Space Station Orbiter: Cloud 99

Happy New Year-- NEW BLOG!

2012-01-03T07:10:00.000-05:00

Shhhh... Don't tell anybody but I've quietly and with little fan fare decided to launch a sister blog/web comic called Mark Nemesis: Warlock. Check it out!

http://marknemesis.blogspot.com/

Panel Tease 1

2011-12-11T02:28:00.000-05:00

Another hint to what I'm working on... And the beginning of my new PANEL TEASE series. What's panel tease? Simple, I take my favorite panel on whatever page I'm working on and I tease you with it. Silly, I know... but I gotta keep myself amused here.

Old to me... NEW to you

2011-09-23T17:22:00.000-04:00

I've haven't updated recently, but not to fret. In between working 50hr shifts at my "real job" gig I HAVE been drawing. And in the midst of that drawing I decided to make a change. Discovering Deviant art [about 50 years after everyone else!] I decided to create a profile there and post all my non-related Orbiter artwork.

And there's a lot of it.

So moving forward, folks who are so inclined now have two places to view my work. But before delving back into all things Orbiter I intend to post here a few pages that in some ways truly influenced my futuristic world view. Here's a preview...

In the interim, go check out my DeviantArt page... Here! http://alphacmt.deviantart.com/

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2010-12-09T04:09:00.001-05:00

Peacock?!! What the--?!

2010-11-25T04:32:00.005-05:00

I know, I know right? Not exactly the normal fair for this blog. Oh well a commission IS a commission. Enjoy the progress while I get this monkey... er peacock off my back!

Adam Vex Inks

2010-11-24T04:32:00.001-05:00

Not bad for a day's worth of work...

2010-11-05T04:06:00.003-04:00

Rock Titan!

2010-10-20T05:23:00.003-04:00

Vector Ad

2010-10-06T07:13:00.001-04:00

Okay I admit it. More than a little proud on how this one came together...

This is Vector...

2010-10-04T06:38:00.002-04:00

Needless to say, Vector is a super speedster. But he's not the only member of Sanction 7 that possesses incredible speed...

Wonder Women!

2010-10-03T05:00:00.001-04:00

My sketch for Wonder Woman Day 2010. Enjoy!

Pieces of the puzzle

2010-09-30T02:05:00.007-04:00

I don't normally work this way but I was thinking of a excuse to use my Manga University I.C Background Collection Workbook. [That's quite a title isn't it?] Anyhoo, Space Station Orbiter is about more than a space station, more than paranormals with amazing powers. It also involves giant mechas called "Dreadnaughts". I've said it before, but it bears repeating Orbiter is my love letter to science-fiction space opera, super-heroes and giant robots. I've shown the station, the aliens, members of the Sanction 7 team but I'm overdue in illustrating the mecha aspect solely by itself. So here's the first of several illos focusing on the scale and the threats these robots will be facing. Enjoy!

2010-09-29T22:08:00.000-04:00

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2010-08-04T06:24:00.002-04:00

This is Red Zephyr. I've always liked the name "Zephyr"... it just sounds cool. Yet another member of Sanction 7, she has the ability to generate winds and can control the weather. The only member that can fly under her own power without the help of technology. She's also the only member that sports a cape. Considering her power it almost felt appropriate...

Red Zephyr

2010-08-04T06:17:00.003-04:00

Evolution of StealthShadow

2010-08-04T06:02:00.006-04:00

This is StealthShadow. Probably the very first character I created for Space Station Orbiter: Cloud 99 many many, years ago... Powers are pretty straightforward, she has the ability to both phase and turn invisible. I really liked how this particular piece evolved... I'm just really digging the effortless laid back body language she's evoking in this illustration. She's a cool coy chick this one...

2010-07-28T06:48:00.002-04:00

His Name is Asunder!

2010-07-17T06:15:00.003-04:00

Overweight AND muscular is a bit hard to pull off sometimes...

2010-06-12T04:57:00.000-04:00

I'm Not Fearless

2010-06-11T05:41:00.004-04:00

I'm not fearless. You know the type of artist I'm talking about. The kind that takes to the bristol and starts drawing with nary a sketch or thumbnail to guide them. I've always been a little envious of that ability. Just doesn't work for me. I literally have to work out all the kinks before I really commit to good paper. I guess I'm a control freak, and that characteristic shines through even when I draw. Sigh.

Perhaps that's why I enjoy sketching initially in ballpoint pen on plain old printing paper. It's probably when I'm most free... unafraid to make a "mistake". I don't really care about correct [or even stylized anatomy for that matter] at that point. I'm just trying to get the "gesture" or the "feel" of the drawing. After that, I break out the tracing paper and start refining. What I sometimes lose in spontaneity I make up for in polishing the final product before I EVER commit to good bristol. Pro and cons to everything I guess...

Work in Progress Part 2

2010-06-06T07:21:00.006-04:00

First off, I really need to give props to Brian Bendis and John Romita Jr. I thought their ad campaign to introduce the new Avengers team was a stroke of genius. A brief sentence boiling down the essence of each new Avenger's character. Robert Kirkman's no fool, he knows a good idea when he sees one. He immediately used a similar approach to introduce his new Guardians of the Globe line-up. It was just as cool the second time around, and probably even more important to do, as several of these characters had never been seen before.

I've been living with these Sanction 7 characters forever and a day now, but know one else really knows these characters at all. I figured the "Bendis New Avenger Intro" was a interesting exercise to try out. I REALLY enjoyed it! It helped me get a more concise handle on my own creations. Boiling down their motivations, hopes and fears in a few sentences. I have quite a few to do, so interspersed between other illos I'll be rolling out these ads all summer.

As for the actual execution of the piece, even though I liked the ad campaign I really didn't want to replicate it exactly. I needed to put my own design spin on it. The piece was colored in photoshop. I decided to go with the exact opposite of the white negative space of the Avenger ads which meant using a lot of black as a back drop. Then I thought, what the hell, as a added design element I would use a photo or backdrop image that best describes the character's power. A warped photo of volcano plumes worked nicely. And because I can never leave well enough alone I took the original black and white illo, blew it up and inverted the image to create a "negative" background. Initially it was too stark and fought waaaay too much with the character caption. So I brought the opacity of the negative figure to about 45% and that seemed to work out just fine. Run the title text at the bottom and the puppy is complete. Shake, stir...and serve chilled. Enjoy!

Work In Progress Part 1

2010-06-05T06:49:00.003-04:00

I'm back to my world building folks. The Sanction 7/ECBACC mash up piece was just the warm up. There will always be little artistic detours here and there but for the most part I'm back to focusing on artwork that actually pertain to this blog's title! Just don't expect any real order or rhyme or reason.

This character's name is FyreFist. He's one of the leaders of Sanction 7. His current mission along with his teammates is to provide added protection to the Space Station entitled Orbiter 99. Overall, I was pretty happy with the overall figure sketch, except I thought his head was a little small. So I enlarged his noggin just a bit.

Black Jesus colored! [Hmmm... something's disturbing about this title...]

2010-05-24T19:36:00.002-04:00

Seb asked me to illustrate this piece awhile back. It was always intended to be black and white with just a hint of color. But recently I decided to see what it would look like fully colored. I'm rather happy with the results. Enjoy!

Blast from the past Part 3

2010-05-23T19:34:00.002-04:00

For whatever reason, I started this illustration at the beginning of the decade and never finished it. Going through my files I came across it, warts and all and reaccessed the illo. Eh. It wasn't THAT bad... So I figured, what the hell, finish the color and simply say, "Happy 30th anniversary to THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK!" My all time FAVORITE STAR WARS movie!

Blast from the past Part 2

2010-05-23T03:47:00.002-04:00

Blast from the Past part 1

2010-05-23T03:20:00.002-04:00

Three guesses as to whom inspired this piece. [And the first two don't count!] Colors by the incomparable Sky Owens...

2010-05-19T08:36:00.000-04:00

Sanction 7/ECBACC Mash up!

2010-05-16T03:03:00.003-04:00

Just because I didn't attend the ECBACC doesn't mean I can't show some LOVE!

2010-03-17T03:34:00.001-04:00

Now for something completely Different...

2010-03-17T03:25:00.001-04:00

Kubcake and the DurtyBear Odyssey

2010-03-17T02:20:00.003-04:00

Finally. The light at the end of the tunnel.

Last year I was working hard on self publishing my own comic Space Station Orbiter: Cloud 99. I created this blog to both self motivate myself and to let others interested in comics on my creative process. I was very much inspired by the many artist blogs and websites that you see listed to the right. As with anything, my personal vision morphed into something else. that "something else" included a past creative endeavor as well. That was Mark Nemesis: The Avatar. For obvious reasons, I've slightly changed that title. Even though I've been living with it for the last ten years. Hard lesson learned folks... you snooze, you lose! Anyhoo, I thought it would be fun to combine both stories into one package. TAYLOR MADE! was born... or at the very least, in the process of gestation.

But life tends to throw you curve balls. Without going into the dirty details, my partner Sebastian Morris presented me with a interesting proposition which I couldn't pass up. Help him create a clothing line for larger, full sized men that was specifically catered to the GAY BEAR community [If you don't know, google it]. Hmmm... help design clothes? Always thought about it, never done it. Seemed like fun, and it was! Still is actually. Mr. Morris is a master textile specialist and seamstress. He had never focused on men's clothing to this degree and wanted my input. We created the line together, although I felt each to his own personal strengths. Deferring to his expertise, I always gave him final say. My job was to create a "brand", a mascot to promote the brand [hence the creation of KUBCAKE] and to create the website. Afterwards it would be my job to promote the site and the clothing line as best I could.

With GRITZ N GRAVY I had to design a book from the ground up... something I had never attempted before. With DURTY BEAR clothing I had to design a website from scratch, something ELSE I had never done. Luckily, I have some VERY talented friends. Herb Briley is one such friend. When I layed out the magazine it was his expertise that took my templates and made them print ready. With the Durty Bear website Herb once again, not only interpreted my vision but enhanced it. I can't thank him enough. He did a fantastic job. As of this writing we're not completely finished but certainly 98% completed. At least I feel comfortable enough for folks to see the work in progress. For those who are interested, by all means take a look.

durtybear.com

Thankfully, as of this writing my job is ALMOST complete with only two more page templates to go. YAY! With that completed I can finally get back to Orbiter and Nemesis. The detour took a little longer than expected but it was a great opportunity to expand and do something I never thought possible. I thank Sebastian Morris for the opportunity and I love him dearly for allowing me to collaborate with him. I hope we continue to collaborate creatively for many, many years to come.

2010-03-16T06:33:00.000-04:00

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2009-10-27T21:26:00.002-04:00

Meet Kubcake

2009-10-27T21:19:00.002-04:00

Kubcake is the mascott for a new clothing line DURTY BEAR that my partner and I are developing.

Ink Indian Figure

2009-10-27T21:16:00.001-04:00

Figure illo for a CD commission I just completed.

New Orbiter Artwork!

2009-10-26T22:05:00.002-04:00

It's been a minute I know. But I'm back, stay tuned for all SORTS of stuff!

Gritz N Gravy Artbook on sale!

2009-07-24T03:26:00.003-04:00

Gritz N Gravy is the brainchild of Paris Cullins, and at it's core was always a place for creators with progressive urban sensibilities to express themselves. It started off as a template for a magazine but quickly morphed into what could best be discribed as a lush coffee table art book. The initial print run was extremely limited and sold out quickly. As a collective we've dragged our feet somewhat in terms of getting the project back to print. Mostly due to the fact that most of us have moved on to other projects. But the wait is over. The book is back into print.

The book features the stories, artwork and interviews of African- American creators, most of whom reside in Philadelphia Pa. Works by Mike Leeke, Sky Owens, Eric Battle, Isreba Aiken, Clive Arno, Paris Cullins and of course me, Christopher Taylor.
http://www.lulu.com/content/paperback-book/gritz-n-gravy-magazine/4469715

Christopher Taylor inks Paris Cullins

2009-07-23T00:39:00.013-04:00

For the uninitiated Paris and I go waaaaay back. For years I helped him layout and complete backgrounds for all sorts of comics. Too many to mention here. More recently, Paris approached me to design his magazine which in turn morphed into a coffee table artbook entitled Gritz n Gravy. Probably the most daunting creative endeavor I've done to date. Besides logo design, page layout, and computer coloring I finally got to do something I always wanted to do... ink Paris Cullins! Here's a few pages I worked on from a comic he created called Marcus Arena. I'd love a opportunity to do more...

More Sketches!

2009-07-21T02:23:00.003-04:00

2007 Sketches

2009-07-20T07:28:00.005-04:00

2009-07-06T06:30:00.002-04:00

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2009-07-06T05:53:00.002-04:00

Taylor Made Book one cover

2009-06-12T22:12:00.003-04:00

Page 10

2009-06-06T04:56:00.003-04:00

Page 9 [Overdue]

2009-04-08T03:02:00.002-04:00

And I was doing so good too... Now look at me. Completely OFF the f*%$cking horse. And I HATE excuses...excuses are for whiners. You either do the work or you don't. Anyhoo... enjoy the freaking page and pray for me that the next page doesn't sit on my drawing board for weeks 95% done. UGH.

Page 8 revisited

2009-03-04T11:51:00.002-05:00

Okay, still some minor tweaking to be done but here's the illo, pretty much how I envisioned it. The black gutters were a afterthought but I think it works, especially in light of the crew's predicament. It adds a sense of foreboding, signalling their bad times are just beginning...

Page 8

2009-03-04T10:34:00.002-05:00

Okay, I'm rather excited about this page. Oh I know it looks rather incomplete, but in actuality it's about 85% percent done. Remember the new illo of the Orbiter space station? [If you don't just scroll down, I'll wait.] Well it's going to placed in the initial big establishing shot. The story calls for the station to hide out in Ganymede's shadow. Ganymede is a moon that orbits the giant planet of Jupiter. Well as luck would have it, I ran across a really cool image online focusing on Jupiter from Ganymede's perspective. I'm going to modify and enhance the image and place it in the first panel and then impose the space station in the proper position. The fifth panel will be a re-purposed image of Commander Mead from page 6.

Page 7

2009-03-04T10:20:00.003-05:00

As promised... scant hours later! LOL! Recently scanned pencilled pages for your viewing enjoyment. At this stage I've only begun the "digitally inking process" and I still have a lot of cleaning up to do. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, NOTHING beats traditionally inked pages. But both TIME and MONEY are prime motivators to go the digitally inked route, and if done well can at least adequately represent the base pencils.

Another shot of... SPACE STATION ORBITER: CLOUD 99!!

2009-03-03T11:40:00.003-05:00

Long overdue for a post here, but I guarantee awesome pages [at least to me anyway!] are only scant hours away. But here's a little something to whet the appetite. I almost didn't post this but I remembered... the whole point of this is to peak behind the creative veil so-to-speak. It shouldn't always be near to completed digitally inked pencils I'm showing. Here's another shot of the Orbiter space station. I won't lie, it's a bitch to draw... so it's easier for me to draw it separately, scan it, clean it up and re-size it and place it exactly where I want it on the actual page. God, I love photoshop... it's so forgiving. Make a mistake? So what...you don't even have to erase it, just fix once it's scanned in photoshop. Wheeee...

Page 6

2009-02-10T06:24:00.006-05:00

Well finishing this page almost makes up for not going to NY Comic-Con.

Almost.

Truth is, it wasn't in the cards for me to go no matter what, as my Grand Mom Stroman's 90th birthday was on Saturday. No way was I going to miss that. And it was a wonderful time and a blessed day. No regrets on that front.

But more to the point, I just didn't have enough of Orbiter as a whole to present to the public. Although I do have a rocking 86 page illustration collection of my work [ I wouldn't call it a "sketch book" 'cause frankly, there aren't any sketches in it! lol!] that I could have sold... but I just wanted to have "more".

So moving forward I've decided The Philadelphia ECBACC Con will be my coming out party for Space Station Orbiter: Cloud 99. You read it here first, and now it's in virtual print so I'm commited! Exactly how I present it at this point is up to two major factors. One, how many pages are completed by April [the con's in May but I have to give a potential printer a few weeks time to do their stuff]. And two, how much money will I have to print the damn thing up. Something tells me I'll be combining Orbiter pages with my MARK NEMESIS: THE AVATAR work. That should make for a rocking package, along with the illustration book and some prints my bases should be well covered. Will keep all five of you posted as the date draws nearer!

As for the page. VERY happy with it. I'm showing my age here, but does anyone remember that awesome issue of Marvel Fanfare where Michael Golden pencilled, inked, and colored the battle between the Hulk and the Flu-induced Spiderman? THAT my friend, as they say... was the shit! Well I especially loved the Shield war room scenes and that's the vibe I was channeling for this page.

Our Story So Far...

2009-01-25T04:01:00.000-05:00

Well folks, I'm back. Finished off another page and lettered everything so far. Please forgive me, this is actually my first attempt at comic lettering and it's a little more tricky than I anticipated, but I'm learning quickly. Overall, I'm pretty happy with the results. Up until this point the pages and images have been disjointed although I made every attempt to include the appropriate copy to give everyone a basic idea of what Orbiter is about. I take this one step further now by letting folks read the first five pages for themselves. In addition, I've included another snippet from my press release which further explains the Space Station Orbiter: Cloud 99 mythos.

Enjoy!

Welcome to the universe of SPACE STATION ORBITER: CLOUD 99: a massive Mars orbiting station, which serves as the first and ultimately the last line of defense against an encroaching alien confrontation. The core inhabitants of SPACE STATION ORBITER: CLOUD 99 is the elite force Sanction 7. Paranormals that were genetically enhanced and specifically chosen from each of the twelve settled city-states on Mars.

In addition to their myriad paranormal abilities all are psi sensitive able to psionically activate various machines, hardware and spacecraft. The most impressive mechanical constructs under their mental command are Towering space worthy mobile suites designed for short-range space warfare.

These enhanced individuals find themselves thrusted into the theater of intergalactic war where the inhabitants of Mars can no longer remain on the sidelines¼

What is SPACE STATION ORBITER: CLOUD 99? A science fiction space opera first and foremost. Mix the pacing and tension of the EMPIRE STRIKES BACK with the angst and unique mecha design of NEON GENESIS EVANGELION with the futuristic optimism and super-powered youth of the LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES and you have SPACE STATION ORBITER: CLOUD 99.

What is SPACE STATION ORBITER: CLOUD 99? Orbiter Cloud 99 is a experimental space station with technology to fold space, making instantaneous long range teleportation possible. That technology along with the Ape-like mechas known as Dreadnaughts and the genetically enhanced paranormals entrusted to pilot them makes Orbiter Cloud 99 the linchpin of New Mars military forces.

Page 1

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Page 2

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Page 3

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Page 4

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Page 5

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Finally! Again!

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Page 1

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Finally!!!

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Happy New Year

2009-01-01T06:32:00.000-05:00

What a nice way to start the new year. Finished work, met my boo, we went out to our favorite diner ordering our favorite meals at the stroke of midnight, went home and walked the dog together, shot the shit and I settled in for another wee-morning session with the photoshop thingie with HONEYROOT and KASKADE as my ambient, chilled house music soundtrack.

I mean really. Nights like this is what you thank God for. So thanx higher powers!!!

Just about finished page three, certainly complete enough to post. Early on, I knew this page was going to be a little more complicated than normal so opted to pencil different elements separately then combine them later in photoshop. That proved to be a prudent move and I'm quite happy with the results.

Page Two is FIRST

2008-12-31T06:22:00.000-05:00

Well it appears that I'm keeping my promise [at least to myself if no one else! Yay me!] with a actual page of SPACE STATION ORBITER: CLOUD 99 before the close of 08. Actually, I'm working on four pages right now with the pages in various degrees of completion. I never seem to work quite in order...sorry.

Anyhoo, what's shown is page 2 in the interim of being digitally inked and cleaned up. I'm still going back and forth on whether I should traditionally ink it as opposed to doing so digitally. My preference is to break out the rapidographs and get to work, but working digital does seem to save some time... ahhh well, decisions, decisions.

Power Pack !

2008-12-29T15:58:00.001-05:00

Well I'm still hard at work on the initial Orbiter pages, but I thought I'd leave you guys with the LAST non-Orbiter '08 artwork. It's Power Pack! Or at least Power pack re-imagined as teenagers from across the globe: Palestinian, Japanese, African American and Puerto Rican.

Tiger Shark Pilot Designs

2008-12-26T19:06:00.000-05:00

Geeez... it's been FOREVER since I updated this thing and I feel bad. But the good news is I have been working. Probably not as hard as I should be working...but working nonetheless. PAGES are forthcoming! But you guys [all five of you!] want to see artwork nooooowwww! All right awwreedy! Enclosed is a illo I did a few years ago. Me and my friend Derek [ inker of Batman Detective Comics ] wanted to pitch something to Wildstorm around the turn of the century. He had cultivated a good relationship with them and wanted to branch out and write/ink something for them. He asked me to help...now for the life of me I can't remember the particulars. It had something to with I.O./Stormwatch or some such nonsense. Oh wait, now I remember, it was a story about the Black Razors. Needless to say it didn't go anywhere, but we had fun thinking stuff up and became good friends. He was and remains one of my staunchest supporters.

Anyhoo, Derek asked me to re-imagine the Razors and this is what I came up with. So what's this have to with Orbiter? Well I'm not one to let a half-way decent illo go to waste. When I created a squadron of fighter pilots to help protect the space station ,I called them Tiger Sharks. Think Black Tigers from Star Blazers or the fighter pilots from Battlestar Galactica and you've got a good idea for the "feel" I was going for. So no more Razor design but yes to Tiger Shark pilot uniforms. The design on the extreme left will be the one that gets used...

Deepest condolences

2008-12-06T01:34:00.001-05:00

What I like most about my blog, is the fact that it's ok to go off topic once in awhile. This is one of those times. My good friend [and more times than I can count, collaborator] Sky Owens lost his father recently. My deepest heartfelt condolences goes out to him and his family. It goes without saying that Sky has been a awesome friend and teacher to me over the years. Without him teaching me basic photoshop [including coloring and lettering] , this little experiment of doing a comic all by your lonesome wouldn't be possible. Thank you Sky.

Above is my take on one of MANY Sky characters: Kemette!

Humans

2008-12-02T03:08:00.001-05:00

Well it's obvious that Human beings will play a important part in my little drama. So here's the senior staff officers of Cloud 99, New Mars' experimental space station. The initial sketch was done in ballpoint pin at work. I then used tracing paper to refine the sketch and inked the line work with a fine Micron pen directly on the tracing paper. I then scanned the tracing paper and spent waaay too much time further cleaning up the illo and adding blacks.

THE HUMAN RACE: Relative newcomers to the Arcadian Trade Alliance, nevertheless have proven to be assets to the trade federation exploiting their adopted home’s resources for the greater good. Quick learners, humans have embraced alien technology and made improvements unheard of to their Arcadian Alliance counterparts.

Aliens 4

2008-12-01T08:16:00.000-05:00

Yup, I know. It's been a minute. But I'm baaaack. Yet another alien species character sheet. This time I tried to emulate the classic big head, big eyes aliens. And then I remixed it.

THE VA’-N’LL VOX: Another race caught up within the thousand year war with the Xerus. Initially conquered by the Xerus, the Va’-N’LL Vox regained it’s independence thru bloody warfare. The Vox are a highly intuitive and spiritual race. They are also extremely diplomatic.

Rejected!

2008-11-18T18:46:00.002-05:00

Technically I'm not adding any new art today, as it's my only day off [sigh,again!] and I've decided to take it a little easy. Going to see Quantum of Solace tonight, catch up on some script reading for my colleage Reba and do some marketing for Gritz n Gravy magazine [gritzngravy.com].
But I'm addicted to my little blog so I thought it would be fun and switch gears and present a illo I inked and colored a few months ago. Probably in retrospect I should have gotten my good friend Sky Owens to color the piece. He's so much better at photoshop than I am. And yet, overall I really like it. Yup, it's STREET FIGHTER, albeit completely off model. You know I just gots ta put my own spin on thangs...for better or worse. So what's that got to do with the title of this entry? Hmmm... In the long term? Not much. Not much at all.

Aliens! 3

2008-11-18T06:46:00.000-05:00

Okay, working 48 to 50 hrs a week with only one day off per week for the last 4 weeks probably wasn't the most condusives schedule for getting artwork done. But I should be grateful for the overtime when most folks are losing their jobs left and right. Citi-Bank comes to mind with the loss of 50,000 jobs alone yesterday. And yet I've managed to post at least one piece every two days of late. Here's hoping I can keep this up!

THE XERUS: Oldest race known in the unified galaxies. The first to discover interplanetary space travel. In addition to spacecraft the Xerus invented warp gates- enormous constructs which activate navigational wormholes which make intergalaxy space travel possible. Initially, the Xerus were quite warlike attempting to conquer two other alien races, the Va’-N’LL Vox and the Kravorians. After a thousand year war relative peace resulted and served as the basis of the unified galaxies which would eventually annex three more space worthy alien races. The Xerus are hyper intelligent and a somewhat cold race. They value co-operation and extensive trading of resources. The Xerus have three sexes, all three are needed to procreate.

Aliens! 2

2008-11-15T03:12:00.000-05:00

Two days later and another post...hmmm.... not bad! This is the kind of trend I really need to keep up. Here's another important alien race that populates the galaxy in the Space Station Orbiter series. Enjoy.

KRAVORIANS: This race of beings initially clashed with the Xerus sparking the thousand year war with first the Xerus and eventually the Va’-N’LL Vox as well. Considered the most proficient in the art of warfare, in the end the Kravorians decimated the Xerus population. The Xerus has yet to fully recover from the loss of 75% of its people from Kravorian war initiatives. The Kravorians participate with Arcadian unified galaxy trading agreements out of necessity. It depleted its three worlds’ natural resources thru the millennium long war. Kravorian’s primary export is genetic manipulation. Every other race has benefited from their technology as natural life spans have been extended by decades.

Aliens! Part 1

2008-11-12T07:16:00.000-05:00

Been gone for a few days... a bit longer than I intended but I'm back. The next batch of sketches will be of the various aliens that inhabit the Space Station Orbiter universe.

World building can sometimes be daunting if I think about it too much. My first instinct is to simply jump into the pages and design as I go. And I'm sure as this project really gets going that's probably EXACTLY what I'll do. Unfortunately, I instinctually know that's not the way to go now. The more problem solving I can get thru at the design stage, the better. And since I don't have a design team consisting of Dave Johnson, Jim Lee, Cheeks and Paul Rivoche I'm just going to have to muddle thru as best I can...

These two are Ra- Kreallians, basically the villians of the story.

The RA-KREALLIANS: It is theorized the Ra-Kreallians are from an alternate universe, whose system shifted into Unified space two thousand years ago. The only race that was not directly contacted by the Xerus. Instead, the Ra-Kreallians petitioned for admittance to the Arcadian Trade Alliance. Not much is known about the Ra-Kreallians even now. What is known is that their technology rivals that of the Xerus.

OHMYGAWWWD! OBAMA WINS!!!

2008-11-05T06:01:00.000-05:00

One of the nice things about this blog is I get to make new friends interested about my work. But every so often, a old friend catches up with you, reminding you're on the right track. Take fellow artist Brad Rader... we've been out of touch for awhile but he was kind enough to say a few good words about my blog. Of course as all discussions these days seem to go... it devolved [or in this particular case evolved] into the state of the presidential race. Somehow I don't think he'd mind me reprinting a portion of our e-mail exchange here...

"Oh my God. Obama is President!!! I'm in shock. I'm stunned. Throughout my entire adult life I have felt nothing but despair for the future of this country. Everything just seems to get worse...especially after 911. But I truly feel we've turned a corner. I feel optimistic about our future. Last week the city erupted in joy due to the Phillies winning the world series. It was electric. Well clearly, lightning has struck again in our fair city in less than a week's time. Center city was FULL of Obama supporters, the streets full of cars honking and men and women yelling out their joy. Me? I just cried. I was elated, and completely stunned. But the points you make are extremely valid. We need him to come thru with everything he's promised. And we can't let those 20th century dinosaurs called Republicans thwart his, no... OUR wave of change."

2008-11-04T05:37:00.001-05:00

Well it's election day morning. As in 5:38 in the fucking morning. Me and my partner Seb intend to be in line when the polls open at 7am. Hopefully there won't be long lines at that early hour... but I'm prepared for a horror story. I'm not one for a whole lot of praying, and OBAMA is clearly ahead in the polls but those crooks [ I mean Republicans ] have stolen an election before. Anyone remember 2000? So I think we need JESUS. Black Jesus... that is.

2008-11-02T03:47:00.000-05:00

Below are the first character designs of StealthShadow and FyreFist. Good friend Aarron Beatty was nice enough to ink the pieces waaaay back when. Funny how your tastes change, initially I wanted StealthShadow to be of Indian descent but have blond hair. Ugh. These days I've come to my senses and I think it's important to reflect nationalities in a more authentic manner, even in a futuristic setting.

Astute viewers can also see my original running title was CLOUD 9. I still like it, but I difinitely wanted to go with something that sounded like it could be a potential anime title.

2008-11-02T03:43:00.000-05:00

2008-11-02T03:41:00.000-05:00

2008-11-02T03:32:00.001-05:00

2008-11-02T03:17:00.000-05:00

Sigh. I should have known this blog was going to devolve to a catch-all for all my work, not just Orbiter related artwork. If there's a silver lining to this I can look back on this week at what I was drawing when i wasn't knee deep in Orbiter work. Anyhoo, enjoy a new logo I designed for a family member as she bravely starts a new business in what could be described as the worst of economic times. [Of course, if Obama is elected I fully expect the stock market to truly bounce back to it's former glory. Here's praying, anyway!] Also, I put the finishing touches on a new Gritz n Gravy illo. I'm hoping good friend Sky Owens will be kind enough to color the piece. I'd assume it's eventual home will be the Gritz n Gravy website.

2008-11-02T03:14:00.000-05:00

2008-10-30T04:01:00.000-04:00

Below is a illustration at how Sanction 7 [ yup, that's the name of the actual team ] was initially conceived just a little over a decade ago. I created new uniforms fairly recently only to discover I really LIKED versions of the old ones. Solution? What the hell... I'll use both.

2008-10-30T03:59:00.001-04:00

The Art of Christopher Taylor

2008-10-30T03:14:00.000-04:00

I've decided to show a few more images ahead of schedule here. Below is the eventual cover to the Space Station Orbiter sketchbook and preview. The reason why it's three quarters inked is because I intend to have the left side completely colored, middle area only inked with the right remaining in sketch form. Showing the various stages of a comic illustration is nothing new but along with some modern typefaces should make for a interesting image. I'm currently inking the remainder of the illo. I'll completely re-color it and will probably use it as the back cover. So who are these characters? From front to back:

StealthShadow- Indian descent, invisibility and the ability to phase.
Astra M- African descent, manipulates the electromagnetic spectrum.
FyreFist- Japanese descent, heat and flame plasma caster.
Vector- African descent, Super-sonic speedster.
Dreadnaught- twenty story high mobile unit, military offensive weapon, psionically controlled.