I recently returned from an art retreat on an island in Menorca, where I met one of my favorite artists from my formative years: Phil Hale. He outlined a process, or a practice, to get himself inspired first thing in the studio, wherein he would look through a stack of images he had collected at a rapid clip and allowing himself to respond to them: “Yes, no, yes, yes, no, no, no, YES!” and so on. Turning off the conscious, judging brain and letting the unconscious brain light up instinctively, intuitively, and subjectively without further explanation.
Good art can always be “justified” after the fact (bad art, too).
As Yuko Shimizu said on the island, “you walk into a room in a museum and you know which pieces you like immediately.” Another reminder in favor of intuition. I suspect I have been doing some version of this sorting, which is more akin to a gravitational dance, for some time now, especially with this “Top 10” series, which is anything but objective.
I find it heartening that, much as I had set out to do all those years ago, I now have a living diary of my tastes to refer to. Every time I sit to do this exercise, I reconnect with myself, and to that process of “YES” I love so much.
Anyway, here are my YES’s from Strixhaven, enjoy.
✦
11. Determined Iteration
Chris Rallis
“Have I finally done it? Have I finally freed myself from failure?”
Not only does this line go kind of hard, but I’m very impressed by Chris’s continuous ability to elevate this game’s art and make it feel so lived in and real. While much of the Prismari art this set is over the top and colorful with magical waves of paint sloshing in every direction (clearly from the art direction), this piece is quieter and more somber, capturing the solitude, quiet concentration, and yes, determined iteration that often accompanies the life of the artist. I find it resonates with me more than some of the others and it helps “ground” Strixhaven a bit for me in a way I appreciate.
✦
10. Inspired Skypainter
April Prime
Lizard Wizards get me every time…The derpy paint-glob Prismari in the background... The Ruff-palette neckpiece combo is just the cherry on top. I love this.
✦
9. Proctor’s Gaze
Danny Schwartz
I don’t imagine my love of Danny’s style requires much explanation, he knocked it out of the park with this one.
✦
8. Blech, Loafing Pest
Ilse Gort
Ilse’s work is so solid. She is definitely in that small but elite pantheon of masters, along with Sarah Finnigan, who make acrylics look like oils. The soft turning of form and controlled gradients are super impressive to me. While I love the simple complementary palette of her original, I will say the additional accent of purple on the card does, (for once), add a nice extra level of interest, and was handled super well so as not to be distracting or over-the-top.
✦
7. Joined Researchers
Ryan Pancoast
Ryan is just really, really good at painting.
✦
6. Tome Blast
Filipe Pagliuso
This is maybe the purest YES of the set for me; impactful, satisfying, and unpretentious.
✦
5. Lorehold, the Historian
Joshua Raphael
This is just such a sexy looking card. Like if a Bentley and a Ferrari had a baby that was also a dragon. The presence, silhouette, gesture, and superior harmony of art and cardframe leave a very powerful impression.
✦
4. Silverquill, the Disputant
Mark Zug
Few in the game can marry Zug’s sheer skill with such a singular point of view. While I struggle to put my finger on it, I always know that a Zug will surprise and delight me. Simply put, no other artist would have approached this painting in quite the same way. While I would have been irresistibly tempted to play up the black & white contrast of the Elder Dragon’s Rorschach patterning, Mark opted for a quieter moment indoors, in the shadows, while the campus glows in the afternoon sun. This lends Shadrix a sentience and a deeper dimension that draws me to this painting again and again.
✦
3. Prismari, the Inspiration
Wayne Reynolds
As delightful as it is unexpected, seeing Galazeth brandishing a paintbrush was not on my bingo card. I suspect only Wayne could have really pulled this off.
One of my favorite things about this painting is getting a glimpse at the second-to-last step, and the minor but telling corrections that Wayne went through the trouble of making despite the painting already looking amazing: notice the purple daub of paint on Prismari’s palette going from somewhat obfuscated tangent to a clearer gesture with great overlap; or the redesign of the perfectly serviceable string instrument in the background to have a more fantastical, Prismari-coded shape language.
It is always reaffirming to see master artists working through these last adjustments in the eternal struggle for greatness. The self-respect and commitment to quality from Reynolds is absolutely humbling.
2. Witherbloom, the Balancer
Kev Walker & Chris Rahn
The coolest card in the set illustrated, very differently, by my two all-time favorite Magic illustrators. It’s hard not to feel like this is some cheeky gift from the Universe. How delectable. I’m reminded of when Chris and Tyler both tackled Tiamat, a veritable clash of titans.
As always, Kev’s is grittier, more comic book, and stylistically pushed, with airs of a fearsome and ancient witch. Particularly delightful are the esoteric crystals floating in front of her, representing the five colors of mana. Balancer indeed. Chris’s is dignified, monumental, painstakingly beautiful, with a gorgeous dance of color not only in the sunset hues behind her head but the play of iridescent blues in her wings, reminiscent of a wisened raven atop the colossal skeleton of a beast yet more old and mysterious than the Elder Dragons themselves.
✦
1. Studious First-Year, Ambitious Augmenter, Artistic Process, Lumaret’s Favor
Mariah TekulveWhile the Elder Dragon Headmasters of Strixhaven undoubtedly stole the show in many ways, it was the quieter, more charming, expressive and sincere work of Mariah Tekulve that really brought Strixhaven home for me. Her style maps perfectly onto the “magical school” vibe, especially Studious First-Year. I find the storybook-like aesthetic cues very compelling and effective for the trading card format, and I will be looking to integrate some of these conventions in my own work moving forward. Always nice when someone’s work makes you feel something new, and want to explore that for yourself as well!
BONUS:
[[I couldn’t remember off the top of my head how many times Mr. Walker and Rahn’s efforts had crossed paths on the same card, assuming that such a phenomenon had likely happened a fair amount given both of their status as the most prolific artists in the game. Naturally, I did some digging, and found five such instances. They say comparison is the thief of joy, but perhaps you will agree this is a clear exception to that rule.]]
Though, of course, the definition of overlap could easily be expanded to include named characters, such as Chandra and Tezzeret, shared cycles, such as the elemental and Eldrazi titans, or innumerable dragons, angels, and demons.
