OT ART: Ishtar wasn't THAT bad
 

I was reading over at Cylon about how bad "Ishtar" was. And it reminded me of my "Ishtar." And I would like to share her with you.

May I introduce, Ishtar!

http://www.thomas7g.com/post/Ishtar.jpg

This is a painting I did awhile ago. But this is the first time I am displaying it in public. she's from an anime series I liked called Macross 2.

I hate taking credit for other people's genius, so I have to mention that this isn't an original piece by me. Back before Macross 2 came out, I saw some preliminary artwork.

Here is the sketch
http://www.thomas7g.com/post/HAL-Ishtar.jpg

I liked it so much. Actually ANYTHING about MACROSS makes me drool. And I liked it so much I wanted to have a poster of it. So as a test of my painting skills I did this. (This was my third painting EVER outside of classwork) Its about 2-3 feet tall. I did the drawing from memory. I did peek now and then to get the outfit right. But mostly I drew blind.

I think it didn't suck too bad. ;)

For those who aren't into Macross anime, Ishatar was an alien high priestess from a soceity of undefeated warriors ruled by an oppressive dictator. She sang, and her songs were used to keep her people calm and passive. But when her people came to conquer earth, she was at first kidnapped by us. But then she fell in love with our culture and especially our music. And then she sang to her people inspiring them to revolt and live for themselves.


[MOVER]robotech[/MOVER] Long Live Macross!!!!

:D
Makes me rethink my opinion of "Ishtar"!!!

Thanks for sharing!

JJR

:salute:

Tom -

Before I opened the thread - I was thinking that you saw the Warren Beatty movie "Ishtar" and was saying that you liked it....!

I'm pleased that you were talking about Macross II! And you are correct - it's not that bad, as a matter of fact it's damn good!

I like it!

Bryan

You are welcome JJR. :)

Bryan, Glad you liked. Did you ever see Macross II?

Very cool Tom!

WOW !!

Very nice, in fact very, very nice!!

:thumbsup:

Tom -

Yes, I have it here at home - I bought it on VHS back in the early 90's. I like the animation and character design - the story is somewhat interesting, but the connections to the original Macross are kind of thin, but still enjoyable!

Best,
Bryan

I'm glad you liked it Pete and Don!

Bryan, have you ever seen Roman Holiday with Audrey Hepburn by chance?

One of my favorite moments was at the very end, when Ishtar is about to join Fef and leave Earth. Hibiki shows up and Ishtar immediately runs to him. There is a brief moment when Fef is looking down on them. Soemthing about that scene I think was neat. Not sure what. Maybe he was proud and didn't want to show his dishonor. Or maybe he disapprved of seeing the high preistess act like a puppy in love. But there was a moment you could feel his fallen majesty. Just one second that I still remember.

Or maybe I have romanicized it in my head after all these years.

:)

Btw- I took the about image with a digital camera I borrowed. It was a 4 megapixel Canon Powershot S410. I darkened the black a little bit in photoshop. Mostly cause the black paint collects dust like crazy over time. And you can't really do much to clean it cause it will wash off with water or damagable by rubbing.

:)

Digital cameras are pretty neat. :)

Tom - I know the scene you're talking about..."The Oracle of Truth" right? There was another movie (one of my favorites) called "Only You" with Marisa Tomei and Robert Downey Jr. where they come across the Oracle and mention the scene in "Roman Holiday" and then re-create the scene. Lots of fun. I love movies filmed in Italy - I was stationed there when I was in the USAF. When I see Italy, I always feel a little "homesick".


I think that you've got a couple of scenes spiced together in your head. There is a scene early on in the series where Lord Feff shows up on Earth to recover Ishtar. Feff prevents one of his own warriors from killing her by mistake and wants to take Ishtar back with him. Ishtar defies him by thowing down an electronic bracelet, which shocks Feff greatly. She does run to Hibiki as he has fallen due to a knee injury. The earth forces show up and Feff is forced to retreat. As he flies up into the sky, he seems hearbroken and confused (while dramatic music with lots of strings is playing). A very effective scene.

There is a scene at the very end where Ishtar is leaving on a transport to return to her people. Just as Feff tells her it is time to leave, Hibiki shows up with a gift, but Ishtar never moved from where she was standing. At that moment, Feff just turns and walks back inside the transport. There wasn't much time for any pensive looks or anything. By the way, my memory isn't all that great either, so I took a look at those scenes this morning.

I should say that I loved the soundtrack for Macross II - it was the first anime soundtrack that I ever bought at the time. Another one of my big favorites is the soundtrack from Macross Plus!

Best,
Bryan

I may have the soundtrack too. I most definitely love the valkyurie model I bought!

The reason I asked you about Roman Holiday was cause I was thinking that may have been what inspired the plot. Princess sneaking away for a vacation under cover. Falling in love with a reporter.

:D

Tom -

I'm sorry - I didn't mean to jump the gun on you....! I haven't seen the movie, but I do love old movies anway. I'll have to see if I can get it to rent and give it a look. Thanks for the info!

later mate,
Bryan

I've tried. But well... I'm not fast enough. :(

You have to output fast. A spread a day. My drawing skills aren't that good. :(