79. The Future
Here we are. Finally, at the end. I think I'm just as shocked as everyone else that I finally made it. Maybe even more so since I'm the one that had to create the pieces for all these themes. And it was a doozy of a journey! 8 years of on-and-off working on this challenge where you can see my art progression (hopefully). Just looking at the first few themes makes me realize that I've improved since then (again, hopefully)! In fact, I'd been contemplating on redoing a couple themes that are now overtly disappointing to me (namely Themes #2-4) but maybe at a later date or just whenever I have time. Otherwise, let's just look and reflect on this whole collection. I know I will.
I believe from the beginning, I knew I wanted to bookend this whole challenge with a theme that worked well as a mirror piece to the first theme. So, right when I started, I skimmed over the other 99 themes and decided upon this one to be the best (if not perfect) choice. Now, I know with a title like 'The Future', I could've taken it in a plethora of ways. For one, futuristic sci-fi. However, I knew of only one kind of future that would work if I wanted this to be my final piece to this challenge. And that was Ash and Misty in their twilight years together and happily married.
I think, even when she's old and gray, Misty would still keep her hobby of fishing alive. She molds her life around water pokemon, so it'd only make sense for her to keep old habits even if she retires from being a gym leader or trainer. Besides, it gives her peace of mind to do something as low-key as fishing. And Ash? While he may not be the biggest fishing enthusiast out there, especially compared to his wife, it's just nice to spend some quiet time with her. At this point in their lives and their marriage, they don't always need to fill the silence. Being together, within close enough proximity where he could easily grab her hand if he felt like it, speaks more than anything either of them could say. And what more needs to be said at this point? In this scenario, though, I had them switch the assumed positions of fisherman and companion (mostly for aesthetic purposes in comparison the the first theme).
Now, you might be wondering about children or grandchildren and why neither are seen above. To be honest, I don't really think about stuff like that. It's not that I object to the idea, it's just something that never comes to my mind. I've also seen plenty of others out there make up their own ideas of what Ash and Misty's kids would look like and I'm just satisfied with what I've seen. Not to mention that I'm absolutely terrible at character design, and fan characters just heighten the difficulty for me. So, yeah. ^_^;; Also, I wanted to mirror my first theme as much as possible, so it only feels right to just have Ash, Misty, and Pikachu here. Anything more might make things feel unbalanced, to me at least. (Doing a side-by-side of this theme with #1 is a mind trip.)
So, thank you to everyone who's commented regardless of which site you used, all the views and the favorites and just the love in general. Thank you. I appreciate it so, so, so much and I can't thank you all enough. I hope that those who may have found me through my work on this challenge are willing to stick around for my non-Pokemon artwork and if not, then thanks for your time regardless!
I honestly can't believe I finally made it and I feel just so satisfied for completing this. So, let's break out the cider or champagne (depending on your age) and celebrate to a job finally (if not well) done! Thanks again to everyone who took the time to show their appreciation and I'll see you when I see you! :D
(The question now is... what will I be tackling next? More fanart? A different series? More original works? Or another theme challenge? Who knows~ ... Probably not another theme challenge for a while, though.)
I believe from the beginning, I knew I wanted to bookend this whole challenge with a theme that worked well as a mirror piece to the first theme. So, right when I started, I skimmed over the other 99 themes and decided upon this one to be the best (if not perfect) choice. Now, I know with a title like 'The Future', I could've taken it in a plethora of ways. For one, futuristic sci-fi. However, I knew of only one kind of future that would work if I wanted this to be my final piece to this challenge. And that was Ash and Misty in their twilight years together and happily married.
I think, even when she's old and gray, Misty would still keep her hobby of fishing alive. She molds her life around water pokemon, so it'd only make sense for her to keep old habits even if she retires from being a gym leader or trainer. Besides, it gives her peace of mind to do something as low-key as fishing. And Ash? While he may not be the biggest fishing enthusiast out there, especially compared to his wife, it's just nice to spend some quiet time with her. At this point in their lives and their marriage, they don't always need to fill the silence. Being together, within close enough proximity where he could easily grab her hand if he felt like it, speaks more than anything either of them could say. And what more needs to be said at this point? In this scenario, though, I had them switch the assumed positions of fisherman and companion (mostly for aesthetic purposes in comparison the the first theme).
Now, you might be wondering about children or grandchildren and why neither are seen above. To be honest, I don't really think about stuff like that. It's not that I object to the idea, it's just something that never comes to my mind. I've also seen plenty of others out there make up their own ideas of what Ash and Misty's kids would look like and I'm just satisfied with what I've seen. Not to mention that I'm absolutely terrible at character design, and fan characters just heighten the difficulty for me. So, yeah. ^_^;; Also, I wanted to mirror my first theme as much as possible, so it only feels right to just have Ash, Misty, and Pikachu here. Anything more might make things feel unbalanced, to me at least. (Doing a side-by-side of this theme with #1 is a mind trip.)
So, thank you to everyone who's commented regardless of which site you used, all the views and the favorites and just the love in general. Thank you. I appreciate it so, so, so much and I can't thank you all enough. I hope that those who may have found me through my work on this challenge are willing to stick around for my non-Pokemon artwork and if not, then thanks for your time regardless!
I honestly can't believe I finally made it and I feel just so satisfied for completing this. So, let's break out the cider or champagne (depending on your age) and celebrate to a job finally (if not well) done! Thanks again to everyone who took the time to show their appreciation and I'll see you when I see you! :D
(The question now is... what will I be tackling next? More fanart? A different series? More original works? Or another theme challenge? Who knows~ ... Probably not another theme challenge for a while, though.)
Art © Hakui-Kitsune
Ash Ketchum, Misty, & Pikachu © Satoshi Tajiri, Nintendo, Gamefreak Inc, OLM Inc, Pokemon Company & International
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