2024-04-13 13:34:53 ¶ ●

This has been in my head for weeks i couldnt let go of it

2024-04-22 20:43:40 ¶ ●

I finally updated my helen design yippee🎉🎉 i put my notes and ramblings under the cut

(I’ve been waiting for ages to be able to talk about my distortion designs and the distortion in general so sorry if this gets a bit long.)

The distortion really interests me because of all the fears with prominent avatars, helen and michael appear to be (imo) the most inhuman, being reduced to mostly abstract concept but also somewhat devoid of free will, much like an animal. So when i draw them i try to emulate animal characteristics - the yellow eyes match the door but are also similar to cats or owls for instance (The kubrick stare i tend to give them does the same thing lol). The way the distortion feeds itself reminds me of a venus flytrap or a pitcher plant and i associate it very closely with naturalistic elements because of this, because of the fact that technically the distortion as a fear is thousands if not millions of years old, and because i like the contrast of something urban like a door surrounded by wildlife. Its curious and tempting and it doesnt make sense, which reflects the nature of the distortion itself. In the same way i like to give them facial features typically considered enticing or friendly - round faces, resting smiles, dimples, smaller eyebrows etc, but i always try to place them in the uncanny valley by extending the smile slightly too far and keeping the eyes wide open.

I liked this hairstyle for helen in particular because it feels almost like a halo and i like the comparison of certain fear avatars to deities. In general i draw helen happier than michael because she always seemed to revel in her nature (once she got past the initial feelings) more than michael did, but thats just a vibes thing.