Faerie Court - card game project!
Added 2017-08-29 14:06:19 +0000 UTCHey all! I'm proud to share two (messy) sketches I made for my contribution to a card game being done by Changeling Artist Collective, to hit the Crowdfunding stage next year. It's a project where each artist illustrates two cards, with the same symbol, one interpreted for the Court of the Unseelie and one for the Seelie court. My symbol is the Sceptre.
My Faeries turned out somewhat warlike, hee hee. I'm really thrilled with this project and am already in love with that Faerie king. XD
We've got a bunch of great artists on board - Amanda Makepeace, Socar Myles, Emily Hare, Jana Heidersdorf, Emma Lazauski, Melissa Gay, Meredith Dillman, Kiri Ostergaard Leonard - and the list goes on! (It looks a bit like my dA watchlist, haha).
Has anyone got any good suggestions for heroic, non-too-big birds? Right now, I'm looking at falcons for the Seelie and crows for the Unseelie (although those falcons look a bit like partridges right now, I must admit).
Comments
If you want a falcon the same size as a shrike for the seelie, kestrels are tiny. But there are also a great many pretty birds to choose from.
Gwendolyn
2017-09-06 14:03:45 +0000 UTCOh I'm so excited about this! And I'm loving reading all the suggestions from everyone for birds. I have to say that I love corvids, especially the over-used ravens. But I also love the suggestion above of waterbirds. Can't wait to see more of this!
Erin-Claire
2017-08-31 01:12:22 +0000 UTCSo many great ideas! I particularly love the corvidae suggestion with jays and magpies. They'd have to be easily recognisable (even when I draw them; I don't really trust myself to draw a recognisable jackdaw. XD) I think vultures would be too big for what I'm going for. Swallows are a wonderful idea. They look so elegant. swooshy and so instantly typical. And are pretty underused in Fantasy art too, I'd say. Maybe swallows for the Seelie. The shrike idea is great too - there'd have to be some impaled prey visible! Hmmm... a lot to think about!
Jenny Dolfen
2017-08-30 15:47:08 +0000 UTCOh, a bird question! I can help with this one! Falcons are actually my favorite so I don't want to dissuade you from falcons! However there are various species to choose from: Gyrfalcon, Peregrine, Merlin, ect. I'm particular to Gyrfalcons, but the Aplomado Falcon has brighter colors if you're looking for that. I also love kites, when I studied abroad in Europe, Red Kites were my favorite. There are a lot more corvids to choose from than just crows. Think Magpies, and Jays. Grackles and Anis are different families, but look similar. Other possibilities: A lot of water birds - both sea birds and wading birds are mid-sized, though I'm not sure if they're as 'heroic' as you're going for. Comorants aren't actually threatening at all, but could work for the unseelie side. Swans are actually pretty mean. Gannets, herons, cranes or Ibisis could work for seelie. In the theme of midsize birds we also have grouse and woodpeckers, but again, not very heroic. For unseelie, how about cuckoos? They lay their eggs in other bird's nests, which feels appropriate. Going smaller, shrikes and cowbirds are tiny but mean (shrikes are carnivorous, while cowbirds, like cuckoos lay their eggs in other bird's nests) while swallows or waxwings could work for seelie. Have fun!
Gwendolyn
2017-08-29 23:26:36 +0000 UTCI feel like water birds get short shrift. Herons, egrets, ibises. Ospreys are gorgeous water birds of prey. Otherwise... maybe owls or kites (kites are also beautiful and their silhouettes unmistakable). For the Unseelie side... I often wish for vultures! The black vulture is often underrepresented and has a more handsome visage than the turkey vultures that people often associate with the word 'vulture.' (Egyptian and griffon vultures are also handsome birds!) Granted, not small birds, but still.
M.C.A. Hogarth
2017-08-29 19:40:45 +0000 UTCOoooh, this sounds awesome! :D I'd prefer magpies instead of crows. Crows are just used everywhere, I'm sorry to say. I love crows and ravens but they are being overused in fantasy art. Or maybe jackdaws? As for falcons: depends on which falcon. Peregrines also tend to be overused I think. What about buzzards? Or stepping aside from birds of prey: what about gulls or petrels?
Ninchen
2017-08-29 15:17:09 +0000 UTCMagpies and Jays....?
Freyalyn
2017-08-29 14:29:09 +0000 UTC
