Leto Atreides II, God Emperor of Dune

Finally finished this dude, geez.

More Dune art. This character is a little deeper into the story, about the fourth book. He is an immortal who can see into the future, and using his power has taken control of the known universe by-- guess what?-- controlling the Spiceeeeee! Unfortunately as a side effect he has mutated in a hideous worm creature and can no longer have relations with women. If you're getting a uncomfortably pornographic vibe from this, just ride with it. Dune is about conquering giant worms, what kind of metaphor do you think that is?!




I wanted a design that fell in line with his description from the books, but I did take liberties to make a more impacting silhouette. With all my dune concepts, I try not to over-design these characters because they're so classic and influential. That being said, all my adjustments are to benefit describing the character out of context for people who might not know the story and still get a feeling for what they're about. I have recorded most of the process of his painting throughout several videos on my livestream channel if you're interested: http://www.livestream.com/gorrem

Here's the past progress from this blog:

First sketch I did. I definitely toned down the crazy and made him feel less aggressive than this design, I felt it was too designy, and it was de-emphasizing his humanity. It also didn't include the structure that allowed him to "blink" his face shut to protect himself. It was a good place to jump off though!

Finished this in livestream. More focus on his face, added blinky structure around his neck. Unfortunately THE WHOLE THING WAS LOST when my computer crashed and I had to redo it from screen captures, hngggh.

Here it is before I heavily modified the design of his worm parts. I wanted something that aided the composition better, let me showcase his textures, and for the most part feel less aggressive. Although intimidating, I didn't want him to come across and necessarily evil or more threatening than he already was. He actually has a lot of compassion in the story.