Update on life...

A.K.A. "Where did Lynda go?"

Well, within the last several months, not too much has changed -- at least in terms of career. I did have two interviews -- one at Treyarch in Los Angeles for an internship (which fell through), and one at Junction Point Studios (Disney Interactive) in Texas (which I didn't get). I have learned a lot merely from those experiences so at least that's worth something...

Otherwise, I've been really trying to stay on top of my motivation. Before I moved back to Los Angeles during the summertime I took an ArenaNet-run ZBrush class. This was all I needed! I never learned this adequate piece of software which is SUICIDE in this industry. I can't believe I tried to get by without it! I merely need to expand my portfolio work using that. Also, next week I have an appointment set up with the Gnomon School to see what would work best for me... I feel like there are some theories and art concepts I'm missing that I need to continue learning, so hopefully come January I'll be enrolled in some individual classes there. I'm thinking of taking some digital painting and more ZBrush classes.

Non-career-wise, I've sort of realized that only people I know and family really read this blog, so... I've decided to expand it and include updates on my actual life -- you know, those things that happen around you while you're fretting about art and employment. Yup.

So, for now, I'm working a part-time job at JoAnn Fabrics and Crafts to pay my bills, and to not feel completely useless! It helps -- though it usually leaves me extremely tired as I have to wake up on a regular basis anywhere from 3-4 AM. Augh!

So, you want proof I'm still doing some art? Fine, I'll give you proof!


Luckily, playing D&D is actually good for me -- it makes me want to draw! This is my character Kel'landra, a Rogue/Wizard multiclass, soon to be taking the prestige class Arcane Trickster. The cat familiar is named Caran'dae, and I made him an Abyssianian because they are the most charming cats in the world.


Here's some low-poly 3D assets I made for Exato Game Studios while I was there for their game "Progenitor". Wondering when it will be released? So am I. Guess we'll have to wait and see!


Tom Murray (for people not in the know, my boyfriend/college classmate) and I got a job to make a presentation video for the next volume of "Writers of the Future" earlier this year, and I modeled and animated a Sci-Fi worthy book based on Tom's concept. It's not the best piece of work I have ever done in my life, but it's really my first experience doing hard-surface modeling, and it was a lot of fun! I may include a bit of the animation in my next demo reel.


I actually created this for a shot at an Arena Net internship (which I didn't get... darn) but I'm actually touching it up because I think I can do better. The main reason I'm posting it in this incarnation is because this is my first actually SUCCESSFUL sculpting and baking experience to date. FuturePoly was truly a life-saver!

I think that's a pretty good sum-up of the last several months of my life. If anything else happens I'll let you know!

2010 Portfolio pages

Getting my portfolio ready for GDC... and I'm pretty worn out. Here are some things I've cleaned up and finished up for that:


This one obviously isn't done -- but I love the model.


Finally, he's done! A vast improvement from this time last year. :)


Same with these guys.. I updated their texture files since the ones from last year needed updating.



My demo reel comes next!

A job!

So that test I did for that company did paid off. I got hired! I start Monday. :D I'll be working part-time on an XBOX Live Arcade title at Exato Game Studios.

I'm really excited to start! It's great to finally be able to get some job experience, and get myself some exercise. lol

I'll have lots of off-time so I'll continue working on my Chaos Imp. Hopefully I can get him done soon... I'm so close. O_o

Chaos Imp WIP & Misc. Paintings

Still working on-and-off on several projects at once.



Here's my current progress on my Chaos Imp texture. I really like where it's going, but I feel like I still have a long way to go. I think it'll pay off in the end. :)



An environment painting I did for a company.



A character I'm designing for a contest over on DeviantART. It's merely a way for me to keep my creative juices flowing. I was provided with three words and an image for inspiration. The words were "swift", "gritty", and "steely". The image was some avocados. ;) I'll be trying to flesh him out some more, because he's really grown on me.

Digital paintings from the end of 2009

I'm still hard at work on my portfolio -- still working on the imp's texture, which is coming along.

As for 2D, here are some other pieces I've been working on!



Two characters of mine, Cxuca (pronounced "shuu-kah") and Vanessa. Cxuca is an alien from another solar system, and Vanessa has been shunted into this world. It's a story I crave the time to develop and turn into a graphic novel.



This is a one-hour doodle I did in Photoshop last month. He's my personal creation I just call "Claw Beast" that I don't draw nearly enough...



An image I did for an LJ community I'm in, CritterxChange. This guy is someone else's design, but I took some major liberties with it. It's a great excuse to continue toying around with extra features in Photoshop! :)

Chaos Imp Re-texture

I'm currently taking a brief break from my Mudbox project to re-texture this model I did last year. Here's a current work-in-progress shot. :)

Orc Barracks Render and fanart

Wow, I have so much to get done... But luckily, I did get one project finished! The Orc Barracks from Warcraft II:



I'm a huge fan of that old game :) I always enjoyed playing the orcs best, and my favorite building in the whole game was this building, the barracks. It was a load of fun to do!

And speaking of games I'm a huge fan of, I also did this piece of art in tribute to an old Amiga classic "Shadow of the Beast".



Lastly, I did this last piece as a Christmas present for someone who enjoys the movie "Flight of Dragons" as much as I do. :D



All three of these games/movies had a huge influence on my art and interests as a child. :)