Provectus

Paths through the scorching and smoldering sands of the deserts are always filled with the ominous winds of death and destruction. You know how dangerous these paths are, however you have no other options before you. Faced with either potential death or a dead end, you make your way through the scorched wastelands. Powerful sandstorms whipped at your body like thousands of blades, temperatures that made you feel as if your very bones were aflame and the countless beasts that lurk within the sands made for a very daunting and painful quest. After a long and struggling journey through the wastelands and as the sun began to finally set beneath the blazing sand ocean, you managed to find what appeared to be a landmark; a section of rocky monuments and what appeared to be decorated headstones. Each of the stones had what appeared to be a strange shape etched upon its surface, much like a runestone. For some reason you felt your body being drawn to this place, your body lightened somehow by an imaginary presence as you move through the strange area. Just as you look about and inspect one of the stones, you notice that it begins to glow a faint blue color in the center. Just before you can take a closer look, you notice that many of the other stones in the area are under the exact same effect and begin to glow a vivid blue shade upon their rune. Even the vast rocks in the distance generate a similar light, illuminating the distant desert haze with their azure flare. You start to feel tense as if there's a great danger coming from somewhere, however you cannot tell where. The ground begins to shift under your feet. Various bones and body parts once hidden below this place begin to rise to the surface, partially bathed in their own blue glow. Before your eyes, you watch as these fragmented parts begin to reassemble piece by piece, one after the other until you were faced with two strange figures. Each brandishing an ancient weapon glowing along with their rune covered bodies. You soon realize what you have done; you are a trespasser upon their land, and you must leave either alive...or dead. Provectus, created by Luminarium artists *Broken-Lithium and <img src="e.deviantart.net/emoticons/r/r…" width="15" height="15" alt="" title=" (Razz)"/>atrikarvidsson, combine their talents to create a strange and abstracted setting, presenting a strange and dark atmosphere within it.

From what one see at first glance, there's really a lot to like about this piece. The jagged design style used in the composition can say a lot about the general setting, as if it were trapped within a feverish dream of a lost traveler in the wasteland. It gives off a nice addition to the overall atmospheric tension displayed already and ads a mixture of mystery and isolation to the general composition. You can appreciate the overall use of lighting in this piece as it really ads a lot of depth to the design style here. How the lights pierce the mist in the distance creating a very strange myasmic feel to the overall composition and the overall dream-like feeling to the piece. Within the compositional skills of both artists, there really is quite a bit that grows on the mind of the viewer and further immerses them into the setting that lies before them.

While there are things to love in this piece that rise to a certain level of prominence, there are still some things that could be done to improve it. For one thing, while the sketched design style to the compositional elements carries some appeal, it has a feeling of it being unfinished. Try and revisit the piece and incorporate more detailing in all of the depicted elements. Give the piece a more stable inner construction as well as making them feel more dimensional to see. The skeletal warriors could use a similar treatment to their construction by better fleshing out their details and appearance, maybe even give a transparent rune symbol covering on specific parts of their bodies. Another thing you could do is actually add on the dream-like appearance of this realm; shape in into the very world that you both wish to capture. Try adding more to the scale of the land, create more elements that could better define the world within the composition. Experimentation is the key with a piece like this as each step you take when working on it will always bring it closer and closer to perfection.

Regardless of critiques, this piece still remains as a generally stable composition between two talented artists. Provectus manages to wrap the viewer into its mysteries from its rune covered landscapes, to the hazy appearance that is presented within it. The atmosphere has a very mysterious tone that is sure to attract the viewer to look upon it that much more and uncover the secrets from within. Good work to both of you, Oliver and Patrik! <img src="e.deviantart.net/emoticons/c/c…" width="20" height="20" alt="" title="Clap"/>