Starscape's Art Challenge Thread

[Starscape]

I did consider drawing up Yeager blueprints for this month's challenge, but trying to finalise the design and add in all that 24th Century detailing was a bit too intimidating.

So, after much two-ing and fro-ing I finally decided to give a Strange New Worlds make-over to one of my old favourites. I'd always planned to revisit the Spitfire someday, I just hadn't thought about doing so in this way.

The original:

The reboot:

Hopefully, I'll complete another view before the deadline.

 

[Santaman]

Cool design.

 

[publiusr]

Now THAT'S a blueprint

 

[Starscape]

Thanks, guys.

My final entry with just the one more view:

The danger with 2d plans is discovering that your design won't actually work in 3d, it's usually when you progress to the front or rear views that you start to notice problems arise. Having said that, I'm fairly sure this will work, although some of the curves would be a pain to model in 3d.

 

[Santaman]

Looking great.

 

[Cyfa]

Spitfire looks cool! I'm rather fascinated with ships that have the secondary hull above the primary - I wonder what reason there is to have it in that position? Or, for that matter, why have the secondary "hanging" from the primary like so many Starfleet ships do?

 

[Starscape]

Thanks, @Santaman, @Cyfa.

In space there shouldn't be advantage either way to having the secondary hull above or below, I suppose. Maybe we've been conditioned to think the secondary hull should hang below or it's something more fundamental about how we expect things to look. I still find that the Spitfire design a little incongruous myself, but I've grown to like that aspect of it.

 

[Starscape]

Where has this month got to, I thought I was going to get an early start on April's Challenge...

Was "Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds" broadcast widely around the world? I did like a bit of swashbuckling action as a kid and though it may not have been my favourite show I thought I could link up a trainee Musketeer and teachers with a certain TOS movie.

Here's a start on my entry, wherein, Dogtanian's Starhound Academy training cruise is diverted after receiving a mysterious message from station Sirius I.

 

[Starscape]

And Dogtanian is joined by the Three Starfleet-hounds:

All this time and only now do I realise that they don't have tails!

 

[Starscape]

I had hoped to cartoonize the Genesis Cave, but I don't think I'll have time to do a proper job with that. So, apart from some inevitable last minute tweaking I think I'm finished with this:

ETA: My final tweaked entry...

 

[Starscape]

I do enjoy a graphic orientated challenge, so I probably should have gotten around this much earlier. Anyway, here's my magazine cover for June's Cover Me! theme.

EDIT: Tweaked version.

 

[Santaman]

Nice work.

 

[Starscape]

For July's challenge I thought I'd have a go at TOS-ifiying a Vulcan ship from ST:Enterprise. (Some of those ENT designs must have a in-universe lifespan longer than Klingons ships, popping up un-changed in Prodigy, book covers and SotL images alongside TNG-era ships.)

I took some inspiration from Matt Jefferies ringship ideas. And here's what I've got so far, it still needs some windows and detailing:



Colour-wise I don't want to go red, but maybe bronze-ish?

 

[publiusr]

That's also close to Ming's ships from the Filmation Flash Gordon

https://www.etsy.com/listing/1353399726/375inch-custom-flash-gordon-ming-fighter

 

[Starscape]

That could have been a subconscious inspiration... although I can't seem bring to mind what those ships looked like. I did wonder if I was straying a little too far into 50s sci-fi style with this.

Update:



The colours came out deeper than I was expecting on the render, need to tone those down. If I have time, I'll try to add some decal textures and maybe a grunge layer, too.

 

[Starscape]

I don't mind the look of those darker colours on the model, but I think dialling it down closer to neutral colours is more in keeping with the TOS style:


Bronze? Copper? I always get the two confused.

 

[Starscape]

Oh wow, nearly two weeks since my last update! I spiralled down into a texturing black hole of diminishing returns...

For the Vulcan text, I went with TMP/TNG style blocky version rather than the scroll/script style from later productions, although I did add a subtle scroll marking along the spine.



Well, now I just need to built a scene around it for my final entry.

 

[publiusr]

This might be a good backdrop:
https://www.coasttocoastam.com/article/hubble-captures-stunning-lenticular-galaxy/

It and the ship resemble one another

 

[Starscape]

Cool image! I did have something else in mind, though. I wanted to try to create a Planet Vulcan that looks more favourable for life than a plain desert planet - still lots of desert, but include bodies of water, some greenery, blue skies.



My aging laptop doesn't have the power (Captain ) to render the whole scene in one go so this was rendered piecemeal and composited later. Maybe I've strayed too far from a "traditional" planet Vulcan look... I've definitely over done the clouds. But it doesn't matter too much as this will be my final entry:



There's not too many canon Vulcan words that are suitable for starship names. Arev is one of the few meaning "Desert Wind".

 

[Death Ray]

Pretty cool! I’ll take these over Mon Calamari jelly dollars.