Halloween is Coming!

There are many "styles" of Halloween out there. A person can celebrate it with whimsy, or a gothic bent. It can be horror-filled, or rustic country. It can also be neon rave or decidedly adult.

Halloween has historically religious roots, but the holiday has evolved to a decidedly non-religious contemporary context. All Hallow's Eve followed by All Saint's Day is still practiced within some traditions, but nowadays the holiday is sometimes just an excuse to party. 

I try hard to make a Halloween wallpaper for phones and a greeting card for those who enjoy gifting the Spooky Spirit every year. I've made a variety of different cards that lean toward different slivers of the celebratory impulse, but this year I decided to lean into my strengths: birds and Art Nouveau. 

I started a new raven--the fourth I've done so far--intentionally knowing I was going to use it for my latest Halloween card. I built the bird as a singular piece that got it's own card and print, then use that visual asset as a component piece in a new Art Nouveau expression all it's own. 

I'm really happy with how it turned out. I'm calling it "Jack and Edgar", alluding to jack o'lanterns and Edgar Allan Poe. The card has a heavy canvas texture with the impression of lots of layers of paint, with cascading vertical leaves that match the swirling filigree of the two sides. Above it all hovers a glowing moon in a deep indigo sky. 

This card is available here: https://coreyartusimagery.com/products/edgar-and-raven-halloween-single-greeting-card

You can see the speedpaint video here: