The Monstra Collecta
Greetings, I am Ascalaphas or Lion, the author and illustrator for Monstra Collecta, and in this post I will be explaining the premise behind the collection and some of my inspirations and experiences with it.
Greetings, I am Ascalaphas or Lion, the author and illustrator for Monstra Collecta, and in this post I will be explaining the premise behind the collection and some of my inspirations and experiences with it.
Monstra Collecta means a lot to me, it's full name is "Monster Tragedy Collective Artworks", meaning a series of short quotes or ideas about or from villains, monsters, demons and evil creatures from my horror stories given "form". I've been creating these stories and characters for a long time now, ever since I was but a little moth larvae, only being able to manifest them visually through scribbles and text, the experience was rather limited.
After 2018, when I started practicing Pixel Art, I spent a lot of time honing my skills to be able to tackle Monstra Collecta more seriously, and although there is still a lot I lack in skills, I have been successful in bringing a few of my creations out of my mind, for all to see and enjoy.
The idea for each piece is simple, I design an artwork that resonates with the message from the story, this image is based on the character itself and the contents of the specific moral, emotional or philosophical snippet of text I decided to use.
Then, after creating the artwork or animation, I share them together as a "bite-sized" puzzle.
After release it is all in the viewers hands, I will never fully explore the themes and meanings of my pieces, as I believe Monstra Collecta is the perfect opportunity for those who are interested in creating theories and developing their own interpretations towards my horror.
They do have a story behind them and a "correct" interpretation on my end, because I also went through theorizing and developing them all, but in the short time I have experimented with the Monstra Collecta, I have seen many people both coming very close to it's meanings and going very far away from it, creating their own beautiful and creative interpretations for my art, which is inspiring and fascinating to me.
There are a few design rules for Monstra Collecta, each season of the Monstra Collecta has an overall theme, but those are soft guidelines that may not apply to all the pieces as my creative thought patterns change or expand.
One rule that is immutable, is that all the stories surround a villainous perspective at the very least, so they either are proposed by a villain, are a villain on their own, or were directed to or by a villain somehow.
Some may be poems, some may be legends, other may be songs or even dialogues and monologues, who knows? They may not be evil ideas, but they are for sure born from such nature.
Monstra Collecta also has two seasons and only the first has been released fully, while the second remains under production. (Both receive revisions and slight changes or expansions from time to time.)
Monstra Collecta also has two seasons and only the first has been released fully, while the second remains under production. (Both receive revisions and slight changes or expansions from time to time.)
I decided to celebrate this post by reworking the first of the Monstra Collecta visual artworks, he never had a name, but after a little bit of thought... I decided upon one.
And I may add more reworks here, slowly, so that all of the pieces may one day be found in the same post.
This is "The Interloper".
"He spoke of unsung poems, he described the unseen, he screamed about the forgotten, he cried for those without heart. But of all of them, the loneliest... The Interloper."
"The Neptunian Queen"
"The Neptunian Queen"
"From her duality perpetual trust was born, an amalgamation of a beating heart filled with ambition and the experiences of a long lived past. The flower conquered many worlds, and the Queen flourished in it's new wake."
"Thorned Hunger"
"Thorned Hunger"
"Seeking balance, in thorns or hunger, keeping far away the beast from within."
"The Industrial King"
"The Industrial King"
"Drowning in a mirage, we are satiated by the emptiness of our paper reality... Hahaha, it slowly guides us to our slaughter, but soon, they will suffer from their own poison."
"Emotional Bait"
"Emotional Bait"
"Interactions with the world around us will get trickier, the human element is one of the most dangerous, we can even get ourselves stuck in an emotional bait of our own making."
"A False Idea"
"A False Idea"
"All bear some, right? Some masks we morph ourselves into to be accepted, loved, normal... human, but what do we become when things really matter?"
"Royal Judgement"
"Royal Judgement"
"There is no such thing as divine wisdom, even those blessed as protectors of the weak aren't perfect, sometimes kings and queens blind themselves with the blood they spilled, their grip is unmatched, but no light can be held."
"The Unexpected Hangover"
"The Unexpected Hangover"
"The true fear of a newborn responsibility can only be felt when it's put to the test. She may help you with that."
"Forsaken Guardian"
"Forsaken Guardian"
"Unlucky as you may be, your path allowed you to witness the forsaken, and he may protect you now, as blindly as you yourself are..."
"Antique Sentinel"
"Antique Sentinel"
"Old fashioned as is, poor creation of the foul minded, maybe the gods know it's original purpose, for now... a relic."
"Touristic Endeavor"
"Touristic Endeavor"
"I wonder when they are going home, these humans, they are unlike us, so primitive and awkward... You have to believe in me! Those damn humans..."
"The Black Star"
"The Black Star"
"As great and mighty they may be... perhaps their light will falter and never reach us, do these "black stars" still brighten someone's world? I truly wonder about that."
"Disciplina Ventosa"
"Disciplina Ventosa"
"In fear we abide by the so called "rules", as we were meant to follow them according to the ones who "know" better, this isn't necessarily a bad thing, not in any natural way... but it can be."
