Medusa has become quite a polarizing figure, and perhaps of all figures in mythology demonstrates how we reuse and interpret myths to make sense of our experiences and the world around us.
Personally, I subscribe to earlier Greek interpretations of Medusa, where she’s a monstrous goddess born with the curious condition of mortality and not subject to the lust of Poseidon or the wrath of Athene. For my design I referenced the motif of the running gorgon, common on pottery in the mid-sixth century BCE depicting a rather broad and muscular looking figure in a short tunic. Funnily enough, I was also inspired by the tusks and physicality of half-orcs from DnD for her overall body type. I liked the idea of arranging her hair in an Aphrodite knot to give it some interest, and instead of wings I gave her some feathers on her arms to streamline her overall look (I find wings on upright quadrupeds to be a bit clunky).
