Wrath & Glory 40k Art -  Stefan Ristic

‘Stories are a HUGE part of my life, digging through those core books for art, I stayed for the text, which inspired me to make more stories and become a GM to a group of friends.’ 

When producer Zak Dale-Clutterbuck first discovered Stefan Ristic’s artwork, he knew he’d found a perfect match to join the brilliant creative team on Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay: Wrath & Glory. Two months later and the artwork Stefan has created is exceptional, adding an extra layer of impact and drama to Wrath & Glory

I remember it like it was yesterday: the first time I saw Paul Dainton’s, Karl Kopinski’s and Adrian Smith’s amazing art in a limited edition Warhammer 40,000 Calendar 2005. Slack-jawed at art that amazing — I wanted to create some of my own. Bear in mind, online drawing tutorials were sparse and googling wasn’t yet a thing, so I had to go through all the corebooks, splatbooks and anything else I could find to see more of the art from this universe. That’s how much of an impact these guys had on me! 

I was always drawing, so much so that it got me into trouble in highschool and uni, but I didn’t let that stop me. At first, I wanted to emphasise the subtle details that create a character. But, as I progressed I wanted to show the universes in a more relatable way, to illustrate that the heroes we grew up with are normal people too, without removing the magic and mystery that defines them in our mind, but helps round them as characters.

Stories are a HUGE part of my life, digging through those core books for art, I stayed for the text, which inspired me to make more stories and become a GM to a group of friends. I played a lot of RPGs — you name it, I probably played it. Not only is playing great fun for me but amazing fuel for my art.

Two years ago I applied for a job that let me create my own studio, and work with a team of amazing people, creating mobile games. But doing art is something that fulfills me, so I dedicate the rest of my day to making more art. Last winter I came in contact with the best client I never hoped for but always desired, I am talking about Zak Dale-Clutterbuck, a mighty producer for C7. He got me started on Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay: Wrath & Glory enabling me to officially contribute to the Warhammer universe. Now I have the great honour and opportunity to possibly inspire future artists through my artwork for Cubicle 7. Heavens know that The God Emperor needs more Remembrancers! 

Inquisitorial Acolyte, Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay: Wrath & Glory, page 94.

The ‘Inquisitorial Acolyte’ was the big one (my first official C7 artwork), I had to polish it well, but not too much. So I first started getting some references. The Internet is bountiful with images, but instead of that I grabbed my wife, a true Sister of Battle material, gave her a sword and 60 or so poses later, I settled on this one. It’s easy to make mistakes with anatomy, especially when it comes to Space Marines, so I try very hard to keep it functional and realistic. Mikhail Savier’s artwork, especially his fantastic studies of Space Marines, was a great help in figuring out some of the trickier poses. The other difficulty I had with this drawing was the perspective of the book, but a quick model in Blender helped me figure out the right way to place it.

It was after this piece that I decided that the year 2020 was a year of endurance, where I will work on a ton of art. So I started doing one piece of art a day for the next 300 days. Let’s see where that gets me.

I’d love for you artists to join me in this creative challenge. Draw something that you always wanted to draw. Start today,

Stefan.

Do you want to see more of this amazing artwork? Then check out Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay: Wrath & Glory, available for pre-order here! All pre-orders include a PDF so you can get started straight away. 

Novator Uriah Gerega Omincara, Warhammer 40,000 Roleplay: Wrath & Glory.

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