Hi everyone! I'm back with another recap post, this year really flew by for me. Hope everyone is well and wish you all happy 2023!

It was fun compiling this recap post, turns out I did more art than I expected this year. This year was slower than 2021, but I've been putting a lot more time into each painting, pushing my style and skills to the new levels. Really happy with the results and glad I did the recap. 😁

2022 Started with a bang and a personal ATH for primary sales for a 1/1 painting. Adventure Series is a personal collection that I hope to keep evolving over time. I suggest checking out my previous posts for more detailed process steps and explanations for how I paint.

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The Winding Path.jpg]()

This year I narrowed my focus on only a few of my collections, rather than starting new sets or too many one-off paintings. Prioritizing is hard for me, but I've made good progress on this, so my next goal for 2023 is improving overall organization skills. I set up a schedule, but I won't share it, as I want to adjust it over time, when I see what works best for me. I believe that having a schedule will remove some stress around organization and let me work and plan bigger over time.

Here are the Adventure Series I painted this year!

The Winding Path

It was a bright, sunny and a pleasant day for a stroll, even though the air was surprisingly cold. The Winding Path stretched along the ancient walls and the nature had reclaimed most of it. The place was so quiet that the hero could only hear her own footsteps. With every step she took, the reflective stairs revealed a glimpse of the countless possible futures. The fleeting images conveyed more of a mood rather than visions.

Overall the future appeared vibrant and hopeful which was encouraging. However, the hero noted a few elusive dark shadows that dashed across the glass surface. She also noticed that the more she focused on that darkness - the more it grew. It was a hypnotic pull that she had to consciously break off, even though she really wanted to know more about it. Walking this fine line, she peered deeper into the glimmering reflections, letting her intuition guide her. Assembling the many tiny fragments to make sense of it all.

https://superrare.com/artwork-v2/the-winding-path-31905

The Winding Path is still one of my personal favorites and probably the dreamiest Adventure I've painted so far.

River of Secrets

You may notice a lot of contrast, dark/light in my works. I prefer to not over explain and let the story give more context. One thing I love about strong contrast is that it makes light colors feel like glowing.

Blue lights flickered underwater, dangerously alluring. Those sparks opened tiny rifts, seeping volatile magic into the dark waters. Hero rowed the boat cautiously, mindful of each splash of the oars through the electric waters. Her anxious trepidation turned into excitement, as she finally reached the grand gateway. She noticed a movement in her peripheral vision, but when she turned around everything was still. She took the moment to rest and marvel at the intricate carvings on the walls around her. These appeared to confirm some legends she had heard of this ancient civilization. They had believed that the magic was brought down from the skies by the giant Crows. Moreover, they had known the art of controlling electricity in unimaginable ways. The Crows were also believed to be messengers that could contact anyone even from the beyond. The hero was looking for a way to communicate with someone she had lost touch with long ago and she knew this place was her best chance. She continued her way into the bright narrow passage and the lights grew ever brighter, leading the way.

https://superrare.com/artwork-v2/the-river-of-secrets-32162

This painting started out as a 2021 Daily Sketch, as well as the Crescent Glasshouse (shared lower in the post). I often keep various sketches that I abandon until the time feels right and I feel in the same mood to finish the artwork. Many drawings will probably remain unfinished as I usually pick my favorites. I feel generating various concepts without worrying about finishing them, can lead to most unique results. Also just because I abandoned a sketch doesn't mean I can't finish it a few years later when inspiration hits.

https://twitter.com/KristyGlas/status/1349133939496132612

- KristyGlas

The Hidden Past

I had various ideas for this painting (rough animation, day/night cycle), but in the end I decided to go for simple and cleanest version. I'd love to see the paintings on big screen or canvas some day, so all of the little details can be observed.

Behind the lush wild foliage, the hero could make out the faint carvings of an ancient wall. It protected a long forgotten city, lost even to the collective memory, deliberately wiped from most books and legends. Yet it stood there, withstanding the unforgiving millennia and many struggles. Countless conquerors failed to penetrate these walls, and not a single fracture or crevice has ever been found. Some believed uttering the city's true name would open its gates to the world. Moreover, hose who listened really carefully, could hear sounds like a muffled busy market, but maybe those were echoes of the past.
https://superrare.com/artwork-v2/the-hidden-past-33236

Stream of Consciousness

I often have too many thoughts at the same time, this can be disorienting and even confusing at times. Writing has greatly helped me in expressing myself.

The winter was melting away, replaced by fresh blooming flowers and leaves. The forest was still incredibly cold and rather barren. The silence was broken by the gushing waters of a flowing stream.

This stream was endless and its surface was deceptively calm. Also parts of it were even deeper than a lake. The current was dangerously strong and it could envelop anyone like a heavy blanket that wouldn't let go. It was known for taking the wandering travelers to unexpected destinations which was always different.

https://superrare.com/artwork-v2/stream-of-consciousness-33459

The Silent Twilight

The shadows followed her relentlessly. The hero ran, glancing around nervously, but the darkness was impenetrable. She stopped abruptly sensing movements in the distance, then she heard the heavy steps and broken branches. Standing still, she held her breath. The steps slowly faded into the void. The hero's heart raced in her ears as she was out of breath. She couldn't see where she was going, but she carefully felt her way around trees. After what felt like ages, she noticed a small growing glow. She was relieved to reach a clearing in the forest. The low moonlight finally illuminated the gloomy forest, shattering away the shadows. It was a breathtaking waterfall that merged the land and sky- the crystal water flowed silently like a liquid metal creating a small river.

The hero approached the river wearily. She crouched and cupped a handful of the magic. Quiet tears merged with the calm river. The waterfall of silence washed away the deafening chaos of the mind. Finally the dawn rose in the sky replacing the twilight.

https://superrare.com/artwork-v2/the-silent-twilight-33835

Usually I work on a Cintiq, but I wanted to try Ipad for a change. I love how it saves the art process, but I must say I got spoiled by the 24 inch Cintiq monitor, so I use Ipad more for writing and occasionally drawing.

Art Process:

https://twitter.com/KristyGlas/status/1513634560961044494

- KristyGlas

The Obsidian Valley

Sometimes darkness can be beautiful and mesmerizing and the journey of overcoming or accepting the dark shadows.

An unnatural silence pervaded this dark valley. The hero shuddered as she traversed towards its distant center. The air grew colder and heavier, weighing her down. After some long hours of careful sluggish progress she reached the shattered dark monolith - the upturned pyramid. It was incredibly cold to touch, but felt alive pulsing slowly like a slow heartbeat.

The perceived corruption had been contained so far, but it has been consistently weakening the magic barriers around it. The sharp shards wanted to escape their prison and spread this affliction throughout the world. The Obsidian Valley was one of the long forgotten places. Many avoided it without knowing that it was even there....

https://superrare.com/artwork-v2/the-obsidian-valley-35649

The Flow of Time

The glimmering waterfall warped time and reality, it slowed and speed up at irregular intervals. The ground here felt very much alive, as it rumbled and pulsed with the flow of the thundering cascade.

The hero absent mindedly gazed into the rippling reflections at her feet. Drowsiness almost overcame her, as the surroundings rocked and swayed ever so lightly. She fought off the wave of fatigue, the irresistible urge to dive into the endless slumber.

https://superrare.com/artwork-v2/the-flow-of-time-37382

I want to make a separate blog post for this particular painting, since it took a long time to paint and I saved a lot of process steps. This painting is called the flow of time, because I see time as a fluid thing, that slows down and speeds up on it's own. No matter how much I try to track it and get a sense for it, it always escapes me. Sometimes I lose hours within a blink of an eye. I've come to accept this phenomenon and rather observe its peculiarity.

Fortune’s Way

The sun shone brightly through the autumn colored leaves and they gleamed like golden treasures.

The magic forest was alive as ever. The trees whispered stories, though their language was unknown. Their wisdom was ageless, as they remembered all those who passed here. The travelers who shared their stories with the forest were rewarded with the safe passage to anywhere they desired, the so called Fortune's Way. Some chose to sing, others recited epic poems, while most preferred to talk about their adventures.

https://superrare.com/artwork-v2/fortune%E2%80%99s-way-39416

The Fortune's Way was a special commission for a dear friend. 💜😊
I wanted this painting to be magical, like personalized scene right out of a story book. ✨

https://twitter.com/dcroweth/status/1594747430037516289

- dcroweth

Forest of Reflections

This is a special piece, pushing my glass and shards style to the fullest. Imagined painting something like this for months, and really happy with how the reflective surfaces turned out. The first glassy painting was probably the Magic Garden.

I made a separate post for this painting, highly recommend checking out, since I showed some thought process behind the painting as well as additional steps.
Check it out here: @kristyglas/forest-of-reflections-art-process

The Crescent Glasshouse

In real life I've always avoided conflict, but every interesting story needs tension and problems.

The warm sunset was in contrast with the frosty wind that ruffled the tress. In a small clearing there was a peculiar jewel. It was the Crescent Glasshouse sparkling in the waning sunlight, it's windows shiny as a crystal.

It’s been some years since she had last been here, never thought she’d have the chance to return, much less under these circumstances. Though the glasshouse was abandoned, the plants were thriving in the magically hydrated soil. Their leafy tendrils spread over the floor tiles and completely covered the glass tables...
https://superrare.com/artwork-v2/the-crescent-glasshouse-41554

This is my latest Adventure Series artwork and I might do another separate post about this painting and the process. This is also probably my longest writing so far, check out the link for the full story.

If you'd like to read more about any particular painting in this post, let me know in the comments, happy to share more.

2021 Recap blog posts:
@kristyglas/my-2021-art-recap-part-1
@kristyglas/my-2021-art-recap-part-23-cats-
@kristyglas/my-2021-art-recap-part-33

Thank you for checking out this post <3

You can follow me on Twitter if you'd like to see the latest art :D

Next recap the following week- Cats & Memes!