Rath Roiben Rye

“…Say Roiben of the Unseelie Court asks for your aid.”

Rath Roiben Rye by Soni Alcorn-Hender

Rath Roiben Rye by Soni Alcorn-Hender

Some bookish fanart (that was only meant to be a warm-up sketch, but I have no control of these things).

Roiben from ‘Tithe’, ‘Ironiside’, and the ‘Folk of the Air’ series of faerie stories by Holly Black
Acrylics, pastel, & pencil – 21×29 cm

A Year at Bag End (and an evil tree)

‘A Year at Bag End’; seven painted variations from an original Bag End sketch with different seasons and weather, animated together for a bit of Hobbity escapism. The music is ‘Earth Aria’ by Paul Fowler.

Each painting is approx. 10.5 x 1.5 inches, in acrylics, gouache and graphite & coloured pencil.

Bag End in shades of green by Soni Alcorn-Hender

Bag End in shades of green during March, May, and June, by Soni Alcorn-Hender

Bag End in Autumn & Winter by Soni Alcorn-Hender

Bag End in September, November, December, and January by Soni Alcorn-Hender

They’re available as prints and pretty things (all of them together) here on RedBubble.

A Year At Bag End, Soni Alcorn-Hender

A Year At Bag End, Soni Alcorn-Hender

These all started from a single simple pencil sketch of Bag End drawn for the ‘Beyond Bree’ calendar :

Old Forest evil tree and Bag End pencil sketches, by Soni Alcorn-Hender

Old Forest evil tree and Bag End pencil sketches, by Soni Alcorn-HenderAnd that naughty tree from the Old Forest was given a hint of colour too:

Old Forest Tree paintings, by Soni Alcorn-Hender

Old Forest Tree paintings, by Soni Alcorn-Hender

Charlotte & Yogg (characters from a work in progress)

Original Characters: Charlotte & Yogg by Soni Alcorn-Hender

Original Characters: Charlotte & Yogg

‘Yogg was a Himalayan Rock Shepherd. People who’d never seen him assumed this meant he was some kind of dog. He wasn’t a dog. His skin was scalier, his teeth longer, his bite quite fantastically more venomous, and he was even more loyal.
Like many good dogs however he was the proud and careful owner of a Person, and his person was Charlotte. Yogg knew his person needed constant exercise and distraction to keep her happy and healthy, so he dutifully stole her shoes, chewed her pillows, made strange noises in the night, and brought her things from the garden that he thought she might enjoy, (recently including various rocks, half a toad, a whole palm tree, and the chewed hubcaps of a new BMW.)

Yogg also knew his person would need protecting from other people, especially stray or vicious ones. And that sometimes there’d be worse things than people – nameless things that haunted Charlotte’s nightmares, and he’d need to chase them back into the dimension they’d crawled from until he’d pinned them down and torn off their tentacles. He was very good at it. (This was another trait he shared with actual dogs, though apparently most humans are unaware of this vital service that their companions do for them, the ingrates.)

But there were times when his person was besieged by an enemy Yogg couldn’t see; some shapeless, grey weight that he couldn’t sink his teeth into. At these times (no matter how many shoes he stole, or interesting things he dragged in from the garden) he couldn’t seem to make his person happy again. He feared she’d sink into that dismal place where he couldn’t follow. All Yogg could do was hold on, and hope that if he held on tightly enough she wouldn’t disappear. ‘

(From my work-in-progress story.)

Acrylics, pencils, and pastels on paper, 21 x 29 cms

Samuel (characters from a work in progress)

Original character: Samuel by Soni Alcorn-Hender

Original character: Samuel

“When they spoke about Samuel they only said how charming he was, how generous and beautifully-mannered; how he never raised his voice, or denied a request, and was always nice to cats. But I couldn’t stop thinking about how his house is guarded by gargoyles bigger than Stonehenge, how his right-hand-woman is an actual harpy, and how his mother set fire to a desert – and I don’t mean ‘dessert’, I mean ‘an endless horizon of sand haunted by dung beetles and the memory of camels’, actual desert. It burned with a blue flame for nine days straight.
But what I’d like to know now is: what’s he doing in London? Samuel with his harpy, his secrets, and his flames, what’s he after? Because I reckon he’s looking for someone. And I wouldn’t want to be the poor bugger he’s looking for.”

(From my work-in-progress story.)

Pastel, pencils, acrylics, and gold paint on paper, 21×29 cms

Hide and seek

This painting resulted from reading about Aragorn’s tortuous journey with Gollum to the Elves, and wondering what would happen if Gollum tried to sneak away, leading to an expert-level game of hide and seek. The idea coincided with a *need* to paint another English landscape (inspired by the glorious Aira Force in the Lake District), and this is the result.

Aragorn hunts for Gollum, by Soni Alcorn-Hender

Aragorn hunts for Gollum, by Soni Alcorn-Hender

Very mixed media: acrylics, acrylic ink, pastel, chalk, pencil, charcoal, gouache, and possibly a third of a jaffa cake (I never did find it) on paper, 21x29cms.

Oberon & Puck

Oberon & Puck, Soni Alcorn-Hender

Oberon & Puck

I know a bank where the wild thyme blows,
Where oxlips and the nodding violet grows,
Quite overcanopied with luscious woodbine,
With sweet muskroses, and with eglantine.

‘Oberon & Puck’, from William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Basecard art for a trading card by Iconic Creations for the set ‘Iconic Literature’.
Acrylics, mica glitter, gold leaf, dubious love potions and fairy-level arrogance, on paper
A3 / 29cms x 42cms

Prints and art items available at Society6

Work in progress and detail images:

The Fair Folk

Some of the illustrations for the perfume collection: ‘Fair Folk‘, by CocoaPink Bath & Body, Autumn/Winter 2019, and some of the story snippets the artwork inspired.

The Fairy King by Soni Alcorn-Hender

The Fairy King by Soni Alcorn-Hender

The Fairy King

“The entire Faerie Court was known to be a sinuous knot of depravity, but the worst in all of this – or perhaps by their standards, the best – was their King. It was said he could lead an entire village into voluptuous disarray simply by walking through it on a May morning.
Casanova himself chronicled some of the King’s exploits, but his unfinished book was rudely seized and, ‘for the good of humanity’, it was supposedly burned. Though many believe the manuscript still exists to this day, and is kept in the vaults of a shockingly famous building where it quietly causes the air to sparkle and the stones to blush.”

Pastel pencils on A3 toned paper.
Shiny things of the shiny king can be found here.

‘Fairy King’ scent:
Their noble lord. He is the most gracious, most generous, and most wicked of them all.
A crown of ivy and lavender, a staff of oak; green mosses, softest leather, bewitching elf musk.

 

The Proud Queen by Soni Alcorn-Hender

The Proud Queen by Soni Alcorn-Hender

The Proud Queen of Faerie.

“Those who met her, and survived, couldn’t agree if the Queen was fantastically evil or just exquisitely insane. Some said both. Yet amid the tales of carnage and curious horror are accounts of a few mortals upon whom she lavished gifts and affection – though whether they were her lovers or just favoured pets we may never know. But it’s recorded that the Queen gave them lands and fine houses, though nothing remains of them now, and that with easy violence she destroyed their enemies and rivals, and anyone else her chosen ones pointed a finger at. In the fairy-haunted lands of medieval England, it was well known one must not upset those who are loved by fairies.”

Pastel pencils on A3 toned paper.
Prints available here.

The ‘Proud Queen’ scent:
She rules all that is strange and dangerous, poisonous and beautiful.
Foxgloves, opium poppies, bitter nightshade, green roses of hellebore, oleander’s apricot notes, and innocent orange blossom, with a breath of raspberries, white chocolate, marshmallow, and warm white musk.

 

The Changeling by Soni Alcorn-Hender

The Changeling by Soni Alcorn-Hender

The Changeling

‘The Changeling looked like any human, except perhaps for her eyes which were those of a wild thing. She was known also for her constant companionship of animals: sleek, dark creatures with silver eyes.’

Pastel pencils and acrylic on A3 painted paper.
Prints and dark delicious things

Dark Changeling scent:
Oh beautiful monsterling, to which world do you belong?
Sugary dark cherries surrounded by night forests, incense, dragon’s blood, and wolf’s musk.

 

The Black Prince by Soni Alcorn-Hender

The Black Prince by Soni Alcorn-Hender

The Black Prince:

“One of the farthest, darkest edges of Faerie was the Rose Kingdom where velvet blooms filled starlit gardens.
Their king was a sombre tyrant who grew even harsher after his wife’s death, and took to leaving his lands for months at a time. To the amazement of his court he suddenly returned one midwinter’s night with an infant son held in his arms, and would speak no word of the boy’s mother.
The court whispered she must have been a demon or vampire countess, which was why the Prince grew so wicked, cold and strong, even for a fairy. (For fairies are, as I’ve noted before, a largely cruel and despicable race).
They said that under his touch red roses became black, which was how he got his title.
But the Queen from the court of the Death’s Head Moth was delighted with him, and took him into her personal service as Master of Information, for he was exquisitely talented in gaining both secrets and silence, and here was permitted to perfect his dreadful arts.”

Pastel pencils and acrylic on A3 painted paper.
Prints and dark delicious things can be found here.

The ‘Black Prince’ scent:

Roses, leather, love and sin,
to wrap a fairy princeling in.
~Black roses, Black amber, black vanilla, black leather.

Dracula Risen

Dracula risen, Soni Alcorn-Hender

‘Dracula Risen’
Basecard art for a trading card by Iconic Creations; acrylics and gold leaf on paper,
A3 / 29cms x 42cms

Prints and art items available at Society6

Work in progress and detail images:

The Harpy, Marta

The harpy, Marta, by Soni Alcorn-Hender

“On the roof, what did you see?”
“I thought I saw a woman, but all dark and sharp and hunched over the roof tiles like a vulture. …I thought she had wings.”
He sighed. “You won’t always see the wings, but her face remains the same: ageless, vicious; eyes like a mad hawk and a temper to match.” He cast a nervous glance at the rooftops and shivered. “Avoid her. Are you listening? Avoid her, and avoid her eyes. If she looks into your eyes, she’ll know.”

The harpy Marta. Finished sketch of an original character from my own story. :3
Derwent pastels and pencils on recyled paper. 8.6×12 inches.

Prints available, in case you want to scare yourself or your nearest and dearest, Here.