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Sacrificial Journey to Eternal Life
🕑 Added 2022-04-25 22:27:30 +0000 UTCDear Insane Children,
Sometimes the only way we get to new and interesting places is through a journey in which we must sacrifice a great amount. In the modern world, that might mean investing the time and money to fly halfway around the world. Or sailing for a week to a remote island. Or hiking for days to a secluded mountaintop. But what if you lived on the featureless plains and Kansas and wanted to get somewhere REALLY interesting?
Some news illustrations from Gareth paint the picture...
Dorothy chases a tornado, clutching Toto in one arm and a bag of valuables in the other. She's hoping to be pulled back into the Land of Oz after returning home and finding all she once loved is no more. Time passed more slowly in Oz - Dorothy barely aged a day. But all her family and friends lived decades in which they mourned and eventually said farewell to Dorothy.
And the progress brought on by the passage of time didn't sit well with Dorothy so... back to Oz. To the land of eternal life. To a place where time is frozen and progress isn't measured.
But not alone...
Because Dorothy realized it wasn't Kansas or "home" she missed but her Em and Uncle Henry. And though they'd perished long ago, Dorothy knew that death is no obstacle to the magic of Oz. A sprinkle of The Powder of Life and they'd be right as rain. A bit shrunken and removed from all the bits below the neck... but much easier to transport to Oz that way! Torsos and limbs could be fashioned later - even better than the meaty old bodies they had before.
So, um, yeah... Dorothy revives the shrunken heads of her aunt and uncle so she's not alone when she gets back to Oz.
How about some tentacles to lighten the mood? Joey did this excellent illustration of Alice mastering the tentacles as she reveals the secrets contained in Radcliffe's Notebook.
We are still very much in Lockdown here in Shanghai. And it's unclear when the situation might improve. And Yan is now less than 2 weeks from the Due Date of our next child - May 8th. So it's looking like we're going to have a Lockdown Baby! There are extra stresses introduced by Lockdown but we're managing things as best we can. And fingers crossed that the city comes out of this soon.
From Shanghai with Shrunken Heads,
-American
Comments
Saleh Abu-Rashid
I Love dorothe's dress here a whole lot more. Before she looked like an evil queen.
Gotan
For some reason this unearthed some Terry Gilliam Tideland vibes, I haven't thought about that movie for a long time. great stuff
AniFae Kusanagi
Woah, from a distance i thought Gareths image was a photorealistic image! The composition is excellent and man what a scary thing, to run head on into a tornado! Love it! And i agree with what Austin Cook said in regards to the scars. You said Dorothy worked on a plantation? Does she have any physical scars from that time of her life too? (scar's on her from whip's? - not too sure on what you plan for her past tho.) As for the decapitated heads...woah did Dorothy learn that from Princess Langwidere (3rd book, Ozma of Oz) or perhaps Mombi? Strange actually, i learnt that Mombi sung a song called "Powder of life" in the 1969 movie "The wonderful Land of Oz.". Very cool stuff im seeing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Death of Ink
Was not expecting the head thing, delightfully creepy!
Sarah McKeegan
Love it!
I have to admit I haven't entirely caught up on "Oz" details...but is this Dorothy going to be a bit villainous? Shrunken head family members doesn't seem all that heroic! "Eternal life" does look good on the surface...but death does have its reasons for existing. And I agree with Austin Cook's comment, I like the scarring on Dorothy. Makes her stand out and gives her a striking appearance.
I personally think that people deserve that kind of representation. Sometimes trauma is physical not always mental. And often times its both.
All I have to say is Scars don't make you ugly. It just means your a survivor and Dorothy is a survivor! She can be beautiful and scarred its possible! Actually I think it would make her even more beautiful to show her that way! (Perhaps Gareth can do a version based on Omris work? But in his own beautiful style? ππ
Sarah Heist
When was luckys bday? Great stuff all around. Love the idea of Alice mastering the tentacles. Very Persephone.
American McGee
Yeah, I've been pushing Omri to have more visible scars on Dorothy. But he's being resistant. He says he wants her to remain beautiful. But... we'll get there eventually ;)
No doubt I love the Alice art. I've always been more into Alice than oz (in any format) but these oz illustrations are seriously so cool, it's making me more interested than ever in that world.
American McGee
Ha. I typed "Dear Insane Children" as the Title of the Post... didn't sleep well last night because my stomach is sick. Go, tired brain!
I love Gareths Oz work! I love the details in the Kansas painting! Dorothy chasing a tornado such a cool idea. I love seeing Aunt Em ans Uncle Henry as creepy shrunken heads. And those spooky green eyes! (Does that mean Dorothy would have eyes like that too? Or perhaps one is green and one is brown?) Also can I just say I'd like to see a version of Dorothy with more scarring. Like Gareth did with her hands. That's such a beautiful and morbid detail up close. more scars would really tie her into the story more to show that she didn't come out unscathed but she survived thanks to the powder of life. I love this Alice by Joey and I can almost imagine it moving in game! Goodluck with the baby! I hope things go well!
Juan Romero
Oz is looking great! Aliceβs face is quite different in this one, a bit more Asian maybe? I wish the best to you and the family with the new baby.
