SHUM
&MUT

Death’s Messenger

by Anastasia Ryzhenko

The concept illustration depicts the character design of the Death’s Messenger. This character is a frog-like creature in the fantasy world of Eastern Europe in the 12th and 13th centuries, who plays a dark role. When someone dies, the Death’s Messenger receives the news and then delivers it to the deceased's family and friends. The Death’s Messenger travels through waterways such as rivers and swamps. Water connects settlements more effectively than roads.

Initially, I thought to embody noise and murk as a state that a person endures, but in the process of creating sketches, I realized that this is not what I would like to develop. After that, I thought that maybe I should use adolescence as the epitome of noise and murk, because for me this period was like that. But again, I didn't feel like it, and I wasn't sure about this topic. So I decided to do what I do best, which is character design.

At first, I wanted to make two characters that would be noise and murk, but after that I decided to combine it all and work with an anthropomorphic character. The choice fell on the frog. Since these creatures live in a swampy area, this is why it is a good embodiment of murk, and because they can make loud noises, this has become the embodiment of noise.

I decided to choose the setting for the character based on the theme of my diploma, the fantasy world of Eastern Europe of the 12th and 13th centuries. I've been working on this topic for quite a long time and I like working in it. Besides, it was a good addition to my diploma and the work is independent.

When creating the work, for a long time I could not decide what exactly I would like to create for this project.