Jörmungandr
by Jivan Nallamothu
$120
I try to set a new goal for myself with every new project. With “Under the Surface” my new goal was to try my hand at creature design. With this piece, it was to actually use my reference photos without pivoting. I started with the goal to model a snake. I drew a spiral in my 3D software and gave it some depth to get the basic body shape. I spent the most time sculpting the head using photos of real snakes as references. Once I had the snake model, I started to position it in my scene to figure out what I wanted to do with it. Eventually, I just moved it close to the camera and it reminded me of the Norse legend of Jörmungandr, the giant serpent that encircles the world, swallowing his own tail. From there, I made my snake model a little less realistic and created the more mystical elements of the scene. Keeping in line with my goal for this piece (and its new Nordic theme), I recreated the Standing Stones from the Elder Scrolls video games and added some of Odin’s ravens. To finish the piece, I added the small, topographic details to the organic and magical elements in the scene.