Erika de Vos: SMALL: arts on burgundy gallery show

My friend from my illustration course has asked me very kindly if i would like to participate in a show which shall be held in the gallery section of his work which is a framing and arts supply shop. there is a section which is at the front of the store which contains works for public viewing. the theme of the group show is small. the requirements are that the work size limit for the show is 45cm square including the frame.

My individual concept i have developed for the work is exploring the idea of the Okami or wolf in the Yokai folklore.

Firstly, yokai is a form of Japanese folklore consisting of a huge list of characters which come in the form of spirits which inhabit many different things, such as objects, land or animals. These spirits all have specific personality traits and ways they respond to the living.

one in particular is the spirit of the wolf or the Okami. this breed of wolf has been extinct since 1905 and was the smallest breed ever recorded measuring up to only knee height.

Kami is a strange spirit for they can either be very helpful or quite dangerous depending of the purity of the person they encounter. they live next to or on mountain ranges and help direct lost wonderers home. once home, they can turn on the wonderer and kill them if they have an evil soul.

I plan to develop the image using my depiction of the physical form of the creature. Traditionally, the spirit looks quite similar to a white wolf but mostly hidden in the shadows with decorative patterning adorned on their forehead. Since this is a form of mythology, the possibilities of the visual component are endless. It will have somewhat the form of a wolf but transformed to look more like a strange monster unlike living animals which we know of.

I plan to use much colour and layering patterns to enhance the appeal of the image.

So far, here are my reference images I have collected: