#Folktaleweek Picks of Day 4: "Smoke"

IG @suwin.chan

We are just over halfway through a week of discovering folktales and fairy tales and new ways of looking at old ones. All the #FolktaleWeek and #FolktaleWeek2019 info is HERE. The link shows the hashtag and you can see an enormous sampling of the myriad mediums and styles being created in. (Prepare for lots of scrolling! There are hundreds of wonderful things to see!) You can also see a small selection of the MANY posts that have appeared for each day so far:
Monday      - HOME HERE
Tuesday     - SECRET HERE
Wednesday - PATH HERE

Today's prompt is SMOKE.

Note: We were expecting lots of little pigs with smoking wolves, caterpillars talking to Alice, firebirds, houses in the wood with smoking chimneys and genies in lamps. While there were some of those, some folks seem very inspired by older folktales from Africa and Native America, while others turned to the Wild Swans and the princess tied to the stake with the nettle shirts. The tales that were familiar had different interpretations (eg Cinderella with her fire) which was refreshing too.

As a reminder, we chose for different styles, unusual scenes of known tales and most often, lesser-known tales wonderfully done.

Enjoy - artist credits, and any pertinent notes made by them for their work, are below each image.

IG @spittypt

Artist comment: N/A

IG @feliciaolin

Artist comment: So for #folktaleweek2019 #folktaleweek #smoke .... well, I kinda just made my own ending to #littleredridinghood inspired by midsommar (I wont spoil it) and the ending of Heather's.

IG @taranealarts

Artist comment: Day 4 of #folktaleweek is #smoke and I have chosen the climactic scene from the Six Swans where a woman is told she can return her six brothers from the curse of being turned into swans if she sews them jumpers out of aster flowers and does not speak or smile for six years. She is being burned at the stake for her abnormal behavior on the final day of her silence by the wicked witch (who is also responsible for cursing her brothers) when the swans fly in, receive their jumpers, and are revived, freeing everyone - yay! This would have been a good story for the “secret” prompt, but it was surprisingly hard for me to find a good “smoke” folktale. .

IG @sianillustrates

Artist comment: SMOKE//#folktaleweek .....’His plumage was beautiful, his song glorious, and his flight was like the flashing of the light...’ (Hans Christian Andersen)

IG @marketastengel

Artist comment: day 4 SMOKE 💙 - Kaguya-hime the Moon Princess and a burning elixir of immortality on the top of Mount Fuji. From a Japanese folktale The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter.

IG @lillalero

Arist comment:  Day 4- SMOKE-

IG @papersilhouette

Artist comment: Folktale Week Day 4: Smoke! - This is an imagined moment of the folktale, The Heavenly Maiden and the Woodcutter, where the woman trapped on Earth by her woodcutter husband takes small moments like these to remember her home and family in the skies, here she imagines them in the smoke of her kettle.

IG @farrell_annemarie

Artist comment: The prompt for day four is #SMOKE. Today’s tale is a love story set in a curio cabinet(with a verrry tenuous link to smoke). She was a beautiful little Shepherdess, he was an angel-faced Chimneysweep. Enter the porcelain Chinaman who considers himself the Shepherdess’ grandfather.(think less avuncular and more control freak). He doesn’t approve of their romance and tries to thwart the lovematch and make the Shepherdess marry someone else. Drama ensues but all ends well for the two little figurines... I love a happy ending! 🥰

IG @ayukotanaka

Artist comment: Day4 - the prompt ‘smoke’ - My illustration for the fourth day of #folktaleweek is from ‘Sleeping Beauty’. While his father burns all the spinning machines, a good fairy casts a spell to save the princess’s life - not let her die but let her sleep for 100 years- A sad day for the kingdom🔥

IG @apolin.art

Artist comment: N/A

IG @amva.creations

Artist comment: Day 4 of #folktaleweek2019: smoke. Cinderella's just come home from the ball, and can't think of anything else than dancing with the prince. Her stepsisters suspect that something is up when they see her completely lost in a daydream, not paying attention to the fire at all.

IG @loni.planet

Artist comment: FOLKTALE WEEK 2019 - A ROMANIAN FOLKTALE – 4. SMOKE -After days, weeks, and month of walking through destroyed and snowy landscapes, the friends reached a clearing, where the smoke of freshly charred trees snaked through the branches. The dragon couldn’t be far. Her friends were worried about her because her leaves were discolored and some even fell to the ground. But she was determined to set the sun free at all costs.

IG @inky.daze

Artist comment: Day 4 is ‘smoke’, which ended with a quick little hellhound.The first couple of linocuts I did when getting back into printmaking were hellhounds, so this was neat to do and really makes me want to do a large detailed piece soon.

IG @ceecliff_art

Artist comment:  SMOKE leads to fire. Day 4 of #folktaleweek2019 I found an Inuit story about a cunning coyote who stole fire from the Skookums (a big foot type of creature and they were the only ones who had fire). To avoid capture by the Skookums, the coyote passed the fire from animal to animal like a baton in a race. A team effort by a diverse group—I love that. You can swipe to see the animals enjoying the fire.

IG @kathwaxman

Artist comment: Folktale Week 2019, Prompt 4: Smoke - This story, called How Beaver Stole Fire, is from the Myths and Legends of the Pacific Northwest (where I live), specifically told by the Nez Perce tribe. - Pine trees held the secret of fire and would not share it. After a particularly cold winter, a council of animals was held to steal fire from the Pine trees along the Grande Ronde River. Beaver sneaks into the council and steals an ember and that is how fire was shared amongst the animals and other trees. - When designing the composition, I referred to Molly Bang’s wonderful book called How Pictures work. It helped inform decisions of size and placement that I hadn’t really considered. Most of work is just intuitive so I think I need to keep pushing this!

IG @annisafadlila

Artist comment: N/A

IG @paululadesign

Artist comment: "...until she looked like a strange bird, and no one would have been able to recognize her. Then she walked out of the house. - Underway some of the wedding guests met her, and they asked, "You, - Fitcher's bird, where are you coming from?" -"I am coming from Fitcher's house." - "What is his young bride doing there?" - "She has swept the house from bottom to top, and now she is looking out of the attic window." Finally her bridegroom met her. He was slowly walking back home, and, like the others, he asked, - "You, Fitcher's bird, where are you coming from?" - "I am coming from Fitcher's house." - "What is my young bride doing there?" - "She has swept the house from bottom to top, and now she is looking out of the attic window." The bridegroom looked up. Seeing the decorated skull, he thought it was his bride, and he waved a friendly greeting to her. - After he and all his guests had gone into the house, the bride's brothers and relatives arrived. They had been sent to rescue her. After closing up all the doors of the house so that no one could escape, they set it afire, and the sorcerer, together.

IG @nanofevrier

Artist comment: Day 4 "Smoke" -I couldn't really think of any folk tales I know for this prompt so I did a research and ended up reading this strange tale: "The Dark, or Pitch-Pine, Daughter of the Norse King and How She Thinned the Woods of Lochaber". It involves a Seiðr woman, the daughter of the Norse King, using her knowledge of the black arts for political/economical reason which I thought was an peculiar use of magic. Here she is, setting a Scottish forest on fire, because her people wants to keep the monopoly of the wood trade!  -You can read the whole story on the Exemplore website but here is an pretty terrifying extract "The land was darkened by the smoke which was so thick that the folk could hardly see before them. Ash rained down upon them as the mountainsides, once lush and green with thick ancient forest became a waste of charred tree trunks and scorched earth. The Norse sorceress was so blackened by the smoke and soot of the fiery furnace which surrounded her, she was named "Dark", or "Pitch Pine"."

IG @blu_laura_blu

Artist comment: I went with a slavic tale today, and had loads of fun dressing Death up 🌑🏵️🌑

IG @annifduluth

Artist comment: The prompt for day 4 of #folktaleweek2019 is Smoke. This is one of my personal favorite illustrations of the week.

IG @marjolaineroller

Artist comment: Mummy Bear had prepared #porridge for #breakfast, but it was too hot, so the #threebears decided to have a walk while it was cooling... 🐻🐾☀

IG @mattlyonart

Artist comment: N/A

IG @suetoddillustration

Artist comment: They say "where there's smoke there's fire." Does it follow that the reverse is true? In answer to the prompt, "smoke" for #folktaleweek2019, an #illustration from Medio Pollito, Little Half Chick, a #mexican #folktale I illustrated for @thechildsworld_books .

IG @mono_mono

Artist comment: Prompt No. 4 of #folktaleweek S M O K E. I found a tale from northern germany, the part where I was raised called 'Fru Gode' who rides over towns and villages at night and causes wealth among the folks she was passing 🧡🏡

IG heidi_griffiths_art

Artist comment: Peter Pan and the Darlings escaping the smoky city for Neverland. It’s another one of my favourite children’s books. (& any excuse to draw chimney pots!)

IG @squidneydoodles

Artist comment: 🔥✨Enter the Reign of the Phoenix🔥✨* The Phoenix is a magnificent creature that is as fast as a comet. When the Phoenix passes, a new life is born from its ashes. Through the clouds the Phoenix flies higher into the sky, and illuminates a burst of light through its feathers as it brings a new day.✨*

IG @ashley_mckee

Artist comment: This illustration is based on a Jack Tale called Old Fire Dragaman. A hungry old giant leaves his home in a land of giants in search of an easy snack. For 3 nights he stops by a cabin shared by Jack and his brothers and licks the pot of food clean and lights his pipe with a log.

IG @toriboard

Artist comment: . Prompt: Smoke. - While searching for folk stories of different nationalities I came across some beautiful native American ones and this one stuck out to me. I can't paste the whole story as it's a bit long but I'd encourage anyone to seek out the full thing. It's called: The boy in the land of shadows "And the boy said, “I seek my sister. In the early springtime she  became sick and died, and I am going to the Land of Shadows in the Country of Silence in search of her.” “You must go far inland,” said the skeleton, “and the way is hard to find for such as you.” The boy asked for guidance and the skeleton said, “Let me smoke and I will help you.” The boy gave him the pipe and the tobacco he had received from the old man, and he laughed when he saw his strange companion with the pipe between his teeth. The skeleton smoked for some time and at last, as the smoke rose from his pipe, it changed to a flock of little white birds, which flew about like doves. The boy looked on in wonder, and the skeleton said, “These birds will guide you. Follow them.” Then he gave back the pipe and stretched out again flat upon the sand, and the boy could not rouse him from his sleep."

IG @laure_illustrations

Artist comment: Day 3 & 4: Smoke & Path - The blue light by the brothers Grimm. The story is a bit too long to explain here but do look it up because it involves witches, a dwarf, a well, smoke, wishes, underground paths & treasures, princesses & peas...all the good stuff!

IG @nichtlicht

Artist comment: A smoking sword for day 4: SMOKE - I was inspired by „Vasilisa the Beautiful“ for this one!

IG @sveta_solarni

Artist comment: (auto-translated) Smoke -  Where without the fulfillment of desires by a magic pike)) According to the pike command, in my desire, let the son sleep sweetly all night and see happy dreams)) Damn, but I do not have pikes!

IG @madebysmitty

Artist prompt: Day 4 of #folktaleweek2019! - Prompt: SMOKE - From the tale Vasilisa the Beautiful. - I'm veritably obsessed with Russian folk tales, especially those that include Baba Yaga. - I liked to imagine whilst making this drawing that when Baba Yaga sent Vasilisa home with the fire that reduced her evil stepmother to smoke and ashes, that she also sent Vasilisa home as an initiated Woman of the Dark Arts.

IG @cloverlie

Artist prompt: Day 4: Smoke, ”When Tigers Smoked Pipes” - The title is the equivalent of ”once upon a time” for Korean folktales and I find it infinitely more interesting- a story in and of itself. The tiger is also revered- intertwined in Korean folklore and once thought to ”embody the spirit of the mountains”, recalling a time when they did exist amongst their mountain ranges. I took this pretty literally, imagining the body like a rock face, surrounded by clouds created from the smoke of its own pipe.

TOMORROW'S PROMPT IS DARKNESS.