Reflection: A Crane Among Wolves Narrative Series
Good Morning Everyone!
Today I'll be doing a reflection on a 3 part series I did in October 2024. The assignment was to create a 3 part series narrative based on an existing text that was published. I chose a book I've been reading in my freetime; "A Crane Among Wolves."
What Is "A Crane Among Wolves"?
A Crane Among Wolves is a historical fiction novel written by June Hur (I highly recommend her work). The novel takes place in Korea during the Joeson Era, specifically during the rule of an evil king. It follows Isul, a young girl on a journey to get back her older sister who was taken by the king. Along the way she teams up with Daehyun -a prince -to not only save her sister; but the entire kingdom from the Kings tyrrany.
Book Cover Artwork; by Aurora Parlagreco
My Experience With The Book (You Can Skip This lol)
I came across her novel by chance, while on an exploration day at the Mall of America. I had been walking for a long time and needed a place to rest, so naturally I found myself gravitating to the Barnes and Noble. I had nowhere to be that day or the next, no immediate responsibilties. It was a nice feeling and allowed me to explore the town I'd been living in for over 3 years but barely knew.
So when I found myself tired and sitting at the starbucks inside of the Barnes and noble, I decided to peruse the shelves. I picked up June Hur's book, admittedly drawn in by the stunning cover art. But what kept me there was the writing; I was intrigued. Ultimately I left the store with a brand new book, which I hadn't done in almost 5 years.
My Ideation
During the Ideation period, I thought long and hard about what I wanted from this and how it could serve either as a portfolio piece or a "Soul-Feeding" Piece, as I like to call it. This ended up serving more of a soul-feeding purpose, but as always I also felt it helped me grow as an artist.
I decided the moment I wanted to illustrate was Daehyun and Isul's first meeting. (mini-spoilers ahead) Isul is trekking thorugh the King's hunting grounds and Daehyun mistakes her for wildlife, shooting her with an arrow. Their first meeting is what essentially allows the rest of the novel to happen so I wanted to focus on that specific moment.
After several revisions playing with POV and perspective, I thought it would be interesting to look at this moment through Daehyun's point of view. Though the main character is Isul, the book actually pivots back and forth between hers and Daehyun's POV's.
I decided for these pieces I would do them in Gouache and colored pencil. I had to do a LOT of studies, as up until now I had only really used watered down inks to paint with.
***If you would like to see all of my process work for this project and many others, consider becoming an Intermediate Tier Member to gain access to my WIPS album***
The Final Results
This was a project I worked on for at least a month; it involved environment and charater studies; color and material studies; and my first attempt at integrating digital into my analog work.
There were trials and many, many tribulations (Like, 4 revisions worth). Ultimately though, I was able to complete the analog work, scan it and edit it digitally. Here were the final pieces:
REFLECTION
Ultimately, it was an inevitability that I would end up liking #3 the most. Its more dynamic, has more interaction and more places for details to stand out. I'm quite proud of myself for the amount of interaction happening with their hands (I did use a free 3d modeler for reference on concepting how their hands would interact. which may be why this turned out so well. I am definitely going to be taking more advantage of this in the future when I can't find a similar enough reference image online.)
If I were to do a similar piece again, I would probably try to print my outline directly on the watercolor paper, or finish the piece and then do a colored digital line over it to help further blend the analog and digital parts. I feel much more confident in using gouache, though I do think if given the option i would just stick to using my watered down inks.
I see a lot of room for improvements, especially in the first two. The interaction and body language of #1 with Dahyun and his bow being particularily agregious. I felt the environment was quite plain, though part of that reason is from me trying to stay true to the text; (minor spoilers again) the king's love of hunting had lead to there being no wildlife and a lack of foliage aside from trees and grass. Ultimately i think next time i should take more liberties with interpreting text to visuals.
My Final Thoughts
I try not to do my reflections immediately after completing the work. I try to take in not only my feelings and reactions, but those of any peers who provide critique/feedback.
After giving it several months to sit in the dusty files of my computer, I've come to have a much more positive opinion of this series than I origianlly thought I would have.
Are there places to improve? Most definitely.
But are those things I might not of found out about unless I put myself to the test? Absolutely.
And did I come away from this dreading doing another project like it? No!
To me, meeting these 3 criteria points is what is most important. I had times where I was frustrated, but that frustration was used to fuel a learning opportunity.