Lips of Color of Blood - Cover Design

This is the cover design for Lips of Color of Blood, a novel by Jurii Kirnev. The artwork is based on Nocturnal Interlude, a drawing from the mini-series of illustrations I did for this novel earlier this year.

I removed the grave in the foreground (see the original artwork) in order to make room for the inscriptions. My font choice for this project was Andalus (actually, it's an Arabic font, but it features a nice Latin typeface, too). I especially enjoyed working on the word BLOOD -- I used some vector grunge stock elements to create that "blood-soiled" effect.

Gone with the Melody

Here it is, at last -- the third and final drawing from the mini-series of illustrations to Jurii Kirnev's Lips of Color of Blood, a novel about a young and talented composer who fell in love with Death itself in the form of an attractive young woman.

As in the case of the previous two drawings, the reference for the model was provided by the author himself. In the background you can see a fragment of the Buda Castle in Budapest (where the novel's events take place). The drawing was done in color pencils, with the female figure finished with a black ball-point pen. Below you can see the work in progress.

I had an epic fun drawing the notes. Those who can read them may even recognize the music, because these are the actual fragments of Mozart's Requiem, carefully drawn, note by note, from the score sheets. Here's the enlarged detail for you to appreciate my "scribing" skills:


In conclusion, I'd like to thank Mr. Kirnev for providing such an excellent opportunity and a great material to work with. Maybe someday I'll get the chance to actually read the novel I've done the illustrations for...

Nocturnal Interlude

This is the second drawing from the mini-series of illustrations to Lips of Color of Blood, a novel by Jurii Kirnev. If you follow my blog, you might already know that the novel is set in modern day Budapest and its heroine represents Death itself in the form of an attractive young woman.

The reference photo for the model, as in the previous case, was provided by the author himself. As the references for some of the background details I used photos of Kerepesi Cemetery -- one of the oldest graveyards in Hungary. The drawing is done with my usual mix of media -- color pencils finished with ball-point pens.

Usually I try to develop the colors as evenly as possible throughout the entire process, but this time, as you can see from the WIP scans below, I tried a different approach, rendering the colors and shades step-by-step, starting with the most important elements.

As I wrote in the previous post, there will be three drawings in total, so stay tuned for the conclusion!

The Final Symphony

This is the first drawing from an upcoming mini-series of illustrations to a novel by Jurii Kirnev, who contacted me through deviantART just before the New Year. The novel is titled Lips of Color of Blood, it's set in the modern day Budapest and its heroine represents Death itself in the form of an attractive young woman. Why playing on a violin? Well, you're gonna have to find it yourself -- if you ever get a chance to read the novel, that is.

The drawing is called The Final Symphony and that's the name for the whole series as well. The reference images of the model have been provided by Jurii Kirnev himself. I have used my usual mix of media: color pencils finished with ball-points. As it happens, I got carried away by the background details, but I promised the client there would be less architecture in the next installments. Anyway, here's the WIP scans for those who are interested in how the process went on.

There will be three drawings in total, so stay tuned for more!