THE ARCH OF SOLSTICE (2016) by Michael Whelan, week 50 in his LEFTOVERS & PALETTE GREMLINS gallery project.

For several months, I’ve been taking daily walks after sunset, and the moon has been my companion much of the time. One evening a crescent moon hung over the horizon with Venus glowing brilliantly below it. I stared long enough to convince myself it actually WAS Venus, not a low flying helicopter with a bright searchlight.

The moment was breathtaking, and ever since I’ve had that vision imprinted on my consciousness waiting to be realized.

The opportunity came while I was staring at the mat board on my tabletop, debating whether to put time into such a scarred and abused surface. I kept seeing an archway in front of me, and finally I couldn’t resist dashing in a figure while waiting for another piece to dry.

This palette gremlin only begins to capture that original feeling. It would have to be painted in full color with a much wider range of values. If I ever finish this as a full painting, I’ll print a digital copy and paint on that, because the section of matboard is damaged to the point of being unworkable.

Source: michaelwhelan.com

EYES OF THE WHITE WOLF (2016) by Michael Whelan, Week 49 in his LEFTOVERS & PALETTE GREMLINS gallery project.

On impulse I grabbed a scrap of canvas that had been trimmed off one of our prints. Using leftover paint I had mixed for the Tad Williams’ cover I just completed for DAW, I painted in a portrait of Elric.

Source: michaelwhelan.com

EPHEMERAL (2016) by Michael Whelan, week 48 in his LEFTOVERS & PALETTE GREMLINS gallery project. This was a piece of scrap paper used to test the flow of paint on my brush while I was working on the Tad Williams book cover currently on my drawing...
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EPHEMERAL (2016) by Michael Whelan, week 48 in his LEFTOVERS & PALETTE GREMLINS gallery project.

This was a piece of scrap paper used to test the flow of paint on my brush while I was working on the Tad Williams book cover currently on my drawing table. I saw a face in the paint—maybe because it was after midnight and I was tired—and I sketched in a more complete version with a white colored pencil and some acrylic paint.

Source: michaelwhelan.com

SPIRIT OF ENDURING HOPE (2016) by Michael Whelan, week 47 in his LEFTOVERS & PALETTE GREMLINS gallery project.

I turned a smear of paint on my drawing table cover a tree. Other marks suggested rocks and became an island to which I added a figure. I started to paint in clouds but stopped because the image was getting boring.

It called for something else, but I didn’t have a clue what. Cthulhu rising? A dragon?

In search of further inspiration, I dropped a rag smeared with cobalt blue paint onto the scrap of matboard and took a quick shot of it with my phone. I wasn’t entirely happy with the mark the rag made, but I went ahead and painted what was suggested by the random mark, a floating female figure and a symbolic element composed of Gingko leaves in a circle.

Source: michaelwhelan.com

BEYOND SCIENCE FICTION — KICKSTARTER NOW LIVE

Michael Whelan will be mounting a major exhibition at the Riverside Art Museum in California, runnning from February to May 2017. Baby Tattoo Books is publishing the show catalogue as an art book.

Here’s a highlight of Kickstarter rewards now available:

  • Digital Art Book - $5
  • Postcard Set - $10
    Set of 10 4" x 6" Full Color Postcards
  • Softcover Art Book - $25
    Choose from 2 Covers + Postcards
  • 2 Softcover Set - $45
    Both Covers + Postcards
  • Limited Edition Hardcover - $60
    Choose from 2 Covers + Signed Mini Print + Postcards
  • 2 LE Hardcover Set - $100
    Both Hardcovers + Signed Mini Print + Postcards
  • LE Hardcover & Giclée Set - $179
    Both Hardcovers + Signed Mini Print + Postcards
    + Giclée Art Print of “In a World of Her Own”
  • Original Art + Book Set - Starting at $900
    Original Art of your Choice (See Above)
    + Both Hardcovers + Signed Mini Print + Postcards
    + Giclée Art Print of “In a World of Her Own”
  • VIP Party & Preview Invitation - $450+
    Party Invation (2) + Surprise Gift + Both Hardcovers
    + Giclée Art Print of “In a World of Her Own”
    + Signed Mini Print + Postcards

Please help us support and promote the Kickstarter campaign at: http://alternativerealism.com/

MICHAEL WHELAN KICKSTARTER BEGINS TODAY (11/21) AT 3PM EST

BLINDER and TANGLEWOOD, two of the seven original art rewards we’re offering at the Kickstarter for BEYOND SCIENCE FICTION that launches at 3pm EST today.

Rewards start at $5 for the ebook. Early bird pricing on the softcover is $20 (limited to the first 100 supporters). Lots of great stuff from Michael and Baby Tattoo Books!

Please help us promote the Kickstarter for Michael’s major art exhibition at the Riverside Art Museum in California. We go live at 3pm EST. Thanks!

http://alternativerealism.com

THE MAN WHO WOULD BE CRIMSON KING (2016) by Michael Whelan, week 44 in his LEFTOVERS & PALETTE GREMLINS gallery project.

While applying a dark blue background color to a painting I was working on, I made the mistake of listening to the news. I found myself standing with a brush full of leftover paint and a need to respond to what I was hearing. I decided to commit to what my mind was telling me to paint, only using a more appropriate color.

Source: michaelwhelan.com

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