Jase Daniels and the Progression of my Project.

I recently stumbled upon the work of Jase Daniels, or Grot (his internet alias) and I'm completely enthralled. Ive learned a lot by studying his work and it has changed the way i think about my project and what i have been doing.

His work is the closest I've seen to Zdzisław Beksiński that is made in 3D and is a testament to surrealism in ZBrush.

A common theme that i have identified with surrealist design is that whilst some parts of the creatures are completely alien to what we know and recognise, but there are always anchor points in the anatomy that make our brains recognise it as human. With some of Jase Daniels work there is nothing that we would recognise as a face in the image, but because there is an ear, or a nose, or a hand nearby it forces our imaginations to recognise it as a head and this is something i would love to be able to replicate effectively.

I love the design of the creature in this picture, the recognisable arrangement of the limbs and the shape of the torso firmly cements the figure as being humanoid, but all of the fine details are so alien that it makes it a very interesting piece. The way the leg ends in what looks like a finger is very interesting, the wrinkles across the stomach give the model a texture that draws the eye, and the "head" with the gaping hole in it is very unsettling.

This piece is more human, but the movement of the left eye downwards and the craters in the face make it far less uniform and more interesting to look at. The lighting and dust particles give it the impression of being hidden in a dark room, and the composition with the right side being dark reinforces this impression.

This piece is slightly more human than the last, but the proportions are exaggerated across the neck and back of the head. 

This piece is completely devoid of a face, but is still clearly a head thanks to the ear, which anchors your imagination to seeing it in a  certain way.