June FArt Battle

LJ - Very cool Of course you do know that once you feed a kitty they never leave you alone, right???


(wasn't going to comment on the art at all, but since it's not a contest piece I guess it's safe...)

ok, to be fair.. it WAS my birthday a few days ago... time just sorta slipped past me.. ahh well.. heres something at least..






*runs off* ...


..sorry sorry.. still working on inking stuff...

at least I got SOMETHING in on time..

Here is my entry:



There is also a description on my DA page:
http://battlewraith.deviantart.com/a...arot-215174912

Nice to see some more almost-last-minute entries. There's still one more day to get your entries in. I'm looking at you, CR, and you, Defiance Jones. And I would be pleasantly surprised if anyone else who previously declared their leaving the contest comes back for the elimination rounds. I'm looking at you Techbot Alpha, and Henri.

Oh my word... the pieces are amazing sofar! *twitches nervously while looking at her own submission*
Yes, even yours Tartysause! Even though it's not finished... it made me giggle!

*points out again that she likes this "battle".*

CoH Fan-Art Sale still several slots open!

Read my in-game stories and check out my DeviantART page.
- coXso - It was a memorable time filled with art!

Whew! With almost a half hour to spare! (and Whoof! Those are some REALLY nice entries! (Airhead's made me laugh ) Here's my entry:



Here's the link to the DeviantArt page with it: http://defiance-jones.deviantart.com/#/d3k7sk3

Here's my entry...

Tarot Nouveau.

One --> Artz Giveaway <-- To Rule Them ALL!

I will settle this. ORANGE FTW! - Ex Libris

Entries are closed, and quickest turnaround ever on the voting thread here. Now go vote!

What I like best about Tartyrsause's entry is how very close to the classic card illustrations it is, in style.

BW's piece is full of details and subtlety - really, very well drawn! My only 'problem' with it, is that the central figure (I presume the girl is the central figure) does Not convey (to me) the 'confident mastery of skills' inherent in 'The Magician'. She seem un-confident... which does tell an interesting story, but I'm not sure it's right for the Card. It would make an intriguing book-cover, though.

CR lavished art and skill on his image, but it all went into his central figure, the Queen, so we're lacking the background support details that help tell the tale in traditional tarot cards. If one Knows the 'Queen of Cups' and some of her meanings, then most of the qualities of the queen Are conveyed, here. But, except for the... 'person' of the queen, there is less meaning here. Awesome character art, though.

Defiance Jones and DeeDee both made the cards they drew relate to their character, or ours... which I found very effective. I felt those were less about the card, itself, and more about how its Meaning applies to heroes.

I really like Liz/SyrusB's approach. These are, indeed 'missing' cards from the Mystic Fortune power. I love the character art and the way they convey mood.

Be Well!
Fireheart

Thanks for the great feedback Fireheart.
I agree with your assessment and I'll strive
to do more with my backgrounds in future FArts.

One --> Artz Giveaway <-- To Rule Them ALL!

I will settle this. ORANGE FTW! - Ex Libris

Glad of the acknowledgement, CR, just keep it in perspective. You do Superb character work. In this instance, you put more time and effort into that fantastic face than most of us would be able to appreciate, when viewing the whole piece.

Since I'm often working on images that will be viewed through the internet, and most often only Briefly, I get my nose ground in the 'information density' issue... often. I'll get "Wow, fantastic picture you found/created, but people are going to look at it 3 inches by 2 inches, for about 10 seconds... How much bandwidth and rendering time is that really worth? Can you do more with less?"

My feedback-issue here is not that you didn't do much with the background - you crafted a very nice frame for the central figure, which refocuses the viewer's eye on that figure. (A very nice figure! ) However, one of the keys to classic Tarot art is in the layers of symbols and meanings embedded in each image. Each card tells a story, hinting at past and future, as well as the present 'encounter' on the journey through the cards.

So, I know you know this, but I'll say it anyway - it helps to have a final composition in mind and to expend your time and energy based on the Whole image. Granted, in the "Queen of Cups" as you composed it, She was pretty much the only thing we are looking at and her face was worth extra effort. However, you could have done a lot more with the image, if you'd balanced the time differently.

I'd originally thought of posting my commentary along with a vote, in the voting thread, but it was too late for that. Besides, I kinda hate contributing to 'competition' between good people with different levels of ability. That's especially true when different style-choices and different strengths can have such wildly variable effects.

Then there's the personality aspect...

So I'm much happier posting feedback and praise, after the whole thing is over.

Well done Everyone! Let's do this again this month and have a blast with it! And then - Double Feature time! We get to see what Samuraiko does with the inspiration provided - it should be awesome!

Be Well!
Fireheart

Hmm, I went back to view the images again, and noted BW's link to DA 'with explanation', so I went to read that... Very well conceived.

Anything to do with Arachnos seems to have this Skills vs Manipulation aspect, particularly with the Soldiers. That part of the image/message came though, quite clearly to me. The poor, confused girl, trapped in the middle of it makes absolute sense as a story, but that part is also what threw off my appreciation of the Magician card itself. That's what made it seem wrong to me.

She is the victim of the Manipulation, forced to acquire the Mastery of skills, but this image seems more like the cover of the first novel in a trillogy - 'Clueless', 'Trials', and 'Mastery'. Of course, 'Tarot' was just the theme of the Month and, at no point were you instructed to 'draw a Tarot card', so, honestly, except for the confusion, this picture is pure win.

And why do I care? 'The Magician' just happens to be my favorite card in the deck - I often feel like 'The Fool' who is trying to become 'The Magician'. To overcome the manipulation and gain the mastery.

Be Well!
Fireheart