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2007 RK Fan Art Contest Awards |
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10.Aug.2007
Thank you, everyone, for making this year a wonderful success. With the fandom dwindling, I was a bit worried about whether or not we'd have adequate participation. But my worries proved unfounded as one after another, over 50 awesome entries came pouring in. Thanks to everyone who sent in artwork, viewed the entries, publicized the event, or helped with judging. This contest could never happen without all your efforts!
Like last year, judging was very difficult. I always have rather mixed feelings when I make out the Awards page every year. On the one hand, I'm very happy for those who receive awards. And on the other hand, there are very often so many other great entries that I wish I could give all of those awards as well.
As always, I'd like to remind folks that this contest is judged differently than most art contests. Content and concept are given as much weight as technical or aesthetic skill. And the voting is done by a panel of judges, rather than an individual. So it is very possible for a picture to be a personal favorite of one of the judges and yet still not receive an award. This happens fairly often, actually. So please keep all that in mind.
And finally, I do apologize for not being able to finish making the award banners on time this year. The banners will be completed when I come back from my trip. To those of you who received an award, sorry for the delay.
Thanks again, artists, for sharing your work and for making this year's contest so difficult to judge! And thanks to everyone else who followed along. Your support is very much appreciated!
--HB
Note: To view banners at their proper size, right-click on them and select "view image".
ATTENTION - ARTISTS WHO RECEIVED AWARDS:
To those who received monetary awards: Congrats! I will contact you regarding prizes next week.
To those of you with unfinished banners: Once the banners are completed next week, please feel free to post them anywhere you like. You can hotlink them from my site if you need to do so. If you're not sure of the code for posting them, e-mail me, and I'll let you know. :)
FINAL NOTE:
As always, if you have any questions, comments, complaints, or concerns about the award results, please feel free to e-mail me. Please DO NOT contact the artist who received the award. Thanks!
judging info ::: prize list ::: contest home
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| HONORABLE MENTIONS |
Ikedaya Jiken
Judges' comments:
- A color filled pencil scene... all blended and nicely shaded. Nice work!!
- The textures and colors of this are really beautiful. And I like how the bloody scene is drawn in an almost gentle style.
- Interesting off-screen moment, Okita's resemblance to
Soujirou here is obvious.
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Starry, Starry Night
Judges' comments:
- Just looking at this image my hand starts to cramp
imagining the dedication, wow! Way to carry through and what a neat idea!
- Very well-done technically and also interesting because it's open to
interpretation about whether that's young Kenshin or Kenji against the
Rurouni's back. Either way, a coversation across time.
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Lost Memory Resurfaced
Judges' comments:
- No one's ever thought of doing a group shot of Kenshin's lost family, but here it is, and it's charming. Because the only color is the red of toddler-aged Shinta s hair, the point of the picture is made in a nicely understated way, and Kenshin s very happy face lets us know that the memory is a pleasant one.
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Alone
Judges' comments:
- I really love the dramatic look and feel of this picture. The emptiness and lack of detail, combined with Enishi's very harsh shadow and the despairing look on his face, gives this image a wonderfully stark and hopeless feel to it... Until you see the faint hint of Tomoe's ghost around the wall. There's an elegance to this drawing that isn't immediately obvious upon first viewing. Really nicely done.
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That Which Lingers
Judges' comments:
- I can't imagine how long this must've taken. Multiple characters, animals, a collage of multiple scenes. Definitely an ambitious undertaking. I've never read the fanfic on which this was based, but this picture makes me curious about it! Nice job.
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the other family
Judges' comments:
- This is such a haunting and mysterious scene. I'm not sure I understand it entirely, but I don't really think that matters. The feel of this is really beautiful. Akira's silhouette on the horizon as he watches Tomoe and Enishi. Also, when people think of might-have-been situations with Tomoe and Akira together, they don't usually include Enishi in the mix. I like seeing the three of them together.
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Soiled Hands Still Hold onto the Memories
Judges' comments:
- This is such a lonely feeling piece.. grief, fear, despair
wrapped up in one image. I love the use of colors and patterned textures to
bring those emotions out. Nice work!
- This is actually a quite complex entry, with a
screened-back background and ghostly figures
screened back on top of that, so that the only fully colored image is the one
live person, Yahiko.
The two intensities of blood spatters are also a nice touch.
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-A Dream Family-
Judges' comments:
- I really liked this, it was one of the images I looked at for a while actually just because it was so cool to see Tomoe preggers!! Neat!
- Not only is this really cute, but it's quite ambitious as well. Multiple characters and challenging poses. The use of color for the current family and black and white for the dream version is really nice.
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| Cutest |
Summer Festival Fishing
Judges' comments:
- Awww, the pride of woman, man never understands!! Teehee, too
cute and funny!
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This is a cute little story that's both funny and very nicely
rendered. So often the humorous entries
depend on the story line for the impact, to the neglect of good artwork, but
this one has both.
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| Most Humorous |
Mushroom Samba
Judges' comments:
- I love this entry. All the baka-ness of the baka deshi and
still Hiko gets a hug! The artwork is
excellent, the concept is outstanding, and it made me laugh. Who can resist the
mountainous Hiko
surrounded by little Kenshins braiding his hair and generally being a silly
little boy? This one
deserves a prize!
- This story was one of the funniest moments in the anime, it's
great to see it illustrated so well :D
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| Most Ambitious |
Watcher by Night
Judges' comments:
- This entry fulfills nearly every requirement in the
description of this category. The extreme detail
on the wings and Kenshin s blowing hair, the intricate and imaginative
background, the care the
artist took with shading and color this definitely fits the definition of
ambitious, and very well
done, too.
- I'm very impressed with this one. Full backgrounds are difficult enough, but this artist has gone above and beyond, tackling everything from a cityscape, to a difficult pose, to highly detailed feathered wings. Kudos for choosing three very difficult things to draw!
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| Most Dramatic - TIED! |
The path of destiny
Judges' comments:
- Excellent, but the artist has also managed to convey in
what is essentially a headshot the extreme
intensity of Kenshin as an assassin (the single slash on the cheek shows this
is pre-Otsu). Because
of this intensity, I find this entry to be quite dramatic.
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Dramatic for the angle and intensity of the expression on
Kenshin's face.
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Ashes and Dust...
Judges' comments:
- This is fanart, and when the story is known, then
the drama of this moment becomes clear. Even if we didn't know that, however, we'd see the drama in Yahiko's face and in the way he's crushing the papers in his hands. The scrap of the famous cape adds to the drama.
- I haven't read the story this is from, but the emotion depicted is
powerful. It makes me want to read the story :)
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| Most Interesting Premise - TIED! |
Okashira
Judges' comments:
- Neat!! I love thinking about all the little things that one
single drop in the story can create. I liked the perspective and colors a lot
in this piece too. Well done :)
- The colors, angle, number of charactres and solid painting
make this a very ambitious piece. It's great to look at :D
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Megumi vs. Kaoru
Judges' comments:
- Oh ho ho.. that expression is priceless, and kaoru scares
me!!! I love it!
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The whole premise of this entry is cute (okay, all you
Kaoru-haters, off to that alternate
universe!!), and the way the artist conveyed it is as well. Notice that it's
Megumi who's front and
center. She's the one calling the shots, not Kenshin!
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| Most Unique |
Shinta, look at the samurai.
Judges' comments:
- What a neat idea! What things would be like if his life had
gone a different direction, probably something Kenshin might have been happy
living like too.
- Beautiful colors and done in an unusual medium. I love pastels :) But
also the idea is interesting since it's an imagined, internal scene, showing
the class difference between Kenshin and the other samurai characters in the
series.
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| People's Choice Award |
Almost Familiar
Comments:
- There really isn't a "judge's comment" for the People's Choice Award. The fact that this image won the vote with a whopping 47% is comment enough, I would think! Congrats, NariSon! And thanks to all the voters who helped with this particular category.
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| 5th PLACE OVERALL |
Almost Familiar
Judges' comments:
- Gorgeous style and feeling to this piece. I really loved the very loose quality, especially with how well it was carried off. I think this was one of my favorites for following the theme too. The emotion between the characters is what makes the piece so memorable. Tomoe's noble bearing, the startlement and shadow of fear in both Kenshin and Kaoru's eyes. Not to mention that orangey color used to intimate pain and the feeling that something is terrible wrong. Very lovely.
- The colors in this are stunning. I'm not normally a fan of orange, but it is used beautifully here, and it really stands out nicely from the dark greys. Love the delicate style in which the people are drawn too.
- I really like the idea of this one. Beautiful colors. Also, I like how Kaoru's presence is rather vague. Is this moment taking place in the future in which both Tomoe and Kaoru are alive? Or is Kaoru a future-version of a memory? An apparition of sorts. Intriguing!
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4th PLACE OVERALL |
Laughters by the fresh laundry
Judges' comments:
- Wonderfully warm and beautifully painted. The mood is infectious, and the moment feels so genuine. This image really made me smile.
- This one has such life to it as Kenshin leans away from being splashed by little Kenji. Although we can't see Kenji's face, you can tell just from the profile that he's got a big smile as he splashes his dad, and the artist manages to portray that rare Kenshin image, one where he's enjoying himself without a care in the world. Other details, such as the piece of laundry in Kenshin's hand and the clothes hanging behind him, add life to the scene. The mostly pastel colors, the detail around the base of the laundry tub, as well as the grass in the background, also add to the charm of this piece.
Very nice.
- This scene is really endearing. The light and cheery watercolor style, subtle coloring hinting at the background and focusing the attention on the subject really was a nice touch. Great emotion and storytelling too! Well done :3
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| 3rd PLACE OVERALL |
Carrying Tomoe
Judges' comments:
- What a great emotionally charged piece. I think one of my favorite things about this was the very neat cell shaded appearance to it! I think we can all imagine how hard it must have been for Kenshin to carry Tomoe after her death, as he surely must have. Great idea! .
- This is a very moving entry, not just because of the subject matter. The artist has managed to capture the extreme physical exertion it must have taken for Kenshin to bring Tomoe back to their house. It's the very moment when Kenshin tries to stand, and the artist has done a good job of capturing the grim set of his face, the leg straining to push himself up, the muscles of his forearm straining to hold his burden despite his own bloodied state. It all gives this entry a "you are there" immediacy that goes beyond the tragedy that has taken place. The subdued use of color adds to this. Very well done.
- Not a scene that's usually depicted, but it's probably the most
powerful off-screen moment in the series. This is also very well done technically.
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| 2nd PLACE OVERALL |
Seeking Shelter
Judges' comments:
- When I first saw this piece It inspired me right away and I had a feeling it was going to be a keeper. I am not much of a romantic, but the beauty of the palette, the delicate folds and the lovely use of fog and cloud lighting all go together perfectly. Not to mention a very well done application of technical skill and effort into making such a complete and compelling image. Nice job!
- This picture is just beautifully done. The soft colors, the romantic feel, the tiny details, and the wonderfully hazy background. Great job!
- Beautiful. Simply beautiful!
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1st PLACE OVERALL |
What If-RK
Judges' comments:
- A really great display of technical skill! Wonderful job with those refined loose brush strokes, something I think which can be a challenge for the artists who prefer loose. Nice job with the composition and complementary colors also.
- What a great idea. What if Kenshin had been Shinsengumi and Saito the Ishin Shishi? So just for the idea, this entry should get something! But on top of that, this is a very
satisfying entry. This artist has done an excellent job of creating realistic figures. I love the expression on Kenshin's face as he looks over his shoulder at Saitou, and Saitou's stormy expression is perfect. The drape of their kimono is beautifully done as is the color. And the way she's posed her figures is intriguing back to back, swords not drawn, and Kenshin's even holding a flower. Very enjoyable.
- Now this would be a cool fanfic, Kenshin choosing the Shinsengumi as the best way to stop the violence. Also beautifully painted.
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And that's it for this year's awards.
Thanks so very much to ....
All the artist who worked so hard to present such beautiful artworks for everyone's enjoyment
All the people who helped publicize the contest and spread the word
All those who took the time to look at all the artwork and vote for the People's Choice Award
The most excellent judges
Thank you so much for your help and your patience.
You guys are the best!
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Rurouni Kenshin characters are the property of creator Nobuhiro Watsuki, Shueisha, Shounen Jump, Sony Entertainment, and VIZ comics. This is a non-profit fan-site for entertainment purposes only. Permission was not obtained from the above parties. If any of the above parties or their representatives have a complaint regarding any fan artwok posted on this site, please e-mail me, and I will comply with any stated requests.
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