When I first started working for Magic in 2005 the set I worked on was Lorwyn. Now; 20 years later we return to Lorwyn and I had the great pleasure of being part of the design team for the set. One of the task I was given was to try and make the Boggarts a tiny bit more likeable. Especially the elderly female boggarts called Aunties – something like witches – had to look like size and smart and to some degree likeable in their own way. I ended up doing 2 illustrations of the same character; one where is is in her good version ( Lorwyn) and one where she is in her more sinister version ( Shadowmore). She is a potion maker and a collector of strange ingredients. I thought of old Disney movies where the toxic substances always had a smoke turning into skulls and added that element even if it is a bit catoonie.

For the sinister version i broke one of her horns, made the teeth longer and more crooked, raised the hair into spikes and added the armour parts. The nice frog friend is also mirroring her attitude and is now ready to fight. The potion is finished and glows with potency. She has emerged from her hut and has summoned a boggart spirit.

One of the things I really tried with these 2 is to portrait the expressions and the character. I am always aware of my line art being very stylised and sometimes maybe too cartoon for Magic, but i try to make up for that by rendering the figures in a believable fashion. I treat the shapes with multiple light sources, add dents and cracks and glow and texture, and somehow it ends up looking like a real figure.

 


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