Description
Here's my humble version of the old man, Wôtan.
There are numerous versions of Odin out there. There's his godly aspect, his wanderer aspect, his superhero, comic book version (which I dislike), etc. A good friend of mine asked me to draw him, but he didn't really tell me what he wanted, so I felt free to twist his wish into what I wanted to paint. I really like the idea of Odin as a wanderer, as a traveler, as a beggar. I like the idea of an old god living amongst humans, ignored, scorned, despised. I thought his spear could be turned into a staff, or a walking stick. His clothes would be dirty and patched and his beard would always look greasy. He would take care of pigeons by day, and ravens during the night, and he'd closely watch what humankind has turned into. Yep. I kinda like him like this.
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Odin (/ˈoʊdɨn/; from Old Norse Óðinn) is a major god in Norse mythology, the Allfather of the gods, and the ruler of Asgard. Homologous with the Old English "Wōden", the Old Saxon "Wôdan" and the Old High German "Wôtan", the name is descended from Proto-Germanic "*Wodanaz" or "*Wōđanaz". "Odin" is generally accepted as the modern English form of the name, although, in some cases, older forms may be used or preferred. His name is related to ōðr, meaning "fury, excitation", besides "mind", or "poetry". His role, like that of many of the Norse gods, is complex. Odin is a principal member of the Æsir (the major group of the Norse pantheon) and is associated with war, battle, victory and death, but also wisdom, Shamanism, magic, poetry, prophecy, and the hunt. Odin has many sons, the most famous of whom is the thunder god Thor.
Odin is also associated with trickery, cunning, and deception. Most sagas have tales of Odin using his cunning to overcome adversaries and achieve his goals, such as swindling the blood of Kvasir from the dwarves.
(source: Wikipedia)
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2 sessions of sketching and painting on ArtRage 4 + Wacom Intuos4 tablet
I was (as always) highly influenced by the photographic genius of Eugene Atget, and this can be considered a homage to his work.
Comments: 47
EPCross [2017-04-02 18:15:23 +0000 UTC]
I'm back! This picture is obviously not in the 'shop.' If you are interested in selling a couple of prints (to someone who will never abuse your rights, but only enjoy them) please let me know. Perhaps add it to the 'shop.'
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EPCross In reply to joaofred [2017-04-03 07:50:24 +0000 UTC]
12:48 PST - it hasn't come through. I get nothing from the title, if I just use Odin I get plenty, including a couple of cute cats, a lovely dog and a lot of very frightening geckos. Finally thought to try your name and the only piece coming up is Neipones. I'm in no hurry, just thought I'd let you know. Maybe run it through again?
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EPCross [2017-04-02 18:08:10 +0000 UTC]
This is very likely the best picture I have ever seen of Odin. That is to say, I guess, this is how I see Odin and the picture speaks to me strongly. I need to go see if I can buy a copy. Let me say first, I am a firm believer in the rights of living artists and I would never "take a copy" of someone's work. I have a board on Pinterest called "Searching for the Source" where I hope to find artists whose pictures I love, but I can't even discover the artist's name. I will never copy those and I have found a couple of artists that way. I say this because I told another member I had purchased a framed copy of her picture and got back a scathing note telling me I couldn't use it for the cover of a book just by buying a print. am looking for someone to do the covers of a series of books, but I certainly understand the difference and would never use an image without a signed contract from the artist. That said . . . I would like this for myself and for my nephew who is trying to be a lawyer, but really only wants to paint and study the Norse Gods. Do you ever do book covers? My title is "Arise, Valkyrie" but I'm not looking for a half naked women with a sword. It is a primary world fantasy that is also historical fiction - set during World War II and telling the story of the rescue of the Danish Jews. Note way to long! Meant only to say, my favorite Odin of all time. You have caught his essence, at least for me.
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joaofred In reply to EPCross [2017-04-02 18:40:22 +0000 UTC]
Hello, EPCross! Thank you so much for your kind words. I've just submitted this image as a print (although, unfortunately, I didn't paint this one large enough so that larger prints are possible). I hope your nephew likes it, since, like you, he's passionate about the Norse gods (I live quite far from them, actually. I'm from the state of Bahia, in Brazil, and it's most likely to stumble upon the old African gods around here than the old Norse gods, but I admire both pantheons very much).
I've never worked as a professional artist before, so I'm not sure I'd know how to proceed as a book cover artist. Maybe we could talk about it and see what happens (my e-mail is joaofred@gmail.com).
I'm really happy to know that you like this illustration of Odin. It makes the day of any artist.
Have a good one!
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EPCross In reply to joaofred [2017-04-02 19:52:40 +0000 UTC]
Very good! I think your understanding caught him. I've painted him myself and though he is one of my favorite of all the Pantheons, I can't get hold of him. I too live quite a long way away, in southern Oregon, but my genealogy tells me I haven't much besides Norse blood in my veins. Of course, I love the Celtic Pantheon, particularly the Welsh and that must be from another life! Thank you, I will enjoy having the old man on my wall. You've got to love someone who would go so far for wisdom and knowledge.
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joaofred In reply to EPCross [2017-04-03 18:59:24 +0000 UTC]
Odin has such a strong presence, and he's such a pedestrian figure at the same time. He seems to combine a multitude of archetypes (the wise man, the wanderer, the seer, the father, the warrior, etc.), so he's everywhere, literally. It's like I could take a sit at a local pub and he would be there for a chat.
I love the Celtic pantheon too. I've been planning to give it some further research and, maybe, try to paint some of them. I'm particularly fond of Lugh, Danu, and Morrigan. How about you? A long time ago a local psychic told me I had to give the orishas a break (my city is heavily influenced by Candomble, spiritually speaking) and focus on the Celtic deities instead. He told me my ancestry was there, and, well, my family's origin is Portuguese, so it makes sense, if you think about the continental Celts.
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McAfeeKelsey [2016-06-02 03:15:22 +0000 UTC]
Excellent!
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Pedro-Elefante [2014-07-31 01:00:35 +0000 UTC]
Foda! seu estilo é muito lindo!
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Pedro-Elefante In reply to joaofred [2014-07-31 01:09:08 +0000 UTC]
Mutch bom mesmo! e eu acho bacana o Artrage! abs!
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Pedro-Elefante In reply to joaofred [2014-07-31 01:19:02 +0000 UTC]
Opa, Vou ficar ligadis!! Abração! surpresa legal conhecer seu trabalho!
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FelipeDarkZz [2014-06-01 02:29:20 +0000 UTC]
Muito estiloso o personagem, ótima composição.
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PhoenixDarksbane [2014-03-25 02:22:33 +0000 UTC]
Beautiful work! I featured your work, credited of course, on my Facebook page. Drop by and give us a like. We share many pieces of artwork, be that painting or poem. We always credit and source our posts. www.facebook.com/pages/The-%C3…
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PhoenixDarksbane In reply to joaofred [2014-04-06 02:59:48 +0000 UTC]
You are quite welcome! You did a wonderful job!
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AlexandreIlustrador In reply to joaofred [2013-12-07 12:43:07 +0000 UTC]
Escrevi um palavrão srsrsrs...
ficou muito irado parabéns!
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joaofred In reply to Iglybo [2013-12-04 21:50:20 +0000 UTC]
Thanks! I'll se what I can do.
Cheers!
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SavioRoz [2013-12-02 05:13:53 +0000 UTC]
I Believe in GODS!
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raidh [2013-12-02 00:17:26 +0000 UTC]
GJ! oO
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raidh In reply to joaofred [2014-01-16 06:04:27 +0000 UTC]
Yep!
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kikarios [2013-12-01 23:28:38 +0000 UTC]
Amazing, as always! And you keep getting better with each drawing! #bigfan #soproud
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joaofred In reply to kikarios [2013-12-01 23:30:45 +0000 UTC]
Working my ass off to get the best results
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