Commission #6: Grove of Secrets

This illustration is for Dune of his character, Ghost. His dreamkeeper’s power is the ability to animate dolls and inanimate objects with life- And in this circumstance, it provides the perfect means to keep his newfound companion Wisp in good company.

I’m fairly pleased with how this illustration came out, mainly because it was at a high risk of plunging into one of my weaknesses as an artist. I love detailed backdrops, but this one was eating the viewer’s eye, and destroying the composition. All the busy shadows and objects and curliques will clutter up the value contrast to the degree that there’s no overall focus. In ‘Where’s Waldo’ type works that may be the goal, but not in this one.

I fixed the problem by going hell-for-leather on the atmospheric perspective. More mist from the waterfalls, and a nuclear-apocalypse evidently happening on the day-moon, throwing huge curtains of light behind the main characters to help bring out their silhouettes more.

That’s generally my artistic fix whenever I’m in trouble on something, nuclear apocalypse.