On Dragons

I remember it clearly.
     There I was just getting home from a day of school. I was on my fifth or so Legend of Drizzt book at the time, and I all ready knew I'd be immersed until I'd read the last of the series. I'd always known of Drizzt, the dark elf with his two scimitars, since my first days playing Dungeons and Dragons at the age of 12 or so. Today would be a different kind of day, though. Today was the day that I would turn to the inside page, see the words "cover illustration by Todd Lockwood," and become lost late into the night staring at Todd's webpage. Before me stretched not only every cover I'd ever seen featuring the dark elf, but also the concept art of Dungeons and Dragons that I'd grown up with- the lines and colors I would mimic in my own sketchbook designing my own characters.

Drizzt detail from The Orc King
 by Todd Lockwood

    I had never heard of Todd Lockwood before that day. Hell, it had never even crossed my young mind that someone might be able to make a career creating for fantasy, but seeing his works spread before me felt like coming home. It felt like a second family I could come back to anytime I wanted- and I did.
    But you know what else I found looking through his work? I found dragons. Dragons upon dragons upon dragons! Red and gold and blue and silver dragons! Big and small dragons! Long and short dragons! Each sharp tooth or edge of flame meticulously rendered, each scale part of an elegant frame whose whole made the creature come to life!
     I was hooked. From that day on, when the urge strikes me, I am apt to sketch a bat-like wing, or fire breathing maw. As the years went by I started art school, and from there I sought to understand the anatomy of what made a dragon. How did they fly? How could they breathe fire? Don't get me wrong, I am fully aware that they don't exist, but the challenge of designing what doesn't exist so that it might better exist inside my and your imagination is a challenge of my dreams!
Dragons have always held a place in the back of my mind, from my first days watching the Pagemaster, to reading Harry Potter and playing D&D as a kid. I do not think I've ever reached a personal excellence for creating them, myself, but I can still enjoy them. I'd like to share a few of my favorites with you. There are many different kinds, which you'll see, and many different styles for visualizing them.

Spellbound
 by Todd Lockwood

Tyranny of Dragons
by Tyler Jacobson

World's End
by Cynthia Sheppard

Adventurers
by Donato Giancola

I love each piece for different reasons, but I'll keep them to myself. There are many more illustrations of dragons out there, too many to count or list. These are just the ones that have stayed with me, and I know will be in my mind as I continue figuring out what makes a dragon to me.

Have a happy new year!

Remember, time is short and art is fleeting!

-A