Fueling the Experiments (Part II)

Another one of my influences, this time an American Comic: Elfquest by Wendy and Richard Pini. I discovered Elfquest at a week-long summer church camp years ago. I only knew one girl in my cabin, who was from the same church as me, so I was nervous. When I walked in, it seemed all the other girls knew each other, and they were reading Elfquest. They happily introduced me to the series, and it was a wonderful fun week. And I am still reading Elfquest.

I love that this series brings up a rather original concept of elves. They are short, proportionally the size of children. The main tribe lives in the forest, as traditional, but there are other tribes who live in the desert, in the snowy mountains, and it is implied that all elves originally came from space. The comic deals with nature, which I am all for, and I love the characters' designs and personalities. There's not much about this comic I don't like. Elfquest hasn't really influenced me yet, but  as I delve deeper into the comic world, it surely will.

Elfquest is actually available to read for free online at the official website.

Fueling the Experiments

In 5th grade, my best friend introduced me to a certain cartoon called Sailor Moon. I fell in love instantly. I watch it every time it came on. I lived and breathed that show. I was so inspired by it that I began drawing the characters. And then I drifted away from those specific characters and drew my own, created from that style.

So I would say Naoko Takeuchi, the original creator of Sailor Moon, is my biggest creative influence. I have drifted away from her more recently, however. After taking a graphic novel class, it struck home that I need to develop something more unique to me, rather than stick with the same old thing. I've really only taken her style and let it go where it wanted. Perhaps I need to take in as many different styles as possible, and so blend them together incomprehensibly into something new and my own.

Mostly like stemming from my initial Magical Girl obsession discussed above, I found myself loving the work of Alphonse Mucha. Swoon! I absolutely love the colors, the classic looks (reminiscent of classical Greek statues and drapery), and of course the beautiful female figures. (That sounds creepier than I intend it to be.) But really, Mucha's women all have a little meat on their bones. None of them are skinny as a rail, as current fashion is trending towards. I appreciate that, as a not-a-stick girl myself. Many of his pieces are about nature, including personifications of the seasons and months, something I've attempted in the past.

Mucha's work has not yet influenced my own, but I intend to try the flowing hair and clothes, the "halo", and the subtle color patterns.

More influences to come!



PS: Imagine my surprise when I went back to a Sailor Moon book I bought when I was younger and saw the following picture, combining my two loves, as if someone out there just KNEW.