Adventurers

>

My latest project that I have set myself is to create some characters. I've recently started drawing again, but want to draw in an entirely different style. Before, I was using my scribbles as a form of exorcism & diary keeping - a way to express everything from my daily routine, to unusual things that happened around me, to my fears and worries. It was all rather unhealthy really - I ended up dwelling on my concerns for too long, and my drawing became rather introspective. But, my new project is actually creative - the plan is to design a series of characters, and create 'character sheets' for each one. I've thought up a scenario in which these characters can exist: it is the end of the Second World War, and across Europe and North Africa, Allied soldiers are starting to realise that with the end of war will come an end to their jobs. With the prospect of being demobbed, and returning to the shattered cities of Old Europe, a small group of servicemen and women desert, and team up in North Africa, forming a group of mercenaries. Basically, the group are dashing around the desert sands in search of plundered Nazi gold. Trying to avoid the armies that they've deserted from, and clashing with German deserters & desert people who are also in search of the loot.

It may be a little cliched, but I'm not actually trying to write a book/film etc about it, just designing some characters. So, I've been doing a fair amount of reserach into equipment, uniforms, period hairstyles etc over the last week. The look and feel of the characters is based on a pulped collage of imagery from Victorian explorers & hunters, First & Second World War militaria, and 1950s guerillas in South America & the Middle East. It's not true to history, but I think that this way, it'll have a rich feeling, and allows me to be nice & flexible with what I can include. I'll post some of my sketches soon. But first...

To get into the feel of these characters, I had a bit of a rummage through my wardrobe, and found some bits & pieces that I thought looked as if they were from this period, and I took a few photos (which was a huge amount of fun, as I ran around being silly, and pretending it was research!) Here are a few of them!