so stay tuned for those to show up soon.

Here are some quick production sketches for a character that will be featured in the opening scene of the first issue. He is a petty thief who is being dragged into his first attempted assassination. As you can tell from these sketches, he’s not exactly confident in his abilities.

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Final images of this character in ink wash and watercolors will be posted as the pages are completed.

Here are some views of Castle Ademar that I produced while using the maquette sculpture as a reference. These are finished in colored pencil, and are a good view of the overall structure of the castle, as well as a closeup view of the main entrance gate. The vinework seen throughout the architecture will be a recurring design theme both in the environments and in the actual costumes/clothing of the Ademar family.

Click to view.

The following is an animated GIF showcasing the growth pattern of the castle over the past four generations of the Ademar family’s reign. Here you can see how the internal architecture is built like a tower, while five individual trees are sculpted and guided in their growth to form an outer shell, creating the illusion of a single grand tree castle. It’s designed to be a monolithic representation of their embrace of nature.

Click to view. This is a large file (about 2 MB), so please be patient while it loads.

It’s been about a year since I updated this blog with additional concept work. Admittedly Ademar had been put onto a back burner with my return to grad school, but now I’m ready to get back into producing a steady stream of material on my own projects. Since I’ll be going back to my original publishing schedule, you can expect this blog to be updated every Monday with additional concept work, sketches, and even the first few pages once they are completed.

Time to dust the cobwebs off the walls and get this place groovin’ again!

Here are the first conceptual sketches of the interior of Ademar Castle. I want the interior to include a heavy mix of natural structures and man-made architecture, so at the point that these sketches are at I’m still trying to find a good balance between them. I will be producing additional sketches and watercolor illustrations over time, which will be posted here as they are completed.

Note the inclusion of the light bulb insect in the second sketch. I will be posting an in-depth explanation of these bugs eventually.

Click to view.

Click to view.

In The Chronicles of Ademar, a major point in the story is how the people have rejected technology in favor of an embrace of nature. The Ademar Castle is a monument to this, built within and atop a twisting tower of five separate trees. The castle itself is broken up into several smaller buildings, each nested on the outstretched arms of the trees that form the base. The center is actually formed by the trees themselves, producing a hollow tower that provides a perfect natural line of defense as well as protection from the elements.

The maquette pictured below is a scale model of the tree castle. The model stands a little under a foot tall and is made of super sculpey with a blend of lichen and green foam for the foliage.

Click to view.

Interior/exterior sketches and illustrations to be posted September 15th in part two.