There is a strong focus in fantasy art on female beauty, but some artists thrive on the exploration of powerful, confrontational female characters whose attitude will be the first thing you notice.
Astri Lohne, lead 2D character artist at Vela Games, says she naturally gravitates towards painting female warriors.
"While I don't think there's anything wrong with painting beautiful women for the sake of it, this is a genre of art that doesn't resonate strongly with me personally," she explains. "As a woman, I don't find women who are simply beautiful aspirational, and I struggle to relate to that type of character - I love seeing determined, fierce women, who can of course also be beautiful!"
Astri's life experience is a big influence on her creative expression, and her work is a source of personal power. "So many of the women in my life are fighters, and I've had my fair share of struggles myself, so painting female characters who look determined feels right to me."
INDUSTRY INSIGHT
KIND AND KICKING BUTT
Luisa Preissler reveals the thinking behind her illustrations of female fantasy warriors
What led you to create these images of confrontational female action heroes?
It all came from my passion for reading urban fantasy novels with strong female heroines. These women are independent, and they do what’s necessary to take care of the bad guys. I appreciate female beauty, but what makes it really interesting for me is always a balance of strength and softness.
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Jan Wessbecher
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Kyounghwan Kim
The Korean character concept artist speaks to Dominic Carter about staying open to ideas and the value of drawing regularly
Slawek Fedorczuk
Dominic Carter talks to the concept artist about what keeps him motivated and the advantages of using physical sketchbooks.
Raquel M. Varela
Raquel is inspired by magic, fantasy and fairy tales. She loves designing female characters from distant worlds. \"My greatest reference is Loish's art, thanks to her I learned to draw the movement and fluidity I like to convey.\"
Estrela Lourenço
Estrela is a children's book author and illustrator. Her work is influenced by her background in character animation and storyboards for clients such as Cartoon Network, and she channels comic strips like Calvin and Hobbes.
Daria Widermanska
Daria, also known as Anako, has been drawing for as long as she can remember. Inspired by Disney and classic anime, she loves creating new characters and often finds that a single sketch can spark a unique story.
Allen Douglas
Allen has been painting professionally since 1994 for the publishing and gaming industries. Inspired by folklore, he distorts the size, relationships and environments of animals, and calls his paintings 'unusual wildlife'.
Thaddeus Robeck
Thaddeus has been drawing from the moment he could hold a pencil, but it was the 2020 lockdowns that gave him the time to focus on honing his skills.
DRAW FASCINATING SYMBOLIC ARTWORK
Learn how JULIÁN DE LA MOTA creates a composition from his imagination with a focus on crafting figures, volumetric modelling, and light and shadow
First Impressions
The artist talks about his journey into the mythological world
