Hey guys, here’s a little behind-the-scenes look at the making of my Zutara artworks inspired by ABBA songs
Whoa, and so my little trilogy of Zutara artworks inspired by ABBA songs has finally come to an end! I’m so happy I managed to finish them all. I honestly never expected to receive so many positive responses, especially from artists whose work I admire so much (@demaparbat-hp, your style is absolutely gorgeous!!)
It’s honestly amazing how these artworks came to life through such a bizarre chain of coincidences:
my dear friend @simonwalk watched Avatar: The Last Airbender for the first time, awakening all my old love for the series and for the Zuko/Katara pairing
I developed a hyperfixation on ABBA songs because of the sunny weather and the whole “May feeling”
after many years, I suddenly got the urge to draw simple paper sketches again, and it genuinely became enjoyable once more
The concept for the “I do, I do, I do, I do, I do” artwork came to me almost immediately after listening to the song. I instantly remembered @shunnybunnysunny’s NejiTen artwork — I love it, and I love those two so much… my piece was inspired by it as well. And then there’s the whole mood of the song itself: a boy with a scar in love, summer, a waterbender girl smiling at him… you get it)))
Oh God, if only you knew how many times I listened to this song. Every single time I became more convinced that this song is LITERALLY about them, and nobody will ever change my mind about that. Haha, there’s also the line “I've had my share of love affairs / But they were nothing compared to this” — maybe someday I’ll illustrate that too. AAAAH, and that male voice in the background singing “I'm at the point of no returning”… it’s just unreal. Guys, if you’ve never heard this song before, please listen to it, you won’t regret it.
The sketch was drawn ridiculously fast, and now, looking at the final version, I can barely believe I made it myself. ZUKO’S HANDS ARE THE MAIN CHARACTERS OF THIS PIECE. I will never recreate this again, it turned out way too good.
Speaking of Kisses of Fire, I absolutely have to mention @addictofreading’s artwork. It’s something else entirely. I absolutely adore this sweet kissing couple: the color, the texture, the shapes, the atmosphere. I think I managed to make Zuko look sensual in my piece, but in that artist’s work both Katara and Zuko are just… oh. Such a soft and tender artwork, and it inspired me a lot.
Honey, Honey is the last artwork in this series. It wasn’t easy — I struggled with it quite a bit, and I think you can clearly see that in the final art. I regret that the composition and the drawing itself suffered a little, and even in my imagination the idea felt blurry, but… it is what it is. I just hope I managed to capture that feeling of teenage love and the shy awkwardness of a blue-eyed girl in love. Again, if you haven’t heard the song before, please give it a listen — and just look at Zuko. It’s impossible not to fall for this boy.
I’ve never posted my art on social media before, so you could say this is my debut. Zutara community, thank you all so much for your support and your kind responses, you’re wonderful!!!!!!! I don’t know if I’ll keep drawing yet, but I do have some vague ideas for more artworks dedicated to this sweet pair. Hopefully I won’t abandon them for years again.
annaxmalina
baratheonpilled
pixelskylines
dededos
blakekathryn
stormborns
