Pushing to make the last mile, Denali finally arrives at the finish line. Exhausted, she pads over to where the others are waiting: the winner's circle. Being one of the youngest to attend, Denali looks about the other competitors not with disappointment, but with pride. She conquered the Kotakaii Mountains and survived the frozen forests. Content, she heads off with her new companions to share a meal of roasted fish and winter cabbage, the idea of a hot meal sounding better with each footstep. Fifth place isn't so bad.
Aha! The Race is finally coming to an end. So, this is my last entry for this month's event. I hope none of you got lost on the way or got bored with seeing Denali constantly.
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Left: "Persistence." Made entirely out of Faber Castell colored pencils, Persistence is my first self portrait. Being one of my smaller pieces, I often thought about turning this piece into another diptic (a two-paneled piece. See VASE 2017) but instead decided against it in order to make Polaris. Wanting, again, to try something different, Persistence displays more pastel colors than what I usually use. It makes the piece more calming to the eye. Personally, I love this piece. Persistence received a four at region, but, unfortunately, did not advance to State.
Right: "Polaris." Polaris is my very first sculpture entry into VASE. He is lightly stuffed and therefore very soft and rather floppy. He received a four rating at region, yet did not advance to State. However, the creation of Polaris will (hopefully) allow for more stuffed animal projects in the future. The pattern, stripes, and color blotches in the mane and tail are all drawn by me. It's disappointing that neither of my pieces advanced this year, especially having such high hopes for my self portrait. There's always next time! Behold, the mighty Polaris, guardian of the North Wind.
Behold also my second entry to VASE! That's right, I made a stuffed animal. :) I drew the pattern myself as well as colored in the stripes and blue markings on the body and mane. The eyes are also hand painted. Finally, Denali was able to make it back to the race's trail unharmed. She stood at the entrance of the cave, a little saddened to find the other tributes already lying there. Leaning down to place her addition to the pile, Denali couldn't help feeling as though she was being watched. Perhaps by the mountain's spirits? With a nervous shutter, she quickly moved on her way, entering the cave.
Arcane Zoo is giving me a lot of excuses to practice backgrounds :D If you all remember, I have done two paper cutting/collage pieces in the past, namely the Pied Piper and Apotheosis. Despite what VASE judges think, I really like them! I'm thinking of maybe, after VASE this year, I'll make another piece. Perhaps one last go at this form of collage. I'll just have to come up with an idea.
After being derailed from the mountain trail the race was set upon, Denali found herself unable to relocate it. She glanced around with worry and began to pad through the forest. Due to the cold, Denali rarely visited the Kotakaii wilderness, making her unfamiliar with the land. However, she reasoned that if she kept a straight line, she would either eventually reach the trail once again, or stumble into someone who could help. As she walked, she couldn't help but remember the stories of the spirits that resided in the mountains. Her superstitions starting to get to her, Denali picked up her pace and prayed she'd get out of this mess soon.
It was the big day; the start of the Sleeping Mountain Race. Denali was finally old enough to compete. She had been travelling for days to make it on time. Now she stood at the starting line, the sun rising behind her. Denali felt a stone of nervousness in her stomach. She knew she was going up against some hard competition, some of which had completed the race multiple times. She was ready, though. She had created her own gear that would keep her warm in the snow--something she wasn't accustomed to. Tradition required a tribute for the spirits of the mountain. Denali obliged willingly, offering the horn of the gazelle she used to make her gear, it's fur artistically wrapped around it. She hoped her tribute would represent her homeland as well as herself. The other competitors lined up on either side of Denali. Haccken, a previous two-time winner of the Sleeping Mountain, stood to her left, his tribute--a trout from the port--hanging from his mouth. Denali could practically feel the arrogance radiating from him. She didn't dare turn to him, too determined to lose her focus. When the race kicked off, Denali hit the ground as hard as she could. If Haccken were to get his third win, he would have to fight for it.
Story aside: Arcane Zoo might be all that I post about for a while. This is mostly because I don't have any photos of my current project, as well as VASE rules requiring that all pieces are to be original. This means that none may resemble something from another source, like the internet. Now, all of my pieces already meet this requirement, since I take all my reference photos myself. However, I do not want to risk someone mistaking a photo of my pieces to be someone else's. Therefore, I usually post after the contest. So, you're just going to have to put up with Denali for a bit! :) |
AuthorStudent artist. Mainly draws with colored pencils and Photoshop. Doodles in class too much. Archives
July 2019
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