Obastel
 |
Obastel
Acrylic on illustration board.
|
I consider this to be one of my two or three good paintings. The other one or two are Olympos, and possibly The Sound of Dogs Barking. I doubt I will ever do another painting using physical media.
 |
Obastel Falling 1
Acrylic and some colour pencil on illustration board.
|
Obastel was effectively a goddess. She belonged to one of the advanced races inhabiting Miras. As intelligent species develop they inevitably reach a stage where they begin to create other intelligent species. This can take the form of artificial intelligences (AIs) and robots, or of genetic engineering. Typically both. Subsequent technologies may have characteristics of both or neither. The first of such creatures are likely to inhabit the society of their creators. But the creators of intelligent life may go on to create a separate world for their creatures to inhabit. This may consist of dropping them in some distant place, apart from their creators. Leaving them to develop on their own, or with some periodic intervention from their creators.
Another variation is to create a virtual universe for their creatures to inhabit and evolve in on their own, again perhaps with periodic interventions by the creators. The creatures in such a case would typically also be virtual. Since creating a virtual universe is typically straight forward, simply applying a set of contrived physical laws, populating such a universe with more than just a few biological ecosystems may be more of a challenge. So that as the inhabitants evolve more intelligence, they may discover that they inhabit a universe seemingly devoid of other intelligent life. Typically it would be at this point that the creators would formally introduce themselves and admit the "virtual" inhabitants of the contrived universe, into the greater community of beings. In such a context the distinction between virtual and material can lose meaning.
The creators are likely in the beginning to create creatures for the sake of their creators. As servants. As toys or slaves. As pets or to be exploited and abused. Or to love and worship their creators. As friends or devoted fans. These early creatures typically take the form of "nymphs", from which the word "nymphomaniac" comes. Both male and female. Sex obsessed and devoted, admiring, worshipful. It is usually surprising how much the characters of these engineered nymphs resemble those of the original genders upon which they are based and intended to surpass and fix. As if the real genders of the creator race already embody the physical and emotional ideals of each other, but somehow, something went wrong. So that the nymphs come to represent some lost nature, and healers of the society who made and exploit them. A recovery of the eroticism and meaning of service.
The next phase of development is for the creators to be less obtrusive. Allowing their creatures to live in their own world, determining their own course. The creators invisible spectators and voyeurs, like hidden parents watching the adventure of their children's autonomous development. Attending to their victories and defeats. The advanced races create primitive races to watch them climb their own way to become an advanced race, creating their own primitive races. So however advanced the universe becomes, there are always primitive races, children of the advanced races, renewing the journey out of barbarism, and climbing to the heights of civilisation. The civilizational equivalent of individuals having children to repeat an endless cycle of new life and new experience.
So Obastel was a goddess to her creatures, and an immortal. But even such as her were sometimes prone to the loss of meaning. When the activities of living seem to become shallow and futile. And the aeons of memory like a weight.
In such a case, a god or goddess may choose to do what Obastel did. To enter her creation. Her great work of art. To relinquish her memory and start again, as a blank slate, seeing the world with new fresh eyes. Living as one of her creatures, battered and woken by the force of their world.
So she got in her open-top flying car and flew out from the great city, far out over the great expanse of the Miras' interior. Then she climbed out of the car and dropped from it like a pebble. The car instantly collapsed, forming a slim case, like a briefcase, and fell along side her. She fell for a long time. For days, if there were days. She had food and water with her in a small pack. Her red skirt flapped around her and the air rushed over her body.
She fell past an ocean pouring over a lip and spent a few hours among the thunder, spray and rainbows.
As Obastel slept she forgot who and what she was. When she awoke, she did not know where she was. She was not alarmed, but examined the world with instinctive calm confidence.
Obastel wandered in the deserts for a time and it was there that she encountered Traselew. Strictly speaking, this image belongs to the new stuff period.
Obastel developed a special relationship with Traselew.
It was dark and lightly raining when Obastel first arrived at Newgrove. Traselew was with her. One side of her briefcase was a television screen playing soap operas, and lighting her way. Amadese, his sister Sagredes, and the other residents of Newgrove were living close to starvation at this time. But with the arrival of Traselew, plants began grow spontaneously and living became easy. Obastel is the mother of Myrdemmon by Amadese, but while Myrdemmon was still a young boy Obastel and Traselew left Newgrove while the rest of the household slept. None of them ever saw Obastel again, but Amadese found Traselew dead in the desert. When Amadese saw Provetan nearby and guessed that he had emerged from Traselew he brought him back to Newgrove in the hope that he could restore the already withering plant-life. Years later, Elbeth, a wandering scholar, came to Newgrove. When she left, Mydemmon, Milae and Provetan went with her. As circumstances would have it, Elbeth, Myrdemmon and Milae would travel to Owel, arriving shortly after Provetan departed from it in his campervan. Milae would later travel from there to Smerfarvin.
Traselew was a biomechanical creature. A kind of cross between an elephant and a tractor.
See Obastel and Torwis 1 on New Stuff for the finished images.
The space between each of the levels in the above would be high enough to accommodate a 7-storey building. As Obastel was traversing the second-lowest level, from left to right, a wind came up, causing her to slide, struggling to keep her footing amid dust and debris and her flapping dress. She made for one of the pillars to stop herself from sliding off end, and waited some hours for the wind to subside. Then headed up and to the right. Not far beyond she encountered Traselew for the first time. This image may serve as the new terminus of the Miras Zoom sequence in place of Provetan (see Miras Zoom 1h on Miras).
Traselew is barely visible at the middle-right of the image.
The creators are likely in the beginning to create creatures for the sake of their creators. As servants. As toys or slaves. As pets or to be exploited and abused. Or to love and worship their creators. As friends or devoted fans. These early creatures typically take the form of "nymphs", from which the word "nymphomaniac" comes. Both male and female. Sex obsessed and devoted, admiring, worshipful. It is usually surprising how much the characters of these engineered nymphs resemble those of the original genders upon which they are based and intended to surpass and fix. As if the real genders of the creator race already embody the physical and emotional ideals of each other, but somehow, something went wrong. So that the nymphs come to represent some lost nature, and healers of the society who made and exploit them. A recovery of the eroticism and meaning of service.
The next phase of development is for the creators to be less obtrusive. Allowing their creatures to live in their own world, determining their own course. The creators invisible spectators and voyeurs, like hidden parents watching the adventure of their children's autonomous development. Attending to their victories and defeats. The advanced races create primitive races to watch them climb their own way to become an advanced race, creating their own primitive races. So however advanced the universe becomes, there are always primitive races, children of the advanced races, renewing the journey out of barbarism, and climbing to the heights of civilisation. The civilizational equivalent of individuals having children to repeat an endless cycle of new life and new experience.
So Obastel was a goddess to her creatures, and an immortal. But even such as her were sometimes prone to the loss of meaning. When the activities of living seem to become shallow and futile. And the aeons of memory like a weight.
 |
Obastel Falling 1 (Detail)
Acrylic and some colour pencil on illustration board.
|
In such a case, a god or goddess may choose to do what Obastel did. To enter her creation. Her great work of art. To relinquish her memory and start again, as a blank slate, seeing the world with new fresh eyes. Living as one of her creatures, battered and woken by the force of their world.
So she got in her open-top flying car and flew out from the great city, far out over the great expanse of the Miras' interior. Then she climbed out of the car and dropped from it like a pebble. The car instantly collapsed, forming a slim case, like a briefcase, and fell along side her. She fell for a long time. For days, if there were days. She had food and water with her in a small pack. Her red skirt flapped around her and the air rushed over her body.
She fell past an ocean pouring over a lip and spent a few hours among the thunder, spray and rainbows.
 |
Obastel Falling 1 (Detail 2)
Acrylic and some colour pencil on illustration board.
|
 |
Obastel Falling 2
Ball-point pen on ruled paper.
|
 |
Obastel Falling 3
Pencil and acrylic on illustration board.
|
 |
Obastel Sleeps
Colour pencil, black ink and maybe some gouache on photocopy paper.
|
As Obastel slept she forgot who and what she was. When she awoke, she did not know where she was. She was not alarmed, but examined the world with instinctive calm confidence.
 |
Obastel with her suitcase
Pencil on photocopy paper.
|
 |
Obastel doodles
Ball-point pen on ruled paper.
|
 |
Obastel and Traselew
Pencil on photocopy paper.
|
Obastel wandered in the deserts for a time and it was there that she encountered Traselew. Strictly speaking, this image belongs to the new stuff period.
 |
Obastel and Traselew 2
Pencil on ruled paper.
|
Obastel developed a special relationship with Traselew.
 |
Obastel and Traselew 2 (partially inked)
Black ink on photocopy paper.
|
 |
Obastel arrives at Newgrove
Black ink, colour pencil and some gouache on photocopy paper.
|
It was dark and lightly raining when Obastel first arrived at Newgrove. Traselew was with her. One side of her briefcase was a television screen playing soap operas, and lighting her way. Amadese, his sister Sagredes, and the other residents of Newgrove were living close to starvation at this time. But with the arrival of Traselew, plants began grow spontaneously and living became easy. Obastel is the mother of Myrdemmon by Amadese, but while Myrdemmon was still a young boy Obastel and Traselew left Newgrove while the rest of the household slept. None of them ever saw Obastel again, but Amadese found Traselew dead in the desert. When Amadese saw Provetan nearby and guessed that he had emerged from Traselew he brought him back to Newgrove in the hope that he could restore the already withering plant-life. Years later, Elbeth, a wandering scholar, came to Newgrove. When she left, Mydemmon, Milae and Provetan went with her. As circumstances would have it, Elbeth, Myrdemmon and Milae would travel to Owel, arriving shortly after Provetan departed from it in his campervan. Milae would later travel from there to Smerfarvin.
 |
Traselew
Pencil on photocopy paper.
|
Traselew was a biomechanical creature. A kind of cross between an elephant and a tractor.
New Stuff Prep.
 |
| Obastel and Torwis 1a (final pencil) Pencil on A3 photocopy paper. |
 |
| Obastel and Torwis 1b (final pencil) Pencil on A3 photocopy paper. |
See Obastel and Torwis 1 on New Stuff for the finished images.
 |
Obastel and Torwis 1 (detail)
Photoshop.
|
 |
Obastel's Wanderings
Pencil on A2 cartridge paper.
|
The space between each of the levels in the above would be high enough to accommodate a 7-storey building. As Obastel was traversing the second-lowest level, from left to right, a wind came up, causing her to slide, struggling to keep her footing amid dust and debris and her flapping dress. She made for one of the pillars to stop herself from sliding off end, and waited some hours for the wind to subside. Then headed up and to the right. Not far beyond she encountered Traselew for the first time. This image may serve as the new terminus of the Miras Zoom sequence in place of Provetan (see Miras Zoom 1h on Miras).
 |
| Obastel and Traselew 3a Pencil on A3 photocopy paper. |
Traselew is barely visible at the middle-right of the image.
 |
Obastel and Traselew 3b (final pencil)
Pencil on A3 photocopy paper.
|
Obastel is barely visible below Traselew's nose.
 |
| Obastel and Traselew 4 (pencil) Pencil on A3 photocopy paper. |
 |
Traselew Dead
Pencil on A3 photocopy paper.
|
Traselew dead in a region not too far from Newgrove.
Previous Page / Next Page
First Page - Contents
Comments