Saints, Sinners and Survivors - Mourning 3

While not quite as intellectually impressive as wives 1 and 2, Jane was a skilled artist - an avid embroiderer. Fairly conservative, she was far more concerned with decorum than political maneuvering - perhaps discouraged by the fate of her predecessor. 

She was betrothed to Henry one day after Anne (A distant cousin) was beheaded and the only of his wives to be buried as a Queen of England, earning the final resting place beside Henry, but never actually crowned queen. 

She proved compassionate when reconciling Mary with her Father, and even achieved her goal of restoring Mary to the royal succession. She died in childbirth - the only wife to give Henry what he wanted - a male heir - Edward VI. Many remembered her fondly, some used her to further leverage themselves in court - such as her two brothers who both met rather dismal ends. 

I noticed rather quickly that the actress who played Jane in the Tudors was switched out in between seasons - but was rather surprised when my mother didn't notice this. Guess it goes to show how thoroughly they covered their tracks when starting up that third season. 

I feel like that was a type of bonding we did when I was younger - watch various shows and movies and make the connections almost like a game - "Oh yes, she was also in this and this where he also co-stared, etc." I suppose this is why some people think I am a walking IMDB. lol 

In regards to Jane herself, I do imagine she was quite the epitome of grace and prudence...but maybe a bit dull otherwise. 

 

Welp, that's all folks! Henry VIII did not in fact have VIII wives, only six. Thank you for joining me on this mini history lesson. For more information on these ladies you can watch the Tudors - not 100% accurate, but oh so entertaining! Now I am moving on to other projects, other times, other places...to be revealed shortly! Exciting times!! :)

Saints, Sinners and Survivors - Praying for 1

As daughter of Isabella and Ferdinand of Spain, Catherine was destined to be a great queen. She was married first to Henry's older brother, Arthur, who sadly died months later. Denying that the marriage was ever consummated, she was then married to Henry. Their only surviving child was Mary - later known as Bloody Mary - and as no male heir was produced after many attempts, Henry grew impatient and distracted by Catherine's ladies-in-waiting, particularly one - Anne Boleyn. 

 

Catherine was a strict Catholic, fighting for her marriage and love until Henry installed himself as head of the church in England and annulled the marriage himself so that he could wed his mistress, Anne Boleyn. Even after, she firmly refused to accept Henry as having authority over the Pope and considered herself still his rightful wife. She was a much loved figure by the peoples. 

 

She was sent away from court and forbidden to communicate with her daughter. When Catherine died there were many rumors of poison being the cause, but modern medical experts suspect it was cancer. She was the eldest of Henry's wives to die at 50. Henry did not attend her funeral and Mary was again forbidden. It is believed Anne Boleyn miscarried a son on the day of the funeral. 

 

Catherine was probably my favorite of Henry's wives. From most every account I've seen/read/heard of her she was regal, respectful and very devoted - to her people, her daughter, her husband and her faith. Even those not so much her friends at the time had great admiration for her. In the Tudors the brilliant Maria Doyle Kennedy embodied these traits - and did what I thought was a convincing Spanish accent...which amuses my boyfriend to no end since I think he originally thought she had a lisp. >< 

Saints, Sinners and Survivors - Disarming 2

 

 

Daughter of Thomas Boleyn and Elizabeth Howard, Anne was educated in the Netherlands and France. Plans for her first marriage (to a cousin) fell through and so she became a lady-in-waiting to then Queen Catherine of Aragon. She was sent home by Cardinal Wolsey after a second betrothal (to a gentleman at court) failed. Third time was a charm though - she attracted the attention of Henry and the chase began. 

As her older sister Mary had been Henry's mistress before her, Anne refused to be so easily used. She held her ground and became so great a desire to him, Henry took control of the English Church and annulled his previous marriage 5 days before wedding Anne. Their first and only surviving child was Elizabeth - afterwards known as Elizabeth I. After three more miscarriages, Henry had moved on to courting Jane Seymour. Anyone sensing a pattern?? 

In April 1536 Henry had her investigated for high treason - the charges of Adultery, Incest, and Witchcraft tenuous at best. None-the-less she was found guilty and beheaded on May 19th of that year. During her daughter's long reign, she was honored as "the most influential and important queen consort England has ever had" due to her involvement in the English Reformation. And she is still quite the controversial figure. 

I'm not sure I feel quite as bad for Anne as for Catherine Howard. Catherine seemed to be young, careless and not terribly bright to begin with while Anne was well educated, exacting and indulgent. It was again amusing to watch my boyfriend react to Anne in the Tudor series because of her abruptness (See reaction to finding Henry and Jane together towards the end of the second season or the overly paranoid Mary-could-be-Queen scene in the first/second season) and "creepy mouse mouth." Obviously as we are both fans of Catherine, we are a bit biased against Anne. But I tried not to let that come across too strongly since she is my own sister's favorite.

This one goes out to you G! : )

Saints, Sinners and Survivors - Not Interested in 4

 

 

As their marriage - lastingly only 6 months - was never consummated,
Anne of Cleeves was never technically a Queen of England. Born in Germany,
she came to England and married Henry on January 6th, 1540. Both she
and her younger sister were in consideration for the position of wife number
four. 

Having no formal education or aptitude for cultural adaption, Anne was
just as displeased with Henry as he was with her - readily agreeing to
a divorce and the distinction of being the King's "Beloved Sister." She

never remarried and enjoyed managing the households gifted to her by
Henry - one of which once belonged to Anne Boleyn. 

She outlived Henry (And Catherine Parr, the only other wife to do so)
and lived to see Lady Mary crowned Queen. The Lady Elizabeth was
also a favorite, being included in her last will. 

There's a bit about her learning to play cards - and getting very good at it -
in the Tudors. Cards were one of her hobbies, so that is her designated
activity in this sketch. 

I often feel like this Anne is overlooked. Though it was tempting to skim
over her (She's not my favorite) I actually spent a great deal of time
trying to do her a little justice. I scrapped 5 earlier versions and am content
with this one. Her silhouette is still a bit dull - but it's hard to do much with
billowy skirts. : / 

 

I was going to originally wait to post this until Sunday or Monday BUT in the
holiday spirit...ta da!! Have a Happy and Safe Halloween! : )

May...May??

 So I don't know what happened to March and April...the snow storms kind of mushed them together somehow. I moved apartments and started a new job (Still not the dream, but significantly more art involved already and utilizes my IT experience) To make up for lack of posts, here are:
1. Diaochan - Another Ancient Beauty of China, so beautiful that the moon would hide behind the clouds in shame.

2. Lady Jane Seymour - 3/6 of a new set of watercolors I started entitled Tudor Roses. and 3. Lady Catherine of Aragon - 1/6 of the aforementioned set. What can I say...I was re-watching the Tudors as I wait for the next season of Borgias. Both are great shows. Not without their faults, but very entertaining.

So I have one Ancient Beauty left and four more Roses. I may well soon have other projects to post (Now that I have a designated, well-equipped art creation space and a rhythm going I feel I will be very productive in the next few months) and if things go well with the work proposal tomorrow I may also have a whole new set to start posting from that too. YAY!!

Taste Test Round II

 

Ah Ha! The last taste test before I start posting pages regularly - a little ways off now that I have a tighter schedule, but still closer than I was before. ^^ I struggled a bit with the visual content of this page, whether or not I should just jump into the action or not, and decided for pacing purposes that this was best. Who is this woman? What impact does she have on this story? More than you would imagine - but you'll have to follow along to find out!!

Shall We Play A Game?

Aha! Proof that I have been quite busy. While I haven't reached my goal of posting some serious stuffs now, I have made much progress - in compiling a more thorough Style Guide, some quick character redesigns, mixing various digital palettes (Why didn't I do this earlier??), finding mean-time employment, taking a weekend trip to visit family (Not mine, but I love them as if they were), etc.

Anyways, I guess I do have a sneak peek at what I'm working on...

Anyone recognize this guy? This is a relatively-fast color study of his redesign. I wasn't trying for a render, but I did try to push it further in regards to edge control and general presentation. One small step for Beki. One giant leap for Raul's patience. : )