Run to the End of the World

"Run to the End of the World"
(Xenogears / redraw)

A redraw of a sketch by Xenogears character designer Kunihiko Tanaka, with complete color composition by myself.
Tanaka's original sketch can be found on his Day Visions blog here.

February 12, 2019
pencils, Prismacolor Markers, colored pencils, gel pens, chalk pastels, and POSCA paint pens
on 9x12" smooth bristol stock.

Wrath

"Wrath"
Key illustration

To counter the illustration for Elysium, I did this one with some minor opposing factors. Aside from just facing left (her right), the sword is held up, and her face is angled down; though her free hand is still open, though in a more powerful expressive position.
The colors again take from the theme set up by Terra's piece, and use pink as the base shade. This may have been even more difficult than Elysiums simply because of Oni's leather-like cloves and boots, plus her raven colored hair.

February 9, 2019
Sakura Pigma pens, pencils, Prismacolor Markers, colored pencils, charcoal pencils, gel pens, POSCA paint pens, and chalk pastels
on 14x17" smooth bristol stock.

Fated Sword Dual Balance ©Studio OZKai

Grace

"Grace"
Key illustration

Deciding on the visual theming for this series of pieces, I finally came up with ones for the other two main characters, starting with Elysium. Her face took a little work in the early stages to get right, but once there, everything else just kinda flowed together. Even her sword posed little problems.
I tried to go off the theme set by Terra's illustration and do her base shading in blue, though most of her outfit's colors are darker tones that Terra's or Rhapsody's, so it was tough to work with. I ended up using chalk pastels at the end to give back some of the blue highlights.

February 8, 2019
Sakura Pigma pens, pencils, Prismacolor Markers, colored pencils, charcoal pencils, gel pens, POSCA paint pens, and chalk pastels
on 14x17" smooth bristol stock.

Fated Sword Dual Balance ©Studio OZKai

Libra

"Libra"
Key illustration

For this illustration, I wanted to achieve a good balance without 1:1 symmetry. It's sort of a precursor to Terra's duality, which is something major within the story, both thematically and within the events, themselves.
I tried my best to set this up so that if you blocked half of the picture on either side, you'd get a completely different feeling picture, without it feeling too jarring in the middle. Balancing the different tones of the same colors was a challenge, to say the least.

February 3, 2019
Sakura Pigma pens, pencils, Prismacolor Markers, colored pencils, charcoal pencils, gel pens, POSCA paint pens, and chalk pastels
on 14x17" smooth bristol stock.

Fated Sword Dual Balance ©Studio OZKai

Maestro and Muse

"Maestro and Muse"
Key illustration

For whatever reason, these two are my favorite characters to draw, so I decided to do a key piece featuring them.
I wanted to have a very dynamic sense of flow with Rhapsody's hair and cape, but herself looking stoic and solemn. I decided to do her staff fully aligned rather than alternating the wings as I felt it would mess with the composition.
To make sure Nocturne didn't stand out too much, I wanted him to appear faded, even distant, so I had to go with lighter colors for his usually black outfit.

February 1, 2019
Sakura Pigma pens, pencils, Prismacolor Markers, colored pencils, charcoal pencils, gel pens, POSCA paint pens, and chalk pastels
on 14x17" smooth bristol stock.

Fated Sword Dual Balance ©Studio OZKai