Emerson Tung Paints Rough And Rusty Robots That Still Have A Soul [Art]

It can be tempting to treat robots as something entirely alien. The battle-ready robots that inhabit so much of science fiction come from a seemingly distant future, one where fashions and technologies are so removed from our own experiences that they may as well exist in another dimension. And Emerson Tung certainly plays with the alien in many of his futuristic images: Lovecraftian cyborgs, mecha creatures with preposterously enormous guns and steam-powered bots that might be little more than mining equipment. But he's also willing to delve into some retro robot designs that make his clunky characters ready to bond with human beings.A recent graduate of San Francisco's Academy of Art University, Tung interned as a concept artist for Fearless Studios and currently works as a game artist at video game company Booyah. His talents stretch from grimy warriors who wouldn't be out of place in a first-person shooter or an RPG about interstellar conquest to rather sweet scenes in which robots connect with young women, or else lament their broken hearts. When he's not composing offbeat AIs, Tung creates rather gorgeous industrial environments and some rather curious biological creatures.

You can keep up with Tung's latest creations on his blog, deviantART page and his Tumblr.