I finally got around to scanning my two latest pieces, 'Remembering the World' and 'The High Priestess'--both illustrations in which I wanted to utilise a more 'spring-like' colour palette in honour of winter's long awaited end! As usual, a lot of free unconscious expression was involved in the creation of these, along with some balancing intellectual decisions. The dreamy 'Remembering the World' is particularly derivative of the subconscious in that it takes an even further step in the direction of fantastical imagery and away from any literal interpretation of my novel series. It conveys the sublime relationship between the opposites as dissected in my books, depicted here in the reverse of my usual 'light in he dark'; examining instead 'the dark in the light.' My favourite symbol--the Oroboros (the snake biting its own tail)--makes an appearance to symbolise sex, death, rebirth and the paradoxical mortality and immortality of life itself.
'The High Priestess' is my latest attempt at capturing Linkaiah's essence--(Linkaiah is a major character in the upcoming Book II.) Like 'Remembering the World' this piece also shows 'the dark in the light' but with more of an emphasis on character and narrative, seeking to exemplify Linkaiah's larger-than-life loathing of Alastair and her relentless desire to overthrow him in the story.
Clearly, I love to babble about the meaning behind my work, but as much as I love intellectual rambling (because let's face it, I'm a huge geek), I want the mystery and magic behind these images to reign supreme more than anything. Leaving room for the viewer's own interpretation is essential!
On the technical side of things, even though these drawings were both about the same size, 'Remembering the World' took me only two days to finish while 'The High Priestess' took me a week! Strange how varied the time is it takes to complete an illustration--it all depends on how many problems the artist runs into along the way, haha.
'Remembering the World'
'The High Priestess'