Gilles Rainville illustration

Seeing a humpback whale swim passed our boat was a humbling experience. Such a massive beast carefully passing beneath us ensuring that we are not troubled by his presence. When I discovered that there are albino humpback whales, I wanted to make this the subject of the next piece in the Cycle series. For this drawing, I started with some research photos found on the internet. I chose to draw a few practice studies to help me understand the structure of the subject and how to create some of the more difficult textures in this piece. Once I felt comfortable with the subject, I drew the rough to visualize the layout of the drawing. At the bottom, the cycle begins with a dead whale trapped by a fisherman's net caught on his tail. I really wanted to show the dark depths of the ocean with blues and browns. Afterwards, I used an eraser to create some highlights. I wanted the ocean flora and fauna to give birth to the new whales this time.   I...

       "Medeina or Medeinė (derived from medis (tree) and medė (forest)), often treated as           synonymous to Žvorūnė or Žvorūna (derived from žvėris (beast)), is one of the main deities        in the Lithuanian mythology and is similar to Latvian Meza Mate. She is a ruler of forests, trees       and animals. Her sacred animal is a hare.", Wikipedia I chose Madeina as a classical representation of a supernatural protector. With tears she feels lost unable to help her sacred animal, the hare, while her protectors stay steadfast. The man made danger is incomprehensible to the deity. The Stelmuze Oak in Lithuania is one of the oldest trees in the world, aged between 1500 to 2000 years old. It owes its longevity partially to the care of the public. In 1960 the oak was declared a natural monument and included in the list of protected object...