made a shimeji for the first time EVER! The dresses come in both purple and blue (hopefully these links works properly)
All you need to do is download n extract the files then open Shimeji-ee using java to use them!! :D
aaandd hes a little showcase !
well it is a bit long but :P
So I made a note in the art fight website about what I wanted to do. It was more of a concept than an actual thought, like a vibe that I actually had to build off of. I wanted a moody piece with Zelda dapping on lipstick, and Marin sulking evilly in the background. And I had this in my head since late June 💀. Cuas ya know I procrastinated the whole thing. I waited that long because I have a story behind the piece, that I wanted to get right. So I spend almost as much time posing and working out what I wanted, vs actually drawing the thing.
ie. my first draft on a sticky note (that I made at work lol)->
I struggled a bit with Marin’s outfit, since I needed it to fit the vibe, but I also wanted it to be a little more vampiric, and sharp. So I changed a couple things to make her pointy, and the dress a bit longer. I also wanted her corset to be more practical for something more active (more secure for the ladies and all that), and combined Zelda’s headpieces to leave more negative space for the eyes. Then thing I had the most trouble with how the hell to light Zelda dramatically while having the light come from behind her, and also reflect in the mirror. That was pain. Then the fun actually began.
Zelda:
Zelda’s face is technically hidden from us. We can only see her through the reflection of her silver mirror. The image we see is what she is currently curating for us. By us, I mean the normal people, and also the audience. You may not be able to see it, but behind the texture on the mirror there is choppy, artificial blush and highlights. This is outside of the lighting scenario. She has placed the colour there herself to appear more alive. Contrast to Marin who has none, she doesn’t have and warmth to her face because she’s accepted that she’s dead. Zelda hasn’t given up the core of who she is, a royal that cares for her people, even if these people have grown to hate and fear her for her vampirism. The title I gave is literally what they are preparing for, they are going hunting.
Zelda still applies make up to ease the people she attacks. So they don’t see a monster, but a person. She kills gently and attacks by luring the person out of town, by treating them like a human being. This reflects who she is as a person and that she still holds onto her living values. She had a difficult time adjusting to the undead life, and still looks at her food with empathy and compassion.
This is why we see such an apathetic expression in the mirror. She doesn’t like killing her people in the same way many vampires do because they are still her people despite everything. Every time she feeds she has to choose, herself or her kingdom.
Marin:
Saying Marin doesn’t care is a lie. She’s giddy at killing people. Her temporary life as seagull, and history as a butcher translate very well into her life as a vampire (as mango has mentioned somewhere).
She is standing off to the side, watching. We, the audience, and we, the (living) people, see her directly. Her face is uncoloured, and her expression is boarder-line malicious. She doesn’t hide behind a mask or mirror, she kills effortlessly and effectively. The same way she’s always done. These people aren’t her own and the only person she cares about is Zelda. So she has nothing to lose.
For her there isn’t an internal battle every hunt like Zelda has, she can let go and enjoy filling her stomach. Satiating her primal hunger in all its glory.
However, that sadistic gaze isn’t directed to the audience, but at Zelda herself. I imagine there’s a part of Marin that relishes in the struggle Zelda goes through, the effort she puts into looking alive, and the constant denial of her own desires. I think Marin enjoys breaking Zelda’s stubborn will and moral code. She desperately wants Zelda to do what she wants, instead of sacrificing herself for a people that don’t love her (not like Marin loves her). She wants Zelda to give in and be selfish. Partly because Marin herself has had a deeply hidden selfish side most of her life, and now in the afterlife, she can do whatever she wants. And she wants Zelda to break. She wants it SO BAD. So she stands to side, face bathed in darkness, taking gleefully joy in watching Zelda struggle yet again before they hunt. She love to watch her reapply her mask, and choose which of her citizens she’s going to eat this time.
