sigune: (Default)
sigune ([personal profile] sigune) wrote2007-01-03 11:13 pm
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Old and New

Happy New Year all! I hope you had a great start... Mine included a set of five paint brushes, squee! :D

I'm a bit late with my first entry for 2007, but then I am slow always, so I am just being characteristic; besides, I never make New Year's resolutions, so why pretend that I have changed ;P?




The Old

Below is my review of 2006 in terms of art, as I posted nothing more than a paltry two drabbles on the fic front. - Wait, scratch that: there was the gigantic (well, it's nothing compared to what [livejournal.com profile] valis2 gets up to, but still) opus consisting of the [livejournal.com profile] pr_snape and [livejournal.com profile] pr_brynhild journals, but somehow they don't seem to count quite as much as archive-posted stuff would, and I tend to forget about it. Um. Still: art.


2006
1) Art I posted: some 20 images, I think, and a large part of them in the last few months – not counting some eight pages of the comic which haven’t been posted yet.

2) My favorite:
That’s always hard to say. No matter how flawed they may be, I have a certain fondness for every single one of my pictures. But for the purpose of this meme, let me pick this one:
Troubled Sleep
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How I love Snape sleeping… :-)

3) My best:
Again, this is very hard to determine, especially of my own stuff. Suggestions are welcome; in fact I always love to hear what other people, less biased than myself, think my best work. (Please do comment!)
My pick, ever so slightly random:
Looking at the Stars
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4) Art most underappreciated by the universe, in my opinion:
Intimacy
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This drawing is really close to my heart. I got very little reaction to it, though it was very long in the making, I worked hard to get it right, and I am ultimately very happy with it. Maybe it is on account of the OFC. Fortunately the picture’s recipient was very enthusiastic about it, and that is really the most important (and rather heart-warming) thing :D.

5) Most fun art:
Next Time, Choose Treat
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The fun bit wasn’t just in the subject (though I just love poking fun at dear Severus), but also in my rediscovery of colour pencils. I thoroughly enjoyed making this card.

6) Sexiest art:
Jewels
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Sexy isn’t really my cup of tea, at least not in the naked bits or steamy action department. Still, I like to think that several of my drawings have a contained, subdued sort of sexiness, and this one is probably (one of) the most obvious example.

7) Most popular:
Sleeping Ugly
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This became an unexpected hit. I posted it in several places at LJ, so I suppose it’s not surprising that I got more reactions than usual, but the trend continued at deviantART, so it really is my success picture of 2006 :D.

8) "Holy Crap, that's wrong, even for you" drawing:
I’m sorry to be such a bore, but I don’t think I have one, actually… When something looks very wrong (and that’s in the technique, not the subject department – ...yes, I know :P) I simply don’t post it.

9) Most controversial drawing:
Eileen Prince Gave Birth to a Murderer
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I got quite a few hostile reactions to this one, from people who were shocked by the picture’s title. Kind souls jumped to my defence and pointed out that these are not my words, but Harry’s, from the last chapter of Half-Blood Prince. As for the shock value, that was totally intended. I drew the picture because Harry’s words shocked me, too.

10) Art I'm most proud of:
The comic! :D This is the first time ever that I actually finished a story in comic-form, hence the pride. On the picture front, there is also
Two Slytherins
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I may change my mind when its novelty wears off, but I’m inordinately pleased with this one.

11) Biggest disappointment:
Tonks and Lupin on a Couch
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This was meant to be fab, and I was very happy with the drawing, which for my practice is really rather complex and turned out surprisingly well. Sadly, I botched the colours. I feel very frustrated about that.

12) Biggest surprise:
Pink Pansy
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With this picture I surprised myself: it accidentally turned into something decent. I had been struggling with this pose for a while in sketches, and started to draw it quite casually on cheap paper because I was itching to try my new watercolour pencils. What was supposed to be a scrap ended up being a nice picture with good skin tones and just the effect I had been hoping for.

Paper Chains
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This is where I was surprised by reviewers :D. The picture went up at [livejournal.com profile] romancingwizard and turned out to get the most comments I ever got at that comm. I never expected people to like it so much.

In general, it was a great surprise for me to discover how much people like my black and white art. Black and white isn’t very popular as a rule; I know that in comics, for example, it is considered commercial suicide. But of the four people for whom I have been (or still am) doing pictures, three have specifically asked for b/w, and several others have commented favourably on my use of inks specifically. Hee.

13) Hardest to draw:
Night Counsel
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OOoooOOOhh how I cursed that one. I’m still angry with it for being such a pain in the backside.

14) Picture I want remembered:
Looking at the Stars
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…I suppose :D.

15) Goals for next year:
I want to get to understand more about colour, learn about the use of watercolour, and obviously I want to grow as an artist. (Who wouldn’t?)





The New

Because I like to start with a clean slate from time to time, and because the start of a new year is as good an occasion as any, I would like to declare a (de)friending amnesty. If you have friended me at some point during the past year but are no longer sure why you did so, then please go ahead and defriend me.

On my end of the line, I think it might be a good thing to trim my flist a bit because, although I often do no more than lurk, I do try to keep up with what everybody is writing. That is becoming harder and harder as the list grows, and so I thought I would remove a few people who have never made themselves known or otherwise sought contact. If you are one of those, and feel it would be a grievous loss to disappear from my flist (I think the only thing you'd miss out on is, like, news about my cat *g*), then please leave an alarm message below.

For the relatively new who have only a very foggy idea about the person in whose lair they have landed, there is a slightly adapted friending thingy below the cut:

WHO AM I?
Name: Sigune
Age: 27
Location: Continental Europe
Astrological Sign: Libra (not that it matters)

HARRY POTTER STUFF
My favourite HP book: Order of the Phoenix
My favourite characters: Severus Snape and Albus Dumbledore
Least favourite character: Lucius Malfoy comes to mind...
Ships, OTP: I read both het and slash, but I am not very passionate about any ship at all; only the canon ones are a fact of life. I find it much easier to name the ships I cannot stand (predictably, most of them involve Snape), but in view of the preferences of a rather astounding number of my flisties it is probably better to hold my tongue on the subject ;). Let me just say, YAY for genfic!
House affiliation: as one of [livejournal.com profile] a_t_rain's icons says, "zero ambition, utter coward, lazy as hell - Ravenclaw by default" ;P. I should add as extra justification that I am very bookish.
The first HP quote you remember right now: "There is no need to call me Sir, Professor."
What I do in the fandom: I draw pictures and write fic, though the last has been a bit problematic lately.
Peculiarities: I hate to disappoint, but I have no other journal in which I post porn. There is no such thing as [livejournal.com profile] sigune porn, either written or drawn; don't go looking for it. I find myself in the strange position of not being interested in the stuff per se, while not disapproving of people who are. The only way my interest is kindled is when the stuff is perpetrated by artists whose gen work and style I already admire to such an extent that I'll lap up anything they serve me :-).


OTHER FANDOM
Other fandoms: euh... Oscar Wilde?
Favourite characters: Herod, Basil Hallward, Mrs Erlynne, Mabel Chiltern...
Ships: Shakespeare/Willie Hughes :)
Fandom interests: academia *g*

GENERAL
Why would you want me on your flist? er... Because you like to look at pictures, read my sparse meta, know whether I'm writing any fic?
My journaling habits: My fandom stuff is open to everybody. The scarce entries about my personal life (and that of my cat, *ahem*) are flocked.

[identity profile] veradee.livejournal.com 2007-01-04 12:40 am (UTC)(link)
This seems to have been a very successful year - artwise, at least. It's fantastic to have another look at them.
ext_53318: (Jeanne Kefer)

[identity profile] sigune.livejournal.com 2007-01-05 09:25 pm (UTC)(link)
Funny enough, most of this was done in the last few months. They were productive in terms of art, but unfortunately not in other departments :-). Glad you like the pictures!

[identity profile] valis2.livejournal.com 2007-01-04 03:26 am (UTC)(link)
*hugs* It's lovely to see all of your art lined up like this...teeny jewels, waiting to unfold!

And I love having you as a friend. Your entries are always so thoughtful and interesting, and it's so nice to see someone who thinks so deeply about canon matters. ;)
ext_53318: (Default)

[identity profile] sigune.livejournal.com 2007-01-05 09:27 pm (UTC)(link)
Aww, you're flattering me :D!

That reminds me I still have to draw something squiddish for you one of these days *g*...

*hugs*

[identity profile] siriusneeds.livejournal.com 2007-01-04 03:44 am (UTC)(link)
I guess I'm in that new friend category. I know your artwork from DeviantArt so I added you. I think your Snape is wonderful.
ext_53318: (Pensive)

[identity profile] sigune.livejournal.com 2007-01-05 09:28 pm (UTC)(link)
Thanks so much! :-)

Make yourself at home...

[identity profile] jehove.livejournal.com 2007-01-04 08:28 am (UTC)(link)
Fantastic artwork as usual. Have a great year ahead! (:
ext_53318: (Dancing Faerie)

[identity profile] sigune.livejournal.com 2007-01-05 09:29 pm (UTC)(link)
Thank you! I wish you a great year too :).
ext_45936: (Snape Darker Shade gif)

[identity profile] thirteen-ravens.livejournal.com 2007-01-04 09:35 am (UTC)(link)
Heh, in terms of slash let's just say I've been very shockingly corrupted - seeing as you knew me before I got into SS/HG and SS/SB and all that...though I used to be anti every Snape ship apart from with Lily, and that I used to believe was only platonic.
*sigh* I don't know quite what happened... ;o)

Lovely to see your artwork again. I do like Looking at the Stars. That's probably my favourite with its intense blue - and Snape's pensive look. Your Snape in colour just comes alive! :o)
ext_53318: (i heart snape)

[identity profile] sigune.livejournal.com 2007-01-05 09:30 pm (UTC)(link)
Thanks! I'm glad you like my pick :).

Tsk tsk - you have certainly been corrupted... You should have remained under my good influence! You can't say I didn't try to save you... ;P
(deleted comment)
ext_45936: (the truth)

[identity profile] thirteen-ravens.livejournal.com 2007-01-06 01:06 am (UTC)(link)
Well, to be honest, I did resist slash and smut for a surprisingly long time I'll have you know. ;o) My university friends were trying their wicked best to corrupt me as far back as the Spring of 2002 - we were having furious debates over bottles of wine long before I'd even read the Potter books! I intentionally wrote my first slashfic in August 2005 -at the request of a friend - but, my university friends insist that my very first piece of slash was actually written in 2002. Now re-reading "Darker Heydays" I can see what they mean, though I was quite offended at it being seen as slash back then!
Does this mean I was writing slash long before I realised it...?
Subconscious slash...? O_o

But, oh, there are still a few months to go before the last book comes out, you never know, the hordes may still manage to corrupt Sigune yet... ;o>

[identity profile] pasi.livejournal.com 2007-01-04 12:14 pm (UTC)(link)
Had no idea #9 was controversial--I still think sometimes about how great that was, both in idea and execution (if those are the right artistic terms).
ext_53318: (Default)

[identity profile] sigune.livejournal.com 2007-01-05 09:35 pm (UTC)(link)
Thank you so much! :)

Controversy is a big word, but I did get unusual criticism suggesting I was perfectly heartless. Some people didn't recognise the quote, and others complained about Eileen not looking happy, which is apparently quite unforgivable for a mother. Hm.

[identity profile] ellecain.livejournal.com 2007-01-04 01:14 pm (UTC)(link)
As someone who falls in the new people category, it's great to have a list of what I might have missed out on before I got here. Yay for end of the year memes!
ext_53318: (Tree)

[identity profile] sigune.livejournal.com 2007-01-05 09:38 pm (UTC)(link)
At your service ;). You can always find my stuff in my dA and LJ galleries, too, should you be interested.

Make yourself at home here! :D

[identity profile] seaislewitch.livejournal.com 2007-01-05 12:45 am (UTC)(link)
I'm thrilled to see my two commissions on your art review! Squee!
*hugs* Thanks again for drawing them. I can't wait to see this year's art!

Next weekend, [livejournal.com profile] stephanie206, [livejournal.com profile] velvetcandy and my partner in crime, [livejournal.com profile] lewlinx are coming to visit!
ext_53318: (Young Severus)

[identity profile] sigune.livejournal.com 2007-01-05 09:40 pm (UTC)(link)
Oh, lucky you! It's such a bore my living so far from all the excitement :/. You will give them my regards, won't you? :)

[identity profile] lunafish.livejournal.com 2007-01-05 02:17 am (UTC)(link)
I do love Intimacy, and I'm surprised you didn't get more response from others. I'm even more surprised, though, to hear that you sparked some controversy! The title of #9 did give me chills, but it also immediately made me think of how shallow Harry was at that moment. He wouldn't even let Hermione finish the damn sentence because to him everything is still simply black and white--just as it was for Sirius, despite his insistance that you can tell a lot about a man by the way he treats his house elf. But now it's likely going to be up to the nuanced, "evil," "murdering" Slytherins to help save Harry's world so all the "white" wizards can live happily ever after.

And the picture itself! Well, baby Snape is just so adorable and innocent (of course), and Eileen could be any new mother. I think the contrast between the title and the picture really makes the viewer stop and think...or it should anyway. (I guess some people missed the boat, though....) What a beautiful observation you seem to make with this picture: each of us "contain multitudes," as I think Walt Whitman says. The same man who murdered DD was also once someone's baby. I know I'm probably not expressing this right. But you what? I don't have to, because the picture does just fine on its own!
ext_53318: (Dungeon King)

[identity profile] sigune.livejournal.com 2007-01-05 09:52 pm (UTC)(link)
I suppose 'controversial' is too strong an adjective, but "Eileen Prince..." certainly generated the most animated response I have ever had to any of my pictures. First there were [livejournal.com profile] schemingreader and the breast-feeding mums who turned out to be especially pleased with it (I never expected anyone to find anything remarkable about the breast-feeding *g*), and then on the other side there were those who faulted me for the title and/or Eileen's lack of joy. Everything about this picture is entirely deliberate. It just turned out to carry a message that some people had quite strong opinions about. Fortunately, many viewers loved it too, and understood it like you :-).

[identity profile] sscrewdriver.livejournal.com 2007-01-06 02:38 pm (UTC)(link)
I was hoping you'd do this art meme thingy so I could look at a year of sigune in one post.

I loved them all. All. The Tonks/Lupin as well, as you know, because I loved the colouring and the clothes you imagined for them. My favourite might have been Snape on the pumpkins, though. Hee hee!