Tag: Art Challenges

Exalted Art Challenge – Collection 3 – Fave God, First Age Incarnation, etc.

I’m changing up my format a bit as it seems I’m not going to be able to share many of the final paintings from this challenge in these compilations!  I’m going to stick to sharing sketches and then once all of my final paintings are done based on my favorite picks from the sketches, I’ll share those in their own collection along with their story snippets.

For now, enjoy my explorations with a bit of commentary for Exalted newbies!

Favorite God – The Plentimon of Dice

Exalted has many gods, all which represent various abstract concepts in Creation who gain power from how many worshippers acknowledge and make offerings to them.  Creation is full of offerings a-plenty for the Plentimon of the Dice!  He is the God of Gambling and one of the most present and active gods in Creation.  This god gets a thrill from watching games of chance unfold and the excitement of high stakes.  He’s always circulating Creation, visiting every casino either in his full splendor or a mortal disguise.  Those who gamble to him and lose without repaying their debts meet mysterious unexplained deaths.

The Plentimon shows up often in The Uncrucified, as Kalara’s hometown of Gem hosts one of the most magnificent subterranean gambling parlors built with such finery as to please the gods themselves.  Games of chance are part of the culture of Gem.  One day, a pauper might be a prince.  Fortunes are always turning, something Kalara has experienced firsthand as her contract was lost several times in a game of chance, usually during Plentimon’s festival day.

I’ve chosen to depict the Plentimon with a half-mask representing Good and Bad fortune with jewelry and adornments made from various game pieces and jade obols.  Perhaps they are the good luck charms from those who have lost to him?

First Age Incarnation

In centuries past, there was such an age of splendor where the chosen of the Gods, the Exalted, ruled with a firm and magnificent hand.  These demigods among men stood above Creation stabilizing it during a time when mortals and gods alike had finally freed the world from the tyranny of the ancient Primordial gods who once ruled Creation, much like the Titans of Greek mythology.  However, their hubris and their extreme virtues turned against them with the Great Curse hidden in their souls by the vengeful defeated Primordials would be the downfall of the Solars of the First Age.

Each spark of Exaltation resides in a Shard which is passed down from one worthy vessel to another. This gent here is Calym Lang, the Solar and Righteous Devil practitioner whose shard Kalara would eventually inherit.  Calym was a shrewd and paranoid master of trade whose cold pragmatism would be his downfall.  Kalara is more like him than she would like to admit at times and the two maintain a begrudging respect towards one another.  She often communicates with his greater soul in the underworld, the two poking fun at each other’s flaws in a good-natured competition to see who will achieve their goals through more effective ends.

He’s also ghostwritten a series of erotica novels that Kalara is a fan of, but will never tell him.

Calym’s mural venerates his status as one who united the four corners of Creation, all trade routes leading to the compass in his hand.  I imagine this to be the centerpiece of a wider mural, each region of the mural depicting the exports of the area they represent (an image our Storyteller described once that never left my mind).

Age of Sorrows Incarnation

When the Exalted of the First Age fell, the Age of Sorrows began, but a glimmer of hope stands on the horizon.  The Shards of the Exalted have begun to appear again, imbuing heroes like Kalara with the power to change the face of Creation.

Like Calym, I’ve depicted her in a mural style with some key differences.  While Calym’s focuses on veneration from his worshippers, Kalara stands among people who rise up in revolution carrying tools of their trade, as she spends much of her power in Creation empowering escaped slaves like herself with trade skills, creating fair economy through her organization, the Pristine Guild.  She struggles between the Gun and the Quill, violence and diplomacy.  By the end of her time in Creation, she will have learned to balance both.

She and Calym share the phoenix as a personal symbol, though they oppose each other in gold and silver.

Incarnations Back to Back

While Calym’s time is over, the two remain inextricably bound.  The Shard granted to Kalara has also passed on some of his memories and knowledge.  She strives to learn from the mistakes Calym made and the emotionless spirit construct of himself he has left behind to tutor her.  Should she ever prove unworthy, Calym has made his intentions known that he will destroy her so that a more worthy successor might come along more quickly.

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This week’s collection was packed with a lot of fun ideas!  While I won’t be able to paint a finished polished piece for every idea here, I want to pick a few out of the bunch to bring to final!  I’d like to finish up the Back to Back thumbnail with Kalara and Calym with their weapons drawn and the smarmy Plentimon of Dice with his dice cup and floating cards.  The temple mural pieces are also calling to my muse!

Which ones would you guys want to see finished up?  Always curious to know what calls to you!

More soon! 

♥ Ang

Exalted Art Challenge – Collection 2 – Fave Spell, Fave House, etc.

Continuing directly from last week’s collection, I finished my concept for Favorite Charm I teased last entry!  The goal for me with this challenge was to generate ideas and maybe get a few TTRPG portfolio pieces out of them.  I’m excited to say this piece has done that for me!  It may mean I won’t finish this challenge in a month, but it’s been worth it to take some time to explore my other inspirations as an artist and get a taste of what kind of art I want to be making in the future.

I’m so happy to see the game setting’s company also Retweeted this painting on Twitter, which makes me hopeful I’m on the right track! 

(Painted entirely in Procreate!  This Challenge been a learning experience for new tools as well.)

Favorite Dragonblooded House

No, the Dragonblooded are nothing like the Dragonborn of Dungeons & Dragons.  These noble houses descended of ancient mystic bloodlines imbued with the power of dragons do not have draconic attributes, but rather convey the aura and characteristics of their elements – wood, water, fire, earth, and air.  The individuals who started these bloodlines became the founders of the first dynastic houses, all ruled under the Scarlet Empress.

I chose House Cynis, a wood-aspected house known for their luxurious lifestyles, finery, and debauchery.  They feature heavily in the story of The Uncrucified and I wanted to spend some time conceptualizing Varia and Sana Cynis, two nobles from House Cynis who have fallen on hard times, though they do their best to portray themselves as the rich nobles they once were.  This pair would be trouble for Kalara in her younger days, but also give her a very unexpected “gift”!

With their wood theme, I chose to explore bonsai-inspired framing and Hanfu inspired fashions, as their their home country in the Blessed Isle always struck me as more Chinese-inspired in the setting.

Favorite Spell

There was no contest in choosing a fave spell. How could I resist the motif of razor sharp obsidian butterflies that fly out of the caster’s hands, butterflies being a personal symbol fo mine?  If a sorcerer chooses this spell as their specialty, they can also grow slashing claws of obsidian. 

I made this character up on the fly as a sorcerer-assassin, of sorts.  Instead of the more proper elegant mages, I imagine this nameless mage to be much more world-weary and cold.  She would fit in well with the Guild assassins that Kalara will no doubt clash with later on in her story!

Favorite Incarnae

The Incarnae are the holiest of holy among the gods of Exalted.  Their machinations and existence helped form the fabric of Creation.  Again, choosing Luna, goddess of the moon, was an easy pick for me!  She resonates so strongly with narrative themes I enjoy as a goddess of not only the night, but of tricksters, fertility, and chaos (not to mention her visual themes of tattoos and silver, which I am also partial to in my work).  Luna balances the rigid order and burning presence of the Unconquered Sun, giving Creation a respite from his burning rays.

For her visual themes, I wanted to portray what might be a mural in one of her temples. I imagine this would be ever-changing, showing her in any of her countless forms as a Hunter, Maiden, Crone, Beast, etc. depending on the time of month you look at it.  The masks around her symbolize the many guises she takes, with the rabbits worked in as symbols of fertility referenced as being connected with her in the setting.

I took strong inspiration from the beautiful murals of Steven Universe, particularly for the last sketch.

I’m currently favoring the asymmetrical take on Luna, as the symmetrical ones feel too defined by rules of order, which doesn’t fit Luna’s personality.

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I don’t have any finished art from all of this sketching this week, as I’m exploring at my own pace.  I may pick a few that speak to the muse more strongly to bring to final, then only create sketches for the rest.  We shall see!  The journey continues and it’s felt GREAT to indulge in this geeky art love!

 ♥ Ang

Exalted Art Challenge – Collection 1 – Fave Caste, Regional Fashion, etc.

My journey with the Exalted Art Challenge started off a bit slow, as just when I was going to begin we were placed in quarantine due to a COVID exposure at my husband’s work!  Luckily, he has tested negative and we’ve had no symptoms, but it meant a slow start till I was able to focus on art.  

We’re just going to try and relax till our days are up and I will meanwhile continue taking it slow and enjoying my time with this challenge!

1 – Favorite Caste

The Solar Exalted are chosen for a caste by the Unconquered Sun based on our propensities for violence, for diplomacy, or for many other specialties. Sol sees our potential and blows on the embers of our ambition, no matter our station in life, no matter if we are good or evil, as long as we can bring about the change that this world in chaos needs. We are marked with a symbol that shines upon our foreheads, a beacon of purpose and power for all of Creation to recognize, if not respect.

– Memoirs of Kalara Vadras, The Uncrucified, RY 800.

My Favorite Caste is the Eclipse Caste. They are the voices of reason, the keen wit, and the clever bargainers.  Their ancient treaties and trade deals helped reinforce the fabric of Creation.  As someone who enjoys both art and business, the Eclipse connection with culture and commerce as a positive force really speaks to me!  Plus, they are excellent at winning a fight before it even begins with their social graces.  (Admittedly I am not good at social graces IRL so part of my enjoyment of playing this caste is vicarious wish-fulfillment!)

For this topic, I took the basic Eclipse Caste mark and customized it for my Exalted character, Kalara, bringing in aspects of her middle eastern-inspired homeland. I explored Moroccan tiles for inspiration and eventually settled on a flame-inspired motif evocative of the element of Kalara’s homeland with hints of silver, the color associated with the Eclipse, as well as phoenix feathers, a personal symbol of Kalara’s own rise from her near-death into the Eclipse Caste.  The cartouche includes the honorifics this caste is called in Creation, my favorited being “Quills of Heaven”.

(Though my own gal, Kalara, would earn the name The Silver-Tongued Devil in her time.)

2 – Regional Fashion

I wonder sometimes if I would even recognize myself back then. I still remember the soft light of Gem’s crystals and the teeming underground marketplace that never slept. As a slave of Iblan, I was dressed in attire to represent the household of my master, an aging master goldsmith.

I owned no finery of my own, not even the bangles I wore which served as an example of Iblan craftmanship for all to see and admire, for even their slaves must convey everything about their stature as Gem’s famed goldsmiths. Instead of gems sewn into my shawl as any fine lady of Gem might own, mine was painted and embroidered to mimic gems. I was a pale imitation of what a noble Iblan lady might be.

– Memoirs of Kalara Vadras, The Uncrucified, RY 800.

I explored many variations for this topic, ranging from a fancier look of a current-day Kalara who can afford to dress as a noblewoman, to versions of her past self who was dressed as a servant.  I really liked the image of her eating lunch next to a crystal cluster in Gem, the underground mining town where she grew up, but went with a closer view so I could show off more clothing details.  

Gem prides itself on its extremely regulated gemstone production and I wanted to get that across in its gemstone-inspired trims. I definitely want to explore local wardrobe further with story concepts in the future!  For the final illustration, I took cues from Muslim and Anatolian clothing, but hope to explore fashions of the region more in-depth later.

3 – Favorite Charm

I didn’t have the final image done for this topic yet, but I was so excited about how these came out that I just had to share today!  Charms, or magical abilities, come in epic flavors in the world of Exalted!  I’ve always drawn Kalara posing elegantly, so it will be fun to finally get a chance to see her in action, even if she would usually consider this a last resort when diplomacy fails.

Kalara practices a celestial martial art called Righteous Devil where the charms center around the theme of judgement and justice.  At higher levels of this art, she can judge the soul of her enemy, dispatching them to their deaths and directly into their next reincarnation!

However, a Righteous Devil must be careful, for if they falter from a path of justice, the original Righteous Devil who invented the art will hunt them down!

I’ll share more about this topic with the final art in next week’s compilation.  Till then, I leave you to guess which thumbnail from this set I’ll pick for this topic’s final art!

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Do you want to see my sketches and art for this challenge as soon as I do them?  Be sure to join my Patreon Discord Server where I’ve been actively sharing challenge topics and discussion as I go!

Hope you enjoy this little diversion. I know it’s quite the subject matter shift from my usual stuff, but MAN I’m having so much fun!

♥ Ang

May 2020 Wrap-Up – Fanarts, Refocusing, and Next Steps!

May went by way too fast, you guys!  I was able to take about a week off before I had to hop back to prepping Backerkit for the Goddesses of Spring Kickstarter to make sure that was working smoothly for those of you who picked up pins.  But do not worry, I plan to take a true and proper break once this FINAL Kickstarter finishes its ‘lifecycle’ and everything is shipped!

In that bit of downtime, I took on the Six Fanarts Challenge which are my first paintings in Procreate!  I’m extremely proud of these.  It’s nice to be reminded I can still paint this way after years of working almost primarily in ink and watercolor:

(Check out this post for the collection and narrated time lapse video!)

I’m also pretty terrible at downtime and as usual when I am trying to take a break, my brain is alight with all the things I’d like to do!  I’ve been thinking of the ways I want to re-focus and make some changes to organize my studio, refine my social media output, etc. now that this project has finished one major phase and begins to enter another.

The focus of this next and final phase is going to be the Wall Calendar and Art Book, the latter of which will feature some unpublished pieces (that my Patreon Patrons will totally be getting a sneak peek of before everybody else!).  These pieces are going to be much more in a dark and elegant vein as I bridge the gap between Mucha’s style and my own personal style.  It’s going to be very different, but still something I hope you all will enjoy!

June is going to be about finishing up one last Art Challenge to let my brain wind down (The 6 Outfits Challenge), setting a study schedule, wrapping up Kickstarter (I hope! These delays are killer), doing taxes, and re-organizing the studio to be more efficient now that my inventory has grown so very much!

Lastly, as much as I like to focus on my fanciful art here, this month has also been mentally rough for so many folks, especially as I write this.  For those who don’t know us, my husband and I are an interracial couple.  Seeing recent events unfold is a strong reminder of how safe my husband and family are not in this world, a constant 24-7 truth we’ve become good at ignoring just so we can live our lives.   I’ve shared some places you can donate here where you can also help others during these tense times, if you are able. 

Please be kind to others and speak up when you see injustice!  Let this horror help us come together with renewed and combined strength.

Much love!

♥ Ang

Digest of May’s Posts

Rewards Added in May

6 Fanarts Challenge – Part 2 + Video Compilation Sneak Peek!

Check out Six Fanarts Part 1 for the first three images in this collection!  The video above collects all of the time lapses I created of these pieces in a sneak peek I’m sharing early just for Patrons.  Much of this post is a transcription of what was said in the video.

My journey with this challenge continued last week between prepping Kickstarter things!  What a fun ride it’s been after I’ve gone so long without doing much painting in this style. I hope you enjoy the last few portraits in this set!

Azula from Avatar the the Last Airbender

Next, we have Azula from Avatar the Last Airbender, one of my all-time favorite shows. Azula was one of my most requested subjects and I was happy to oblige! This cold, calculating villainess is one of many of the amazingly realized characters from Avatar.

For this portrait, I learned that Procreate’s Lightpen brush is amazing for lightning effects! I think 80% of the time spent on this was perfecting Azula’s smiling glare.

Out of all the portraits, I was happiest with Azula’s for the challenging facial expression and pushed lighting. Do you agree with my favorite pick? Leave a comment and let me know after you get to see all of the portraits!

2B from Nier Automata

For the 5th portrait and the most requested from fans, I present 2B from Nier Automata. You can’t beat the gorgeous aesthetic of Nier or the amazing twisting narrative which asks deep questions on the nature of humanity. Plus, blindfolded swordgals are definitely my aesthetic!

I had more fun exploring some of the texture brushes in Procreate to simulate a suede texture with this piece.

Joker from Persona 5

And now we reach the final portrait for my Six Fanarts Challenge!  I surprised my husband with a last minute swap out of Alucard from Castlevania with Joker from Persona 5, since this is one of his favorite video games. Persona is just one of those indescribable games. High schoolers? Demons? Part-time jobs? All you need to understand is that Joker is a boss with an amazingly stylish character design that made him a joy to paint!

I got to play with even more of Procreate’s texture brushes for this piece with splatters. I’m finding I lean on the Gouache brush pretty heavily for most of my painting purposes! The subtle texture in it works so well and preserves the nature of your natural brushstroke. It’s perfect for a more natural look to my digital painting!

If you’d still like to see me draw Alucard sometime, show your vampire love in the comments!

And now THE FULL SET REVEAL!  Which one is your favorite? Let me know in comments!

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I had SO MUCH fun taking a break from my usual meticulous watercolor and ink work to take a break with painterly art and try something new! I had such a blast with Procreate and plan to experiment more, which I hope to share here.

My adventures with art memes aren’t over, however, as I’ll be doing the 6 Outfits Challenge for my Dungeons & Dragons character next!  3 of the outfits were chosen by Patrons so I’m excited to get going on them.  I’ll also have a pack of coloring pages for the Goddesses of Spring coming for $5+ Patrons next post!

Stay tuned!

♥ Ang

Six Fanarts Challenge – Part 1

My May art vacation continues with May Sketch A Day and the Six Fanarts Challenge!  I reserved the first 3 slots for my own personal picks, while the next 3 are going to be picked from the suggestions given on social media.

I’ve been enjoying taking a break to curl up with the iPad Pro, chill out with some of my fave movies, and paint some portraits for fun!  It’s nice to know after years of working in a line-heavy traditional style that I can still paint digitally with strong lighting and painterly edges.

Portrait 1 – Aaravos from Netflix’s The Dragon Prince

I’ve been in love with this character’s design from the first moment he showed up in The Dragon Prince!  With starts twinkling in purple skin, he’s just gorgeous and his mysterious agenda in Dragon Prince intrigues me even more.  I highly recommend this show for the wonderful writing (from the head writer of Avatar the Last Airbender) and cool characters.

I used Photoshop for iPad for this piece, but eventually switched to Procreate for its ease of navigation and time lapse recording.

Portrait 2 – Deathface Ginny from Pretty Deadly

If you’ve been wronged, sing the song of vengeance. Deathface Ginny will ride on the wind to answer the call!

Meet Deathface Ginny from the graphic novel Pretty Deadly, a wonderful surreal fusion of mythology and the Wild West featuring this gal, the Reaper of Vengeance. I highly recommend this hidden gem of a comic if you like strange and beautiful things!

This is my first finished piece in Procreate and I was impressed with the results!  Painting this image allowed me to familiarize myself with Procreate’s highly streamlined UI.  It too me way too long to figure out how to switch the Layer blending mode!

Watch a time lapse here!

Portrait 3 – Dabi from My Hero Academia

I’ve been wanting to draw this man ever since he showed up! His look is so creepy and unique and I’ve always found subdued color palettes with bright accents to be visually stunning.

This portrait helped teach me how to use the selection and color fill features.  I also learned that the Flame brush in the Elements brush set works really well for fire affects!

 Watch a time lapse here! 

Next up, I’ll be trying my hand at the crowd picks of Azula from Avatar the Last Airbender, 2B from Nier Automata, and Alucard from Castlevania!

If you could see a fandom character in my style, who would it be?  Maybe I’ll take on this challenge again sometime!

Next post, I’ll be sharing a Patreon Reward of a wallpaper set of the Ink & Gold Goddesses of Spring then sharing the rest of these portraits when I can (hopefully) finish them over the course of the week.

 ♥  Ang

MSAD – Week 1 – Face Mask Designs + 6 Outfits Suggestions Needed!

My Art Vacation has began in earnest with sketching every day for the first short week in May for May Sketch A Day!  I’ll be sharing weekly compilations of this event here so I don’t overwhelm you guys with daily posting.

Day 1 – Calavera Face Masks

I wasn’t planning to sketch face masks until I saw that Art of Where announced they would be offering masks we can print art on soon!  These masks will have an adjustable nose piece, a pocket for a filter, and adjustable lining, which sounds swankier than many of the other custom printed art masks being offered by Redbubble and Artscow. 

So of course I needed to make one for myself and Kev!  He is medically vulnerable as a heart and cancer patient, so we’re doing our best to stay safe and wear masks when we go out. Our handmade masks are going through the ringer being washed often, so it’d be nice to have an extra set!

My first attempt at a design was inspired by my Lady of November with her butterflies, marigolds, and underworld themes.

Day 2 – Akali Samurai Masks

My mask design exploration continued with exploring different shapes inspired by Akali’s mask from the KDA music video.  I designed the oni look for myself and the samurai for Kev (because we’re giant anime nerds), but ironically we ended up liking each other’s designs instead.  I realized I made a head croquis years ago that ended up being perfect for this!

A glimpse at Akali’s neon mask which inspired the look. So cool!

Art by Michelangelo Lanuza.

Day 3 – Persephone Moon Masks

MOAR masks!  I’m still searching out the design that feels like ‘me’.  Stories of moon goddesses and Persephone have always been some of my favorites.  I wanted to play with moons and pomegranates as symbols!  I think I’ve gotten closer with the Persephone inspired design, the round shape where the mouth is looks a bit odd like a gas mask or a gag, so I may find another way to arrange these symbols.

Next week, I hope to finish up the 6 Fanarts meme that I got suggestions for on Twitter!  In the meanwhile, I need YOUR help to pick 6 outfits for my kind-hearted Tiefling gal, Anko!  I’ll be working on them after I finish up 6 Fanarts.

I’ll be saving 3 of these outfits JUST for my Patrons to suggest, so leave your suggestions on this Twitter post OR comment on this entry if you don’t have a Twitter account.  Be sure to mention you’re a Patron if you comment on Twitter!

Are you guys doing May Sketch A Day?  Link me yours!  I’d love to see.

More art coming soon!

♥ Ang

Art Collection: Exalted Art Challenge 2020

After much contemplation, I’ve decided to go ahead and mark the Exalted Art Challenge as ‘complete’!  I’ve been working on it since October of 2020, so it was time to end this not-so-short break from the Birthstone Goddesses, despite the fact I didn’t quite get to finish the final two topics of the Challenge due to life throwing some major challenges our way.  

My husband is thankfully home and healing very well from COVID!  We’ve both been resting after the sleepless nights and it seemed a good time to put this challenge to bed.  It’s time to recuperate my energy levels and embark on the next part of my artistic journey!

It’s been a really great ride with this Art Challenge and I’ve enjoyed the creative challenge of strange and new topics for a while.  Did you all also enjoy the diversion?  I’m curious to know how this crowd likes my TTRPG-inspired art!

I do eventually want to finish the comic for the “Favorite Stunt” topic during my free time.  When I do, you can catch the finished pages on my Exalted project’s social media accounts instead:

For now, enjoy a compilation of all the topics!  Be sure to click the links to the individual collections for more on each topic and its creative notes.

The Master Challenge List

 

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View Collection 1 

  • Favorite Caste
  • Regional Fashion
  • Favorite Charm (Sketch)

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View Collection 2 

  • Favorite Charm (Final)
  • Favorite Incarnae
  • Favorite House
  • Favorite Spell

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View Collection 3

  • Favorite God
  • First Age Incarnation
  • Age of Sorrows Incarnation
  • Incarnations Back to Back

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View Collection 4 

  • Deathlord
  • Abyssal
  • Monstrance

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View Collection 5 

  • Limit Break
  • Anima Banner
  • Reasons to Have Ox Body
  • When No One Takes Sail

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View Collection 6 

  • Weapon
  • Artifact
  • Magic Material
  • Warstrider

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View Collection 7 

  • Familiar
  • Mutation
  • Animal
  • Beastmen

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View Collection 8 

  • Demon
  • Manse
  • Locale
  • Signature Character

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View Collection 9 

  • Favorite Stunt

 

Exalted Mini Comic WiPs

It’s been an anxiety-filled month with everything happening in the US this month and other personal challenges I’ll post about later once I have all the details.  For now, I wanted to at least share some progress shots of the mini comic I’ve been working on for the Exalted Art Challenge.

This has been a fun challenge to try in Clip Studio Paint for the first time.  I knew this program was created for manga artists, but everything about it is so much more efficient for this purpose than photoshop, especially the panel tools.  I really love its touch gestures for making my life easier as well!

This mini comic was created for the Exalted Art Challenge‘s topic “Favorite Stunt”, or in RPG terms, favorite cool moment of roleplaying!  For this particular campaign, my favorite moment happened when our band of weary Solar warriors went up against the Walker in Darkness, an extremely powerful Deathlord who had invaded our town.  My gal Kalara decided to initiate combat in a pretty badass way I had fun with!

Storyboard Sketches

My comics begin as loose sketches that give an idea of where the dialogue and main figures will be.

Ink and Screentone Style Tests

Next came figuring out how to ink and style the pages.  I opted for a style inspired by the energetic line work of one of my favorite manga, Blade of the Immortal by Hiroaki Samura.  I enjoy the graceful energy of the lines and the way the screentone portrays the local color of the elements (darker skin vs lighter clothing, etc).

Here’s a peek at our entire party of Kalara’s Solar band!  From left to right we have:

Cathak Demiato, Dawn Caste, who rose through the Dynast ranks as a decorated warrior, only to Exalt after discovering the war crimes her family was committing.  

Night Locust, Night Caste, a child slave turned assassin who Exalted when they tried to ‘test’ him by having him kill his young best friend.  He’s the prankster-sage of the group.  

Kalara Vadras (my character), Eclipse Caste, whom most of you know, but if you don’t, she’s an emancipated slave turned Guild reformer who has Major Beef with the Guild after they murdered her surrogate dad and framed her for it. 

Chaos Divide, Zenith Caste, raised by a wandering Air Aspect and Immaculate monk after his family was killed by fairfolk.  He bakes really good cookies!  He’s also the one who gave Kalara the most headaches because he never hesitates.  

Xesa, Twilight Caste, a wandering fortune teller who told the fortune of the wrong person and ended up Exalting when they hunted her down.

This comic has come along slowly, but surely.  It’s been a fun experiment to get to know Clip Studio Paint and to stretch my legs, creatively, before I return to the final phase of my Birthstone Goddesses project.

Are you enjoying the Exalted material thus far?  I’m curious to gauge interest here!

Next, I hope to have the finalized pages to show to wrap up this ‘finale’ for the Exalted Art Challenge.

May 2019 Wrap-Up: Vacation, MSAD, & Upcoming Giveaway!

Ooops we’re over halfway into June and I’ve not posted my May wrap-up yet!  As ever, May (and June) have been a crunched month while I prepare to unleash the Birthstone Goddesses enamel pins upon the world.  And what did I decide to do in the middle of the hype period for my upcoming enamel pin Kickstarter and other craziness?

I went on vacation for a week! Doh!

But you know what guys?  Sometimes you just have to have a little self-care, which is what May was all about for me.  My husband has been declared in remission from lymphoma and a long period of stress is over for us (for now).  It was a good time for a vacation!

A friend also encouraged me to take on the May Sketch A Day Art Challenge, which allowed me some much needed time to let my muse meander without being tied to any theme.  I also spent a week in South Carolina walking on the beach and enjoying a local botanical garden!

(A tease of one of the beautiful aqua gardens I visited at the Brookgreen Gardens while I was on vacation!)

And while I have returned to a crazy prelaunch crunch time, I’m grateful for some fresh air and the ability to let my creative wells refresh!

I have plans to share some posts with all the flower photos I took in an upcoming Inspiration Trip post, but for now, here’s a quick rundown of what you might have missed in May.

Posts in May

(ALL my sketches from May Sketch A DAy! Check out the posts above for story snippets and full views of the sketches I did)

New Coloring Pages Added:

Upcoming Giveaway!

It’s tradition by this point that I host a Launch Party on Facebook for each Kickstarter I do!  Come join me at this Event leading up to the Launch Day. I’ll be sharing the stories of each Goddess as we lead up to Launch Day and an art+book giveaway!  

THEN, once Launch Day arrives, I’ll be streaming the choosing of the winner as well as hitting the big shiny red launch button! It’s all very exciting!!

Woo hoo June is going to be epic!  Thanks for following along with my journey here as a Follower or a Patron.  I’m always in good company here!

More soon!

♥
– Ang

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