iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Ryan Chapman

Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

With January now concluded, I made 30 sculpts of different fish (1 excluded because it was more of a dragon). I wanted to challenge myself to, on the spot, come up with a weird fish every day. Take a look! #fish | #creaturedesign | #3dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

This was admittedly a tough project but one I'm proud of! I had to work some creative muscles I hadn't needed to in quite some time.

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 02/02/2026

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

I've been sculpting fish but am closing out the month too busy to post them. I'll do a final post in February with all 31 designs!

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

I've been a bit busy so I don't have a fish to share today. Instead, here's a pile of fish 3d prints that my kids have requested.

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

This was a second attempt of an idea I tried that I felt much better about. I wanted to have a long-snouted fish with a mask-like face and the heated blade part emerged when I thought about how to color it. I had seen a shark many days ago with a compelling color like this.

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

Day 27 of making up a fish! The Scaldblade is a variant of a Knifefish with the ability to superheat its fin. It propels itself through the water at extreme speed, hunting with its keen senses and deadly heat. #fish | #creaturedesign | #3dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 27/01/2026

I've been sculpting a made up fish every day this month and I will be doing another one tonight in my stream! Make sure to join at ~9:30 EST tonight. I will also be playing One Piece and Angeline Era so don't miss it! #characterdesign | #3dart | #pngtuber | #stream

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

Another walking fish today. I wanted to give a fish hooves to see how it felt and ended up with something very amusing.

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

Day 26 of making up a fish! Their gills have adapted to make them amphibious. They can graze the forest floor for hours, needing only to return to their watery home for the nights. #fish | #creaturedesign | #3dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

I was particularly tired today, and just kinda pulled out some shark shapes before a friend sent me an image of the absolutely most ridiculous fish that I incorporated into this design. I like the ones that end up needing some post processing like the translucent fins!

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

Day 25 of making up a fish. The Glassfin shark is an extremely small species, growing no bigger than a few centimeters. He sure is cute though #fish | #creaturedesign | #3dart | #zbrush

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Reposted by Ryan Chapman

Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

1 week remains for my make up a fish every day project! Day 24 is the incredible Gulpicthys which, despite it's enormous size, boasts incredible speeds rivaling that of a Blue Marlin. #fish | #creaturedesign | #3dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

This was done during my stream yesterday and it was a design that really felt like "trust the process". I wasn't confident in the design until I started painting it and it began to click. I was worried it felt TOO whale-like, despite that being a primary inspiration.

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 25/01/2026

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 23/01/2026

I've been wanting to do some sort of Mosasaur type fish for a while now, and today it just came together that way. I wanted something that looked flat but still aggressive. I feel like this guy would fit in great with a retro styled design aesthetic. 🤔

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 23/01/2026

Sculpting a new fish every day in January. The Snappercat is a sort of convergent evolution of a sea reptile into a catfish. It still has nostrils and must come up for air, but can remain underwater for a significant amount of time. #fish | #creaturedesign | #3dart | #zbrush

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Reposted by Ryan Chapman

Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

I've been enjoying this "Make a fish" daily project and decided to make a scale chart like those official fish species charts you see. Which one has been your favorite so far? #fish | #3dart | #zbrush

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Reposted by Ryan Chapman

Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

Day 15 of making up a fish! We're halfway there! This small but tough guy has developed a large crystalline structure on its head used for ramming into its prey. #fish | #3dart | #zbrush

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Reposted by Ryan Chapman

Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

Day 16 of making up a fish. Here's a cute little guy whose appearance might be somewhat deceptive. Maybe those scared eyes are actually something a bit more...hypnotic... #fish | #3dart | #zbrush

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Reposted by Ryan Chapman

Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

Day 21 of making up a fish! This is a perfect starter pet fish. It can live in a tiny little cup and never need to change its water. It eats 1 pellet a day. It loves being alive! #fish | #creaturedesign | #3dart | #zbrush

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Reposted by Ryan Chapman

Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

I am sculpting a made up fish every day! Here's 22, the Coppered Willde. A tarnished looking fish that can briefly roam around on land. Its massive gills allow it to take in extra oxygen and store it for extended periods of time. #fish | #creaturedesign | #3dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

The original idea of this fish was to actually have the front half act like a mask, and the now face is the nose. It absolutely wasn't coming together so I pivoted to an awkwardly shaped carp instead!

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

I started bringing down all of the shapes to make this curved vertical fish and this ghastly visage began to take shape. I wanted to comment on the fact that fish are often touted as "easy" pets but the truth is people are just ill informed.

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 21/01/2026

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 20/01/2026

This is the result of last night's stream! I was inspired by those Balancing Bird toys as well as making a ray with an interesting mechanical appearance.

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 20/01/2026

Day 20 of making up a fish! Don't be fooled by that big opening in its chest thinking that is its mouth. It has a large intake that allows it to propel through the water at great speed and incredible accuracy. #fish | #creaturedesign | #3dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 20/01/2026

Starting very soon! Hope to see you there for some epic fish sculpting and indie gaming

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

I've been wanting to do another long fish, so I leaned into more of a sea monster type look and something that I felt I could mirror well with another fish. I love helixes and especially the idea of a fish that resembles a DNA strand.

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

Day 18/19 of making up a fish. I didn't get to post one yesterday so today's is a fish species that always hunts in pairs twisted together. The charge forward forming a vicious cyclone of teeth and pain. #fish | #creaturedesign | #3Dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

Today's the day! Tonight at 10 EST I will be streaming a new fish sculpt and then playing Angeline Era as my PNGtuber debut. Make sure to join and check it out!

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 19/01/2026

I didn't get a chance to make the 18th fish today, but my good friend stepped up and made one for me today. Meet the Blockhead.

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Reposted by Ryan Chapman

Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

Hey there everyone. Thanks so much for liking my fish lately. On ⚠️MONDAY⚠️ I will debuting my PNGtuber and I hope you will be there! I will be sculpting a new fish for the first hour, then playing Angeline Era. #pngtuber | #streaming | #3dart | #indiegames

A shocked owl-like cartoon character representing a pngtuber of "specsowl" on a yellow gradient half-tone backdrop with an image of indie game Angeline Era to the left indicating this user will be streaming and reacting to this game. There is a squorcle nameplate above his head that says "twitch.tv/specsowl" as a call to action for the streaming platform and account from where this owl will be streaming.

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 17/01/2026

I had a request to make something akin to a cowfish which I really liked that idea. I wanted to turn this into something like a mix between that and a pleco, and threw in some above water cow horn stylings.

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 17/01/2026

Day 17 of making up a fish! This bottom dweller evolved many features to protect itself so that it could suck the sea floor in total peace. Between the reef camouflage and spiny sensors all over no predator can touch it. #fish | #creaturedesign | #3dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

It's #AppreciateADragon day! It's no secret that I love dragons and I hope to make more in the future!

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

I just randomly started pulling out shapes and started leaning into a living cowrie approach that I really liked. Combining elements of a butterfly fish with sea snails and the like, I'm actually quite pleased with how this cute little guy turned out

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

Day 16 of making up a fish. Here's a cute little guy whose appearance might be somewhat deceptive. Maybe those scared eyes are actually something a bit more...hypnotic... #fish | #3dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

I wanted to make a very video-gamey type fish with a clear weak spot. Once the crystal on the head breaks, it's now exposed and looks significantly diminished in form.

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

Day 15 of making up a fish! We're halfway there! This small but tough guy has developed a large crystalline structure on its head used for ramming into its prey. #fish | #3dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

Day 14 of making up a fish. My daughter requested a pink one and what ensued was nearly every aspect of this design was a mistake that made me think "now hold on a second..."

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 14/01/2026

Challenged myself to design a boss that not only looked like it belonged in Pikmin but also met all of the criteria of a Pikmin 4 in game model, and I even put it all together in the same Unreal 4 version for authenticity! #gameart | #3dart | #pikmin | #nintendo | #fish

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

Day 13 of make up a fish every day! We've finally caught up. This one I wanted to do something spec evo where fish went entirely extinct 8 million years in the future and land mammals escaped the unbearable heat to be fully aquatic. The eyes have migrated to be below the jaw in a strange way.

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

Day 12 of making up a fish. I noticed how Salmon and Morays have very similarly structured heads so I thought it'd be fun to mash those together. The result was surprisingly believable! #fish | #3dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 13/01/2026

Day 11 of making up...a...fish? Ok so this one is a bit of a stretch since it's just a Spyro styled Dragon but at least he's a SEA dragon! #spyro | #3dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 12/01/2026

Day 10 of making up a fish. They said it couldn't be done... #fish | #3dart | #zbrush

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Ryan Chapman @specsowl.bsky.social · 12/01/2026

Day 9 of making up a fish. I think this fish less reflects a real fish and more about my thoughts on something specific 🤔 #fish | #3dart | #zbrush

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