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Lena-Hyena β The Raven King
Published: 2006-08-30 12:56:47 +0000 UTC; Views: 3761; Favourites: 31; Downloads: 3
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John Uskglass, the Raven King, the King in the North, the magician and faerie king whose true name is unknown...From Susanna Clarke's Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell
I've never come accross a character whose absence from the novel is so powerful.
A little watercolour which hardly does him justice. There's more to him than this, surely.
If I am not mistaken, Clarke describes him at one point as a "pale, thin, poetical-looking person" in elegant clothes.
But there is a hint of darkness. And menace, perhaps.
Curiously enough, I finished this late in the evening. I went to sleep and dreamt of ravens. I woke up freezing, and continued shivering till dawn, under two blankets, with two layers of clothing and my socks on.
A breath of nothern wind in the summer night, perhaps?
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Comments: 80
So he never does show up in the book? I'm almost halfway through it, and I'd wondered.
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Great picture 
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It's a great book, there must be more fans around here
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I linked to your deviation in my journal ([link] ). Hope you don't mind.
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No problem. Thanks for letting me know.
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Well, I'd both agree and disagree withy our statement that the Raven King's absence from the novel affects it so much, as he really isn't absent. The footnotes tell you so much about him, and give you such insights into his character, and then, of course there's the field portion.
That being the 'disagree' portion, the fact that the characters are unaware of him, despite the entire novel being about and of him (especially according to Vinculus), defintiely adds a dimension or three.
As for your work, I'm really pretty amazed. It looks very much as how I picture him during his reign, and he looks so... regal. Though it seems as if either the top of his head is abnormally large or his hair is abnormally poofy at the roots.
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Strange hair, yes, I wanted it to look wind-blown, but managed to make it look blow-dried
Your argument about presence/absence is so precise that I don't really have anything to add... I agree completely.
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Now this is a great Raven King... Unlike mine... Love the way his hair is swept by the wind
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Thank you!
There's far too much hair - but it adds to the drama, I think
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oooh, you really captured him the way I saw him
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I keep it in devWatch for eternity now
Very nice portrait, I don't know the story but there is some mystery in this image
BTW, what do you think of the name "Raven" for a character? Is it overused cliche and should be avoided or I shouldn't care and name my Raven any way I like?
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Thanks. He is a very interesting character. I really can't sum him up in a few sentences.
I love the name Raven. (It's a phonetic thing really. Have you ever noticed that hero's names containing the letters a,n,r sound really good?)
Anyways, yes, it's a clichΓ©. But it is not necessarily bad. Two ways you can fight it. One is admitting that it's a clichΓ© and then playing with it - making it funny or ironic. The other is making the background of the name so good, so water-tight that there is absolutely no other name your hero could have because Raven is just perfect for him.
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That's not his real name, he has chosen it. He hates his real name because he thinks his name is "not manly enough" (he says it's "pansy" but I think it's rude; he is rude). I was trying to change it but it doesn't work, he has to be Raven, always appears in my mind under this nick.
Heh, I'm joking from this all the time whenever I talk about it. But you are right - I should joke of it in the story. He is laughing from "not manly enough" name of one noble king, so this king might say something about calling oneself raven. Especially if that person lacks in good manners. Good idea.
It's for my comic which I may do some day in the veeeery far future.
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Well, if you finish it, I'll be happy to see it!
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If not a whole comic at least some illustrations or random pages will coem, as soon as I find idea how to place him over dino - it's this guy from WIP. Apart of the irritating pose he is good man, just needs to grew up.
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Hehe, most men I know need to grow up
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Hi!
I've just finished the book (last night, inded) and I loved it!
I downloaded your art and used it in my fotolog (www.fotolog.com/fefe_eggers), I hope you don't mind. I just liked it so much!
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No problem.
Nice of you to let me know. And thanks for including the link.
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wow, i can see you've got some real talent
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Thank you very much!
And thanks for the fav!
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nice work, I love the composition and the way the raven is about to fly away. great shading. and the man's face is beautiful^^ great job
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Reminds me quite well of A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R Martin, actually. If pressed for wichever is my favorite of the two you shown me in the forums, I would have to say this one, as the darkness sticks out quite well, and, dare I say? Bright.
However, its the little details that make the peice, and not about any style and such as far Im concerned. The background works well with the peice, and the overall composition makes me want to reach out and touch it.
All in all. I would have to say I enjoyed this deviation, as I cant find much to fault on other than the fingers of the hand appear off to me. How so, I do not know.
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Thanks.
Does it really remind you of ASoIaF? I'm a huge fan of that series, but Clarke's book has absolutely nothing in common with it, except the fact that they both belong to the fantasy genre.
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Yep. Fraid so 
That, and "Raven King" kinda through me off since I remember a part them mentioning past Commanders of the Nights Watch was named such. But it prolly didn't help that Im reading through "A Feast for Crows" at the moment
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Ah, of course! Ravens and black clothes!
But it's been a long time since I've read Martin, and it hadn't even crossed my mind until you mentioned it...
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Lol. I've only recently (within the last year) been involved with George R.R. Martins Fantasy series. At first I thought it was to be something along the lines of typical Fantasy series (group of heroes, evil badguy, gotta save the world, yadda yadda) but was pleasently surprised that it wasn't, and how it gripped me.
So I'm quite addicted to the series untill it finishes.
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fantastic picture was this done with charcole sticks?
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No, it's watercolour, but used in very thick layers.
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I like how dramatic this is, the hair and the bird doesn't bother me at all, I think they empasize the drama. Also, the contrast is quite nice as well. My only complaint is that his stomach pops out a bit too much, also looks alittle 2D compared to the rest of the image.
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Thank you for your comment
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NICE!!! Looks really cool. I like your style too.
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Ohhh this one was like BAM *strike* But seriously this work really struck me. So I'm favoriting it
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Oh, thank you very much for the comment and for tha fav!
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Very nice. The face is particularly striking. Apparently, the critique I had (about the hair) has been dealt with, so I shall move on. The Raven in the background is slightly disproportional. The beak is to long and to thin, and the head is rather awkward: my first impression of it is that it is squashed and lopsided. Perhaps next time you do something akin to this, find yourself a photograph of a bird shot from underneath or above it to get proportions better. It'd be best if it was the same kind of bird (such as a raven in this case) but a similar bird would work best. I realize this is a little bit more work, but it'd be worth it for the overall affect.
Again, I love it and think you did a masterful job on it. Particularly his gloved hand.
Best Regards.
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Thank you very much.
The raven in the background is really not supposed to be a real raven, just a rather 2-dimensional symbol, more like a banner - hence the lack of detail... Perhaps I should have made that more clear, somehow...
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Well, even not so much the lack of detail - but the problem of it anatomically. Such as the head being lopsided and beak overly long.
Like the ideas!
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