AOTM #14 - Congratulations Bela!

[AOTM]

Theme: Life vs Death
Defined: Create a work of art based around the idea of life and/or death.
Due Date: 18th June - 12:00 am Eastern
Theme suggested by: Lustre
Contest run by: Chibisuke Chan , Contra Fates and Lustre

Rules for Voting:

• Vote on your favorite entry based on graphical skill.
• Please post explaining your vote and why.
• Please provide helpful feedback on the entries.
• Do NOT post anything insulting or offensive about entries.
• Do NOT vote for your own entry.
• Do NOT tell others which entry is your own.
• Poll End Date: 30th June

Comment Template:

• Areas of Achievement:
• Areas of Opportunity:
• Consensus:

This is NOT mandatory. This is to promote thoughtful critiques for the artists who took the time to submit their entries. This is just another way to show our appreciation for them.

It is not necessary to place the comments and critiques within a hider.

Other Notes:

AOTM Contest Managers are allowed to read, review, and submit their own entries - but are NOT permitted to cast a vote. This is because they know who each author of these entries are, and the entries are no longer anonymous to them. WOTM Contest Managers, however, are allowed to vote - as the entries have remained anonymous to them.

We greatly appreciate those of you who participated, and especially those of you who vote. Without either of you this contest would not exist.

Remember, it is YOU who decides the winner, so you all hold the power. Use it well. (:

[8]

Few entries, but they're all really good! I'm excited to see how this one turns out!

[Rose Swan]

Entry 1: Your entry resembles Ghost Rider, but it's too dark for my taste. I'm not seeing much "life" in it.

Entry 2: I love the quote, but I can't tell who said it. I also think that it doesn't really apply to the theme, and a picture to go along with it. I did debate on voting for you due to the sparkles of it!

Entry 3: Wow. This was awesome. My eyes immediately drifted to this one. It's beautiful. Great job.

[Aweena]

All three entries are quite beautiful and imaginative, but I think Entry #3 has that "wow factor" to it that makes it stand out the most for me. It's a very elegant, dazzling image to look at. I love the detail put into the scenery, and the obvious contrast that gives it a very clear definition made it my instant favorite.

Entry #2, I love that quote. And the dazzling background is very beautiful. The quote and the background combined create a sort of epic, optimistic feeling, I found. I just felt its connection to the theme to be confusing - I think I may understand it a bit, but it wasn't all that clear.

Entry #1, yours had that wonderfully dark, negative side from the theme that I liked; it stood out because it took a different approach. It's a beautiful creation, and I loved the detail as well as the representation of live vs. death - the fire on the skull.

[love that panda]

Ah, I ran out of time to enter. ;_;

Reviews will be up soon. c:

[Sil]

I have to admit, the artwork, though there are few entries, is very well done.

Entry 3 - The representation of Life and Death was very well done here, and the contrast between the two was clear and almost elegant. However, it didn't have the exquisite subtlety that I oftentimes enjoy in duels between two elements, especially those with such contrast. It was a close pick, but not quite what I was looking for. Still very well done.

Entry 2 - I see much life in this one, yes, but where is Death? It is a simple design, and to me it appears as if it was made using a sight like Bannerfans or something close to it. The words are lovely, but there isn't much...artistry in it. Perhaps if you are to go digital, use a different tech than that. Add some pezazz to boost the work, and remember in something like this...there are two sides.

Entry 1 - This one, I have to say, took the cake for me. It's dark and subtle, and that's what I enjoy. The representation of death pops out in the pile of skulls to the side, and again moreso with the single skull facing the viewer. That screams dark and elusive. But then, you have that hint, that brush of life. And how do I see it? Flames live. They breath; they eat...they spread. And they fight in the way of taking over Death by covering the skull and spreading throughout the picture. Truly well done. I love it in every way. You most definitely have my vote!

[Dudel]

I like #3 on an all around general kind of level. #1 would make some really neat concept art for a game and #2 is a nice signature... if not a little bit too big.

[Lillian Thorne]

As per usual I wish I could see the elements that went into each piece just because I like to see how things are used.

Areas of Achievement: I love how you worked both elements into the image. The joining of the background is seamless. Is that yours or the stock you started with?

Areas of Opportunity: The two figures don't quite work together for me. The one is a photograph the other seems to be an oddly proportioned drawing. That they are small takes away a little of the awkwardness for me but not much. A better match might have worked more.

Consensus: from a distance this image is great but I find the nature of it makes me want to look close and see the differences and that is where it fumbles. Refined this will be wonderful.

Areas of Achievement: I like the color used in this, that purple is great and works so well with the brightness of the explosion.

Areas of Opportunity: I like how the Signature(?) was done in a similar color scheme and wish the quote itself were as well. A really dark shade of that purple would have been great.

Consensus: Pretty but didn't really convey the theme for me.

Areas of Achievement: I love the green, I love the breaks of light and the asymmetry of them.

Areas of Opportunity: not certain I like the beveling around the edges of this but it's a small uncertainty.

Consensus: If this is hand done by the artist or largely pieced together by them then I am impressed. I really like the composition and strong use of color and this one gets my vote. Very cool.

[Bela]

I really hope we get some more critique for the entries. I think one of the reasons AOTM doesn't get many entries is because the lack of support the contest gets from voters. I know the art community is small on this site, but it's not miniscule. If more people took a little time to give the entries a good look over and critique, the artists might feel a little more inclined to work harder and even participate more. I want to thank those those of you who do take a few minutes out of your day to give us budding artists your honest opinions. It's definitely a big help in furthering my novice skills.

Although, I may be wrong. It may just be the themes that turn people off. Yet this theme was so perfect. It should have had at least three entries per category. There was so many possibilities with this theme. I don't understand what about it made people decide "maybe next month".

Since I'm in this contest, I'm going to save the critique of my competition until the voting is over.

[SgtKlum]

Better late than never, I suppose. Here's my two cents:

1. Amazing piece of art. I love it. Frankly, it's the one I would have voted for... if it hadn't been a miss on the theme. I see skulls, I see fire, I see lots and lots of Death. Unfortunately I can't see anything there which conforms to the 'Life Vs' part of Live Vs Death. It's a great piece of art and I would love to vote for it, but unfortunately the spirit of this competition is such that I just can't bring myself to vote for a piece which didn't capture the -whole- theme. Sorry!

2. If you want, you can pretty much copy most of what I said above. It's a nice piece, and I like the quote, but I can't really see how it fits with the theme of 'Live Vs Death'. It covers existence pretty well, but that connection seems tentative at best. Sorry, but again, I just can't bring myself to vote for a piece which missed the theme.

3. The fact that I voted for this one only because the other two missed the theme is not to be misinterpreted as me disliking it. I don't. I think you tackled the theme and hit the nail very much on the head. I like the symmetry (or lack thereof) in the piece and I think you've done very well. There are one or two things that look a little off, but in general the presentation is good and the theme is represented well. You deserve the vote, well done!