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Thanks to Patrons’ votes in my last big poll, I’ve finally made a decision about where this Patreon will be going after May. Your insights were a big help in choosing what I’ll be focusing on next, with so much inspiration pulling my muse in different directions!
My top two contenders were, much to my surprise, the Kushiel Concepts theme and the Exalted TTRPG theme. Color me surprised to see two of my most niche topics be at the top! I’m so pleased these passion projects would be appealing to you guys.
KUSHIEL CONCEPTS is our winner, which means I’ll be exploring the following once June rolls around:
I’ll also be designing a new suite of Kushiel-inspired Patreon-exclusive merch, which I’ll announce later on as I figure out what might be a cool thing to make. Perhaps a series of night-blooming flower stickers inspired by the Court? Fancy stained glass noble house sigils? Let me know if you have ideas of things you’d love to collect!
I’m going to think about this and do some planning while we wait on May to arrive.
I’m still going to be making Exalted art, stories, and resources just for my own fun and on my own time, but it won’t be shared here on Patreon, as that’d start to get confusing if I tried to mix it in with Kushiel/Fantasy things once that theme revs up here.
My solution? – A dedicated place for my Exalted things on Ko-fi.
I’ll be posting all Exalted art/writing/resource updates and future Exalted Character of the Week compilations there in the future, so go give it a follow if you like that particular facet of my TTRPG-related art. I’ve shared my free fan resources there, for those who need art templates and resources for playing their Solar characters.
If you like the Exalted things I do, Ko-fi’s set up to where you can leave me a monthly or one-time tip there as well, or just enjoy the project, which is 98% free to enjoy, minus a couple of perks for monthly tippers. This way, I don’t feel like my Exalted fans are left out of the fun and I have a chill place I can share that TTRPG hobby. I also like the idea that my Exalted stuff stays free of too many expectations so it can remain a fun and carefree endeavor!
Well that’s enough of my excited ramble! I hope you all are as hyped for a change in theme here as I am. I’m looking forward to reading some of my favorite books and deep diving into some really cool imagery! Perhaps it will pave the way for other fun book series I’ve enjoyed and would like to do fan art for?
Till next time, I’ll keep sharing interim inspiration and art till Summer arrives!
<3 Ang
Until May rolls around and this Patreon is re-vamped with a brand new theme, I’Il be sharing the fun random arts I do, like the next collection of character portraits for the Exalted Character of the Week challenge I host over at the Forge of Wonders. It was another adventure in experimenting with different styles and loosening up after so many years of working in a more rigid style.
At the same time that The Cultivar was chosen for the next Challenge, my husband started playing Persona 3 Reload, which put a whole new coat of paint on top of a game that he loved growing up. I’ve always enjoyed the sleek and appealing designs of ATLUS’ games and wanted to see if I could try to bring that visually stunning nature to a portrait of The Cultivar. How did I do?
Apparently I subconsciously matched her outfit with her girlfriend’s outfit from an earlier challenge, which is a fun bit of accidental serendipity.
Next up, we have Fia, the No Moon Lunar witch. I was originally going to keep this portrait as a simple pencil portrait, which I’m quite pleased with Procreate’s graphite simulation. But then the color tempted me! I tried to keep it subtle with the pops of her dramatic red hair tips. I ended up with a look very close to what I can do with copic marker, traditionally, which is neat!
Lastly, we have Moira for MissSunnySweden, a kickbutt Dawn Caste with a tiger theme. I’ve long considered smiles my weakness when drawing people, but I was able to capture a delighted bloodlust smile without too much trouble. I didn’t have much time to draw Fia and Moira, so I aimed for more simplified ‘token-style’ portraits.
All the portaits you see here were painted in Procreate, which has become my mainstay of late since it let’s me curl up in a comfortable spot on the couch to work.
I created one last bit of fun Exalted art in February where we were challenged by another member of the Forge to draw our characters on a date. My character, Kalara, was paired up with the Abyssal, The Cultivar, for a date, which triggered a fun idea for a whole mini comic I could practice my visual storytelling skills with.
I wasn’t able to finish the mini comic with everything happening with health and job woes last month, but I’m hoping to clean this up at some point for practice. For now, enjoy the sketches for the comic and the quick final panel I did work up just for fun!
Premise: The Cultivar and Kalara go on a date!
Kalara shows up to the cafe, where the Cultivar awaits, the two of them competing to show off who has the highest Resources rating (basically means how rich they are in this setting). They ‘battle’ through various things, from fancy tea vs coffee, to fancy favorite foods, to the final battle – Who will cover the check???
Eventually, Kalara wins the wealth battle, but The Cultivar gets the upper hand…which my gal is actually pretty okay with. There are worse, more boring ways to die, right?
The final panel:
(This one was drawn on Procreate, but word bubbles added in Clip Studio Paint)
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I hope you’ve enjoyed this little art diversion! I have more serious projects to finish up by the end of the month, but these character challenges are always a fun way to stretch my legs between more intense projects.
– Ang
March was both the worst and best month, all at once. I’m so happy to report that after the bombshell February we had in which my husband was laid off from his job and suffered some possibly-cancerous symptoms that his test results are in. While some things aren’t normal, cancer has been eliminated as a possibility!
The ghost of this bad news has been hanging over us since early February and we’re both so relieved to hear it’s not the worst case scenario. He’s still got some challenges ahead, but they won’t be as nasty as cancer.
Knock on wood! Now, can cancer and serious illness leave us both alone till we’re at least 80? Please and thank you!
Once my head stopped spinning from all the life chaos, I had just enough time to catch my breath and dive headlong into finishing the X of Swords piece for the Stained Glass Tarot deck coming this year. Patrons got a deep dive into this process, as well as a look at a detail of the final painting. I can’t wait for you all to see the final painting once the deck debuts! I’ve been peeking the art from the other artists and it’s gorgeous stuff. I’ll be sure to let you all know here when it goes live on crowdfunding.
Meanwhile, the poll results have come in and I was really surprised at the results! There’s more love for my niche interests than I thought there’d be, which makes me very happy. Once this Patreon resets themes in June, expect that theme to be all Kushiel’s Legacy for awhile! Prepare yourselves for angels, masquerades, and fantasy fashions.
I really can’t wait and I’m currently plotting on what other themed Patreon goodies I can roll out for the event! Read more about the poll results and my plans for this grand relaunch theme here.
In that same post, I also mentioned that my Exalted art will be moving to a new space in the future. Rather than have Exalted art sneaking in here making a confusing mess of my Patreon in June when I start talking about more book-inspired art, it’ll have its own tidy home on Ko-fi where everyone can follow it for free (or pitch in if they want some small perks).
Blue Eye Samurai x Exalted Fan Art
Movies That Make Me Want to Paint Part 2
Exalted Character of the Week Vol 2 + Bonus Valentine’s Comic
Secret Sketchbook – SGT Ten of Swords Part 3 – Final Touches
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Even though life doesn’t seem to want to slow down and let us breathe, I’m happy for the Spring here, which has been flowering with beautiful dogwoods. They’re a good reminder to slow down and appreciate the beautiful things for a few fleeting moments before I get caught up in the chaos. I hope you all found some little bits of happiness this month too.
– Ang
My husband and I keep wishing for a very boring time in which nothing interesting at all happens. We had finally started to get used to that kind of pleasant monotony in January. There was no house move on the horizon. Nobody had an ER visit or even a bad cold the past few months. Only one small-ish tree fell on our garage and was eventually repaired by actual, working homeowners insurance. We also celebrated our 7th anniversary this month. It was amazing!
All at once, the Powers That Be thought we were too bored this year. My husband lost his job early on in February and also started showing some concerning symptoms that may be pointing to cancer (this will be his 2nd bout with cancer, but a different, hopefully very treatable kind, this time around). As of this writing, we’re still waiting on test results so we can know what path life is going to take us on next. Either way, it’s going to mean surgery for him, whether it’s cancer or not.
I know. I know. Didn’t I just get over a cancer scare, myself? Well, now it’s Kev’s turn because we enjoy taking turns terrifying one another with revolving health woes. (Don’t mind me, dark humor is how we’re surviving right now.)
Thankfully, we’re not at DOOM level on the OHSHIT scale yet, as at the very least, his job very kindly offered him a severence pay that will give us a few months to survive and figure things out.
Meanwhile, February has been all about scrambling to find new medical coverage, forming an action plan to deal with these layers of OHSHIT, and to trying not to give in to that most unhelpful habit of my brain to think of every catastrophe that could befall us at 3am in the morning.
It’s meant little sleep for me and barely any art getting made, which sucks because I would’ve loved to share some of the cool fan art I’ve been poking at and also finish up the Tarot piece I’ve been teasing for a couple of months now, which I’ve now had to get an extension on because painting was not happening during this anxious scramble.
I at least got to discuss some of my favorite movies with you all, which drew many of you quiet lurkers to share your favorites, which I’m so delighted to see. I’m happy to have new things to fuel the inspiration tank, so thanks to everyone who dropped me a response with their own inspiration lists! Stay tuned for part 2 with MOAR movies I love that make me want to art.
Today is also the last day you all can vote in the Very Important Poll to help me decide what I’ll be doing with this Patreon next, so go do so, if you haven’t yet! I’m going to be announcing the results and what the big plan is in March after I’ve ruminated on the numbers a bit and see how Life (TM) is going to affect my ability and time to create.
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Here’s hoping the next time I write up a monthly digest that I’ll have some happier news to share of how everything is moving back towards an exceptionally long-term and incredibly, mind-numbingly boring normalcy. Till then!
– Ang
Rather than always throwing art at you guys and running, I also hope that I’m inspiring you to create as well, if you are so inclined. For that purpose, I thought I’d share a few of the movies near and dear to my Muse. No matter how low or art-blocked I am, putting on any of these movies always lights me up again. In fact, they are often playing in the background while I work as inspirational background noise.
Before we dive in though, here’s a quick reminder to Patrons to check this Patrons-only poll. My Patreon will be changing themes in the near-future and I want Patrons to have a say in which path I choose for this place next! Go throw in your votes before the poll closes at the end of February.
Now, on to the list! I picked 10 of my favorites, but I’m splitting that up between two posts so this doesn’t turn into a book. One day, I’ll figure out how to include clips from movies in a video version of this post, but for now, enjoy the written version!
Synopsis: Our protagonist, a young writer with the ability to sense ghosts, finds herself caught up in the orbit of a mysterious baronet. Eventually, she must use her wits to survive the haunted house she finds herself in after their marriage.
I just have to be up front with you guys and admit I am a huge Guillermo del Toro fan. I love just about everything in this director’s filmography, so apologies in advance for much of this list being del Toro stuff. Del Toro isn’t lying when he says he he believes in ‘eye protein’ and not just ‘eye candy’. Or rather, packing every inch of his backdrops and costumes with details that support his central theme. That kind of thought process really appeals to my artistic soul and it reflects in nearly all of my visually stunning movie choices, not just Del Toro movies.
Crimson Peak blends Victorian decadence with a Bluebeard fairy tale in a haunted house for a riveting feast for the eyes. It’s dark, glittering horror and Gothic Romance at its finest. Plus, there’s a banger reference the heroine tosses out referencing the badassery of Mary Shelley when other women try to insult her reclusiveness as a writer that makes this a movie a win for me, on a personal narrative level.
(The house full of secrets the protagonist must uncover before she, too, becomes a ghost in its halls.)
Del Toro’s audio commentary about all the tricks they used to convey atmosphere in this movie (including interesting tidbits such as a chair that has the word ‘fear’ inscribed into its decorative tracings) is fascinating and inspiring for the director’s thoughtfulness and thematic visual saturation. I came away appreciating that ‘Eye Protein’ even more. Do recommend it and the movie’s wonderful art book, if you can find it!
Synopsis: In a wartorn Spain, a little girl must survive coming to live with the terrifying captain that has married her mother. However, the maze outside of their new country home offers respite in the form of helpful faeries promising a cure for what ails her sick mother.
I know, I know. Another Del Toro movie already? But y’all, this movie was a formative, heartbreaking masterpiece for younger me. The first time I saw this movie, it sparked a revelation that this blend of dark reality juxtaposed with the hopeful beauty of fantasy and the catharsis of horror was exactly what I wanted to do with my own art (and writing, for that matter).
(The titular faun and Ofelia.)
This movie moves fluidly from a dark world to one touched by magic as Ofelia endures challenges set by her new fae friends in order to unlock objects to heal her mother. This is dark, magical fairy tale imagery at its finest, including one of the most iconic monster designs I’ve seen in horror. It’s not for the faint of heart. I swear there’s always at least one gorey flinch-worthy moment in every del Toro movie, but the rest of it is glorious dark fantasy at its finest.
Synopsis: A retelling of Bram Stoker’s Dracula through a stylized gothic romance in which Dracula stalks his re-incarnated love through London and actors have terrible British accents.
Of all the Dracula movies out there, this one remains close to my heart. As an artist, I appreciate Coppola’s dedication to using practical FX where possible and making everything about this movie feel enthralling, otherworldly, and vintage in a surreal way. This movie takes much from the Symbolist movement of art and literature, which sought to capture deep, emotional expression through highly symbolic, dreamlike works.
(One of the very pretty frames showing off the gorgeous lighting of this movie.)
The wardrobe is also fantastic and again so many little narrative details work their way into both clothing and set design, from the foreshading of Dracula’s ‘flesh armor’ to Mina’s scarlet gown mirroring her past life. This attention to detail and otherworldly atmosphere are what get my Muse going the most with this movie, whether you dig this retelling’s narrative changes or not. I’m here for the dresses, which were stunningly designed with Klimt-esque flavor by brilliant designer, Eiko Ishioka, in what was one of her first major outing in working on movies.
This movie is another visually stunning, but a tough watch! Content warning especially on this one for mature themes, violence, etc.
Synopsis: The FBI track a serial killer down, only to realize they cannot save his latest victim trapped in an automated cell without first diving into his mind using cutting edge technology. Psychotherapist, Catharine Deane, volunteers to venture into the killer’s mind to see if she can help save the killer’s last victim and finds herself in a dark wonderland.
I will say this movie makes perhaps a better music video than an actual movie, but it fascinates me as a dark Alice in Wonderland type of story. Every frame and detail is arranged to hint at the layers of the mind and the dark and sometimes beautiful visions the mind is capable of.
I still feel like this movie did the concept of a mindscape better than Inception, which felt too mundane and real-world in its mindscape sets, my opinion, while The Cell tricks the senses and conveys the unsettling nature of a dream world outside of logical time, place, and directional orientation.
Eiko Ishioka also had a hand in designing the wardrobe for this movie. It’s fair to say following her filmography is another fun minigame of discovering inspiring surreal movies to watch!
(One of my fave shots from The Cell.)
It’s a brutal film, but an oddly beautiful one with a sense of catharsis in its ending. Recommend it for visual inspiration, if dark, trippy, and briefly beautiful appeals to you.
Synopsis: The biblical tale of Moses’ time in Egypt told through an animated musical.
Last, but certainly not least, I’ve not seen an animated movie with more of a sense of framing and atmosphere as The Prince of Egypt (aside from maybe the Arcane animated series). You could pause any moment of this movie and frame that still as a painting. It’s gorgeous, and every second of it is thoughtfully composed.
According to behind the scenes material, the art direction when we’re in Egypt mirrors the beautiful stylistic aesthetic of Egyptian art, while the art becomes more naturalistic as we leave that locale behind.
(One of the most awe-inspiring moments and images of this movie. It still takes my breath away.)
I do not consider myself very religious, but there are so many moments of sublime awe captured in the imagery of this movie, from the whispering flames of the burning bush to the majestic shadows of sea creatures lit by the glow of a storm in the distance as the Hebrews cross through the mystically parted sea. Whether you’re religious or not, this movie inspires with its effective storytelling and artfully rendered scenes.
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I hope this gives any of my fellow creatives some fuel for the inspiration tank! Bulk up on some eye protein and create your innermost dreams, nightmares, and everything in-between. I’ll have part 2 of this list next month.
Let me know how you end up liking any of these movies, if you haven’t seen them yet! Or are there any I am missing out on that I should see? Suggest some Movies for the Muse in the comments!
– Ang
I want to make sure I always keep you guys in tune with what’s going on around here at least once a month, so we’re back to the monthly update format with a digest of posts!
I’ve been all about trying to reboot my brain to do more writing this past month! For Christmas, Kev and I treated ourselves to a MasterClass sub and I instantly zeroed in on Neil Gaiman’s MasterClass because I’ve been a big fan of his since his Sandman days. I often turn to his “Make Good Art” keynote speech when I’m feeling lost and it never ceases to get me motivated to create once more.
To say Gaiman’s comics were formative for my teen goth girl brain would be an understatement! I’m learning a lot with Mr. Gaiman about accepting failure, taking chances, and keeping a ‘trash heap’ of ideas. There’s so much overlap between the skillbuilding of Art and Writing, which is no big surprise to me as a Studio Art and English double major, but it’s nice to get a refresher to my dormant wordsmith skills.
(Morpheus from The Sandman comics that inspired the recent The Sandman show on Netflix, at which I fangirl squeed many times at how faithful many of the scenes were to the original comics).
With all this schedule shake up, I’ve also been testing out the Structured app to help jumpstart myself into a new schedule with a digital visual planner, since I always seem to abandon physical planners after awhile and hate the waste they create. It’s proven very useful, thus far! The constant reminder pings help keep me from hyperfocusing too long on tasks I get deep into and even if I don’t follow the schedule to the letter, it at least makes me more aware of the passage of time, as I’m terrible at judging how long things take me otherwise when I get into a creative flow.
I’ve been dancing between the Art and Writing Muses trying to get the brain in word-making mode, but also wrapping up a secret commercial art project you all got a sneak peek of this month and a couple of personal pieces I’ll share soon once they’re complete.
While I’ve been seeing how my schedule equalizes, I’ve also been brainstorming of ways to engage with you all more directly, create more video material to share, as well as to reboot this Patreon with a new theme now that the Birthstone Goddesses have wrapped up.
So far, I’m leaning towards the following activities, with a proper Patreon/Loyalty Merch theme to be decided via Patrons-only poll sometime in February, so make sure you’re pledged at any tier so you can vote in this upcoming massively important poll!
However, I want everyone currently signed up to my Patreon to get their full year’s worth of Loyalty Merch starring the Birthstone Goddesses before I reset this Patreon’s theme, so we won’t be changing things up around here till May when the final round of merch should be arriving to all you dazzling folks who choose to support me at $5 and above.
Till May rolls round, this Patreon is going to be a grab-bag of inspiration, art, and fun, which is ok with me while I give my Art Muse a rest from the years-long endeavor that was the Birthstone Goddesses! It’s nice to have short-term, less involved things to explore at my own pace for just a little while longer.
That’s all for now! I hope to have some cool art and other progress to share soon. I’m especially hyped about how my Blue Eye Samurai personal piece is coming along and cannot wait to share it (with Patrons getting a Secret Sketchbook deep dive hopefully in February).
Till then!
– Ang
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It’s time for one of my favorite things – rounding up the art for a year-end retrospective! This year, I wanted to do something different, however, so in addition to this little round-up blog post, I’ve also narrated a video for your enjoyment! For those who don’t have 15+ mins to listen to my longer form rambling, you can skim the major talking points here instead.
Enjoy and let me know what your favorite piece of mine was from this year! Is there anything you’d like to see me do more of in 2024?
A better look at each piece, plus extra art I couldn’t fit into the month-to-month format.
It was honestly a rough one! From my existential dread dealing with generative AI replacing Illustrators to a significant cancer scare that derailed all my best laid plans, I’ve come out the other side with the best outcome of a benign tumor. In spite of the dark cloud of looming disasters, I managed to complete my Birthstone Goddesses collection after 6 years of toil! It may not have gotten the big finish I wanted for that project, but I’m happy to free up my muse and attention for other exciting endeavors on the horizon.
The piece that taught me the most and helped improve my skills – “The Lamb”
I chose this as my Level Up piece because I was able to find a balance within it that brought me a step closer to a Tarot-inspired art style I’ve been nurturing of late. I used line art to accentuate the form and bring in very subtle hatchwork, while also letting the image be painterly. It’s a hard balance to strike, but this image was my “Eureka” moment for how to combine my love of lines and painterliness!
The piece that I loved the most out of the rest I made – “Leaping River Orchid”
Things just ‘clicked’ with this piece. Despite being quite loose, this image still has a good sense of character and mood. In trying to emulate the Arcane animated series art style, I unlocked something between that space of loose lines and color that makes for a very appealing visual look. Perhaps it’s merely her cool hat that makes this my favorite? Either way, I hope I can use what I learned from painting Orchid for future pieces like it!
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2023 was tough, but I’m stoked for 2024! I feel like I’ve finally been able to slow down and heal in 2023 after literal years of health disasters, medical debt, house moves, and uncertainty. Now, I’m able to approach a new branching path in my artistic direction in 2024. I can’t wait to share it with you all! I’ll be talking about the new and decidedly different work I’ll be sharing on this Patreon in the next entry.
Till then, onwards to 2024! Thanks for sticking with me on this eteneral roller coaster of a ride.
– Ang