Tuesday 7 September 2010

Red Box

Enter The Lair
Acrylic, Approx 19" x 19"
Original Artwork For Sale
©Wizards of the Coast.

The 'Red Box' holds a legendary place in Dungeons & Dragons lore. It was one of the original introductory starter packs, featuring iconic artwork by Larry Elmore, and  was a portal through which many gamers entered the hobby.

You can imagine how thrilled I was to hear that Wizards of the Coast were going to revisit that product, and that they would like me to do likewise with the artwork. The look of the D&D red dragon has changed in the intervening period, as has the appearance of the heroes, but I wanted to capture the feel of the original, and pay homage in my own way.


This is the original, and now current as well, version of the box, as presented on Wizards' web site.


Here you can see my artwork being used on the rules manuals.

This project was a great thrill to work on, albeit challenging to homage such a famous painting, and I take great pleasure to think my own work will be an instrumental part in the next generation of players gaming experience.

8 comments:

  1. Awesome piece! The details in the dragon are great :)

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  2. Ahh Ralph, that's an incredible piece.. you did good matey :)

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  3. I love the context of the old Elmore with your contemporary take- great.

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  4. That box brings back so many good memories ... they picked the right guy to add to the legend!

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  5. Mike: Thanks. I did have fun with the Dragon, glad it shows :)

    Purdy: Thanks Scott. It was a challenging commission.

    Tommi: Glad the riffing works for you :)

    Simon: Cool!

    Ty: Kind of you to say so - thanks a lot.

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  6. Congrats on being a part of such an awesome project. You've created a great painting and definitely achieved your goal of capturing the feel of the original. I especially like the hero and all the details on his armor and costume.

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  7. Thanks Lance. As D&D inspired me down the road of fantasy art this feels like some ambition achieved. Very pleased it works for you :)

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