Ray LaMontagne

Ray’s newest album is titled “Supernova” and my imagery took shape around his title. I had this idea that a space archer would blast the sun to cause a stellar explosion equaling that of a supernova. Once I started delving into the mythology of archers I decided to reference the Greek character Artemis. Artemis is the goddess of hunting, wilderness and childbirth, and is regarded as a protector. She was was often depicted beside deer (who were sacred to her) and carrying a bow and arrow. I also added a planet, Venus, in order to add some context to the setting. The actual face of the planet seen here is referred to as the “Artemis Corona”.

I built the illustration out of this flame technique I’ve been developing for awhile and wanted to highlight some of the reference photos for the creation of Artemis. The first is a Diana sculpture from Augustus Saint-Gaudens and the second is a silhouette of a dancer in mid air. Both of these helped establish the curves and contours in the illustration. Her immense scream is probably manga influenced.

NOTES: 24 x 18 inches /// 4 screens /// signed and numbered artist edition of 85 /// variant edition of 30 copies on holofoil paper /// numbered show edition of 100 sold at show /// October 26, 2014 at Municipal Auditorium in Shreveport, LA