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MegaMaeve — In the shade of the Blackoak Forest

#afraid #eli #fantasyart #fear #femalewarrior #forest #markerart #markers #micron #minne #oc #ocs #originalcharacter #originalcharacters #perspective #traditionalart #warrior #markersillustration #originalsetting #elihal #decotimemarkers #minnerava #blackoakforest #markersdrawing #markerstraditional
Published: 2018-07-16 21:40:52 +0000 UTC; Views: 345; Favourites: 14; Downloads: 0
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Description

Alternate title: Enter Monster. Exit pursued by A Bear.

Media: 0.1 micron, DecoTime markers


I don't think I'll stop experimenting anytime soon - this time around I tried my hand at a more complicated perspective. 

I had an inner need to draw Elihal and to finally introduce another character into my gallery: meet Minne of the Tower Isles. She'll probably be enrolled in the 9th round of the OC-Training.


-----


"What in the world is that?"

"Bite me if I know. Whatever it is, I don't think I can take it down."


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Comments: 27

MeganMosier [2020-07-28 22:50:43 +0000 UTC]

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MegaMaeve In reply to MeganMosier [2020-08-26 13:21:32 +0000 UTC]

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Tete-DePunk [2019-01-23 23:55:58 +0000 UTC]

Perspective remains the ultimate stumbling block for all artists. Some artists employ perspective for an illusion, or a depth of illusion (such as Trompe d’ Loeil), or forced perspective. At times, an artist can create depth without either device, and thereby creating a natural view of depth of dimension.

 

Perspective is what creates this realism of depth, and no better example have I seen anyone (aside from international artists, that is) execute this feat is your work right here.

 

At once, the action and taut tension of the moment strikes right us immediately- the grimace tensing on Elihal’s face as she braces herself against the towering creature now rearing up to lunge at them.


So glad to see Minne and Elihal in the same piece! Will you show more of Minne and Elihal together? Do they work together at one point in your series? Is this primarily in Minne’s story or in Elihal’s story?

Minne’s face shows a totally natural reaction of terror while trying to keep composed, almost frozen in clenching fear as she clutches onto Elihal’s arm, bracing herself behind her.

 

Their facial expressions feel and look natural, like actual facial muscles and wrinkles, as well furrowed brows. Elihal’s face, with her sternly furrowed brows in caution and discipline readiness of attack, and her lips pursed in concentration, and Minne’s face, eyes wide in terror yet face trembling as though to steady herself and snap out of being frozen in place from fear. We can see how harrow they are- their hair falls into disheveled strands against their faces, not doubt from their pursuit by the creature, or by combat from a previous offense.


One can definitely appreciate how you’re not afraid to give furrow and wrinkles on people’s face. Too often, artists either exaggerate expressions, or in an attempt to preserve “perfection”, they totally tone down expressions and the characters’ emotions look flat and woefully underwhelming.

Here, you have an excellent balance of expression!

 

And onto the details!

 

From the intricate chain-mail (seriously, you are the queen of chain-mail drawing, Maeve!), to the leather plated armor, to the archer vambraces Elihal wears, to the glimpse of Minne’s traveling outfit (though outfitted for harsh climates, it seems? Is she wearing an outer tunic over her usual traveling outfit?), you not only show a keen eye for detail, as well as execution and keep a wonderful symmetry, but also your color coordination works in the most pleasing aesthetic way possible. You contrast colors, yet these never clash, nor do they mesh into a mushed hodgepodge of colors. They stand out, have a nice crispness to them, but also complement one another. No would think that dark brown bordered with dark blue would work side by side of greys and muted lavenders. But they do!

 

Onto the background- or should we say foreground?


Again, the perspective gives us an impressive dimension, and here, we can see the forest floor from the creature’s towering perspective.

It’s tempting to overload something like a forest floor with a myriad of details and textures, but here, you have deftly added carefully placed details popping out- a handful of leaves dotted here and there, a twig branching out, or a root jutting up through the moss-covered earth. The colors again, are impressive in this feature as well- you cleverly played with the lighting to create the look of sunlight peering through the intricate lattice of forest of tree tops.

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Drayah [2018-07-21 19:20:26 +0000 UTC]

This is so awesome! Look at that perspective!! Fantastic job! You can really feel their fear as something HUGE rears up in front of them!!  

Eli looks awesome! Even though she doesn't think she can take down this creature, she still seems determined to do her worst and I love it

So cool to see Minne too, I'm SUPER excited to learn more about her! I love it that you're enrolling another female character and I'm very interested in what her story is and how she plays a part in the larger narrative with Caleb and Al and the rest.  

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MegaMaeve In reply to Drayah [2018-08-30 10:25:44 +0000 UTC]

Thank you very much! The perspective was such a pain! This piece started out as a doodle and an attempt at extreme top-down perspective, and then evolved into something much bigger.


I'm glad you still like Eli - she's my personal personification of "Go Big or Go Home", and when it comes to danger, she's prepared to face it head on, even if she doesn't stand of a chance. (And in this case, she really wouldn't stand a chance).


I hope Minne will keep your attention during the OC-training ! She's part of a separate storyline that will entwine with Caleb's Army Adventures later on. She used to be part of a different storyline, but I decided to reintroduce her as p.o.v.-character (so I really need to polish her voice this round ). Thank you for your interest!

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Drayah In reply to MegaMaeve [2019-06-21 20:13:04 +0000 UTC]

It turned out so beautifully though! Even if it was a pain!  

I love her!! I love a radical baddass warrior woman! She's out cause damage and it's so great!

Minne is absolutely wonderful as well and I love her so very much. I love all of your characters! But it's been so lovely to get to see more of your ladies lately. They are all amazing!  

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Kitty-Craftsy [2018-07-17 13:02:08 +0000 UTC]

Hello Isles nice to see you c: 
Nice perspective ^^ looks damn sweet tbh. I wondering what the story behind this drawing will be. And what they are seeing before them. 
I must be honest that I am enjoying these small experiments of yours! 

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MegaMaeve In reply to Kitty-Craftsy [2018-07-20 12:44:20 +0000 UTC]

Thanks for your kind words! Minne is also excited to finally get to meet you guys.

It' a scene that happens a little further into the story, so I can't say too much about it, aside from the fact they're facing something like the creature in this piece: 21. Big

I'm glad you like the way you depicted it though!

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Kitty-Craftsy In reply to MegaMaeve [2018-07-20 15:04:31 +0000 UTC]

oh-uh jeah that's something big yes xD 
But you are welcome It's sweet to meet more of your oc's c: 

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akitku [2018-07-17 07:05:57 +0000 UTC]

The perspective here is awesome! Viewing the scene from this angle really emphasizes the danger they are in. It must have been such a difficult angle to draw, I don't think I'd manage! Also, I just love how you draw armor being bulky and consisting of layers! Great job! 

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MegaMaeve In reply to akitku [2018-07-20 12:48:35 +0000 UTC]

Thank you! I genuinely struggled for some days getting the perspective right; it's something that'll need a lot more practice before it becomes less of a struggle. :') It was a lot of fun to try a more 'extreme' angle like this though, and I'm glad the almost-cinematic effect got across!  

Armour incidentally also is something I struggle with, in spite of my love of drawing it, so I'm flattered to hear you like it, thank you! 

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HelevornArt [2018-07-17 05:31:59 +0000 UTC]

Woow the perspective is fantastic here, it looks so natural! I love how you did the foreshortening and still depicted the clothes and their poses really well. And the lighting it awesome too, I like how the shades on the grass suggest that they're in a forest and the encroaching shadow under Elihal's feet looks like an omen of the danger above. The colouring is wonderful, especially how you highlight the characters by colouring them cleanly and frame them with the detailed but diffuse and watery background. Judging by their looks, that should be one dreadful looking monster !

Great to meet Minne! Can't wait to find out more about her and her relationship with the other characters! I wonder what occupation she has - she's clearly not a warrior ^^

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MegaMaeve In reply to HelevornArt [2018-07-24 11:04:19 +0000 UTC]

Thank you very much! The perspective was a pain to pull off, but it definitely makes for good excursive, and really makes for a more dynamic image, I think. The bg also was quite a bit of a struggle (I cried at Ithilloth so much over it XD), but in the end it actually ended up looking pretty good!  


They're facing something quite surreal, so I'm happy their expressions show their fear and astonishment. I hope to introduce Minne properly in the OC-T, too - she isn't a warrior, but as for revealing her actual profession we'll both have to wait for her Guess Who task!

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HelevornArt In reply to MegaMaeve [2018-07-26 12:36:39 +0000 UTC]

Well, most often pushing yourself out of your comfort zone brings improvement, and the outcome of your struggles here certainly are proof of that! (I'm struggling with a similar perspective on an acrylic painting right now, but so far I can't see any such improvement xD I'm persevering though)

Definitely, I'll be happy to take a guess

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dragondoodle [2018-07-17 01:17:05 +0000 UTC]

Wow! The lines and the colors are looking fantastic! The angle is awesome as well, got that "bear" point of view going The shadows are gorgeous too

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MegaMaeve In reply to dragondoodle [2018-07-20 12:45:02 +0000 UTC]

Thank you very much! The perspective was so difficult to draw, but I really wanted to try and see whether I could pull off a cinematic effect like this, so I'm really happy to hear you like it!

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charcoalfeather [2018-07-17 00:26:12 +0000 UTC]

Gosh, you're getting so good with markers and lineart in general. Great work with the angle (which involves foreshortening, which is hard!) and on making us focus on Elihal and Minne. You've managed to include so many colours on the grass but it doesn't clash with the characters and it doesn't compete with the characters as the main focus of the picture, either. Wonderful!

I love Minne's hair shading and she and Elihal seem to have a close relationship. She clearly trusts Elihal to defend her from whatever is theatening them! The shadows really indicate there may be a huge monster/beast that is threatening them.

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MegaMaeve In reply to charcoalfeather [2018-07-20 12:55:04 +0000 UTC]

Thank you for your kind words and support! The slow practice is starting to pay off, and I'm enjoying markers a lot more than I used to, too. The perspective was genuinely difficult to pull off (foreshortening is beyond difficult X'D) but it also was a fun challenge, and in the end this kind of perspective makes for a bit of a more dynamic or cinematic scene, I think.  

The bg was probably the next most difficult thing after the angle - I spend most of my time trying not to let it clash and blending markers to get the right colours, so thank you for your kind words!


Elihal is the only thing between Minne and the being they're facing, so she's clinging to her in an instinctive attempt to hide; this encounter definitely made them closer than they were previously - that's what a life-or-death scenario does to characters, I suppose ^^

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charcoalfeather In reply to MegaMaeve [2018-07-21 14:14:21 +0000 UTC]

You're very welcome! You're getting better and better with every post in markers. The colours look very solid and professional and this looks like something from a published comic!

Can't wait to learn more about Minne!

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MegaMaeve In reply to charcoalfeather [2018-07-25 09:37:51 +0000 UTC]

Thank you very much - I'm utterly flattered!   I'm happy to hear you think it looks that good. Back when I was a kid I really wanted to become a comic illustrator, so that's something I catered my style to. Now that I discovered markers (and don't feel so adverse to using them anymore) I think I finally found a medium that both suits my more stylised pieces as well as is easier to use.


Can't wait to show her in the OC-T! Even though she's one of my oldest characters, I recently promoted her to point-of-view character - so she'll really need the training!

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charcoalfeather In reply to MegaMaeve [2018-07-28 01:48:32 +0000 UTC]

You're very welcome! Will you try your hand at comics, you think? It'd be nice to see comics of scenes in OC-training eventually. I'm thinking of pushing myself there eventually.

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MegaMaeve In reply to charcoalfeather [2018-08-17 10:59:27 +0000 UTC]

I'm not sure if I'll draw comics the oncoming round of OC-T (because my MA in linguistics will be starting soon, so I'll have much less time on my hands :')) but I'll definitely keep it in mind, especially now that I've found a medium perfectly suited for a smooth, comic-y style of colouring. 

Will you do some comic-like scenes from Sam's story? I must admit that I am terribly excited you're enrolling him (he's probably my favourite character of yours), and I think that his story is rather well-suited for comic story telling!

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charcoalfeather In reply to MegaMaeve [2018-08-18 02:42:06 +0000 UTC]

Congrats on starting your MA soon! That's quite exciting; how are you anticipating Grad School will be like? Which area of linguistics do you think you'll be focusing on?

I know how you feel, I've been having far less time on my hands as well due to getting a full-time job and some other things going on.

I do really want to do comic-like scenes, particularly since I am hoping I can do more of Sam's comic! 

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MegaMaeve In reply to charcoalfeather [2018-08-26 20:45:13 +0000 UTC]

Thank you! It really is quite exciting, and the closer the start of the semester gets, the more nervous I grow. I applied for the MA-programme at the same university I got my BA, so I am expecting it'll be more of the same (except more time-consuming and difficult). I'll be in a Descriptive/Anthropological linguistics programme, with focus non-Indo-European languages; I wrote my BA-thesis on a Austronesian language, so I am hoping to get back to Austronesian languages in particular. ^^


Ah, good luck with your full-time job, too! You studied Law, right? I hope your job is not too time-consuming, and that you'll have enough breaks for working on your stories and art, too.


I'd LOVE to see more comics! Your work on SiNY is simply marvellous (you have no clue just how excited I am about this round of the OC-T, simply because you're enrolling Sam ), and I hope to see more of his comic indeed. Do take your time though. I'm wishing you all the best!

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charcoalfeather In reply to MegaMaeve [2018-08-26 21:14:02 +0000 UTC]

That's so exciting! Which types of Austronesian languages in particular, or is it just the whole family? Have you gone to Southeast Asia (or will be planning to) to do some field research?

Thank you! However what I have right now is not exactly permanent, and I am hoping for something better. Yes, I did law but I'm flexible as to what kind of job I can get with my degree (or even not- many employers are just looking for skillsets rather than a piece of paper called a degree). 

Comics do take quite a bit of time to create, so I have to take time to craft each of them xD Especially now that I have some real life art stuff coming up such as an exhibition which is happening in around two weeks, so I have to finish that soon xD

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MegaMaeve In reply to charcoalfeather [2018-08-31 15:43:51 +0000 UTC]

Thank you! Personally I mostly focussed on the Lamaholot dialect chain, and then delved into a neighbouring language, Alorese, to write my BA thesis on. I should probably start studying Malay if I intend to continue this particular study branch, though. I haven't been to Southeast Asia myself (though I got to work on raw data from my professors) and am not planning a fieldwork trip anytime soon (mainly because there is a large community of people from Southeast Asia in my own native country; I'd like to do some minor research on bilinguality if I ever get the chance).


I hope you'll find something that suits you better in a very nearby-future! (And that this job will sustain you as long as needed). Hopefully life is able to give you a break every now and then.


Ohhhh, you're doing an exhibition? What kind of pieces will you display, wow? I keep my fingers crossed it'll be a success!

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charcoalfeather In reply to MegaMaeve [2018-08-31 22:51:28 +0000 UTC]

Ah, I see. Yeah, I did read that there were many people from Indonesia in particular in the Netherlands. Malay will certainly open up more opportunities for you if you continue studying that particular branch!

It's basically an exhibition where 35 artists including myself have been invited to draw/make a video/other forms of art a sentence from a children's book. I've been assigned a page where there's a puppy "bouncing" so I've decided to portray that by drawing a puppy running excitedly towards the audience. it's the second most recent post on my Instagram now if you want to take a look! (it's not yet finished though)

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