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dotsweare — J: An Elixir For Existence
Published: 2014-06-13 17:00:09 +0000 UTC; Views: 3515; Favourites: 84; Downloads: 20
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"Sands of Time, reveal to me the one who can enter the cave."18th century folks, I haven't forgotten about you! I promise all of you, I don't have a thing for this guy. I've just been super inspired by the resurgence of the Aladdin franchise and a lot of amazing fanart.
Quite a few of you saw the beginnings of this on Livestream about a month ago. This was originally going to be a contest entry but it wound up being too complicated to finish in time and nearly impossible to turn into Art Nouveau style. Since I can't stand leaving art unfinished, especially when said art involves Jafar or Elsa, I finished him last night. As my art usually goes, the quality is nowhere near what I'd like it to be but again.... couldn't leave it unfinished for any longer.
You can see an astrolabe to the left of the podium. The window was inspired by Islamic architecture and Art Deco. The storm is an allusion to Iago's gripe, "Couldn't we just wait for a real storm?" The hourglass contains the Sands of Time. The composition was inspired by a coloring book page that I honestly can't find anymore (although I did find this one which made me lose it every time it popped up in google images ("LAMP")
And just for fun, here are a couple of closeups: sta.sh/01bxjz48itud The Arabic writing on the bottles is my attempt at "mandrake root" and "wormgrass", both of which are extremely common herbs in alchemy. The other substances include aqua vitae (obtained illegally as Agrabah is a dry state), some sort of ground-up tincture in that mortar and pestle, and the possible distillation of chromium.
I’m also working on a commission of a story scene that takes place inside of a villain’s lair, so the background served as great practice.
Also guess who has only one week to go before grad school is done?
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Comments: 11
K:
Wow another Jafar!!! You certainly do have a thing for ol’ Jafy lately xD Not that I can blame you I guess, he is an awesome villain.
Haha and judging by the other persons comment below they certainly agree but I fear my comment won’t be as awesomely detailed, as they never are XD
Jaf’y looks AWESOME! No denying that!!!
He looks super intent on his hour glass (which looks amazingly fab btw!) and you certainly have his outfit down to a fine art now! Love all the folds and the lighting on it! As lovely and elegant as they are you can tell they’re made from great material that breathes well in the desert heat lol.
I love Iago being there too. He was a loyal sidekick despite how much shit he had to deal with xD
The background looks super incredible!!!
I love all the detail on the desk with the different viles and glasses and such most likely filled with elixars and oils of all sorts!
The window looks great!! I love all the detail on the pattern.
Even the outside looks fully detailed and great too, the lightening is a great touch!
AWESOME WORK <333333333
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J:
YES ANOTHER JAFAR! BECAUSE HE IS AWESOME.
Oh dear....... you read me a little too well XDDD I have a huge crush on the guy who played him in Once Upon a Time in Wonderland and that's probably how it happened D: Philippe/DHP needs to defend and reclaim his territory! LOL many kudos to everyone who's put up with all the Jafar spam over the past year, especially you XDDDD But not to worry, I'm really getting back into our seven main loves <33333333
That background was fuuuunnn. Lots of practice for PHarold 's commission (and if I ever really get into Snape and start spamming everyone with him.... XDDD)
AWWWW THANK YOU <333333333333333333333333333 THIS CALLS FOR SOME
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This is absolutely fantastic! 
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Thank you! 
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When I first saw this my eyes bugged out and I'm visually digesting your work as I write this. Also--LAMP, Oh my God, I want this coloring book!!!! The thought bubble makes it, that's gold!!
As for this, another masterpiece, just so much--oh man, I'm getting less articulate trying to find words--words, oh my GOD!!!
Just looking at some pieces makes my heart literally soar, and I think I'm tearing up, too, it's luminous, it really is.
Okay, enough of my babbling, time to 'read' it:
Stones in the wall--gorgeous, bumpy, rough, so textured and I want to feel the stones--no I can feel the rectangular stone blocks--the blocks soak up the odors in Jafar's alchemical chamber--it smells like all of this unknown stuff but it smells like knowledge and discovery, long nights of laborious love to know the unknowable.
We know this is an alchemist's lair--strange scientific devices and bottles and beakers of substances, glassware collected on a functional table. A fire burns underneath one of the glasses, and a soft light emanates from somewhere else, characterizing the nature of the pursuit--it's a neutral light, the experiment could be carried out for good or for ill, but what matters is the scientific goal, above all.
The viewer knows they can't read the foreign lettering on the bottles, only knows that alchemists all over the world share a quest for knowledge that transcends tongue or region.
The night filtering through the window is fresh and uninhibiting, and the humble visitor stares up at the window, the beautiful glass child of a master craftsman. The visitor, an outsider to Agrabah's culture, tries in vain to see what they know in the window--peacock feathers, a spiderweb--but whatever it really is, knows they are experiencing something beautiful.
The visitor admires the curves of the podium, and thinks they see a book on top of it, but not sure.
Then the visitor catches sight of the hourglass and what looks like a cloud inside of it. Or no--it smells like sand, and the visitor wonders what the gaunt, beautifully-robed alchemist would want with sand. But that was clearly the aim of the alchemist, who looks upon his work with satisfaction and a certain secretiveness, from his lightly-lidded eyes. An alert, large-ish bird sits perched on the alchemist's sleeve. The visitor guesses that the alchemist is close to his bird, who looks as interested in the results of the alchemy as the alchemist.
The visitor tries to discreetly look the alchemist up and down--the visitor sweats--it may be nighttime, but it is warm in the chamber because of the fire, and the visitor wonders how the alchemist can wear such heavy robes in a place like Agrabah. The visitor doesn't know fabrics at all, and wouldn't impose on the alchemist to ask to feel his robes, but the robes look sturdy in its refinement, nothing like the paper-thin harem pants the visitor had been taught to expect from this region. The visitor then closes the door quickly, hoping that their innocuous prying didn't disrupt the alchemist's work.
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OHHHHMYGOSHHHH LONG COMMENT!!! I always enjoy reading your comments, and this one in particular blew me away. What a nice surprise to come home to!
LOL! That coloring page is hilarious! If only we knew what coloring book featured it XDD Oh yes, and after sleuthing through my files I also found the one that inspired this picture --> i1293.photobucket.com/albums/b… It seems like a lot of coloring pages really play up Jafar's interests in sorcery and alchemy, although in the movie it was rather limited. I really enjoy seeing that side of him... it almost makes him a renaissance man, which makes sense given Aladdin takes place around the Golden Age of Islam, where those great thinkers were just beginning to emerge.
Awww! 
I can't take credit for the wall-- the stone textures were taken from a free stock picture and pasted as an "overlay" layer. XD At least it appears to match the rest of the picture! Those stone blocks certainly have seen and absorbed a lot back in the days, especially during their first few months as part of the walls of Jafar's secret laboratory. He was probably ecstatic to have more to his name than a fire and a limited supply of glassware and took full advantage of his newfound wealth and space.
Also, that description is AMAZING. It's interesting how any given scene from the movie can be reimagined into something completely different... in this case, where Jafar seeks out answers from the Sands of Time regarding who is most worthy of entering the cave. During the movie, the viewer basically has an invitation to a front-seat view of the action. I really like how your description really evokes a sense of curiosity and voyeurism.
You hit the window right on the nose-- I used both a peacock and a spiderweb as design elements. 8D That is indeed a book on the podium! The colors probably could have been more discrete... oops.
I, too, wonder how Jafar is able to stand wearing so many layers (and layers comprised of black cloth, nonetheless!) in such sweltering heat. Maybe it doesn't faze him because he has almost no body fat on his person and the robes are loose enough to allow circulation.
THANK YOU AGAIN for such an AWESOME comment!!!
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Awww, I'm glad you found my long comment a nice surprise to come home to! ^__^
I know, right? Must find that mystery coloring book... XDD Ooh, thank you for the link to the coloring book page! ^___^ : DDDD Ooh, so he has what could be an alchemy book --I have two conflicting interpretations of what the book could be--which is strange, because in your painting I never doubted it was an alchemy or a science-related book. But the open one with the bookmark in the coloring page reminded me of the spellbook in the Broadway show for some reason, maybe because the way Jafar was turning the pages of the open book I associated the coloring page with the spellbook, even though it probably is an alchemy book with all of the other alchemical stuff in there. ^^
The alchemy and the science does make him a Golden Age renaissance man, I totally agree! ^^ That's true, they did downplay it in the movie--or rather, his becoming the most powerful sorcerer in the world overshadowed his earlier alchemical and scientific involvement. D:
There's so many, but not as tightly-knit as the Frollo fans it seems. OO 
Ooh, yeah, the stone walls meshed very well with the rest of your painting! ^___^ It's a testament to your painting skill that your renderings have as much texture and life as the stock picture! ^^
Indeed, he must have been doing all sorts of exciting alchemy experiments up there, now that he had the means and space to do it. : DD
Your emphasis on his science means he has something else going for him than his plotting. Maybe if the Sultan wasn't so unappreciative, he would have quietly remained an alchemist and the royal vizier. : D
Thank you, thank you for creating a painting so dynamic and life-filled that compelled me to write about it. ^^ Indeed, there are--not only two sides to every story, but many, and him seeking the Sands of Time is no exception--it could be for a treasonous plot, or to find his lost love, or to just pursue knowledge for knowledge's sake.
Indeed, we have that view of the giant hourglass and the smaller hourglass and Jafar and Iago's back-and-forths so we're invited to watch--yep, voyeurism, with the most respectful intent, even though that's usually contradictory.
Ooh cool, so a peacock and spiderweb was what you were going for! : DD No, the colors are so bold and are awesome! : DD
Ooh yeah, I keep forgetting that black cloth absorbs heat. OO Ooh, maybe you're right with the robes allowing circulation, and maybe with little body fat he gets cold easily and can keep cooler. ^^ Or maybe he doesn't usually go out during the day, so then he's dressed just right for the cold nights. : D
Always a pleasure! ^_____^ ^__ ^ ^___^
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