Marine/Baxter Building
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I've was doing a number of buildings recently for Marvel comics. This is the Baxster Building...HQ of the Fantastic Four . It's actually based on the Marine Building in Vancouver, which is used in the Spiderman movies. The artists need the buildings to work in Hidden Line, so the stuff on the 3D Warehouse isn't much good to them as all the mapping disappears.
It's a question of putting enough detail in to make the 3 point perspective drawings much easier to produce...and allow the artists to add a little more where required...without putting in so much that when a number of these puppies are loaded into a scene the computer doesn't go Poof!
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Alan, you make me misty eyed. When I was doing Metro Med I was building an entire city, as well as interiors, and when I would talk to people about it at cons and stuff--and sometimes they would give me a look....like "isn't that not really being an artist?" My rationale was that it was better for the comic to have consistency in the look of the city (and the Emergency Room) if I modeled everything, made a "set", and drew from that. I was still creating everything, and in most cases I was fudging stuff when I drew the pages anyway.
Good to know Marvel caught on to the idea.
And good for you to be the one they looked to. Congrats!
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As always, nice work, Alan. I think you met your objectives in both detail and simplicity. How long does it take you to do a model like that?
[giantmonster]
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It took about 10 hours, Justin. It would have been quicker if I'd had the plans, but I was working from (small) photos, so had to do a load of "feeling around" the building and making constant small adjustments.
I don't think it's cheating at all Phil...as we know, it's just a tool...like a ruler or that camera obscura that Canaletto used to tote around Venice.
I'm an illustrator by training, not an architect, so I empathise with you guys. Marvel have pretty much gone over, company-wise, to using SU to rough out the sets...especially now the free version is out.
Even if you don't do anything more than a rough massing model, from my own experience, it must save hours in working out those dynamic extreme perspectives...plus you get absolute consistency of form from one viewpoint to another.[Allan Fraser]
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On the question to using SU models as ref for comics -
I'd rather have the consistency, than have each artist fully interpret their vision of an iconic Marvel structure (in this case the Baxter building). For Marvel it's great to have a model library of their universe because this strengthens their "brands". Artist can still supply their style to reference material. The problem I have is when some artist trace or just rip off a photograph of a background scene, and its obvious because it doesn't match the artistic style. Seeing that in a comic jarring for me and takes me out of the book.
Regardless, some comic artist should be using more reference than less. I find comic artists (especially the young ones) fall into this argument more than other artist. Perhaps it has to do with the pride of drawing the human figure in many different poses. As you said, this debate goes on and on. IMO the goal is to create expressive sequential story telling not your own art ego. All I can say is, get off your high horse, draw well, and engage me in a story.
I only wish Marvel would do this for some of their vehicles. I find the Avengers Quinjet and many others disappointing - but I'm a vehicle guy and I'm super picky.
Alan, thanks for the info. It's good to know that I'm in that range. Sometimes I feel really slow, but I haven't any context to gauge my modeling building. What throws me off though is that I'm most often "designing" as I'm building and not working from many work up drawings.
[giantmonster]
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Beautiful... I love the coloring too...
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