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hyenacub — Gellert Grindelwald
Published: 2011-11-13 04:24:24 +0000 UTC; Views: 3450; Favourites: 19; Downloads: 64
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Gellert Grindelwald was one of the most feared Dark Wizards of the early half of the 20th century. His motto, "For the Greater Good" meant a lot of sorrow and devastation for a lot of people.We don't know a lot about his childhood, but I always saw him as a little boy, in the late 1800s, who loved and admired his father greatly. His father would be in the military (though he was a wizard) and likely would have planted the seed for that belief...he might have told his son that a man could not be selfish, that a man had to think of his comrades, his friends and family...and do what was best for everyone. Gellert, who idolized his father, would have taken these words to heart.
It is a good philosophy, but one that could be easily corrupted....
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So this is my visual contribution to the "Childhood Memories" contest...a fan art contest that asks us to delve into a character's background. I chose Gellert Grindelwald, from the Harry Potter universe.
In preparation for this picture, I had to do some research on children's attire from around the 1890s, when Gellert would be a little guy. It wasn't easy, because apparently there's not a lof of visual information about what German children wore around that time period.
There's a cool website I often go to for period kids' clothing, but even that site didn't have a lot of info, LOL Still, there was some, and I finally settled on this sort of outfit, called a tunic suit.
I also had to figure out what the German military looked like then, and based his father's uniform on the Prussian army of the time. From what I could figure out, the Germans wore the same sort of uniform...and besides...it looked cool.
So here's little Grindelwald, standing with what he hopes is military precision as his father passes. C:
#27 on my Harry Potter 100 Themes challenge found here: [link]
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Comments: 17
Wow. This is incredible. Grindelwald is definitely one of the less common Harry Potter characters drawn, and I don't think I've ever seen one of him as a little boy. The dress style is perfect for wizards: somewhat resembling the time period, but also a bit eccentric. I really enjoy how little Gellert's bright blue eyes and blond hair contrast with his dull, grey complexion. The background is nice too, but doesn't distract the viewer from the picture's focus, which is wonderful. The only type of critique I would give would be in regard to his head, which appears t be unconnected to the hairline (it's hard to describe, but mostly it looks like the hair is glued to the head on top and kind of floating away if that makes sense.) His head and feet also seem quite small in comparison to the rest of the body, especially his hand. Still, it's an amazing picture. Certainly better than I could ever do!
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Hey! Thanks very much for the kind review. it was a picture I worked hard on and even researched. Gellert's outfit is actual period clothing, with the added addition of the kind of shoes boys wore then as well as the buttons shaped like the Deathly Hallows.
You are absolutely right about the feet and hand--I tend to make big hnds and little feet. It used to be the opposite. :headsmack: I am working on that.
You're right about the hair, too. I shaded too much underneath and made the hair seem like it was away from the skull. 
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Oh, I forgot about the buttons! That was my favorite part!
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This one is interesting. I like it when artists do fanart of secondary characters--more freedom of imagination there! What caught my eye first were the period clothes. I really like Papa's Prussian blue uniform, and are those the Deathly Hallows that I see at little Gellert's collar and belt? I also like that the picture conveys the personalities very clearly. Very proper, by the rules military father. Loves his son, but not the type of parent to give a lot of hugs. Gellert is a beautiful boy, but not the kind of kid you want to hug. That look on his face--he is already in love with power.
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Hey--thanks for the great comment! I am glad that you picked up on those things that I tried to convey in the picture. I never thought about giving hugs or not, but I'm glad that came out in the picture too. It makes sense. And yep, those are the Hallows symbols on his clothing! XD
I enjoy period clothing, mostly the 17 and 1800s. Especially kids' clothing; it fascinates me. Thanks again for the comment, glad you liked! : D
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Dr. Who should be fun to write about. I used to watch it when I was little--the old one, with the fourth doctor.
Cripes! I wish there were more stringent consequences for that. But I guess you can't tell who did it by accident. : P
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Hey, hyena! Good to see you again. Looks like we won't be facing off directly this time, since I'm entered into the Lit category.
It's good to see another LEGITIMATE entry into the contest again, you won't believe how much spam has accumulated into the submissions category. I'm not a Harry Potter fan AT ALL but I'm impressed by the imagination and thought you put into your entry.
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Oh hey, nice to see you too! :grin: We might be facing off. If I have time, what with NaNoWriMo, I'll be entering the lit division too. I look forward to seeing yours! You doing Transformers again?
Oh I'd believe it. In contests that I enter, I like to look at other entries, and see more miscats than legit ones. I report them all because it ticks me off. lol Most have GOT to be on purpose, looking for a little extra exposure.
Well thanks for saying so! That's awesome of you to say, especially not being a fan of the series. C:
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Nope! This time I figured I would save myself from becoming a joke to the mods and chose something different to write about - Doctor Who.
They piss me off too, and this time around I've seen more miscats than ever. More than twice the previous record, probably. At one point today I went into the submissions category, clicked "Newest," and the ENTIRE FRONT PAGE was ALL miscats.
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I think DA glitched and ate my reply. lol Doctor Who should be fun to write. I used to watch the old ones as a kid. I liked the fourth doctor the best.
Yeesh. I wish there were more stringent consequences for that sort of thing. But I guess it's impossible to tell who did it by accident.
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It's something I always wanted to try, but was intimidated by. The Doctor is a very complex character and the variations from incarnation to incarnation make writing any one in particular that much harder. So writing him as a boy I guess I defaulted to the First Doctor... which I've seen precious little of.
The Fourth is great, I think most of my material revolves around him. But I don't really have a favorite. Every actor had their pros and cons and brought something wonderful to the character.
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Hm. I don't remember much a bout Doctor Who. Are all the doctors reincarnations of the same man, then? I always thought they were successors of the same...position or fate. But then I was very young when I watched it.
:nodnod:
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Yeah, they're all the same person. Time Lords have the ability to regenerate into a new body when they're on the verge of death. "A Time Lord has 13 lives." It's a brilliant concept that's allowed the show to go on for going on 50 years (counting the time between the cancellation of the old and the revival of the new). It's like James Bond, but with an in-story explanation for the recasting.
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Oh...very interesting! Well thanks for the info. And yeag, that is a really clever way to explain it.
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My pleasure. Good luck with the contest!
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