How to make art for Magic: The Gathering

Today, today is a very special day because these are my first Magic cards. These are the first cards I've ever painted for Magic the Gathering. And I got sent this, which are the artist proofs of well, my card. Um, I'm so excited, which is something I never thought I'd say because, well, I mostly paint and design sci-fi stuff and Magic the Gathering as well. Magic the Gathering, but somehow it happened. Magic decided to release a sci-fi set. So, I got asked to design some stuff and and paint a card for Magic. I I can't believe that this is actually happening. All right, here we go. Okay, let's just back up for a second here. I just got an email from Viz Co um for a commission for art for Magic the Gathering. So um this is very exciting. This is my first time doing it. I've never done it before. Before this, I've worked with Wizards on their and Magic the Gathering on their world building team, but I've never made art for the card. Um I don't really consider myself an illustrator usually, so this is this is really exciting for me. don't know when the set is coming out. So, I don't know when this video is coming out or if it's going coming out at all because the card might not get made in which case I would still be under NDA and this video would have been for nothing. So, what I got in an email is a rough description of the card that I'm supposed to illustrate. And there's like information on the color of the card, in which case it is a white card, and there's some other mood stuff and and notes by my art director. First thing I'm going to do is start looking for reference. Now, I don't think I can show you a lot of this or add anything at all because a lot of it's copyritten and confidential. So, just know that I do have a reference board which I am constantly referring to um whenever I'm just making all this. So, another thing that Wizard sends to me is a worldbuing document. It's a bunch of concept art that other artists have made in preparation for this set. I mean, I say it's a bunch, it's actually a lot. It's a 200page document full of character designs, environment designs, prop designs, concept art.