BA3a Creative Practice - Week 7 Summary

My Week 7

- Marya Iteration

- Baba Yaga Iteration

Marya Iteration Part 1: Initial Sketches For my first set of designs featuring Marya I have given her the traditional Slavic chain-mail armour as a base and built on top of that, with a shorter rubakha (undershirt) featuring classic Slavic patterns around the bottom. Because Marya is essentially a warrior princess/turned queen, I wanted her to be dressed in armour to reflect that, which is why I have also added the arm and leg-guards, which are above the leather gloves and Slavic styled shoes. I have also given her cloak iterations, with the fur ones being called a shuby/shubki - which are usually made from fox fur. Lastly I have given her a grivna/torque necklace which I imagine to be made of gold since she is a queen. My favourite iterations are the last ones on each row, as I like the combination of the chain-mail and fur cloak, as well as the silhouette on the one featured in the second row.

Marya Iteration Part 2: Additional Armour

For my second set of iterations I have given Marya heavier armour, which fits her more as she has been in countless battles to protect her homeland. My favourites are the second and third on the top row, as well as the last on the second. I like the second on the top row greatly because of the medieval plate armour, alongside the cloak. With the third on the top row, I think the padded texture used for the chest-piece looks aesthetically appealing. Lastly with the final one on the bottom row, I think the fur as a gilet works well against her tabard which is commonly worn by royalty in Russia.

Baba Yaga Iteration Part 1: Initial Sketches

To me, I always saw Baba Yaga wearing a traditional Slavic dress (rubakha), which was possibly torn and rugged looking. I wanted her to also be carrying a bag as well as various potions around her belt since she is a sorceress. Like Marya I have implemented fur into a lot of her designs as it was essentially what kept most people warm in medieval Europe, especially in Russia and Scandinavia. On her fourth design I have swapped this for feathers however, which would most likely be dark in colour from birds like ravens and crows. Baba Yaga is still an evil character which is why I wanted to represent that with something rather witchy, as well as the feathers adding harsh cuts into the silhouette which further adds to her being intimidating. My favourite is definitely the third since I think the fur coat adds to her silhouette well.