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merimask β Gold Sun Lion Mask
Published: 2011-04-13 20:28:13 +0000 UTC; Views: 16714; Favourites: 285; Downloads: 493
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Description
I'm really very happy with this new design. It's a combination of a realistic African lion and a sun motif...the lion has sun rays for a mane and is painted all in gold. To offset the fantastic elements of sun rays and metallic color, I carved every hair on the lion's face and added realistic black and white markings. SO pleased with the "Carnivale" feel of this mask.
This mask, like all my work, is made from top quality vegetable-tanned 8oz tooling leather...I use no molds, stamps or forms. Painted with Liquitex acrylics.
I'm doing an experiment and offering this listing for critiques (first time!). I usually get so many thoughtful comments that I decided it might be a fun thing to try. If you feel like spending an extra minute, please leave a critique! They're fun...I've done a few lately myself
This mask is available as a custom order only at my online shop: [link]
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Comments: 50
This is quite an excellent mask, both in concept and excecution. You've got the likeness of the lion down very well.
While the idea of a lion representing the sun in some way is by no means new (many other artists have made the connection between the sun's rays and the mane of a lion), this is a very good version of the idea.
The mane transforming into rays is very well done - at first glance, it looks as though it's simply a lion with a very curly mane, but on closer inspection, it's easy to see the sun motif. No strand of hair or ray seems out of place or overworked (and honestly, I kind of like how in this picture, the gap between the top two rays kind of looks like a heart, at least when I squint).
The colours are well-chosen. I really like the way you've made the white details fade into the gold; the colours are clear enough that none of them get lost, but flow into each other very well.
The only part I can see that disturbs the overall impression is the thick black line running from the corner of the eye down to the bottom of the mask. I actually searched for photographs of lions to see whether or not they had such a line (I know you do quite a bit of research with some of your masks), and while some pictures showed a distinct marking, it was not this distinct, and certainly not black.
My point is that it is a very sharp contrast to the rest of the mask, and kind of throws me off a bit. It would probably not bother me as much if I could see the mask straight on - thus seeing both sides of the nose - but compared to the rest of the colours, it looks a bit.... too heavy.
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Thank you for leaving such a thoughtful critique!
I agree; the black markings are a bit stylized and heavy...with the realism in the carved fur it does sort of slam up against that thick black line. I like those tear patterns on cats ( most notably seen on the cheetah). Tear markings run from the inner corner of the catβs eyes to the side of the cheeks near where the whiskers start. They help to reduce the glare of the sun and aid the cat in hunting during the day. Young lions have them and they gradually fade with age, but on lions they're more subtle than on cheetahs, and never black. I think I'll try my next version of this mask with thinner, more subtle tear markings in brown instead of black, & see how that looks.
Thank you again!
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You're welcome.
Ah - I thought those marks reminded me of something; the cheetah really does have a distinct tear marking. I think trying it in brown, and a bit thinner, might work well. Perhaps dry-brushing it over the gold?
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Is the actual mask for sale? Can you make another one just like it to wear as a mask on stage for theatre?
I is a beautiful work you have done.
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Hi I messaged you about purchasing this. Customized a bit more. Please respond asap/ Menachey1@gmail.com
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This is very ornate and very pretty. It makes me want to look at it for a long while.
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Another fantastic mask- and you really have the "sun" concept come across strongly.
I love how you stylize each mask, and give it it's own thought. It's just a pleasure to see your art in my inbox- it really does permeate and rise above the standard overdone repetitive generic "lion king lion" or "Anime girl"... it really IS art!
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That's a very visually stunning mask! I like how the white and black ground the mask along with the fur detail.
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He is gorgeous!!!
The only thing I would have done different is add some dark brown antiquing in the hair/ornament lines and perhaps also used dark brown instead of black for the markings. But them I'm an earthy brown kinda girl
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Absolutely stunning. The black and white add just the right touch, especially the way you fade the white edges above the eyes and along the snout.
You successfully captured the raw power of an adult male lion and the sun.
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Very nice. I love how it looks a bit like a sun. It's very beautiful and the detail in the fur is wonderful! It must have been very time consuming but it works so well!
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All the swirls in the mane really give this the Carnivale feel. It looks awesome!
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Came out very nicely! Both the lion's face and the sun stylization comes through quite clearly. Perfect for Leos like myself.
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Do you think you would ever do a slightly more realistic variation of this design with a black mane?
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So beautiful! This sort of makes a "Watch out, I'm the Alpha Male!" statement hehe.
As far as critique (totally uncomfortable since you're a master at this craft already), I think a couple of people mentioned it, but maybe you could add a tiny bit of darker shade of orange or gold to the "roots" of the larger parts of the mane. Possibly do a soft blend leading up to the brighter gold.
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This is glorious, I love the way the mane looks. However, if the mane would have been just a tad darker or more coppery, I think it would have given a great contrast to the face. The black markings really pull the whole thing together, it's so gorgeous.
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I love the details put into this, the texture from the individually carved hair is stunning. And I love the gold color, it really makes me think of Aslan from The chronicles of narnia. I really like the white and black details. Fabulous as always m'dear.
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This is my new favorite mask of yours! Simply beautiful, I love how you do your animal noses!
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I love this! I think it's in my top ten favorites of your masks... i looove the stylization of the mane/sunrays. and his ears! all the detail is spectacular.
The only thing that confused me for a second was the black marking from the eye to the mouth... that, to me, is a very cheetah-ish marking... i have yet to see a lion with that marking, though i'm sure they are out there and i'm just ignorant.. Stylistically it's still gorgeous, and still reads as lion very clearly... there was just a moment of 'huh.' for me.
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This is probably one of my favorites of your masks. I love the stylization of the mane as the sun's rays!
On one hand I love the flat gold because it shines beautifully and makes the viewer focus on the mask's overall shape. On the other hand, I think it causes some of the smaller shapes to pop a lot less than they could. I'd suggest trying to add some other shades of gold to keep with the golden sun theme but at the same time make the smaller shapes pop a bit more.
It depends on what you want the viewer to focus on more. Either way it will be brilliant because this design is absolutely wonderful!
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Stunning mask!
You have outdone yourself.
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Very cool, I like it! This may sound kind of silly, but I really like the eyes- there's something about the shape of big cats' eyes that's just so very visually appealing, in my opinion.
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Oooo, the first thing I thought when I saw this mask was "carnival" actually, think I like it better than your purple and green carnival masks actually.
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This is a really nice mask. Although I feel that cuz there's too much gold it kind of loses some of the depth details of the mask. A little orange or brown shading to create some contrast that makes the rays of light stand out more. I've always been a sucker of your keen eye of contrast, which I love this one more if there was just a little bit more of that brilliant contrast. I still ADORE this mask like all your others ^-^. Good job on all your hard work!
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I think that the carving of the mask is speaking a bit more than her usual work by using all the gold. You have to admit that it does make the eye look more at the leather work in this piece compared the other masks.
Of course, how much we like that is all a matter of opinion but it made me see for the first time that there are levels of depth in the carving that I never noticed before.
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This one is definitely a favorite, Meri. and I were just discussing the other night what we will commission from you once we are working and have some padding in our accounts again. I said I'd get a custom mask of my cat and he wasn't sure what he'd want.
But this one clinched it for him and I have to agree that this mask is absolutely breathtaking. I love the white around the eyes and how detailed the fur texture is and the way the nose/mouth area is shaped. Absolutely delightful!
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That is a FANTASTIC lion. And very carnivale.
I love the gold rippling mane ^^
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Thank you! I agree, it looks like it'd be perfectly at home in a parade somewhere.
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Wow!! Very pretty. The hair lines on the mask could have easily gone into the realm of "too much" but they work very very nicely. Love the texture of this one.
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Thank you.
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At the same time the hairs kind of give it the impression of an etching, so it still calls back to fantasy.
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This deserves to be handled
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Okay, seriously? I was looking at a picture of a lion this weekend, and noticed the white parts under it's eyes, and I was thinking along the lines of "I wonder how Merimask would design a lion mask?" ... and now you've made one! I'm telling you, it's magic or something.
I lvoe the eyes, I love the nose (YES, now I'll call it a nose!) and I absolutely adore the swirly fur.
What is a critique though?
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Thanks!
Oh, a critique is just like a comment but a little more detailed. You get to rate the piece with a star rating, and you can be more thoughtful with your opinions. It also shows up on your own profile, which I think is nice (it lets folks know that you care enough about other DA artists to take the time to give thoughtful opinions). I like giving critiques because they let me explain what works on a piece that I like, little things I noticed, etc. It's a bit more than a usual "I like it!" type of comment, and I noticed I get many in-depth thoughtful comments on my work anyway, so I thought it might be a fun thing to try.
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Thank you! *is happy with this design*
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