Decoding Daily Deviations: Odin the Allfather

Oct 25, 201715 min read

Deviation Actions

Published: Oct 25, 2017

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Decoding Daily Deviations is the series that aims to unlock the secrets of what it took to create these magnificent artworks and motivate others to work towards similar recognition. Each week we will present an interview with one artist who has recently received a DD and have them share the details on that specific piece, relating to their creative process, techniques, and narrative inspirations. If you've ever wanted to know more about a beloved artwork and the talented skills applied to it, this is the series to keep track of!"

FEATURED ART: Odin The Allfather by UMTA
DD DATE: 2017-08-12
TIME SPENT: This one is quite tricky, because I did the sketch over a year ago,
but pure work time is about a week (couple of hours a day, around 4-8)
TOOLS/PROGRAMME: Photoshop CS6

Share with readers the details of how this piece came into being. Did you have a clear story idea/inspiration from the beginning?

As I mentioned a bit earlier, the general idea for this painting came to me more than year ago. I made a quick sketch of this immense dude sitting on a throne and he was supposed to be Odin, since I've been in love with Norse mythology since I was little kid. But for the time being, I knew I didn't have the skills to "put it on paper" properly. The general idea was to portray Odin a bit differently than the generic Gandalf-like image. I wanted him to look calm yet powerful, contemplative. Since he is a master of wisdom and plotting and contemplating, it's his 'thing.'"

“Odin The Allfather” is one of those paintings that grabs our attention right away with the imposing presence of the main character. Please, take us through the evolution of the image from sketch to final version.

I'm glad to attach the shots of the process on this one as well as sharing some thoughts on it. The idea behind this piece was to present Odin as a still strong man in his late years, contemplating and wondering surrounded by his closest followers, crows Huginn (thought) and Muninn (memory) and wolves Geri and Freki. My love for Norse mythology developed pretty early when I was a kid, and I read this super awesome comic book 'Thorgal' (highly recommend that one) by Grzegorz Rosiński (amazing artist) and Jean Van Hamme. The idea for this image built up really slowly; at the beginning there was only the man sitting on a throne in dark confined space. That seems a bit BOOOORING ay? Hence I tried to add bit after bit so it would be more interesting yet not overwhelming for the viewer. After the initial sketch phase, IT'S TIME FOR RESEARCH!!

Well, I dug up that more than year old sketch, and after more or less a month of looking at the perspective, Viking stuff, and value studies, I felt I was ready to tackle it. So I started with a book about Norse mythology (The Norsemen by H. A. Guerber) that has a great description of Odin, first depicting him as an old Gandalf-like dude and, the second one that inspired me the most, this middle aged man with dark hair and a strong body, old yet still strong, powerful. The first thing that came to my head was a Frazetta body shaped language and I tried to apply it. After time I realized I needed to dress up this bulky guy. I went to Pinterest and gathered materials for Viking clothing, jewelry, armors and weapons, made a big wall for it and tried to use it as often as possible, aiming for real life Viking vibe. Research in general took me about 1.5 weeks. When I got it all down, I slowly drew, and added more and more details to build the thing up. My goal was to make him look calm yet powerful, lost in thoughts, distant, omniscient, but still remaining the main focal of the whole illustration.

Also when in doubt I'm always using reference!! (I'm terrible with animals, so they were reffed/photomanipulated in."

PROCESS





ODIN REFERENCES

Did you encounter any creative challenges when working on the piece? If so, how did you tackle them? Is there anything you would do differently now if you could?

While working I'm trying to constantly show my work to close artist friends, so they can tell me when I've f'up. Looking on the same thing for 40+ hours tends to be tedious. We all need a pair of fresh eyes from time to time, so when I came to any obstacle I tend to overcome them with the help of others, or getting back to the core of the problem. Clothing looks weird/wrong? Go back to studying it. My biggest problem with this one was actually his throne. You all can see in the WIP that at the beginning it was just a simple chair, but then came my friend Sebastian Horoszko (great artist as well) with a solution and gave me an idea of this branch (Ygdrassil inspired) throne, which then later gave me an opportunity to work on more interesting light transitions, reflections and highlights that made the image far more moody. Regarding parts I'd have changed now, there are a few. I've been given great critiques on it some time ago, and I would have spent more time on research, gathering more time period appropriate clothing, also change the presentation a bit since now Odin looks like he is gym attendee. I would have shown his strength with clothing, silhouette, and camera angle (low angle for more a powerful pose). And yeah, I would change the clothes a bit, since now he looks like a High Fantasy piece and that wasn't my aim at all; I wanted it to look as realistic/believable as possible."

What’s one piece of advice that you would share with other artists hoping to reach this standard of work in the future?

Draw what you love, not what others like. It would be silly to get a gig working on things you hate, ay? Also ladies and gents, study fundamentals. I'm not talking about copying stuff till it looks the same. Put some thought into it. Thought and time. Try to disassemble everything in pieces, then put it back together your way. ALSO MAKE NOTES!!"

What does this DD feature represent or mean to you at this stage of your artistic development? What can your watchers look forward to next?

Well I never thought I would get one so it's kind of a big deal for me! It made my day for sure, haha! I was walking and smiling the whole day This DD represents to me that it's worth doing what you love, even when things get rough! Don't give up and kick ass! Well regarding my future work, Inktober is starting and I'm planning on doing 31 awesome Viking drawings... so YAY MORE VIKINGS/NORSE STUFF!!"

Bonus question: Can you cite a memorable reaction to this piece in the comments at DA?

Well first of all I want to thank you for the DD Everyone else for enjoying my work and one person in particular, $:iconfractaldragon:$ , for "getting" exactly what I actually wanted to show in my painting Cheers!"

Special thanks to UMTA for kindly consenting to the interview!

Visit his gallery for more great works:

Previous Decoding DDs:

High on the Hill
Sanctuary I
In Sleep of Death What Dreams May Come
Nightmare and why we met there
Path of Ruins
Le Cannibal Hotel
Air Awakens Omnibus
Dracit
Dead End
Wizard and a Goose
Twilight Enchantment
Bewitched and Betrayed
Walls
The Cordyceps King
Vicious Cycle
Spoiled Princess
Retired
Incoming
Artificial Guardian
Mountain View
Monster Eating Vampire
Roth
Death Knight
Queen of Hearts (Alice in Wonderland)
Dragon Watchers
The journey and the big fish
Forrest Defender
Red Snow
Catching Spirits
The Tomb King
I'm fine
Despoiled
Cat Girl
Forest of Bunnies
The Journey
Boulderback
FIELD OF THORNS: OFFER
Malavestros: Muse of Madness
Jet Futura
The Northern Administration
Prisoned Singer
Don Kichote
On The Hunt
The Platform
I know a bank
Love and war
52Hz
Chase, The Dreamer
Mad
Until the End of the World..
Crow Temple
Accolade
Dragon's Breath

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Want to suggest a DD? See the link to my guidelines below!