So I decided to open myself to commissions again.
A few slots are already taken by default (by earlier inquiries, let alone some unlisted folk that I still owe work - I'm sorry for all the delay guys), but I'm adding more slots now, so anybody who's interested to have something drawn by me is encouraged to comment here, leave a personal message or write to me directly at magus *at* india * com.

Pricing:

Glyphs: starting at 20€
Full shaded rapidograph pictures: starting at 30€
Fully illustrated book (like the Diary of a Dimensional Traveler or the Malleus Lycantropicum): price on application and long waiting time.

And the slots are as follows:

Commissions

1 -  thedarkwolfen - Glyph - need reference
2 -  Bloodhound_Omega - Glyph - reserved
3 -  balorkin - Sepia ink diptychon
4 - Matthew - medium format - reserved
5 -  Godzuki - to be defined - reserved

Ongoing

 armand - tattoo design - need information to get started.

Less then a week from now will see the opening of this years MMC in Germany - and surprisingly, I will be able to attend.

I still have some mixed feelings about it though: as my application was on hold for a very long time and I only rotated in from the waiting list recentily, it will be a financially uninteresting con for me, to say the least. Lots of fees and to cover (traveling alone by train from switzerland takes quite a bite out of my strained account right now) and an overfilled artshow that left me with no space to hang anything this year will withoout a doubt result in a very negative balance for me for this con, at least financially.

I still look forward to the location of course, and obviously the people. It is going to be the first time that I've been apart from my husband in a long time, and the first time that I am away as a married man. So watch out for the wolf with the wedding ring. ;)

The convention will hopefully present me with a chance to focus some energy and attention on long overdue projects though, predominantely the Malleus Lycanthropicum that I want to finish for sale at EF, as well as socializing with some of the nice people and brilliant folks that inhabit these cons.

So see you there and all the best,

Lupus.

P.S.: Comission slots might open again in the near future, as soon as I can finally wrap up all my long overdue business. So keep watching this space!

Actually, I've been back from our honeymoon sinc ea whole week now, but I had a hard time adjusting to real life again, PHD or something (post-honeymoon-depression) ;).
England was great and I enjoyed the climate and scenery lots. Among others we visited Cardiff, Bath and Oxford and, in tune with our celtic wedding, toured the megalithic circles of Stonehenge and Avebury. The thought of maybe one day returning to the country with my husband doesn't seem so impossible now, seeing that I've utterly fallen in love with the place. And the bookshops they have! *swoon*

But for now I am firmly grounded here in Switzerland, as I've been informed to have been accepted to attend art school here in Bern! :D Finally, I'll be busy again.

Warm thanks and lots of love to all of you for your wishes and gratulations on our wedding, especially for those of you who attended. We are very happy and excited about makeing our future and having founded out own little family here among you.
And while the swiss laws still keep us from having children of our own. (*sigh*), I find consolation in having wonderful people around us that make up our family.
And in siring offspring in ink on paper, of course.

So let's see what married life feels like. I'm curious.

In a matter of hours, my fiance Faolan and me will be off to the register office down the street and signing our civil union papers.
The ceremony here in Switzerland promises to be rather minuscule, without all the "I Do"s and speeches, but we don't mind - all the more spiritual ritualistic stuff will take place tomorrow, when us and a small round of family and friends will venture into the forest to an ancient celtic cult place around town and getting our union blessed by a druid.

I'm jittery and excited, but at the came time hardly able to wait. We've planned this for the last three months (and keeping me from drawing ;)) and neither snow nor rain will keep us from getting through with this - which is good, as it snowed heartily last night.

After the ceremony on saturday, my husband and me will be eloping to Cardiff and later Bath, fixing the last little flaw in our relationship: Me marrying a yorkshireman without ever having set foot on british soil.

Be assured I'll return refreshed and renewed with more drawings to be done (and the odd photograph from the ceremony or the trip) when I come back.

But if you excuse me now, I need dress up and make one of the most important decisions in my life.

After my initial posts were greeted with such a positive resonance, I finally sat down and computed this little text to give people a better idea about the background of the "Diary of a Dimensional Traveler"/"The Travels of Jalno of Vemalin-Jû".
I hope you'll enjoy.


1) What is it?

It was a collaboration between  akeyla an me.
The book itself was handbound by  akeyla who also dyed all the paper for it herself and sculpted the cover.
I then took it over and filled the pages with words and illustrations.

2) What is the book about?

The book is written in the style of an explorers journal. The narrative follows the travels of Jalno of Vemalin-Jû, a young scholar that finds an unusual apparatus in the workshop left behind by his deceased mentor, °Gezol. After some experimentation, he comprehends that the apparatus is in fact the heart piece of a dimensional teleportation device, around which he constructs a suit for himself to leave the World of Ash°ar and explore other universes.

3) How big is the book?

The dimensions of the book are 16,5cm x 22cm x 3cm and it consisted of 70 individual sheets of paper, which left me with 139 pages to fill. All in all the book includes about 11 pages of pure text, 77 pages of text with illustrations and 7 pages that are taken up mostly by an illustration. The rest are either left blank for stylistic purpose or bear the captions of the individual chapters (14 captions for 14 distinct enviroments).

4) How long did it take to make?

I spent about 2 months all in all on imagining the stories, drawing the illustrations and writing the whole thing both at home and in multiple locations (it was supposed to be a travel journal, after all).
Special thanks go to my boyfriend Faolan who kept coming up with new ideas for places for Jalno to visit.

5) Where is it now?

The original sold in the artshow at Eurofurence 14 in 2008 and I hope its new owner is enjoying it.

6) Can I read it?

If you can deciver my writing, of course. ;)
But seriously, after pondering to publish the whole thing in reprints or as a portfolio, I decided to simply release the pdf version instead. The wonderful  brogon computed the file for me at Eurofurence (as I had not been able to scan the book myself before handing it into the artshow because of my tight work schedule right before the con). In the artshow only a few pages could be investigated by the audience and I only posted a few bits in my galleries as well.

The pdf doesn't compare to the look and feel of the actual book, and I still might do something with the original high quality scans, but for now the pdf gives a better impression of the extensiveness of the project.

The (rather large) file can be downloaded here.

7) Will there be more like it?

At the moment I am outlining a second book of similar build to be finished for next years Eurofurence.
The working title for now is "Malleus Lycanthrum - or how to become a Werewolf", and it will feature some rituals and lore concering lycanthropy.

8) Do you do books like this one as commissions?

I am considering it, yes, but I must warn whoever would like to commission me with such an endevour that includes so much time and more then 100 pages of illustrated text is a major project and will be treated as such.

Originally swiped from , now finally in writing:

When are you arriving/leaving?
On wednesday and leaving again on sunday at noon, dragging along a (more or less) kicking and screaming redwolf named Faolan.

Who will you be with?
I anticipate to spend a lot of time with my fellow crazy canine and sweet fiance Faolan, as well as with good old Khaycen and probably some assorted swiss furs too, if I can get a hold of them *looking at a stressed out Bee_Pee*.
I'll probably be found sitting in the Artist Alley with , Tascun and their gang; or then in the dealers den with the lovely . I also hope to catch while I'm there. Otherwise look for me helplessly staggering around in the lobby. ;)

Do you do free art?
Generally, no.
If I know you really well and fancy strikes me, I might get struck by an image that I need to put to paper and shove onto you. Otherwise no.

Do you do trades?
Very likely. I like to trade sketches - need to fill that book somehow. ;)

Do you do commissions?
Yes I do, varying from sketches to more elaborated works that might get finished after the con. It will depend on my overall workload, but I don't anticipate a big crowd. ;)
Simply ask me.

What is your gender?
I'm growing a beard. What do you think? :D

How old are you?
Gulp... 28. Just getting older and grayer.

Can I touch you?Even tough I can get rather friendly when drunk, I'm not a physical person as such. Please respect my private sphere and I'll respect you even more in return!
I like to offer and receive hugs to/from people I know though. Strangers just need time. Often lots of it.

Can I talk to you?
You can always give it a try. ;) I can be very shy and/or irritated when someone approaches me unannounced, so please don't misread this as insult or arrogance. I'm just easily intimidated. ;)
Even my boyfriend can have a hard time getting two full sentences out of me, so don't feel bad if I'm a bit short either.
If you have something specific you would like to discuss, please feel free to approach me. I'll do my best to help you. Small talk just needs more work for me.
Yet, I might loosen my tongue in the evening. ;)

What are you going to be drinking?
Probably lots. :P I tend to keep to water and tea these days, but somehow I anticipate to switch to more spiritual drinks in the evening. From proletarian beer to bohemien absinthe - I'll have at least a sip.

I decided to take the step and open myself for commissions.

To test the water I am offering a row of small format (A6/Postcard sized) commissions in different styles, ranging from simple pencil sketches to detailed drawings.
If this should turn out to be a good experience for all parties I might proceed to offer bigger formats as well.

My initial prices:
For simple sketches - 15€
For Glyphs, such as this or this - 20€
For inverted Glyphs (white circuits on black silhouette) like this - 25€
For fully inked (Rapidograph) drawings such as these two - 30€

Pornography discouraged - I am careful with accepting ideas that don't ignite my imagination, for both mine and my clients sake.
So if you are unsure if I would draw the desired subject matter for you, contact me first.

Shipping will be calculated individually.
Payment via Paypal or bank transfer (Europe only).

If you are interested, comment here or write me an email (Lupus -at- arrrgh.com) with your proposition.

Sincerely,

M-L.

Slot #1 -  scaurus
Slot #2 -  seht
Slot #3 -  bloodhoundomega
Slot #4 -  balorkin

Look what the adorable and incredible talented did for me:
http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1103400/
as a part of a very intricate, drawn out and mulit-layered trade with me. ;)
She deserves lots of Love for it.

Looking at a piece like this I ask myself if maybe the sheer mass of details and possibilities of digital working might not redeem it for its immaterial nature and lack of limitation.
Yet I still don't see myself doing something like that anytime soon. I can be such a traditionalist.

And the virus goes into another iteration...

 scaurus did this for me and so I guess I am obliged to give it a shot myself. So here it goes, my first social featuring meme...

The first ten people who comment - and have art of their own in their galleries :) - will be featured here along with three of my favorite pieces by them.

The catch is: you then have to put this in your journal.


#1  aloiis

I took another hard look at his gallery and I had been missing out! An impressive person, outside the box.
My top three favorites are:

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/531722/
Monsters In Love
The first picture of his I've come across and it still strikes me with its clarity and the in-between identity it conveys.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/504573/
Wolf Nymph
Another instant favorite.
The wings, the ornamental circle that is being echoed by the clouds/swirls plus the multi-eyed fish are right up my alley.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1065807/
My Deer Friend
The most recent addition.
Deep reds and pale greens are what made such an impression on me here. Plus there are beads, teeth, warpaint and a nose ring - swoon!


#2  balorkin

His take on elements of the norse mythology is rather stylish, and while I personally am often a bit squeamish about human faces, he pulls them off rather nicely.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1025125/
Taming a Goat
I'm usually careful not to feature porn (which sometimes seems virtually impossible ;)) but how could I pass this one up. Delicious big horns, 'nuff said.
And even though I had to discover that the sweet texture is out of a can, I still like it lots.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/757855/
Magdalena's Secret
I like the almost monochromatic quality of this one, along with the texture from the gouache. Plus the halo and the wings give it an extra graphic quality. And rats in veils are sweetness.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1076298/
Luke loves his Glowstick
More porn, but more important it shows the immense improvement to be expected from Balorkin. Great textures and a promise for the future.
Bloodis mentoring is truly paying off. ;)


#3  hottapwater

Inspired, loose, graphic.
While I am stuck in the past of trying to make flat things look good, he is very much up to date.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/660153/
SSS - F27
Love the layers, the cryptic structure and simplicity in it.
It's a psychotropic Rorschach test.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/104541/
Heart
Similar to above, the open-endedness of the design and the freedom it hands the viewer in terms of interpretation and appreciation are very stimulating. The markers give it a very urban, dynamic feel.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/104524/
HOTTAPH20
A classic - flat coloring and clean textures clashing in a way I wish I could pull off.
Impressive.


#4  scaurus

This reptile wields a wicked tongue and a mobile spirit.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/954031/
Stained Glass Cygole
Hmmm, I liked this the first time I saw it.
The unapologetic geometry and the fusion of elements depicting the traditional and old notion of immaterialness make me happy.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1077090/
Old croc is old
Older (geriatric) characters are hardly ever depicted in these circles where everybody is eternally young and beautiful.
I am fond of everybody who tries to do something different once in a while, my respect to everybody who helps depicting the whole spectrum of possible entities here.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/902226/
Spend all my days with you, love
A very sweet, emotional picture with with impressive anatomical touches on the mice.
I'm a such sucker for good, complete, old-fashioned pencil drawing. :)


#5  uaykan

It was so hard to settle for simply three submission - there were just so many great ones.
Linework and colors to revel in. Why was I not watching?

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/377182/
Dragon with the flagon aceo
I am especially fond of arrangements that make good use of space.
The ivy, the metallic sheen of the flagon and the colors that make it seem almost translucent... Marvelous.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/53004/
Stenomylus Dance
The limited palette, the pure movement and the gorgeous ribbon(s).
Such an elegant way to guide the eye.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/80973/
Caged
Love the concept, as well as how the weight and substance suggested by the lines clashes with the light, almost weightless coloring.


#6  pyurio

His work caught my eye early on, with a nicely diverse style reaching from realism over expressive brush strokes to slick vectors, he encompasses everything I like in an artist. Added to this comes the feeling of a rich landscape of reflection and significance right beneath the surface of these pictures.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/783882/
::memmu silmuni::
I'm always very fond of writing and symbolism. So this image was an obvious pick. There is something about the sephiroth-esque structure and the rain of writing in the background that is both unsettling and soothing.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/254972/
::hamdu shemesh::[krom]
The loose, yet strong lines and the dynamic coloring, the happiness and movement drew me to this one. But even more, I chose it as an example of the spectrum his work - I could have simply chosen all his pictures here.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/117914/
::garva::
An unusual example of his work style wise, but a wonderful representation of his clear, more illustrative style.
I am simply in love with his vector-based pictures, they look so slick and modern, yet have a certain pleasant archaic stile to them.


#7  hippotaur

Such a simple yet effective style.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/936746/
Yoshi tosses Mario
Yes, it's payback time! I was always bummed by how careless Mario would dispose of the Yoshis (and sometimes even was required to).

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/765092/
Nose Flute Thingy
Gargoyles and other sculptures to ward off evil on cathedrals are an unending well of bizzare medieval inspiration. That little guy is especially cute.

http://www.furaffinity.net/view/796661/
2000 Pageviews
There is just something adorably pac-manly about that Hippo there. :)