Signing this weekend

I shall be visiting the Big Smoke (London) this weekend to sign copies of the new Horus Heresy book 'Nemesis', alongside author extraordinaire, James Swallow:

James Swallow & Neil Roberts Book Signing
Date:
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Time:
12:00pm - 2:00pm
Location:
Games Workshop, The Plaza 116/128,
Oxford Street, London, W1D 1LT

Here's the book blurb:

"After the horrors of Istvaan V, Horus declares outright war against the Imperium. In the shadows of the Emperor's Palace, powerful figures convene.Their plan is to send a team of assassins to execute the arch-traitor Horus and end the war for the galaxy of mankind before it's even begun. But what they cannot know is that another assassin is abroad already, with his sights firmly set on killing the Emperor."

I'll be signing and sketching whilst I'm there, so it'll also be a chance to get some rare Neil Roberts pen and ink art - so, catch the "Roberts Rock 'n' Roll Roadshow" while you can.

See you there!

Friday afternoon quickie...

Hello all, it's Friday and I'm yearning to have an easy afternoon in the sun.

So here we go with a small, quarter page piece I recently did for Fantasy Flight Games:


It was a quick turnaround and a good chance to get more painterly with my style. It's taken from the new expansion book 'Lure of the Expanse' (not a comment on my underwear, actually) for the excellent 'Dark Heresy' RPG - here's what the blurb has to say:

"Lure of the Expanse, the latest book for Rogue Trader, features three adventures set amongst the unexplored stars beyond the Imperium. Wealth and glory await those with the courage to venture into the farthest reaches of space. In "Eye of the Needle," your Explorers will travel to the perilous port of Footfall to learn of a dark prophecy of long-lost riches. In "The Heathen Trail," the Explorers find themselves on the path of uncountable riches... but they must cross the wild tracts of the Heathen Stars. Threats abound, but can the Explorers transform danger into rewards? Finally, in "The World Beyond," the Explorers discover the location of the legendary treasure world. Now, can they prevail against a host of enemies?"

Here's a detail so you can see up close:

(Above)
Might need to get an electrician to look at that, mate.

Buy it here.

Excellent! Now, go and enjoy the sun! (correct as of time of writing)

Stay cool, y'all.

Cover: Path of the Warrior

Quick note, Gav Thorpes' excellent "Path of the Warrior" is OUT SOON!

Go buy/ pre-order - and then tell all your friends to do the same.


"The ancient eldar are a mysterious race, each devoting their life to a chosen path which will guide their actions and decide their fate. Korlandril abandons peace for the Path of the Warrior. He becomes a Striking Scorpion, a deadly fighter skilled in the art of close-quarter combat. But the further Korlandril travels down this path, the closer he gets to losing his identity and becoming an avatar of war."

Order/ buy it here , here or go into an ACTUAL BOOKSHOP and buy it from a real person *shudders*.

Here's the full artwork, in all its highly-detailed and ornate Xenos glory:



I'll do a proper making of post sometime, the detail I put into this was ridiculous.

See you soon.

Doctor Who at Glastonbury 2010

As many of you may know, I'm a HUUUGE Doctor Who fan. I always have been since I first saw 'City of Death' all those years ago. Having a daughter who loves it means I can enjoy it all over again, like the first time.


Matt Smith as the Doctor has been an absolutely inspired bit of casting, and here he is at Glastonbury 2010 with Orbital, doing the only song of theirs I like (and it's not even theirs). I especially love the fact it's the Radiophonically Workshopped version they sample:

Cover: 2000AD Prog 1686

Now, this is from a few weeks back. (We've been moving house and enjoying the sunshine)

This is my cover for 2000AD Prog 1686, entitled "Borough Boys":

(Above)
Bosh, sorted, Guv.

As always, it started with 3 sketches based on Thargs brief:

(Above)
Quick thumbnails, about 480x640 each.

With one chosen, I went on to take some reference photos (hey, no laughing at the back! All artists use some kind of reference) :

(Above)
Amazing what you can do with an old suit, raincoat,
dressing gown belt, plastic rifle and
pulling a few Les Dawson faces.

I'd read that Savage was originally based on Stanley Baker, one of the great physical British (specifically Welsh) actors from the 60s/ 70s. So it made sense to get appropriate reference:

(Above)
Stanley Baker. Fantastic actor, go watch Zulu or Hell Drivers, NOW!

Then it was over to the computer for final image and paint-up. Here's the piece minus the logos and stuff:

(Above)
As the great Gene Hunt said:
"Don’t move, you’re surrounded by armed bastards!"

Right, I'll keep on with my blogging from now on. Might be going to a Dr. Sketchy's event next month - I'll keep you posted.

UK Games Expo

A real quickie, in between work and setting off:



I'll be a guest at the UK Games Expo in Birmingham this Saturday, where I'll be sketching, showing my portfolio, signing and chatting about my work!

Hope to see you there,

N

SkinnyElbows Website Update

Back from Bristol Comic Expo - what a great chance to meet new people and, PHEW! what a scorcher, as they say!

So, I've had a load of stuff come out in the last month or so, so I've updated my website, www.skinnyelbows.com, with over 20, yes, I said 20! new images.

Here's a few samples:

(Above)
Matt Smith, the Eleventh Doctor Who.
Manga Studio and Photoshop

(Above)
Cover to 2000AD Prog 1673 "Crimes of Passion"

(Above)
"Path of the Warrior" by Gav Thorpe

Also, I've got a whole bunch of other stuff I'll blog about very soon...!