April MOTM: Ferrofluid Charm - concept sketch + design commentary // sfw

thanks again to hyenastuff for suggesting ferrofluids and to toreadorkable for suggesting magnetism! (the 'charm' part of the prompt is ofc a reference to both romantic/sexual attraction and to, y'know ... magnetic attraction ... cause i'm nothing if not here for the shitty dad puns.)

i won't even attempt to explain ferrofluids with my own words, so here's a quote from wikipedia: "ferrofluid is a liquid that is attracted to the poles of a magnet. they are colloidal liquids made of nanoscale ferromagnetic [...] particles suspended in a carrier fluid (usually an organic solvent or water)." at first glance, ferrofluid looks like an ordinary dark liquid -- but when exposed to a magnet, it forms shiny spikes. i googled my way to plenty of pictures, but also found this delightful video that shows ferrofluid in motion.

the ferrofluid aesthetic was the lynchpin of this design, and the first image that popped into my head was a monster with a spiky forehead, almost like a thorny beluga whale. i've included my first doodle above -- it hardly looks identical to the final product, but i think it's fun to see the starting point too. the nubs along the neck were originally inspired by subdermal body modification implants. i soon changed the neck design, but similar implant-like nubs would appear on other parts of his body instead.

i wanted to experiment with different ways to distribute the spikes across his whole body, so i sketched a relatively stocky silhouette. i don't actually know if ferrofluid is that much heavier than the carrier liquid, but magnetism naturally makes me think of metal, so a heavy weight class seemed to make sense. i wanted him to look like the type of video game enemy that makes you want to run for your life when they lumber towards you. they're not fast or agile, but if you fail to dodge one of their punches you'll be reduced to a stain on the ground.

i expanded the forehead spikes all the way down his neck and back, in a way that makes me think of turtle shells, hedgehog spines, and armadillo plates. it looks almost like a hood and alters his entire silhouette. the shoulder spikes, meanwhile, bring pauldrons or epaulettes to mind. as i was sketching and basically brainstorming with pen in hand, i came to think of the bony armour of ankylosaurs. my monster's forehead and neck already looked a bit prehistoric, and drawing inspiration from these long dead animals helped me figure out other, more varied ways to distribute spikes, nubs, and small plates across his body.

i combined ferrofluid-looking clusters with spiny rows running down his lower arms, thighs, and calves. i also added spikes along his collarbones, and from there it made sense to give his hip bones and jawline a similar treatment. the implant-like nubs mentioned earlier turned into small, rounded bone protrusions poking through the skin rather than resting just beneath it. the larger spikes, meanwhile, makes me think of obsidian or black onyx. i wanted the tail to be thick and fairly short, and drew inspiration from ankylosaur tail clubs for the "ferrofluid ball" at the tip. the spikes along his neck stick right out, but those along the overside of his tail lay a bit more flat, which makes them look more like scales. finally, the spike jutting right out from his ankle is based on iguanodon 'thumbs.' this diversity makes the design look more interesting than if every spiky area had resembled ferrofluid clusters.

i am not at all up do date on the feathering of dinosaurs, but regardless of whether or not they're outdated, i drew inspiration from scaly and wrinkly reconstructions. i had already added something like plates between the rows of spikes on his arm, and kept thinking of the rest of his hide as very tough and leathery. his feet are dinosaur-inspired, too, although the thick and stubby toes also bring elephants and rhinos to mind.

in terms of colour scheme, ferrofluid is black but very reflective, so it responds beautifully to surrounding light conditions. i started out working completely in greyscale, so that i could focus on rendering the glossy shapes of the spikes, but the palette i had in mind was like oil slick iridescence on a black or dark grey base. i love that aesthetic and it would be an interesting 'companion design' to the pearlescent shark man i drew a while ago. it would also be very practical in terms of method and technique, because i could render the monster in greyscale and then colour him by adding overlays and other layer effects.

having decided on a dark colour scheme, the spaces between the spikes started looking a lot like black, shiny leather ... which made me think of biker suits. i know that i did something similar last month, with the space suit-ey vibe of the galactic saint, but i couldn't resist drawing inspiration from motorcycle outfits and studded jackets. again, it helped me diversify the textures and details. i added "seams," as if rather than skin or scales he's partially covered by leather that's been stitched together. some of those seams outline his musculature, while others appear more like the seams of clothing. other areas (along his arms, thighs, sides, and joints) look like 'creased' leather, and his chest and abs resemble reinforced armour, similar to the kind of back protector you can use while skiing. in sum, the main ingredients for this monster recipe is ferrofluids spikes, armoured dinosaurs, and leather clothing.

as for the oil slick colours, the design didn't turn out quite as iridescent as i had originally intended. on the concept sketch, the ferrofluid areas are quite bright and shiny while his leathery skin is dark grey. on the painting it's the other way around, because i decided to make the spikes darker but still wanted to maintain some contrast between different parts of his body. the design was also easily adaptable in that i could tweak many of the details without affecting the overall impression. few of the bony outgrowths or leathery areas needed to be exactly where i had put them on the concept sketch, so i could fine-tune as i pleased -- as an example, compare the placement of the chest nubs and thigh spikes.

this is a very aesthetic-based design that ultimately makes me wonder about the whys and the hows. creatures like hedgehogs, pangolins, turtles, tortoises, porcupines, armadillos, and ankylosaurs are herbivores or omnivores with spikes or armour as protection against predators. this monster looks intimidating, but i like the idea that he's actually a peaceful herbivore. sure, it's difficult to imagine someone hunting him for food -- but there's always a bigger fish, right? the spikes may have evolved as defense against attackers, especially fast and agile opponents who might have otherwise been able to slink around his back and get the better of him. i also imagine him huddling over people he cares about (his partner, kids, and other loved ones) to shield them from danger with his reinforced back.

i will say that it was easy enough to incorporate the aesthetic of ferrofluid spikes, but much harder to think of visual representations of magnetism. i considered using colours that magnets are often made in (grey, red, white/blue) but as already outlined, i went for a different palette. i also thought about having bits of metal stuck to him, as if drawn to a magnet, but the design ended up complex enough without adding scrap clinging to him at weird places. i even googled if there's any magnetic animals that i could draw inspiration from, because nature is weird and i figured what if...? but the only results were creatures that make use of the earth's magnetic field -- like pigeons.  in the end, i decided that it would have to be enough that ferrofluids necessitate magnetism, because without a nearby magnet, ferrofluid will look like a pretty ordinary liquid.

on that note, though ...  the video linked above shows that ferrofluid "spikes" are in fact very wobbly and easily disrupted. is this monster truly partially made of a liquid that maintains the spiky shapes due to internal magnets in his body? in that case, do the spikes behave the same as ferrofluid -- would they quiver if you touch them, and are they so frail that you could splatter them with a light slap? or are they somewhat more solid, like jell-o? can they melt and re-form, similar to a slime monster? in either of those cases, the spikes would be useless as protection. so what if they are made of solid metal that simply mimics the shapes, sheen, and overall aesthetic of ferrofluid? is he even organic, or is he a robot made of metal, plastic, silicone, and leather?

in a sense, this design raises more questions than it answers -- so feel free to decide on a headcanon of your own!

// art + character © me.