The myth of a fairy queen is present in may cultures and interpretations. She is only sometimes paired with a king. Titania and Mab are two names used for her a lot. For me, I decided to make this character a more modern fairy queen with a normal outfit and ballgown next to her normal fairy attire. 
Looking ahead to the summer and Fall 2023 semester is intimidating but exciting! Don’t forget to live in the moment, learn all you can, and try to have fun in the process!
Editors’ Note: This entry was written by the same servant of Tomon who wrote the to-do list. The handwriting is sprawling and very distinctive, and we find it hard to believe it could be replicated.
Tomon’s meetings were canceled today, and now I don’t know what to do with myself. Tomon doesn’t, either. I’m writing this while he isn’t looking, but even if he does see me I don’t think he’ll do anything. He’s relaxing in his chambers and not doing much at all, going through papers, I think. Anyway, he has expressed interest in taking a walk around the grounds. I hope we can go this afternoon because my legs are shaking so badly from nervous energy. I’ve heard rumors that something happened, that somebody was killed. Some high-up of the king here. We are forbidden from discussing it while working, which makes me feel even worse because I feel I have to talk about it or something in me will burst. So I’m writing it here. I heard this morning that somebody was murdered on the grounds, and now everybody is wondering who did it. I think it was somebody who was an opponent of the guy or a person who wanted his job. Maybe a hire since people that high don’t always do those types of things themselves. Not that the upper classes are weak, of course. Just that they can pay someone else to do those kinds of things for them, I would pay someone to carry out a murder if I had someone to murder and the money to pay. I would never commit murder, but if for some reason I felt the need, I’d probably do it myself.
My favorite theory is that an opponent did it because I think that sounds the most interesting. Maybe he disagreed with a guy on something, so that guy decided he needed to go. Of course I can only imagine what that kind of disagreement would be. I don’t really know much about how kings work, so it could be anything, really. Maybe somebody wants a coup. But if they wanted to take over, wouldn’t they have gone for the king first? Unless it was a practice kill, which doesn’t make sense if you think about it. That just makes you more likely to get caught.
This is Denise, a harpy I built for a GURPS game. She’s wild and gets easily distracted. She had a hodgepodge of disadvantages that made her unplayable in anywhere but combat. I ended up retiring her in the first session. Still, I am fond of her design.
I envision her as a redhead with a coppery tinge. Orange is her main color. She has dark skin with freckles. I wanted her to look like this 1970s secretary. Her little skirt and vest were created under the assumption that they would have a hideous 1970s carpet pattern. Her boots aren’t stylized; they’re that big to hide her talons. I’m not sure if I prefer her half-up hairstyle or her ponytail.
Pareidolia
noun
par·ei·do·lia ˌper-ˌī-ˈdō-lē-ə -ˈdōl-yə
: the tendency to perceive a specific, often meaningful image in a random or ambiguous visual pattern
James Jean is an incredible Taiwanese-American artist/illustrator who has worked with Disney, Marvel Comic, and Prada. He is one of my absolute favorite artists and I cannot believe that I have not done a post on him yet!
There is something magical in James Jean’s art. In his large-scale paintings, James Jean depicts detailed cosmological worlds filled with allegorical, abstract, and contemporary imagery. He incorporates elements of traditional Chinese and Japanese scroll paintings, Japanese woodblock prints, Renaissance ideas, and beautiful imagery into his work. When I first saw Jean’s work, I was enamored. The very first art book that I bought was Pareidolia and I often find myself from time to time curled up on my couch just flipping through the pages, taking in the mastery. One of my favorite pieces is Tiger III. It is a gorgeous illustration that has a slightly psychedelic and 3d aspect to it. The details in the piece do an incredible job of drawing in the viewer.
I have learned so much from just viewing and being a fan of James Jean. He is unapologetic, authentic, larger than life, and creative. I have done a few piece thus far inspired by different artists such as Kehinde Wiley and Bijay Biswaal, I would love to do one inspired by James Jean someday. Stay tuned to see if I do!
With the semester coming to an end, this will be my second to last post. I will be doing my third year-end sign-off next week and will return back in September with a brand new completed painting! As always, if any questions or thoughts arise, please comment or reach out to me!
Until next week,
Riya
Instagram: @riya_agg.art
Portfolio: https://theindianartist.weebly.com/
Lyrics from “Cosmic Freeway” by Yeek. “Cosmic Freeway” is the last track on Yeek‘s 2017 album, “Sebastian”. Each one of his worries described in the verses of this song are followed up by the chorus: “At the end of it all, I’ll be speeding on the cosmic freeway”, taking a distant reflective look on all these stressors to say, what does it really matter?
