Author: Pang Xin

Typographic Portrait: Trial and Error

All the Process.

Before this, as I was quite fixated on the illuminated manuscript idea, I was pretty determined to do all my designs by hand.

But. 2 problems quickly became apparent. Firstly, it appears my ability to paint are not on the caliber of medieval monks.

Secondly, I was uncertain about what to do with the backgrounds. Illuminated manuscripts also tend to either have florid or boring gold/silver backgrounds. However, I realize my font or script for the symbols are too plain to fit into complicate backgrounds. In addition I would like any designs in the background to be relevant the themes, which is not efficient for me to figure out and draw by hand…

So. Digital!

I decided I would still add the paint and decorations on top of them when I print them out, and for the background, I decided to add textures and patterns, both from what I already have, as well as looking for some free stocks online.

These are the ones I attempted, mostly background tryouts and a bit of WIP:

And print!

IMAG5792__1455794910_155.69.161.33 IMAG5800__1455794961_155.69.161.33

I bought a smaller, thinner brush just for this.

And then I experimented some with the placement of the sparklies. Again, minor differences from the final, but its there.

Next post will be the Final consolidated.

Typographic Portrait: Iconophiliac sketches

After deciding on the symbols I could use, I started to combine some of them to explore the meaning or themes I wanted to fulfill with each design.

2d5

The experiments are mostly on the left, while the final 6 designs are on the right. I tried to push the meaning of each design as far as possible without distorting it’s aesthetic value.

Along the way, I also considered the “name” and “vocation”. I had difficulties coming up with a solid vocation because I felt I am a very fluid person.. in a sense I can imagine myself doing a lot of things but it’s very difficult to settle on one or a few to explore just for this project (*cough* or even for life..).

It’s easier when I considered it in more abstract terms though, and to help me with that I looked up the list of “Philia”s.

2d12

Ailurophilia (Obsessive love of cats). Reworking of the first design. The initial design is the one on the featured image. I had to redo it because I haven’t figured out the proportions for my designs at that point in time and in the end it mismatched with the rest.

The one eye cat is just..me. As I have used the same motif several times before.

2d7

This could be  Lygophlia (Love darkness) or Nytophilia (Love of the night). Symbols used:

The moon
The Goddess (3 stage of the moon, 3 stage of woman)
Salt (Representing physical body in alchemy terms)
Wiccan blessing

2d8

Quintessence, I actually can’t think of a “Philia” for this. And essentially only have that one alchemy symbol although I added some twist to it.

I added a small square to the middle of the smaller circle to allude to the Chinese coin, which i remember my parents telling me it represents being well rounded(circle) on the outside, but with solid values (square) on the inside.

Also as seen on the left I wrote my name (Chinese, and English initials) in stylistically. This was an idea that occurred to me when parts of the symbol itself looks too empty, yet at the same time the symbol reminds me slightly of a summoning circle… (Just a thought, I am not a demon hehehe)

So yes, for the stylized characters I actually did reference the “signatures” of demons, which are ironically suppose to hide their real names from being known as well. I love those stuff. XD

2d9

This is the most plain, and first design to be rejected after the requirements for the assignment changed from 6 to 4 pieces.

It is basically a combination of the symbols of all the elements (Fire Water Earth and Air). In a way it’s representing harmony in nature, but it feels similar to Quintessence yet considerably duller in meaning… So this one I’m actually glad when I didn’t have to use it.

2d10

Astrophilia! I actually really liked this. It’s a combination of my ascendant/rising sign (Cancer, on the outside because that is suppose to represent the personality you show), Sun/Moon sign (the sun sign is the common horoscope, but my moon sign is the same as sun sign), the Mid-heaven sign ( Pisces, suppose to be for jobs I think..) and Venus sign (Gemini, for love). Just for the sake of it, I also added my Chinese Zodiac (rat) shape into the Cancer horoscope symbol. It also looks a bit like the yin/yang symbol..

I removed this design after attempting some coloring (Later posts) because although I truly love its composition and meaning, it might not fit as nicely with the others when it’s significance seems (to me) considerably more direct which I was not entirely comfortable with for this assignment

2d11

Final! My name is infinite and I am possibilities.

This is the only one I am completely sure about for the name and vocation because it fits so well with how I perceive myself as fluid and perhaps adaptable.

I wanted to (and in the end did) include the Ouroboros symbol as well, but for a while I thought it would not be possible because drawing it on paper will be too small. It was later done digitally.

 

Danraxelia Lore: Crime and Punishment

(OOC: Law Lore Lol. *cough*sorry*cough* anyways.)

There exist no capital punishment in Danraxelia.

The harshest form of punishment are life imprisonment in complete isolation. This means no chance for parole and no contact from anybody aside from the prison guards. In this sense, they will be dead to everybody in Danraxelia, never to be seen again even by their friends and family, who are not allowed to visit.

Not that their family will ever want to visit anyways.

There are strong social stigma attached to this sentence and usually the families will be too ashamed to ever be associated with the person again, unless they want to further jeopardize their status in society.

While it this stigma might sounds extreme, it is perhaps only fueled by how rare this sentence really is, occurring only once or twice in several decades.

It is usually reserved for the absolutely unrepentant criminals, serial killers or the insane with strong malicious intent…in other words, unanimously deemed a “Lost Cause” by the respectable Judge and their panel of Jury.

Interestingly, this sentence are usually not even given to murderers.

Murderers will usually be sentenced to life imprisonment, but visiting from family and friends are permitted, and there exist the possibility of parole. However, breaking the parole or repeated offences will be what grantees them to become a “Lost cause”.

Blatant disrespect and rudeness to the Oracles will be considered a blasphemy which is unheard of, but not a crime on its own.

Other crimes are punishable by imprisonment and fines, with severity varying depending on the crime.

But as Danraxelia prides itself on being a civil society (It’s built around a library after all), rehabilitation are enforced together with imprisonment or fines. These are usually in the form of education and various manual labors to “repay their debt to society”. This could range from anything from washing toilets to arranging the books in the library.

They will not be confused with respectable individuals taking up the same jobs though, as their grey prisoner robes- not to be removed until they served their time- speaks volumes of their differences.

Once they do serve their time though, they are taken to be sufficiently re-educated with newly guided and corrected sense of morals. Thus, they will usually be re-accepted into society in time.

Danraxelia Lore: Architecture

(OOC: Complicated post. Thus no chapter update this week..hopefully will have more time and less things to think about next week ><”
Actors I admit this might be confusing due to my excessive amount of detailed headcannons but you don’t have to read everything…)

The buildings in Danraxelia… or rather, the entire basis of the city itself is fashioned from some sort of stone, seemingly hand carved from an entire giant block. However, the truth of who, or what, was capable of such an inhuman feat has been lost through the ages, theories intertwining between stories and legends.

IMAG5785
Basic top down view (Semi-complete), the bottom level is evidently the biggest ring, and the smallest dot in the middle is the tower.

The very bottom level of Danraxelia is considered the rural area, and has huts and cottages surrounding the main city structure. These are usually built with rocks and stones or even wood and straw. Cement are used sparingly to bind some materials together.

Inside the bottom city levels are a complicated mess of increasingly confusing and dark tunnels (OOC: which might be (part of) irrigation system but thats not something I want to think too hard about now @@) the deeper you go. But at the area closest to the farms and forests outside, there are rooms or even “apartments” separated out in the tunnels using the rocks, stones and cement. However, these rooms are usually use to store tools and other items farmers or workers might need for their jobs outside. People don’t usually live in these areas for long periods due to poor facilities and most usually have their own apartments in the lower levels of the residential areas anyways.

The industrial city levels consist mostly of factories and workshops. The heavy industries focusing on raw material processing and material recycling (For living in the middle of the ocean makes some of their resource pretttyyyy scarce) are at the bottom two levels while the more delicate crafting are done on the top level.

The residential levels are pretty hierarchic, with the poorer living on level 1-3, middle class 3-6, and higher class 6-9.

Although there are no hard and fast rule to who can become richer and more capable, the general trend is for farmers, manual workers and crafters to live in the most basic apartments, businessmans in the middle and the extremely rare upper class- those involving or once involved in the parliament- live right at the top.

The inside of these levels tend to be divided into different rooms apartments and streets between them. The most basic material used to construct additional (because of course the city structure has some walls or pillars of its own original stone to ensure the entire city will not collapse) walls are with concrete. Yet unsurprisingly, the richer you are, the more flexible your choice of size and material for housing will become.

Right in the middle within the residential areas, and extending to the level above it, is the central Library. It also functions as the school. Its walls are shelves carved from the original stones that make up the city, suggesting that the library has existed for as long as the city itself. Rather than describing it, please view illustration for a better idea:

IMAG5784

The top level of the library is where the Scribes work and live, and is inaccessible to most.

Equally inaccessible above it is where the Oracles and their Disciples live, and even further up, the parliament, and finally the Sky Garden with the bell tower in the center. The bell tower is the only thing made of red bricks (And not bricks of stone etc.) in the entire city.

IMAG5783
sketch of stairs possibilities

The outer most “walls” of most city levels (Except bottom two levels bottom) are mostly different types of pillars (Egyptian, Greek or Roman are all good references), allowing more lights into the deeper parts of each level or even the entire city. However, there are bits and pieces of actual walls on which lifts are built or stairs are carved into, particularly for the bottom two levels, to make transportation of both goods and people more convenient.

 

Danraxelia Lore: The Powers that Be

(OOC: Actors highly advised to read this~ Or at least the later part

Haish was gonna draw the symbol/logo for the parliament and oracle but I have no time. Perhaps adding in on a later date~)

On the surface, the main governing body of Danraxelia is the parliament, where the seats are somewhat fairly allocated between the three races. (~30~35 humans, 30~35 Tierans, 20~25 Giowels) through voting every 5 years.

As Danraxelia is a largely isolated city, the members of the parliament tend to argue more over the rights and benefits of their own races when situations arise. However, as the city is self-sufficient and large conflicts of interest has never arose, through the years the races have found a delicate balance co-existing.

With prolonged peace and self-sufficiency, becoming a member of parliament became as much an acknowledgement of individual’s social status and charisma as their actual purpose of maintaining Danraxelia’s various functions, and to be honest voting for the members of the parliament are not a priority to the people in Danraxelia.

At the head of parliament are the 9 Heads of Danraxelia, consisting of 3 Human Leaders, 3 Tieran shamans and 3 Giowel Elders (Yes, akin chiefs in the ships), who consolidates the opinions of parliament members and makes the final decisions over Danraxelia governing matters.

They also serve the additional function of the Judge when individual conflicts arise, and their position as judge rotates every month. They are usually the most respected members of their races. Of course, the voting for them are taken much more seriously when it comes round every 10 years.

Not beneath this regular governing body though, a form of almost religious respect also exist for “the Oracles”. 3 person who seem to have the same, if not higher authority than the government. However, they are almost never seen except during festivals, and when they do appear, they are always covered beneath a white, black, or blue veil respectively.

oracles 1
OOC: Speedpaint-ish again. Please imagine less flowers on their veils @w@”.

No one knows who they are or how they look like. No one even knows what race any of them are.

They are rumored to be Gods, having existed as long as the city itself, and are literally the heart that beats to keep the city alive.

They are in charge of the “library” which Danraxelia is built around, as well as the Scribes who work there.

And they are, supposedly, able to see all that is in the past, present and future.

(OOC: I will perhaps reveal more details at least about the library which is a big part of Danraxelia. But for now they are mysterious and although highly respected, command a different kind of authority than the mundane political sort.

They could be important, if you want more adventure… If not they are just these shadow entities that hang at the edge of normal Danraxelia lives)

Typographic Portrait: Iconophilia

2d4

Above is how my Journal looks like after my previous research. Although I researched a lot on the methods, I was quite stumped as to the theme. I love doing artworks about myself, but sometimes it’s hard to keep it interesting.

As I went along my thought process, I eventually drew the conclusion that I should use symbols in my typography portraits. They will fit more neatly into the size of the artworks without compromising the meaning.

Moreover, symbols in Alchemy and Pagan religions has always been of interest to me, so I proceed to the second part of my Research.

http://symboldictionary.net/ is a very helpful website, and all pictures and info are from them.

Below is the list of symbols that struck my fancy, as well as some keywords regarding their meaning:

Web of Wyrd (Skuld’s net)

Norse Legend fates (Nornir) woven Matrix of fate (wyrd). Contains all the shapes of the runes, therefore all possibilities. Consequences and links between past, present and future.
Interconnected timelines.
Tree of life.

Mercury (Alchemical Quicksilver)
Glyph derived from Ancient Greek God Mercury.
Previously emblem of the Punic Goddess Tanit.
Alchemical quicksilver
Magical element mercurius.
Human spirit.

 Sulfur (“Leviathan Cross”)

Human soul.
Masculine, hot and dry.
Combined with Mercury (feminine, cool and moist), the pair were considered the parents of all metals.
Historical association with the devil.
Fire triangle surmounting a cross of the earth.

Salt
With Mercury and Sulphur, that make up base matter.
Physical matter of the body; its earthly elements.

 

Hermetic Seal of Light (Quintessence)

Synthesis of alchemy or the Hermetic Seal.
Ancient Pythagorean philosophy
The square, circle, the and the triangle are the emblems of the material body, the soul, and the spirit, three elements believed to be necessary for alchemical transformation.

Fire (Elemental Fire, “Blade”)

Heat and dryness
“Fiery” emotions
Apiritual aspiration,
Rising force, rising energy.
Derived from the medieval magical Seal of Solomon.

Air (Elemental Air, Alchemical Air)

Warmth and moistness
Breath, life, communication, and the holy spirit.

Earth (Alchemical Earth)

Cold and dry
Physical sensation.
Medieval temperament: melancholic.
Esoteric tradition :manifestation of matter.
Pentacle

Water (Elemental Water, “Chalice”)

Downward flow.
Ancient symbol of femininity
Cold and moist
Intuition, the unconscious mind, the enclosing, generating forces of the womb.

Taurus

My sun and moon sign
Head and horns of a bull.
Fixed, feminine, Earth sign
Ruled by the planet Venus.
Governs the throat/neck.

Gemini

My Venus Sign
The twins.
Mutable air sign.
Ruled by the planet Mercury.

Cancer

My ascendant/rising sign
The crab
Cardinal water sign.

Pisces

My mid-heaven sign.
The fishes.
Water sign.
Ruler of the current equinoctial age
Emblem of early Christianity.
Womb of the fish

Venus

Alchemical metal, copper.
Copper mirror of Venus/Aphrodite
May be related to the Egyptian emblem of the goddess Hathor.
May be a variation of the ankh.

Saturn

Alchemical metal, lead.
Scythe of Saturn, the god of the harvest and time.
Limitation, protection, and restraint
Alchemically, lead was the prima matera, or primal matter
Putrefaction and decay necessary for new life.
Similar to the Hebrew letter Tau, associated with time and death.

Moon

Alchemical symbols for silver.
Hermetic sciences, feminine, liquid, passive principle- alchemical Mercury.
Hieros gamos (divine marriage) combining solar and lunar principals to form the divine androgyne- the highest form of spiritual attainment.
Silver repel or even kill demons.
Purity (Silver = pure metal
Wiccan moon symbol of blessing.

Sun (Alchemical Gold)

Alchemical symbol for Gold.
Ancient Egypt symbol for the sun God Re.
Pinnacle of spiritual development and human achievement.

Ouroboros (Infinitysnake)

“Tail swallower.”
Egypt as a symbol of the sun,  travels of the sun disk.
Gnosticism, solar God Abraxas,
Eternity and the soul of the world
Spirit of Mercury
Continuous renewal (resurrection)
Cycle of life and death
Harmony of opposites.
A double ouroboros signifies volatility.
Spiritually, balance of the upper and lower natures.

Infinity symbol (Lemniscate)

Mathematical symbol
Patterned after mobius strip.
Balance of forces
Associated with Magician tarot card.

Enso (Zen Circle)

Zen Buddhism.
Symbol of infinity
Infinite void
Perfect meditative state
Satori (enlightenment.)

Tomoe (Mitsu tomoe, Futatsu tomoe, Tomoe-mon, Fire-wheel)

Turning or circular, referring to the motion of the earth.
Play of forces in the cosmos.
Akin to Yin/Yang
Threefold division of Shinto cosmology, earth, the heavens, and humankind. Associated with the Shinto war deity Hachiman.

Eye of Horus/Eye of Ra (Udjat, Wedjat)

Resemble the eye of a falcon
Right eye of the Egyptian Falcon God Horus.
Udjat (or utchat) = sun,  associated with the Sun God Ra (Re).
Left eye, represented the moon, and the God Tehuti (Thoth).

Flower of Life (Fisherman’s Net)

Associated with New Age permutations of Sacred Geometry.
Contains a number of other shapes within its deceptively simple pattern
“Blueprint of creation.”
By connecting points in the pattern, a multitude of patterns and shapes can be traced, including a tree of Life, pentagram, and various representations of three dimensional objects.
The six-fold “seed” pattern used as a basis = seed of life.

Other Wiccan Symbols:

Integration of body and spirit, and the spiritual mastery of the four elements.

The Wiccan emblematic pentagram faces point upward to symbolize the triumph of spirit over matter
Point downwards, to symbolize earthly gratification, or the triumph of the individual over dissolution.

Medieval Christians = five wounds of Christ
Proportions of the human body.

Horned God
Masculine polarity of the universe.
Related to the ancient Gods of vegetation and the hunt: Greek Pan, the Celtic Cernunnos, and the Egyptian Ammon.
Hhorn moon,” symbol of the Goddess Diana, especially in Dianic Wicca.

Lunar Triple Goddess symbol
Three aspects of the moon (waxing, waning, and full)
Three ages of womankind (mother, maiden, crone)
Fminine polarity of the universe

Typographic Portrait: Research I

I wasn’t sure what to do at first, so I just went down the list of suggested research for the assignment.

2d1

..I have to admit, the Dada and Russian constructivist are not really my style. >< But interesting research none the less.

2d2

I quite like David Carson’s style. But the 3D typography and such appeals to me even more.  Briefly considered using embroidery and paper sculptures as my medium…

2d3

Photography… and I can’t help coming back to books, fairytales and illuminated manuscripts we learnt about last semester. The elaborate lettering at the start of fairytale storybooks might be my first memory of any form of typography, and their magic are hard to forget >w<.

Illuminated manuscripts of course are beautiful and seems to be a even more elaborate and amazing versions of the “illustrative typography” (if i should call it that ^^”)

However, most of them contains a lot more illustration than words (usually one letter), so I had to put more thought into how much of it to include in my work, and bend the style to my will~

Danraxelia Chapter 1: Brave New World

It was right before sunset when the sea dipped like a waterfall.

The mist before them had taken the pale tint of purple and the fading pinkish greenish hue of the darkening sky, and before they realized, the hazy horizon line had come unusually close to the ship.

Though panicked, sailing for 15 years provide most of them with ample experience reacting to the unexpected. All capable individuals got to their allocated positions where they knew they would be most useful as a member of the crew. The Giowels working their magic on the sails, wind and water current directions, some Tierans providing back up with their potions and strength where it is required. The rest of the people concentrated their efforts on the ship’s mechanics should that be their expertise.

They stopped the Ship from tipping over the edge with herculean effort.

brave new world
Hasty speedpaint: the ship is at the edge and the top of the city peaks through the mists

As a few stood and observed the cause of their predicament, the silhouettes of architecture and light peeks through the dissipating mist, yet it is impossible to know the full depths from which this city arise. Those with binoculars, or just binocular eyesight, seem to identify shadows of people visible through the thick mist, igniting murmurs of excitement amongst the passengers.

Yet, the Chiefs (2 Human Leaders, 1 Giowel Elder and 3 Tieran Shamans) swiftly and unanimously agreed that they should leave this unusual city behind.

It is too different from the land they were accustomed to, and they it is too dangerous for all of them to attempt getting off the Ship without ascertaining what kind of city lies beneath.

It will be way too strenuous for the Ship to remain where it is for more than half an hour without being dragged by the currents off the edge of the falls, and even with the unique potions of the Tierans, the Giowels cannot sustain their magic forever. It is in their best interest to turn the mast as soon as possible… while they still can.

However, unbeknownst to the excited crowds and the worried Chiefs then, two of their kin has already gone off the Ship.

IMAG5408
OOC: Its a magnified diagram from another diagram I have of the whole world. That inconsistent line is NOT a force field or something LOL
IMAG5409
Rough sketch of the lay out of Danraxelia from side view. The thick black lines are lifts to go up and down the levels.

How did Beam and Dom get off the ship and into Danraxelia (the city)?

Hint: Air magic alone is not enough. Gliders and mechanics OK. Free falling…er… well………….. XD

(OOC: The Chapter ends when you both are settled into the city. I estimate 2-3 comments required each, please and thank you~ ><

Also I like how one of you is 13 and one is 31 X”D)

(OOC edit: It seems having you both settle in in chapter one is a bit ambitious, so getting off the ship is progress enough~ Will continue in the next chapter! Thanks~)

Danraxelia Lore: Transport

Long post warning.

Danraxelia is just one city in this world (The world is called Vo’a; but this probably will not be very important in the subsequent story)

Water Transport

As this world is more than 90% water, the most common form of transport in this world is by ship.

In their homeland, they have a variety of different ships by different races and different purposes, but it has all been left behind.

The Ship (Maiden Arc)

That is the ship that they has been on for 15 years, and we can look at it as an example for how different races help to operate a ship.

It is a privately owned ship, and when the war escalated in their homeland, the owner (a Tieran) offered to take in as many refugees as it can possibly support to seek a new land.

Of course, individuals or groups who can aid in the journey were prioritized, as well as important people such as the chiefs.

The main division of crew work in the ship is as below:

Mechanics maintenance: Dominated by humans, sometime the help Giowels are required for their generation of power (water and fire, mainly.)

Doctors and Alchemists: Mainly Tierans playing a large role in creating potions that could help Giowels recover their elemental essence. 

Wingers: A small (~50) but special group of older (60+) Air elemental Giowels in charge of the wings of the ship. These are literal wings build into the sides of the ship.

Essentially, the wings catches the air currents the Giowels will generate beneath the ship, and levitate the entire ship out of the waters. Other personals will use their respective capabilities to help redirect the course of the ship. This is an emergency measure, for example, when they might crash, or gets pulled into waterspouts… or the waterfall approaching Danraxelia.

Although most jobs seems predominantly done by one race, the knowledge required for the jobs are not race exclusive, and at least the basics of a job could be picked up by any race.

The possibilities of transport under water has been explored only to a very limited extend, as they use to have contact with Tierans that lives underwater. Water elemental Giowels can also stay underwater for an indefinite amount of time.

Air Transport

Unlike the sea which is usually more calm, the skies are a much more dangerous place. This is due to the fact that most of the time, it rains sand here instead of water. The equivalent to snowing and hailing would be raining pieces of glass, which needless to say, proves a terrible threat to any aviation in misjudged or unpredictable weather.

This combination of gas, sand and glass in the “clouds” also makes it extremely dangerous to go too high up, as some Tieran capable of flight has found out under certain unfortunate circumstances…

Anyways, in this way, most residents of Vo’a has also developed a deep respect for the skies. Aside from Tierans born with the animal ability of flight, not even normal air elemental Giowels are capable of flight for any extended period of time, as flying are extremely essence draining, with mere levitation already draining 1 essence per minute.

Thus, it is much more efficient for Giowels and Humans to use tools such as hang gliders for short distance flight, where air Giowels have the added advantage of simply creating gust of wind to direct and speed up their flight.

On rare occasions, Tierans have tamed huge winged beasts to provide transport in the air for friends of other races, or for trade. However, it is not possible to bring any of them on the ship for 15 years.

Land Transports

Danraxelia layouts are pretty vertical, thus, lifts are actually a main form of transport. There are a few main lifts that passes through most of the levels inside Danraxelia, with a strict time table akin to buses and trains in our world.

Countless small lifts that function more akin to known lifts in our world also exist in various alternate levels. For example, only between the 9 levels of living area.

IMAG5409

Aside from that, trams and carts are also used, acting much like buses that goes wrap around the entire citadel like structure.

*Energy source: nope, Vo’a does not have any kind of magical stones that could generate power. Well, the solidified gathering of a Giowel’s essence could act as a power source, but usually such gathering of essence could only be separated from them in death. Giowels could, however, provide energy for any form of transport, while taking turns to rest and recover.