At the start of the year, Crystal Dynamics revealed a new project which saw eleven artists to bring their own reimagined twist to the Tomb Raider game covers we all love and grew up with. For Angel of Darkness, the studio approached a currently unknown artist whose style they believe perfectly compliments the game. As the commission couldn't be completed for the month and, to allow them to have extra time, they reached out to four artists in the community to help them celebrate the game.
Kickstarting the community creations for the game was Caleb Groves whose stunning and stylized papercraft perfectly captured the fresh new take that the game brought to the series. This week, Crystal Dynamics shared the work of João.
His work celebrates the gothic feel of the game, with detailed ornate stone pillars bordering the image, dark thunderclouds, spires in silhouette, and that iconic blue flame from the original box art. Lara's dual pistols and hands are covered in blood, a homage to a former promotional shot. Our favourite little detail is the classical painting mixing into the sky. Lara's design is perfect too, mixing the Angel of Darkness look with elements of Tomb Raider Underworld.
In his spotlighted post on the Tomb Raider 25 website, he introduces himself, "my name is João. I’m a graphic designer from Brazil. I’ve been doing graphic design for over 10 years now and illustration has always been a great passion of mine. I started creating digital art and designs back in 2008 because of the ‘Tomb Raider Underworld fan artwork’ thread on Tomb Raider Forums. That’s where it all started for me, and I was able to graduate design school and make my living off of it. Doing this piece for the 25thanniversary it’s an honor to me. I feel like everything came full circle and I couldn’t be happier. It feels like a dream. I have been a Tomb Raider fan since the late 90s and this franchise is something I am so passionate about that it became part of who I am. I learned so much and met so many people because of it. I’m still amazed at how life changing a videogame can be and I am happy to be now officially part of the 25th celebration. Thank you for having me!"
On the topic of inspiration for his artwork, João reveals, "So for this piece I wanted to focus on the gothic aesthetic present in the game. Instead of doing something completely new, I decided to go back to what made the original cover so striking to me. The iconic blue fire, the iron gates opening behind her, the European panorama at the bottom and Lara’s striking figure standing ever so heroic right in the middle of the scene. I was heavily inspired by the arts of Nekro, Bill Elis and Kilian Eng. I also took inspiration from other videogames such as Bloodborne, Castlevania and Blasphemous, and I made sure to make these inspirations obvious. I love making game cross-overs using their aesthetic elements. The baroque-like carvings on the sides are supposed to tell a story. On the left side, we have Eckhardt being banned by the Lux Veritatis, while on the right we have a sort of resurrection through the dark arts. He is ascending! Out of the depths of his imprisonment, into the 21st century. The black alchemist lives in the world of today. At the bottom, I tried to use sculptures that represent despair and chaos. Having Lara almost walking over it, it’s supposed to represent her journey to clear her name and put things right (and remove the thorn in her side in the process, am I right?). The blood-covered hands were...A choice. I was unsure if it was a good idea to cover her iconic duals in blood, but decided to go for it anyway because it adds to the whole story. It was an absolute joy to work on this! Turned out to be one of my favorite pieces I have ever done, and I hope from the bottom of my heart that everyone else enjoys it just as much as I do."
You can download João's artwork, HERE!
0 comments:
Post a Comment