Two young boys’ imaginations and one loving father’s artistic skills continue to combine with amazing results.
As anyone who’s spent much time with young kids knows, their interests can change very quickly. The toy or hobby that seemed like their whole world just the other day can quickly get tossed aside when so much of the world is still so shiny and new to their young minds.
So while we thoroughly enjoyed the first four entries in French-born, Japan-based anime artist Thomas Romain’s Father and Sons Design Workshop series, we weren’t sure how long the project was going to last. The starting points for each illustration after all, are concept sketches from Romain’s sons (aged 10 and 8), which the elder Romain then polishes using the skills he’s put to use in helping to produce the visuals of anime including Space Dandy and Symphogear.
But luckily for us, the kids seem to still be thoroughly enjoying making art with Dad, and the series has been chugging along with Romain sharing a new entry through his Twitter account at a pace of roughly one every seven days or so.
▼ Original concept on the left, finished illustration on the right
Kids are very quick to pick up on anything that could be construed as unfair or imbalanced, but Romain looks to be keeping everyone happy by alternating between his two sons’ designs. So after finishing the Cosmic Robo shown above, which sprang from the imagination of his 10-year-old, next up was the younger boy’s Tulip Brothers.
But don’t assume that the friendly flower siblings mean the little brother is always opting for cuter characters. Big Brother’s Sand Golem…
…was followed by Little Brother’s Snake Fighter, which isn’t a man who battles snakes, but a multi-armed giant viper carrying an arsenal of medieval weaponry…and also a glistening lollipop (because, after all, the designer is still eight).
▼ Although according to Romain’s notes even the candy raises the Snake Fighter’s combat capabilities.
▼ Further fantasy with the Fire Guardian…
▼ …then back to sci-fi with the twin-torso Killer Ball robot
▼ The Cloud Dwellers giving a sendoff to a fallen comrade
And finally, we come to the most recent entry, the robot K-3, a pun on the Japanese words for “three” (san) and “calculation” (keisan), which explains the mathematical markings.
As the series’ popularity has grown, Romain has begun offering glimpses at the production process. Here, he breaks down the sketching, inking, and coloring of the Cloud Dwellers illustration.
And while his job in the animation field means Romain spends most of his time at work creating in a computerized environment with pro-spec technology, for this family project he uses much simpler materials, such as paper notebooks and 100-yen (US$0.90) markers, and it’s a change he has no complaints about.
Romain is also quick to give credit to his kids’ key role in the creative process, stressing that without their ideas, their awesome collaborative artwork wouldn’t be possible. Perhaps coolest of all is that as time goes by, his sons’ concept sketches are becoming more detailed and defined, so in addition to enjoying the finished products, following the series lets you see the children’s development as artists’ themselves.
Let’s just hope the boys don’t get too good and go solo too quickly, though, so that we can look forward to the teamwork of the Father and Sons Design Workshop continuing for a long time to come.
Source: Twitter/@Thomasintokyo