Art in Focus - Platinum Angel Masterpiece by Victor Adame Minguez

The creative process behind each piece of Magic art is unique to the image and the artist.

From the art description to the final product, the Art in Focus series reviews every step involved in crafting the art of Magic the Gathering in the artist’s own words.

This week we shine the spotlight on the Platinum Angel Masterpiece by Victor Adame Minguez from Aether Revolt.

Take it away Victor.

I started playing mtg when the original Mirrodin came out, so I was familiar with the card when I received the art direction and assignment from Wizards.

Honestly, I can't recall what I was thinking at the exactly moment, except " holy crap, this is a Brom piece, I get to paint a Brom piece".

I already had the maquette that I used for Atraxa, so I just painted it with a glossy pink to get the reflections.  I also used cloth submerged on a fish tank for the wings. I didn't feel they were worth posting because oh well they're terribly blurry.

I wanted to communicate something stoic but brittle, a delicate angel that could save your life but can be destroyed without much effort, as so often happens in-game. 

While painting, I paid extra special attention to the wings.  I wanted to make them really cool.

I knew I had enough experience to create the main character from working in the world of Kaladesh's shiny metally surfaces, but not once had I done wings made of fabric, especially floaty fabric. The wings were the trickiest part,  so that's why I focused most of my efforts on those.

The work I put into the wings appears to have paid off.  I've heard from many fans since the masterpieces were revealed that the wings are their favorite part of the image.

Kudos to the AD Mark Winters and the creative team for coming up with the idea.

I actually finished this piece more than a year ago, as Oath of the Gatwatch was being released.  My time with Kaladesh is already over, but I did get a chance to revisit by creating a chap that would get featured on the Art of Kaladesh book.

Illustrating Kaladesh has been a delight. 

I really enjoyed doing metal, as I was no stranger to that, and was blessed that I got to do such a wide range of card types. All in all good fun, I couldn't ask for more.

The original artwork for this Platinum Angel was created digitally.  Anyone interested in purchasing prints or some of Victor's other work should check out his INPRNT gallery.

Thank you Victor for sharing this story with us. 

Check back next Thursday for more Art in Focus.