Hey, members of the Alien Art Hive! Wow, it's been a moment since I posted on the community last! Been giving my attention to other growing communities in the past months but I'm happy to be back here to share this illustration of mine with y'all!
If you heard nothing about Frank Herbert`s Dune
Frank Herbert was really a master of storytelling. He was also very concerned about us humans and our relationship with the environment. In the Dune series, we follow the Atreides (a big family name in the Universe) in settling their new life on the desert planet of Arrakis - home of the Fremen. Arrakis was known for its harsh environment, greatly devoid of water, and for being home to fearsome sandworms. Humans couldn't just kill the worms for their existence was directly linked to the production of a commodity of universal interest: Spice Melange - a psychotropic substance that could give its users prescience of what was ahead of them in their future. This fundamental feature, allowed for lightspeed space travel and human exploration of the universe.
Fremen in the Dune series
Fremen are humans who came to and have lived in Arrakis for ages. Their settlements were located deeply within the dangerous desert and were resilient in their interaction with sandworms. They had their very own religion, costumes, fighting styles, and rites... All linked or shaped by their centuries of life in Arrakis facing the harsh realities of their arid homeland - which gave them their indomitable spirit. Emphasizing their resilience and adaptability, the Fremen were described as seasoned nomads navigating the expansive desert with unparalleled grace. The Fremen cultural rites highlight a pivotal role in the mystical spice melange - Their tenacious consumption of spice brought about great transformative effects on their physical and mental capabilities most notably manifesting in their luminous blue eyes. The Fremen's unique blend of survival instincts and spiritual depth is truly captivating. Their use as warriors was once mentioned in the book "The Desert Power".
Illustrating Fremen
I was excited about painting this one. I know I wanted to make a girl look up and stare directly at the viewer to bring about the allure of their curious society. No fancy shapes or colors at this point as all I wanted was to portray a little sketch and bring the first idea onto paper.
Needless to say, blue would be my color of choice for this painting. Fremen lived in communities called sietches, deep inside caves in the desert. The painting would thus be fairly dark, with the light source coming mainly from the Fremen girl`s luminous blue eyes triggered by her daily consumption of spice.
At this point, the mood is exactly what I wanted it to be, and all I have to do is keep pushing the rendering in the dark areas (which is always super tricky since you can't use color tones that are brighter than the bright sides of the painting! 😜). Regardless of the struggles, your boy here pushes forward! xD
The painting is almost done now! I love how the tiny specular light in her iris draws our attention immediately before we allow it to wander down the lips and skin of our muse. The close-up really helps us to dig in and fall to the allure of her eyes, diving deep into the darkness of the sietch where another Fremen awaits for the ceremony of our arrival, be it a duel to the death or a celebration of love.
Painting timelapse video
Here is another fun bit for you guys! I put this together on Youtube if you are interested to see how everything came to be! =) Do leave it a comment if you like! Glad to have you!
Thanks for tagging along guys!! I have a lot of fun with this painting! It`s always nice to share my thoughts and process with you. Please make sure to comment if I missed something about the Fremen or if you have any other comments to add! Dune Part 2 movie is coming in 2024 and I am all too excited to watch it! Let the hype begin!! 😆🤘
Appreciate y`all!
Yours,
Galiant