2022 Grad Show

Kara Mains

AUArts Grad Show icon_notext

VCD – Character Design & Illustration

Silkhenge Character Portraits The rulers of the Great Cities, otherwise known as the 'Silkhenge'. They are comprised of the oldest noble families. The Silkhenge are an enigmatic, reclusive group, wearing only the finest garments to demonstrate their wealth and status.
Silkhenge Designs Lineup art of the noblemen.
Craftsmen Designs Purchasing the spun fabrics from the Weavers, the Merchants then set to work on personalizing their wares through coloured dyes or other means. Afterwards, their products are taken to market for selling.
Merchant Designs The "middle class" of the world of 'Gloam'. Though they do essentially the same job as the Craftsmen, they receive less acclaim and gain for their work.
Merchants Face Comprehensives
Weavers Designs The lowest caste, living in the depths of Trēow Lia, the Weavers are the most traditionally arachnid-like in appearance and are the only people capable of creating and spinning the raw silk that makes the clothes the other castes build their lives around.

Gloam - Character Designs

The world of 'Gloam' is highly stratified Each class of citizen is uniquely arachnid, reflecting the variation of regions of their world and how they've adapted to suit them. The high class citizens live closer to the surface, in reach of sunlight, while the lowest dwell in darkest depths.

Gloam - Character Designs AUArts Grad Show Noblemen_facecompscolour
Silkhenge Character Portraits The rulers of the Great Cities, otherwise known as the 'Silkhenge'. They are comprised of the oldest noble families. The Silkhenge are an enigmatic, reclusive group, wearing only the finest garments to demonstrate their wealth and status.
Gloam - Character Designs AUArts Grad Show Noblemen_Lineup
Silkhenge Designs Lineup art of the noblemen.
Gloam - Character Designs AUArts Grad Show CraftsmenNouveu_02
Craftsmen Designs Purchasing the spun fabrics from the Weavers, the Merchants then set to work on personalizing their wares through coloured dyes or other means. Afterwards, their products are taken to market for selling.
Gloam - Character Designs AUArts Grad Show CraftsmenMerchants_Fullbody
Merchant Designs The "middle class" of the world of 'Gloam'. Though they do essentially the same job as the Craftsmen, they receive less acclaim and gain for their work.
Gloam - Character Designs AUArts Grad Show CraftsmenMerchants_BW01FaceComps
Merchants Face Comprehensives
Gloam - Character Designs AUArts Grad Show Weavers_01
Weavers Designs The lowest caste, living in the depths of Trēow Lia, the Weavers are the most traditionally arachnid-like in appearance and are the only people capable of creating and spinning the raw silk that makes the clothes the other castes build their lives around.
Entwine Town Houses House designs for 'Entwine Town', the lower level's biggest town - home of the Merchants, Craftsmen and Weavers.
Entwine Town Concept Environment art of Entwine Town - the largest populated area in the dark regions below the Great Cities.
Great Cities Concept Art Right Side: Built on the largest known Gloam deposit in Trēow Lia, Damask Tower supports the biggest population out of any city and maintains a reputation of warmth, security, and opulence. The leaders of Damask sell more Gloam than any other city. Left Side: City of Modalai. The smallest of the Great Cities, but built closest to the surface, Modalai is the only populated region that has been able to grow plants native to aboveground thanks to the sparse sunlight that filters its way down.
Damask Tower Summit Interior art of the top of Damask Tower, overlooking the archway filled with Gloam - the glowing sap that illuminates this underground world.
Modalai Greenhouse Environment concept art of the view from below Modalai's great Moon Lily, the city's pride and joy.

Gloam - Environment Concept Art

Concept art for the different regions and environments found in the story of 'Gloam'. The civilization is built on the roots of a giant tree and their society's social class is strictly divided. The further down the tree one lives, the lower their status as a citizen.

Gloam - Environment Concept Art AUArts Grad Show NobleHouses_02
Entwine Town Houses House designs for 'Entwine Town', the lower level's biggest town - home of the Merchants, Craftsmen and Weavers.
Gloam - Environment Concept Art AUArts Grad Show LowHouses_Village
Entwine Town Concept Environment art of Entwine Town - the largest populated area in the dark regions below the Great Cities.
Gloam - Environment Concept Art AUArts Grad Show NobleHouses_01
Great Cities Concept Art Right Side: Built on the largest known Gloam deposit in Trēow Lia, Damask Tower supports the biggest population out of any city and maintains a reputation of warmth, security, and opulence. The leaders of Damask sell more Gloam than any other city.
Left Side: City of Modalai. The smallest of the Great Cities, but built closest to the surface, Modalai is the only populated region that has been able to grow plants native to aboveground thanks to the sparse sunlight that filters its way down.
Gloam - Environment Concept Art AUArts Grad Show NobleHouses_ThroneRoom
Damask Tower Summit Interior art of the top of Damask Tower, overlooking the archway filled with Gloam - the glowing sap that illuminates this underground world.
Gloam - Environment Concept Art AUArts Grad Show NobleHouses_Greenhouse
Modalai Greenhouse Environment concept art of the view from below Modalai's great Moon Lily, the city's pride and joy.
Awakening Ruins
Celestial Spiral
Flame Guardian
Binding Crossroads

Land of the Colossus

A series of environmental illustrations made for a genre-splicing project - the assignment was to take the aesthetics of two pieces of media and combine or adapt them into something new.

I chose the monsters and architecture of the game 'Shadow of the Colossus' and combined it with the long framing and focus on environments from the game 'Gris'.

Land of the Colossus AUArts Grad Show 1_decay_gaius
Awakening Ruins
Land of the Colossus AUArts Grad Show 2restoration_final
Celestial Spiral
Land of the Colossus AUArts Grad Show 3renewal_temple
Flame Guardian
Land of the Colossus AUArts Grad Show 3restoration_final colour
Binding Crossroads
Title Page
Bat Lord Character Sheet Once a just ruler of his kingdom, recent years have seen the Bat Lord plagued by a mysterious obsession. His descent into madness has turned him cold and cruel. Resorting to fear and poisoned promises to keep his royal court in line. The Bat Lord had been preparing his daughter for her own communion before her untimely disappearance. Now he is searching far and wide for the lost princess.
Bat Princess Character Sheet After witnessing her father’s sudden descent into madness the Bat Princess fled from the castle with the aid of her old mentor and hid in the wilds under a cloak made of several animal pelts. Eventually returned to the castle as a serving girl called ‘Manypelts’, she must learn to navigate the King’s Court without being outed as the runaway princess and uncover what is ailing her father.
Wild Court Characters I The nobility that serve under the Bat Lord. Though they dress in finery they are all given to their animal instincts and can be quite a savage lot. When Manypelts is brought in as a servant, she must learn each other their stories and understand why they serve the Bat Lord.
Wild Court Characters II The tangled relationships between the Court members is a vital part of Manypelts. They are all looking for something different and believe that the Bat Lord can fulfill their deepest desires.
Servants Character Sheet When the Bat Lord began his descent into mad obsession it became clear that various castle servants were disappearing in the night. Now there are only a handful left, and they do not trust easily. Manypelts must learn to work with them if any of them expect to survive the Bat Lord’s plans.

Manypelts - Character Designs

Manypelts is an adaptation of the Grimm’s fairytale that shares the name.

The story tells of a princess who ran away from her father with under a clever disguise. Though eventually found in the wilds she is returned to the castle under the guise of a lowly serving girl and given the name ‘Manypelts’.

Manypelts - Character Designs AUArts Grad Show titlepage
Title Page
Manypelts - Character Designs AUArts Grad Show batlord_conceptsheet
Bat Lord Character Sheet Once a just ruler of his kingdom, recent years have seen the Bat Lord plagued by a mysterious obsession. His descent into madness has turned him cold and cruel. Resorting to fear and poisoned promises to keep his royal court in line.

The Bat Lord had been preparing his daughter for her own communion before her untimely disappearance. Now he is searching far and wide for the lost princess.
Manypelts - Character Designs AUArts Grad Show batprincess_refined
Bat Princess Character Sheet After witnessing her father’s sudden descent into
madness the Bat Princess fled from the castle with the aid of her old mentor and hid in the wilds under a cloak made of several animal pelts.

Eventually returned to the castle as a serving girl called ‘Manypelts’, she must learn to navigate the King’s Court without being outed as the runaway princess and uncover what is ailing her father.
Manypelts - Character Designs AUArts Grad Show courtmembers_conceptsheet_02
Wild Court Characters I The nobility that serve under the Bat Lord. Though they dress in finery they are all given to their animal instincts and can be quite a savage lot. When Manypelts is brought in as a servant, she must learn each other their stories and understand why they serve the Bat Lord.
Manypelts - Character Designs AUArts Grad Show courtmembers_conceptsheet_01
Wild Court Characters II The tangled relationships between the Court members is a vital part of Manypelts. They are all looking for something different and believe that the Bat Lord can fulfill their deepest desires.
Manypelts - Character Designs AUArts Grad Show courtmembers_conceptsheet_03
Servants Character Sheet When the Bat Lord began his descent into mad obsession it became clear that various castle servants were disappearing in the night. Now there are only a handful left, and they do not trust easily. Manypelts must learn to work with them if any of them expect to survive the Bat Lord’s plans.
Viscount of Corvids
Lady Fox

Manypelts - Character Portraits

Illustrations inspired by my 'Manypelts' story, made during the writing of the story to help with characterization.

Manypelts - Character Portraits AUArts Grad Show KingCrows
Viscount of Corvids
Manypelts - Character Portraits AUArts Grad Show ladyfox
Lady Fox
Smoke and Gold - Anubis Anubis, Egyptian god of mummification and the afterlife.
Feast of Heavens - Bul-Gae Bul-Gae, the Korean dog beasts from the kingdom of darkness. They eternally change the sun and moon, causing eclipses when they catch and bite them.
Eye of the Storm - Raiju Raiju, the companion of the Shinto god of lighting - Raijin. Normally a calm and gentle beast, its agitation comes in the forms of great thunderstorms and lighting.
Three Headed Shadow - Cerberus Cerberus, the hound of hades who guards the gates of the Underworld. They stand above the River Styx.
Left to Choose - Cadejo Cadejo, a Central American folklore story about a pair of spirit dogs who appear to travellers on the roadside. One is said to guide lost travellers and the other is said to kill them.

Mythical Dogs Series

An art challenge completed in 2021, I illustrated my own rendition of a mythical dog for one week.

Mythical Dogs Series AUArts Grad Show 1_Anubis
Smoke and Gold - Anubis Anubis, Egyptian god of mummification and the afterlife.
Mythical Dogs Series AUArts Grad Show 2_BulGae
Feast of Heavens - Bul-Gae Bul-Gae, the Korean dog beasts from the kingdom of darkness. They eternally change the sun and moon, causing eclipses when they catch and bite them.
Mythical Dogs Series AUArts Grad Show 3_Raiju
Eye of the Storm - Raiju Raiju, the companion of the Shinto god of lighting - Raijin. Normally a calm and gentle beast, its agitation comes in the forms of great thunderstorms and lighting.
Mythical Dogs Series AUArts Grad Show 4_Cerberus
Three Headed Shadow - Cerberus Cerberus, the hound of hades who guards the gates of the Underworld. They stand above the River Styx.
Mythical Dogs Series AUArts Grad Show 5_Cadejo
Left to Choose - Cadejo Cadejo, a Central American folklore story about a pair of spirit dogs who appear to travellers on the roadside. One is said to guide lost travellers and the other is said to kill them.
Sun Kissed A dragon-fox character inspired by traditional Chinese dragons. Illustrated for an online art challenge.
Morning Star One of my most prevalent muses has been goats of all shapes and sizes.
A Presence in the Parlour Two ghostly hounds in a domestic interior, one of the most difficult art challenges I attempted because I was unused to house interiors.
Saviour of Humanity Fan art of a favourite character from an animated show called 'The Owl House'. This show was a large source of inspiration for the bigger part of a year for me.

Personal Illustrations

A collection of illustrations I completed outside of school for art challenges or personal enjoyment.

Personal Illustrations AUArts Grad Show darkdragon_dtiys
Sun Kissed A dragon-fox character inspired by traditional Chinese dragons. Illustrated for an online art challenge.
Personal Illustrations AUArts Grad Show goat_candlelight
Morning Star One of my most prevalent muses has been goats of all shapes and sizes.
Personal Illustrations AUArts Grad Show whydoihaveto_dtiys
A Presence in the Parlour Two ghostly hounds in a domestic interior, one of the most difficult art challenges I attempted because I was unused to house interiors.
Personal Illustrations AUArts Grad Show belos_welcomeDark
Saviour of Humanity Fan art of a favourite character from an animated show called 'The Owl House'. This show was a large source of inspiration for the bigger part of a year for me.

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