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CountessMorgana — Daughters of Fire
Published: 2010-09-18 22:53:33 +0000 UTC; Views: 1496; Favourites: 14; Downloads: 6
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Description
Or alternately, "Culture Clash Ahead". :giggles:From Chapter 35 of Embers, whereon Lieutenant Teruko and "Private" Zuko have inflitrated Ba Sing Se on their way to a meeting with Earth King Kuei, and about five seconds (or immediately after) Teruko sticks her phoenix-toed foot into her mouth via typical Fire Nation humour.
Unfortunately, that translates into "crude Earth Kingdom humour of the type you really don't say around young girls who've never grown up with war". Oops.
Teruko (L) and Suyin (R) are my own design; you'll probably recognize Jia, in the middle, from that infamous poetry session.
Rough sketch only, with pencil, that got darkened somehow so the fainter lines are nigh invisible. Can already spot a number of problems, including Teruko's eyes, Suyin's fringe, Jia's outfit and everyone's hands. Plan to clean it up and ink it someday, depending on my schedule.
Anyways... My first fanart in three or four years, and certainly the first I've done since starting Fashion Design at college. I cannot stress how diffucult it was for me to draw realistically, in proportion, with hands/fingers and facial features when I'm so used to exaggeration and stylization and clothes. And the shoes. Do not get me started on those shoes - I've spent the last three years drawing high heels on females that I couldn't for the life of me remember how to draw the flat Fire Nation and Earth Kingdom footwear! :sigh:
My first Avatar: The Last Airbender fanart, and much thanks and love to Vathara and Mallorn85 - one for writing such a multi-layered masterpiece, the other for inspiring me with her own artistic talents (which, if I may say, far surpass mine).
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Comments: 18
Wow. I imagined Teruko totally different! XD But it looks good.
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were would I find Jia in the ep she is in? I'd love to cosplay her, and my mum has disided that we're going to sew all holiday brack, so I need to find her for the colors ASAP if I want to have her be my project.
BTW, I hate to say it , but do you have evadenct that the girl you drew was who Vathera picked as Jia?
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Hey! Jia was among the girls seen in the Poetry Club (or '5-7-5 Society') that Sokka accidentally found himself in during "Tales of Ba Sing Se". She's the one we see on the far left, front row, from Sokka's point of view.
It's stated in Embers that Jia attends the poetry club and was one of the girls present during Sokka's intrusion. I assumed for a time Jia was the girl on stage who Sokka interrupted. PMing Vathara on FF.N, she confirmed for me that the girl she saw as Jia was in fact the one described above (so, yeah, straight from the Word of God herself). Lucky for me the two girls had the same outfit and it was only a matter of changing the hairstyles and accessories.
Good luck with your cosplay!!
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that's who I thought it was!
Thanks, when I finish I'll link back to you as one of my sources.
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would you mind if I used this as an illustration for that part of the story? I'm making a hard copy of Embers for myself.
of corse, if it comes out good enogh to post, I'll link back.
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Yay! More Embers fanart. At some point, I'll take a stab at it. I like seeing the women drawn out. I think Suyin is adorable. Looks a little younger than 13, though. But I adore her hair. Jia looks pretty good to me. I like how Teruko is in armor but, still, manages to look feminine.
Maybe you can answer my question, but why do they draw people like that for fashion design? Seriously.
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Honestly, the emphasis on fashion design is the clothing, and for the longest time the ideal figure to wear such high-end goods was (still is) the skinny long-limbed waif. As such, when drawing I and many others exaggerate those traits; and add in the fact that I personally tend to omit 'unnecessary' details like hands and faces, you get a figure so distorted from reality to the point where the only people who really resembles it are the runway models with that rare physique who'd show them.
And, of course, unless you do sportswear (and even then!) the ideal womenswear outfit is incomplete without that staple of Western femininity, the high-heeled shoe - it will be a rare designer who doesn't send their models out without wearing some form of elevated footwear.
For Suyin... Yeah, I realize she looks a bit young, but I was going on my own family history and the general cultural trend that does not permit a girl to wear an adult woman's garb or hairstyle until she has reached the proper age or married. We know in the Avatar-verse that 16 is the norm for adulthood in the Water Tribes; it's not out of the question that the Earth Kingdom would have a similar custom. Suyin's thirteen, and thus she's still considered a child and wears a child's clothing (shorter hem and sleeves on qipao and full-length trousers) and a young girl's hairstyle (the infamous "ox-horns"; the braided loops were my own addition), and no jewellery. Compare to Jia, who's 16 or so, and wears the outfit of a young lady of marrying age. ^^ Hope this helped!!
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Wow, long explanation for a short question. But, thanks! It's nice to know. 
Thanks for the reasoning behind Suyin's outfit. It makes a whole lot of sense. I'd forgotten cultural details like that. Especially since modern US culture doesn't have anything like that.
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'Especially since modern US culture doesn't have anything like that.'
Tell me about it! I'm Canadian but I'd still get stares whenever my mom would dress my hair in the "ox-horns" style for the Lunar New Year or Harvest Moon festivals. Granted, the last time I wore my hair like that I was, what? 12? And next year I was thought to be too old. *shrugs* It varies.
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Embers!
Ehhh, I feel sooo outclassed. Maybe one day I'll find a spot I like and draw some of my own fanart... or write this infamous red cord we keep hearing about, as homage to Vathara's fun.
>> Though frankly I want to kidnap a certain Dai Li for myself, I agree: He and an equally fun Fire Marine would make a very good couple.
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'Though frankly I want to kidnap a certain Dai Li for myself, I agree: He and an equally fun Fire Marine would make a very good couple.'
And so say we all!! *grins*
Please, if you ever find the time and inclination, take a stab at drawing some Embers art. We need to represent!
Maybe someone should start an Embers DA community for us fans? Any volunteers? ^^
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I could try, except I wont be on an actual computer again for a week...
As to drawing, I'm more a writer, but I might doodle out family trees. Fairly good with those, and it'll keep me occupied while I draw actual people. (People = Not my cup of tea)
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Dude! more embers fanart! *squees with happy*
The feet look fine to me, don't be so hard on yourself.
I look forward to seeing more from you.
Well darn, now I should post some Embers art too... ><; *feels slightly left out for not drawing art sooner* XD
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Ooh, please draw some fanart too! Between me and Mallorn, there's only about one other person out there who's done any Embers work at all!!
(Well, there's that faceless Dai Li plushie, but does that count?)
This series is epic - and it needs more love!!
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Yay! Embers fanart! 
Thank you for making this piece! Make more! Let there be more Embers fanart!
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Well, I'm touching it up now, fixing the lines, cleaning it up. Hopefully I can get a coloured version done in the next week or so. I really love Teruko's character - for some reason I can 'hear' her being voiced by Michelle Rodriguez, and probably played in live-action by her too. That kick-ass, bad girl, Marine quality - what's not to love?
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