History and universes

   
  This character was created after a visit to the Imperial War Museum. As i was drawing, i was thinking what sort of soldier he is and his purpose. But all that background and history (WWI&II) is based on the sketches i did at the museum. So it is easier to situate the character in 'his own world'.
There's often original characters made, by myself or otherwise, that i do not care for it. Not that the drawing is bad, sometimes the technical skills are impressive! But there's nothing to hold on to. So where does one get that?
  Going to the museum i could see the world that inspired  'Hellboy' , 'Captain America', 'Steamboy', 'Rocketeer' and so many others. Maybe that's where and why i failed the most. Was thinking more on creating a character without the world to put him into. The character should be the result of his circumstances and surroundings. Collecting image reference is very important, but knowing the history (of whatever universe) is equally if not more so. Note to self: Read more books!

  Also, that might be why so much fanart gets much more attention. Despite of drawing characters standing doing nothing, people know their backgrounds, personalities and universe, it comes with all that worked out for us. On the making, knowing all of it also facilitates, because i can put myself in their feet. Groot would smile! and not care to much about serious posing. Training that side of the brain is vital for good story telling, understanding the position of each character and their decision making for every situation. In that sense, fan art / fan fiction is a fantastic exercise.
  People make also fan art purely out of love to the characters =)