Mystical Forest of the North

I have always loved Fairy Tales, and Northern Folklore. I grew up with tales illustrated by John Bauer, and his art have always fascinated me. I am currently working on a portfolio based on the environments around me; Swedish Pine Forests and all the lore that comes with it. 

I did these as I was practising watercolor techniques. It was hard to squeeze in any real detail as the paper size was no larger than 5"x7" (about 12.5x18 cm). Color enhancements was made in Photoshop.

Above: Gnomes have always played a big part in the fairy-tales I've been reading. Below: thumbs from my sketchbook of what's to come.

Desert Troops Concept work

As I continue to write on the story itself, I am still exploring the visual style of it. There is a lot of sand in this story, and thus I needed a battle-suit for the Desert Troops. I started out with Millie as she is one of the main characters of the story. Here is version 2 in progress.

  

 The drafts for this started in my sketchbook a few years back

The idea here was to give her a small cloak to make her stand out as an officer in command, however, I later rejected the idea as too many loose parts only tend to be in the way on the battle-field.

Éowyn and the Nazgûl (Final)

Finally it is finished and submitted. Thank you all that have been surportive during its creation. These are the words of J.R.R. Tolkien that inspired this piece:

"Backward she sprang as the huge shape crashed to ruin, vast wings outspread, crumpled on the earth; and with its fall the shadow past away. A light fell about her and her hair shone in the sunrise.

        Out of the wreck rose the black rider, tall and threatening, towering above her. With a cry of hatred that stung the very ears like venom he let fall his mace. Her shield was shivered in many pieces, and her arm was broken; she stumbled to her knees. He bent over her like a cloud, and his eyes glittered; he raised his mace to kill. "

I had great fun during this challenge and I learned a lot! Furthermore, here is a picture of the final pencil work for you:

Previous posts on this piece: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5

Éowyn and the Nazgûl (part 5)

Time is really going fast now. Last week before deadline. I decided that when I puzzle the final together in Photoshop I really want to maintain the feel of the original painting, but I also wanted to add some more texture to it, so I started to work on a separate piece in pencil, with the hope that when it all come together it will look great. I took a shot of the progress (sorry for the quality!).

Now I just got that dreaded sky left to draw (shivers)...

Éowyn and the Nazgûl (part 4)

I'm almost done with the lower half. I am not very happy with the sky however, so might do a repaint of it seperately. I have added Snowmane and a hint of King Théoden in the forground.

 I made a speedpaint of the changes before I painted them. I believe the sky will look something closer to this. It feels less busy but still frames the image. Final remains to be seen though.

Edward Scissorhands

Edward Scissorhand is a movie of which tale I never get tired of. Thanks to Tim Burton's excellent directing combined with his unique visual style, perfect casting and a fantastic soundtrack by Danny Elfman, it got me hooked from the first time I saw it.

  

Not too long ago I discovered a blog called Scissorhands 20th. It is a wonderful tribute to Edward Scissorhands 20th anniversary where invited artists have contributed with artworks of their own visions of the movie. It brought back a lot of good memories, and this inspired me to make my own piece. So I picked up the ol' DVD and watched it again, put on some Danny Elfman music to get in the mood and got down to work. This is the result.

Éowyn and the Nazgûl (part 3)

So, the under-painting is almost done. Soon I'll be able to put more shadows, colors and details into the picture. Thinking of adding some some more patterns in cloth and armor, but it remains to be seen how much I'll add to it. It is still possible I'll add a part of Snowmane in the forground.

Read previous posts on this piece here: Part 1 and Part 2

Éowyn and the Nazgûl (part 2)

Sorry for not updating sooner. This Art Order challenge have really gotten to me. I am currently past the stage of sketching and have started on the watercolors. As you can see, some changes have been made since the piece was drawn in part 1.

I removed the hood on the Witch King and added some more armor details to Éowyn. I changed the direction of the Witch King's head to make him look more leaning forward than before and I have removed some of the cloth. 

When the piece is finished I'll have more pictures of the work in progress for you.