The Wizard of Oz Steampunk Style - I of V

I found some interesting concept development sketches of the characters from The Wizard of Oz and thought I'd not only share those but other steampunk Oz illustrations from my archives that I like.

Today's is by Jeremy Vanhoozer, an Art Director currently working at Cartoon Network. He has a couple of versions of some of his characters so far and this is an ongoing project, so be sure to check into his blog HERE to see the alternatives and updates (he posts most days and this is his current focus project).

Here's what the typography concept (shown at the head of the post) developed into:
Dorothy:
Toto is looking very interesting...
Tin Man:

I love the flying monkey!As of today you can also see versions of the Scarecrow, and the Wicked Wict of the West on his blog too.

Oh yeah - and isn't his blog header cool?

Kate Beaton's Comic Fairy Tale Endings

Here's some fresh fairy tale fracturing you may enjoy, newly created by popular comic artist Kate Beaton:Kate is a comic artist (and webcomic artist) from Nova Scotia who, using her Gaelic sense of humor, draws lots of historical cartoons and turns history "on its head" (read a great article about her work HERE). You can find out more about her at her Live Journal account HERE or at her website "Hark! A Vagrant" HERE.

Little Girl & Boy Lost (Leibovitz Stages Hansel & Gretel Pt II)

Here are the rest of the photos released from the Annie Leibovitz fairy tale shoot for the 2009 December issue of Vogue. We saw the two photos featuring Lady Gaga in a previous post HERE.

The rest of the photos are shown in order below, along with the story as portrayed and described by Vogue's Creative Director Grace Coddington. Please note the story and photos aren't shown exactly as they will be in the magazine. To view the full piece, you'll need the December issue which mentions a fashion tribute to The Arts - which this shoot is likely part of considering the inspiration and involvement of The Metropolitan opera. The issue has Cate Blanchett on the cover whose shots for this issue were also taken by Leibovitz.

I'm Famished Brother and sister are home alone with not a morsel to eat.

Far From Home They venture out to hunt for wild strawberries in the woods, where Gretel's lily-white frock shines against the dark foliage of the Tree-men. Before long, though, they're hopelessly lost. (Tree-men costumes courtesy of the Metropolitan Opera.)

Golden Slumber The Sandman (played here by Sasha Cooke, who has appeared in the Met's production) sprinkles magic dust onto the frightened children, who fall into a deep sleep and dream about a banquet served by a fish maître d'. (Sandman and fish maître d' costumes courtesy of the Met.)

Wicked The two discover a house in the forest, only to find it occupied by an old witch (portrayed here by Lady Gaga). Gretel looks sweet enough to eat in a poufy confection. But it's Hansel the evil one wants to fatten up and feast on.

Feed the Flames Before the witch can cook Hansel and Gretel—whoosh—they push her into the oven and shut the door.

The Witch Is Dead! The children (here, the Junior Choristers of Grace Church in New York City) baked into gingerbread by the hag come back to life.

You can read all about the shoot (and about more of Lady Gaga's outrageous dressing) HERE and see the slideshow with the complete fashion information HERE.

Blue Giant Leaves Footprints In Scotland

I have had this story in my to-blog list for ages and unfortunately have now missed the window when this amazing event was taking place (so sorry about that!) but feel I must still report on it - for you never know when he will return, and he WILL return...The 10th of November was the last day people would see a blue eight metre (twenty-six and a quarter feet) high giant walking the streets and villages of Scotland - at least for a while.

Here's where the story, the Myth of the Giant, began*:

“Many thousands of years ago when Scotland was a rough country of boulders, vast forests and wild beasts , people lived in fear of everything, even the shadows.

“Then one day the warmth of the sun was blotted out and they looked up to see two huge birds fighting in the sky. Like giant eagles they tumbled, wheeled and spun in the air until one of the creatures broke away and tumbled towards them. As it grew closer to the ground they saw it was not a bird but a giant man with great wings strapped to his back. When he hit the ground the earth trembled, his wings smashed to pieces, and the populace fled and hid in terror.

“Then, driven by curiosity, they ventured out to look at this Big Man. They saw he needed their help and they looked after him, gave him water and food.

“In return for their hospitality he helped clear the land of the giant boulders, throwing them into the sea to create islands. He carved out inlets with his bare hands so they could shelter their fishing boats and he chased the nightmare beasts from the forests.

“Gradually he recovered his strength and walked the land recovering the scattered pieces of his shattered wings to rebuild them.

“Finally he was ready, he tied his pinions to his back and with a great beat of air flew into the sky and was gone.

“At first people were sad and missed him, but when they looked around and saw their fields cleared of boulders, the forests safe to hunt in and sheltered havens for their fishing boats. They realised that this was now a land in which they could live and thrive.

“The wisest of them even suggested that the Big Man would return to see the country he had helped create. They promised that when he came back he would be welcomed with great celebrations. They wanted the communities to gather together to show him what had been achieved in his absence. These storytellers became The Guild of Watchers, who now await his return.”

The spectacular Big Man Walking street event and village tour was created by The Puppet Lab (along with Puppet Animation Scotland) thanks to support given by The National Lottery through the Scottish Arts Council's Inspire Fund.

As you can see from the photos, this was an awesome feat for the designers/creators and experience for spectators. The event included parades of different kinds, large projections of people onto buildings and on windows, dancing, live music, special puppet performances (of a smaller size), gift giving and much more - each town having their own variations in greeting their giant blue visitor. The Guild of Watchers who are the 'storykeepers' and have watched for the giant's return, showed the way by guiding the big man safely from shore to forest and beyond with their lanterns and then onto the paths to various villages. I love the fact the event was based on some Scottish myths and so brought ancient local tales to life.Here are some videos of the giant in action:

The 'elevator pitch' for the event:


Greeting some school children:


This one is a little jerky but it still gives a good idea of the big man's reception:


There are booklets on the myth as well as photos and a lot more HERE at the official website. If I find out when he's due to walk again I'll let you know.* Source for the Big Man myth is the official website.

Stage Adaptation of "Ashputtel" Begins Touring in the UK

Forest Forge Theatre Company in Hampshire (UK) has created an adaptation of Grimm's Ashputtel for the stage just in time for Christmas.

In a season when fractured fairy tales and 'panto' Cinderellas take over the stage (at least until Nutcracker season starts) it's refreshing to see the very different "Ashputtel - A Cinderella Story", based on the the Grimm's fairy tale, on offer as a Christmas family show. This one, doesn't have the extreme characters (ie. ugly sisters, often in drag) found in the panto versions but offers a different type of family-friendly story. In this production, as in the tale it's adapted from, Ashputtel has no godmother, fairy or otherwise, but there's plenty of magic...

From Salisbury Journal:

“I think Ashputtel is the best Christmas story there is and the one that fascinates me the most,” she says. “It is about identity and growing up, a real coming of age, following the seasons of the year and beginning and ending in wintertime. The story makes for a lovely family show.” (says Kristie, Artistic Director of Forest Forge)

Aschenputtel by Janaschi

Kirstie uses five actor musicians to tell Ashputtel’s story, and there isn’t a fairy in sight. Ashputtel plants a twig by her mother’s grave that grows to become a magic tree that cannot be chopped down (Edit FTNH: and showers Ashputtel with marvelous ball dresses). “The magic of the story is that the tree is her mother looking out for her,” says Kirstie. “It really is a beautifully inventive tale.”

You can read the whole article HERE.

I'm curious to see the response to this version of Cinderella (did I read about puppet knives, toes and heels in the Director's blog? The knives, toes and heels are probably just props, but still, not your average prop list for a family show!) and I'd love to see how the seasons work in. Unfortunately I don't think Forest Forge have enough funding to attempt overseas tours (yet). Perhaps I'll get lucky and someone will film it...

The Forest Forge Theatre Company website HERE also has the interesting Director's blog I mentioned, in which she writes/reflects on the development of "Ashputtel - The Cinderella Story" and the rehearsal process. You can read the blog HERE.Forest Forge started their tour this week on the 12th of November and will continue touring until January 16th, 2010. You can find more information about where they will be performing HERE.

The Mad Hatter's Second Reveal + The Difficulties Of Turning Carroll's Classic Into A Film

As a follow-up to my post HERE on Tuesday this week, Mad Hatter has revealed the second Disney/Burton "Alice" poster. I think Alice and the White rabbit both look like they could a nap, otherwise it has a lovely mix of fantasy with a dark undertone (as you would expect from director Tim Burton) plus the Burton trees!

Of course, The Mad Hatter now wants 9, 000 Facebook 'likes' to unveil the third art piece...

If you want to join the madness go HERE. (Only 3, 700 'likes' to go till the next one... Ah, publicity - gotta love the stunts.)

On the subject of putting Alice in Wonderland on film, I came across this article I thought the Alice fans may find interesting. It's fairly lengthy with a lot of great detail for those interested in the challenges of adaptations of Carroll's work, as well as those interested in animation. It's aptly titled "It Would Be So Nice If Something Would Make Sense For A Change" - which is a perfect description of article, film and the film's process.For those who don't know, Walt had a long history with Alice and was keen to do a film on the classic work for many years. He kept hitting roadblocks of one sort or another until when the film was finally being developed/in production, he was so tired of it all he barely gave it any attention. I can't help but wonder what it would have been like had he still been enthusiastic and able to dedicate time and effort to the film.)Here's an excerpt:

Pick up just about any book about the history of the Disney Studios, and you're going to run into the same stories, often told in the same words, about the miserable hell that was the production of Alice in Wonderland, which eventually saw release in July, 1951. The problem seems to all boil down to a small nexus of issues: first, there was the fact that Walt eventually had to face, which is that nobody could possibly make a film of Carroll's novels and expect it to turn out like Snow White, or even Pinocchio. The books were too mired in linguistic play, and given over rather to the creation of absurd situations than the development of plot or specific conflict. To surpass this difficulty issue, it seems like he eventually conceived of the film as a sampler platter, if you will, of animation and design: let it be the cartoon version of Carroll's writing in effect, not in detail, an opportunity for the animators to cut loose and make surreal situations with beautiful artwork...

You can read the whole article HERE.

NOTE: The three illustrations are by the legendary Mary Blair who was working for Disney as a concept artist at the time of developing Alice. Her style, designs and color palette greatly influenced the whole film. You can see more of her art HERE, (scroll down for a huge gallery) and buy a book on her work HERE. A Disney Alice in Wonderland story book using Mary Blair's concept art for the illustrations, was released in September last year (and I posted an entry HERE).

"Legends: The Enchanted" - Dark Steampunk Fairy Tale Comic Coming in 2010

The girl above is Redhood (a.k.a. Red Riding Hood) and she's not the only familiar character getting a dark fantasy/post-apocalyptic/steampunk/horror makeover. Coming in April 2010 is "Issue #0" (yes, that's a zero) of a new comic series titled "Legends: The Enchanted".

Please be warned: despite the title, this comic crosses the line into horror, which is one of the reasons I'm posting on it - so you'll know what you're in for should you ever pick it up. While the feel is dark fantasy, the images are very graphic in both the gallery and on every page in the preview. I'm not even comfortable posting the cover (which has Redhood in a different pose with some scary-looking supernatural creatures flanking her) or the other character images beyond those included in this entry for my blog readers. Please do NOT have children around when viewing the comic website. The official blurb:

From award-winning illustrator and acclaimed comic book artist Nick Percival comes a dark, original fairy tale.

You think you know them. Think again.

Violently ripped from the pages of folklore come the Enchanted. Supernatural immortals living in a dark, steampunk, creature-infested world where nature, technology and foul magic are in constant conflict. When the twisted, burnt remains of the half-wooden, half-mechanical warrior, Pinocchio, are discovered, wolf hunter Red Hood and giant killer Jack realize the fragile rules of their existence have been shattered. With the help of other powerful Enchanted (the mercenary, Goldilocks [edit FTNH: the character illustration in the gallery is tagged Bear/Goldilox, Bear being her hairy, ogre-like companion] and psychic exterminators, Hansel and Gretel), Jack and Red team up on an adventure to stop whatever, or whoever is destroying their powers and murdering their kind.

Poor Red has had so many makeovers, this version isn't surprising enough on it's own, but teaming her up with the other characters in their various bounty-hunter/killer-for-hire personas there might be something interesting there. Steampunk Pinocchio sounds like he never made it past the introduction but Hansel & Gretel as psychic exterminators? Should be enough like "Fables" to draw some fans in for a 'looksee', yet different enough (very, very dark!) to form a new set too. From the preview (available at the website) this is just so violent and gory, as much as I'm curious to see the steampunk variation, I'll likely be giving this one a miss.

If you're still interested you can find out more about the comic HERE and see more pictures in the gallery tab HERE (including possibly the scariest Pinocchio I've ever seen - yikes!).

"Beast" Preview - Graphic Novel by Marian Churchland

Newsarama has a free 25 page preview of a new graphic novel that (according to Newsarama) becomes available in bookstores today (Amazon shows it becoming available on November 25th). It's loosely based on Beauty and the Beast and is by Vancouver writer-artist Marian Churchland.

From an interview with Comic Book Resources:

“Beast” is the story of Colette, a struggling sculptor who’s trying to get on with her life following a break-up. Her father, who doubles as her “informal and somewhat unreliable” agent, finds her a job: Carving a portrait of a man out of a specific block of marble. But neither the man,who turns out to be a shadowy creature named Beast, or the block of marble are what they seem.

If that plot sounds familiar, it’s supposed to. “The initial idea for ‘Beast’ was that I would do a very, very loose retelling of the Beauty and the Beast fairytale,” Churchland told us, “based more or less in the present day, with some mild magical elements.” But from that starting point, the story’s transformed into a more personal tale for the protagonist. “It evolved into something less about the standard fairytale romantic coupling, and more to do with the main character, Colette, having to figure out what she wants out of his life, and whether she’s going to stick with what she knows or break off into uncharted territory.”

Churchland describes “Beast” as a vignette rather than a traditional story, and she feels the piece is fairly unique in the medium of American comics. “I can’t really think what to compare it to,” Churchland said. “And hopefully that, if nothing else, is a good sign rather than a bad one.”

You can read the rest of the article HERE.

Here are a couple of sample pages (click to view larger images):If you like Beauty and the Beast (or are interested in graphic novels) I think you'll be more than intrigued by the end of the 25 page preview. Ms. Churchland herself calls it a "quiet story" and that alone is atypical of what comics usually are these days. "Beast" seems to have a combination of good pacing and expressive drawings that are so well laid out they are emotive without drawing attention to themselves, so you don't lose the story. I'm definitely curious to read more.

You can view 23 more pages HERE and purchase it HERE. Ms. Churchland's website is HERE and her blog is HERE. Both have lots more art and explanations about her process.

Leibovitz Stages Hansel & Gretel for December 2009 Vogue 2009

There are only a couple of pictures so far because the big news item is not that there's a new fairy tale shoot by Leibovitz (though many people are excited about that), nor is it that Leibovitz is still working and producing quality pieces (though that's newsworthy considering her financial troubles this year).

The 'hot' news item - as far as the tabloids are concerned - is that Leibovitz shot the notorious Lady Gaga (with her camera of course). The other models are Lily Cole and Andrew Garfield.The images released show Lady Gaga playing the role of the wicked witch (if she were dressed by Marc Jacobs that is). The notoriety continued just with Lady Gaga's entrance.

From StyleFrizz:

The tiny column that you can see at the right of the burning picture says so much about Lady Gaga’s desperation that could be written down in a Gaga-why dictionary: she’s so eager to please, so ambitious to get somewhere, so willing to do anything and everything to look different, she showed up for the shooting wearing absolutely nothing except a rubber rain coat and very, very high heels... (Edit FTNH: clicking on that last link will take you to one of the craziest pairs of high heels I've ever seen.)

You can read the rest of the short article, including more fashion label details, HERE.

I'm hoping we'll see the rest of the images soon - and that the order will make some sense with the story. Coming out of the oven first would put a different take on the witch getting pushed in later...

Apparently the shoot was inspired by the Engelbert Humperdink's "Hansel und Gretel" as staged by Richard Jones for The Metropolitan Opera, even down to replicating one of their sets. The Metropolitan Opera's production opens December 14th, 2009. Click on the banner below for more details on the production.

The Boy Who Blogged Wolf (or Why We Need Fairy Tales In the Social Media Age) - Article Alert

I read this fun little UK Telegraph article by Shane Richmond on updating fairy tales to teach caution in today's digital age and thought it was not only amusing but also had something to say:

We often hear that new media poses a threat to our children. How do they learn the dangers of online interaction and how do they equip themselves for this new world? We can bore them senseless with school lessons on the subject but if we really want children to be aware of risk we’ll need fairy tales.

For centuries we’ve used fairy tales to teach children not to talk to strangers, to avoid getting lost in the woods and not to break into houses owned by bears. They need updating for the digital age. Here are a few suggestions:

Little Red Riding Hood
When her granny sends her a friend request on Facebook, Little Red Riding Hood doesn’t check the details too closely. When ‘granny’ invites her to a housewarming party at her new shack in the woods, Little Red Riding Hood goes along...

Keep reading HERE.

Mr. Richmond offers updated examples of Red Riding Hood (more people need to read this version), Aladdin (loved this one), The Boy Who Cried Wolf (timely - also see HERE for a cartoon on the subject and below for the notes on the gorgeous illustrations included in this post), Jack and the Beanstalk (the giant is great - and true!) and a Cursed Princess story (this needs to be emailed to as many friends as possible... ;D ).

Make sure you read the comments, as they're still appearing. Eg uzalparker said:

I think you’re missing the one about the Ugly Duckling who’s tweets weren’t as popular as his peers…until he became a tech-savvy swan and used tweet deck to rt the wolf to eat his gloating siblings. Wait, that sounds strangely familiar. (edit FTNH: rt stands for ReTweet)

Aaaand, I feel I must add one too:

(Ahem.)

Once upon a time there was a teenage Rapunzel, who, stuck (stayed) in her room, only communicating with those who found her isolated blog/Facebook comments/tweets in the middle of the massive internet wood and called up the long, long strands of hairy internet feeds to get her attention. Of course, being so estranged from the real world, the poor girl didn't realize she was being taken advantage of until she got into trouble, at which point her mother cuts off access, so her suitors are left to blindly wander the internet wood looking for her. Her mother, trying to force her to come to terms with her actions, throws her out into the physical world where she wanders until she's eaten by wolves. The End.

Go read, enjoy, think about it... (and if you have any social media cautionary fairy tales feel free to tell us about them in the comments).

NOTE the 1st: The lovely retelling and illustrations of The Boy Who Cried Wolf is from the book "Wolf! Wolf!" by John Rocco (who was also the Art Director on the animated film "Shrek"). Click on the illustrations for a larger view - you should be able to read the text too. The whole book is lovely - I pull it out regularly - and is a very interesting retelling of the story. John Rocco has a great promo site for the book, with sneak peeks and behind-the-scenes info HERE.

NOTE the 2nd: The Telegraph site seems to be having issues showing the page. Keep trying - it's worth it.