This is for the book by Ashley Silvey Hercules: Empowering the Fierce and Feminine Inside Every Woman
Hercules, a name long associated with mythology’s strongest man, is now redefined to represent the fullness of strength and beauty God graces women with the capacity to contain. HERcules: Empowering the Fierce and Feminine Inside Every Woman dives into the magnificent truth that women do not have to compromise their femininity to be fierce. Comparable to the mountain lion who is capable of great power and gentle purrs, women are divinely equipped to possess both grace and grit.
Understanding that strength is not limited to the physical, Author Ashley Silvey walks alongside of you across the spiritual battlefields of life. From discussions of warrior specializations and strengths to stories of hard-won victories and heart-breaking defeats, HERcules equips and empowers all women of God to embrace their full identity as Women Warriors. You can be her and HERcules!
One thing I was super excited about this portrait commission was not only getting to draw something very similar to my children’s literature characters series, but I got to try my hand at a little conceptual design before starting on the actual drawing. I have always loved seeing concept art made for films whether it be for environmental, character, or costume design. For this project I drew my friend Ashley as an Amazon woman. I did some research on Greek and Roman armour, old illustrations and paintings, and read many interviews from Wonder Woman’s costume designer, Lindy Hemming, and found out what sort of things she researched. So, I drew out a bunch of costumes from sources I came across as well as a few from the Wonder Woman film, and after passing them by Ashley, we came up with our own design which incorporated the parts we enjoyed most. I then took the final design and drew it on her like a paper doll. A big thank you to Darrell Warner who inspired me to practice some costume designing.
“I started looking into the lands around ancient Greece, Scythia and Thrace. There were some countries, all in the same sort of area, which had women leaders, women rulers and – this was most interesting – women warriors, so we did a lot of research looking at their clothes.” ~Lindy Hemming
I also thoroughly enjoyed incorporating an animal into this character portrait. The bear creates a bit of action, gives an added texture, and provides an excellent source of symbolism to help describe the strength of this warrior.