Hello Alien Art Hive Community members. I'm here once again, happy to participate and bring my version of "Home". My approach to Contest No. 11 was that of a fallen comrade seeking the comfort of home.
- Create art related to the above theme
- Make a post about it in Alien Art Hive
- Include the words Cosmic Creations in the title so they are easy to identify in the feed
- Please try to include some process images and discuss the techniques used in your creation
- Drop a link to your entry post the comments below
- The deadline is February 5th Midnight EST
- To participate, visit the contest post: Cosmic Creations new round is LIVE! Theme: HOME
My short story accompanying my themed-project is below:
The Lonely Return Home
Exhausted, Jerrod stirred as insects swarmed about his head. The stench of death drew near. But he was only a minor figure in the larger scene. Leaning against the large oak tree, he scoured the land where remnants from the last stage of the bloody battle could be seen. Crimson and brown covered mangled bodies. Screams drowned out the occasional clanking of weapons. Two highly trained factions vowing never to reconcile for the sake of peace lost numerous fighters. No side would claim victory that day.
The early morning air was thick with a dull haze. The sun attempted to break through the mist that blanketed the field.
Jerrod searched through eyes partially covered with his own blood dripping from his matted hair. His own men clothed in blue and green lay strewn across the field. He must locate her, he screams silently. Promises made to her father demanded he return her unharmed the same as she departed six months prior.
He released his grip on the branch and pressed down hard on the wound in his stomach. Slowly, he stumbled across the field calling out in desperation. No response. But he couldn't abandon her.
Halted by a hand in his path, he looked down. Among the casualties lying beneath severed bodies, flaming strands mixed with wet dirt stuck out from under a small helmet. Immediately, he dropped to his knees. With his free hand, he dug until a shallow hole allowed him to expose the body attached to the hair.
It was Vanya.
His comrade on the battlefield. His best friend from the neighboring clan. His most trusted second in command. And the female soldier who had saved his life during numerous skirmishes. Her prowess on the battlefield was legendary.
He screamed for his soldiers to come assist. Only two remained, but they managed to free Vanya from under the carnage.
Her body was broken, but her spirit still raged as she pleaded in a weak voice, "leave me. Save yourself and what's left of our men. Block the siege from the western territory. I'm going home now. I'll be there when you arrive. Just make sure you live to greet me."
Her voice softened to a whisper. His hair raised on his neck as he leaned closer.
"Go home and do battle for us both. Rid the vermin from your land, then join ours as one. Angelica is waiting. She can't resist much longer."
With that, Vanya took his hand and placed it over her vest shield. At that moment, the spirit for battle left his soul as she breathed her last breath. He held her close in his arms knowing he had no choice but to let go.
He sat beside her moaning. His comrades pleaded with him to stir and leave that place else risk capture by the enemy.
The return home to their lands was lonely fraught with memories of Vanya's antics and wise sayings she'd learned from her father. Deep inside tugging at his heart was his beloved who waited. But he couldn't face her or his country in defeat.
He was wounded, but alive. As he stood there beside the tower where they once played as children, he remembered her fierceness for freedom at all cost. Her homeland enjoyed peace and prosperity for hundreds of years. And she ensured that peace, doing whatever she could to solidify the nations.
Were it not for that same determination, unselfish loyalty, and sacrifice, he would have been left on the killing field that ran crimson from one end to the other.
Jerrod looked down at the reflective water, shimmering in her beauty.
In the distance, his home beckoned. His land cried out for its leader. But he couldn't step across the divide that separated his and Vanya's homeland. He glanced up and toward the sea to the other side toward his home of magnificent castles.
But home meant more battles and bloodshed. Is it worth it? he cried silently.
Through his tears, a light azure shadow formed above and settled in the shadows of the evening light. He looked up toward the floating home that was Vanya's sanctuary. Her face loomed large over her land.
"Yes," she nodded, "as long as you are able to fight, do so until your last breath. I'll be there beside you," she spoke softly in his ear as she planted a gentle kiss on his cheek.
For this month's contest theme, my thoughts reflect on a solider and his return home after the war. I wanted to portray a female soldier who died bravely on the battlefield. Her image is immersed in the surroundings of her homeland.
In designing this project, I drew inspiration from two free-sourced beautiful landscape and female facial images. This project is one of those rare occasions where I didn't include any of my pure fractals I create.
Here is the floating house with a lovely background where other structures are floating also. The female head was a rare find for the theme I wanted to portray.
With all images selected, blending them required a design program. The one I use regularly is Canva. I uploaded them to take advantage of the pro features, such as background removal, sizing, colorizing, and filters.
I share with you below my procedures:
To a blank, white canvas, I added the floating house.
Duplicated house and its bottom landscape to fill the canvas. Once duplicated and reposition at the bottom of the floating house, a lovely reflective pool emerged. I then added the bird flock in the left hand corner of the canvas.
I added the female face. I knew it would fit perfectly with the background.
Removed background from female's face, the resized and repositioned it. Completed project.
Below is my completed project:
Thanks for your visit. I hope you liked my mixed media art project entry for Alien Art Hive's Contest No. 11.
SOURCES:
a) JustClickindiva's Footer created in Canva utilizing its free background and images used with permission from discord admins.
b) Unless otherwise noted, all photos taken by me with my (i) Samsung Galaxy 10" Tablet, (ii) Samsung Phone, & (iii) FUJI FinePix S3380 - 14 Mega Pixels Digital Camera
c) Purple Butterfly part of purchased set of Spiritual Clip Art for my Personal Use
d) All Community logos, banners, page dividers used with permission of Discord Channel admins.
e) Ladies of Hive banner used with permission of and in accordance with the admin's guidelines
f) Thumbnail Image created by me in Canva.
g) "Flames." What is Apophysis 2.09. https://flam3.com/
1 What is Stable Diffusion? StarryAI.Com. Online at: https://starryai.com/stable-diffusion