"Who, am, I?" by Spirefall · 2:08pm Mar 30th, 2023
This is a new addition to A Kindled Change's artist collaboration, to feature in Chapter 8: Unspoken Farewell. The title of this blog is what I've titled it, in Chrys' own words considering her speech impediment at this point in the story. This illustration details the moment when Chrys finally learns about who she really is, and what she has to do. The moment she reflects upon the changeling's past, her life after living in pure darkness for so long, and what the people around her mean to her truly. This is the moment where she unshackles the binds in her fear-stricken heart against Fate, and wields her power for the first time in earnest.
This beautiful illustration was created by the talented Spirefall on Deviant Art. You can find their work by clicking on that link to their DA directly or by looking for them in other social media platforms with either @spirefall or @spirefallart.
Spire's use of vibrant colors and the gentle mixing of them is what drew me to their art initially, along with their skillful use of lighting. I really loved one of Spire's paintings that had quite the lovely contrast of reds from a tree's canopy contrasted against the blue of night. And from that picture alone, I knew I had to ask for a commission for Change's collaboration.
With the kind of scenes available to illustrate, and considering Spire's art forte, this was the only moment I thought to commission them for. Admittedly, this was one of the most complex out of all of my commissions so far, since I specifically wanted the reflection-in-the-water effect. I don't think anyone else could've pulled it off as amazingly as Spire did, and so I'm very glad I chose them for this moment. I mean just look good and hard at this painting. It's absolutely incredible, is it not? The sheen and reflection of her hair. The lighting and almost gloss-like effect on her horn. The water rippling effect that smudges the colors of the trees behind her in the reflection, and how it smudges the edges of her hair as well. There's so much care and consideration in it, and it's beautiful. Even the expression that Spire gave to Chrys was perfect, as it fits the moment to a T. And it's only after the commission being done that I realize I never even gave Spire a link to the story, so them getting Chrys' expression right ended up being a show of their practiced hand despite my lacking directions and references.
It was also the first time I drew something to give someone a reference for what I had in mind. Apologies to Spire for subjecting them to my crude art! Haha.
I also wanted to mention how great Spire's design of Chrys for this is, outside of the expression. Chrys didn't have a single accessory for the whole of A Kindled Change, and the idea was that her appearance was always wild and disheveled. Especially for this moment since it follows Chrys barely having recovered from a fever. This is not a detail I ever told to any of my commission artists, since I wanted to keep directions down to a minimum because I have a tendency to give them a huge spiel when giving specific directions and story details. It's only until the sequel that Chrys receives a hairpin that organizes her hair to be more orderly, so I was hugely pleased to see Spire's rendition of Chrys.
If you like it, be sure to follow Spire's work wherever you can find it, and let them know directly what you think! I'm sure they would appreciate it.
DON'T LOOK AT ME LIKE THAT! My heart can't take it!