From time to time, I like to go back to designing beasts, monsters, and creatures never seen by men and women alike!
This post is about one of the vicious creatures of the Amazon basin: The Rhinomander.
The diary of the famous explorer Cornelius Williams has a particular entry describing this beast:
The humid air clings to my skin like a second layer as I trudge through the dense foliage of the Amazon rainforest. My senses are on high alert. Every rustle and chirp could signify prey or predator in this untamed wilderness. As a traveling hunter, I've seen my fair share of exotic creatures, but today I encountered something truly extraordinary – the elusive Rhinomander.
I stumbled upon the creature while chasing a cuckoo bird through the underbrush. At first, I thought I was hallucinating from the heat, but there it was, a majestic yet bizarre creature standing before me. Its body resembled that of a giant purple salamander, adorned with vibrant purple stripes that seemed to shimmer in the dappled sunlight.
However, what truly set it apart was its head – a massive rhino head, complete with a pair of intimidating yellow horns. The Rhinomander regarded me with a mixture of curiosity and caution, its nostrils flaring as it took in my scent. Despite its fearsome appearance, there was an undeniable grace in the way it moved, blending the agility of a salamander with the power of a rhinoceros. I couldn't help but marvel at the wonders of nature and how it could create such a fantastical creature in the depths of the jungle.
The beginning
The first step for me was to collect references. I found a super nice picture of a black salamander from Wikipedia with a very nice angle to frame it from the top, and I knew I wanted to embrace that angle for my creature.
Still, I wasn't at all versed in salamander anatomy or even its general features, so the best way to start getting into art-making mode was to kick some sketches into the blank page. I started to make other reference pictures with salamanders that I thought looked nice and decided to draw them in color as a painting study.
My study version:
I added a horn to make it a salamandrhino instead of a rhinomander xD.
The Mid-journey
Unlike some of you may think, this is not the art-generating AI people like to use. 😝 This is indeed the Mid part of our journey as chimera designers! 🤣 After figuring out how to draw and paint a salamander, it's time to tackle the second animal of our chimera: The rhinoceros.
The goal here is to repeat the previous step with a change of focus. We now ought to grab reference pics of rhinos and go for a sketch at least!
I really liked the looks of this big fella on the right. He looks like a gentle giant, which was exactly what I wanted for this piece. So I went for it.
My design:
The Ending
With everything you've learned from your reference drawings and paintings, you are now able to combine the strongest features of your two creatures into one single beast that consolidates it all. In this case:
- SALAMANDER
- The slimy-wet nature of the salamander calls for some specular lights to suggest water droplets.
- The slender body with a lot of bending and curves is another strong feature of salamanders.
- The digitals at the end of each finger close the deal, helping us to sell the idea that this is an amphibian creature.
.
. - RHINOCEROS
- Sturdy body
- Big horns
- Gentle giant vibes, with a big head looking chill and smiling.
.
The final merge:
And there you have it! =D
Hope you guys enjoyed my process on this one! Be glad to continue this as a series if you would want me to!
Have a great week, everyone! I see you soon!
Yours truly,
Gallant.
Nice work. Combining real creatures makes for more realistic features.
!PIZZA
Hey, @steevc !! Thanks!! That's what I love the most. Hooray for realism even when making fantasy creatures! xD
$PIZZA slices delivered:
@steevc(1/5) tipped @lourencoalart
Nice job!! Bring more!
Sure I will! =D
It's so interesting how easy you make it look, you're a great artist my friend.