Concept Art Spotlight: Bastien Lecouffe Deharme

There are very few character artists with a vision as distinct as Bastien Lecouffe Deharme.  Once you've seen one of his pieces, the rest of his work becomes immediately distinguishable. His portfolio is full of hazy reds, soft golds, and a surprisingly vivid palette for an artist who specializes in such gothic themes. Deharme has an eye for the erotically nightmarish (nightmarishly erotic?). His characters are often nude and seductively posed though frequently decked out in chains, wires, cables, wax and other weirdness. It's a bizarre yet undeniably beautiful aesthetic.

Though it's tempting to characterize Deharme's work as cyberpunk, there's a heavy dose of fantasy to keep things difficult to categorize (swords, candles, horns, armor, etc.) One is sometimes reminded of Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun, which blends both futuristic and medieval technology so well. One also detects a hint of Dune, for which Deharme has done book covers.

Deharme currently works as a freelancer who has supplied work for both the Legend of the Cryptids series and Magic the Gathering. His book covers are fantastic and he has completed jackets for such legends as Philip K. Dick, Frank Herbert, and H.P. Lovecraft.

Check out a few of his pieces below as well as his personal website roman-noir.com

Concept Art Spotlight: Eve Ventrue

Eve Ventrue is one of the most exciting concept artist to appear in awhile. Working primarily in portraits, Ventrue achieves some of the most photorealistic character art you'll find on the web. While there is a lot of great detailed character work being produced for sci-fi projects, there isn't nearly as much going on in the realm of medieval fantasy. Thankfully, Ventrue is working to change that with her gorgeous portfolio of knights, squires, mages and warriors. What's just as refreshing is Ventrue's commitment to practical armor and wardrobe realism. Her characters are not only beautiful, they are consistently believable. Helmets, breastplates, grieves and swords all carry real weight, and clothing drapes and flows realistically. Even at this early stage in her career, she has established an engaging style all her own, and her pieces are instantly recognizable. This is fantasy realism at its best. We're definitely looking forward to more from this talented concept artist.