The Divine Comedy & Paradise Lost

Minos in judgment of souls, decides which layer of Hell each one goes to by how many times the snake coils around his body

sketches, concepts, 3D views for Minos

Charon ferrying Dante and Virgil.

PLUTUS
"Papa Satan, Papa Satan, aleppy"
Plutus clucked and stuttered in his rage;
And my all-knowing Guide, to comfort me:
"Do no be startled, for no power of his,
however he may lord it over the damned,
may hinder your descent through this abyss."

i used HEAVYPAINT painting software to explore some sketches here. It is exceptionally good!

plutus revamped

more expo for plutus

plutus sketches

Farinata is a majestic soul and he appears prouder and bigger and rises above the flames, he seems to hold all Hell in disrespect, Virgil instructs Dante - "Mind how you speak to him"

Anastasius is still alive on earth, but according to Dante his sin of heresy is so vile that a place is reserved here even before death comes for him.

The City of Dis, here Dante and Virgil encounter the Three Furies.

The Infamy of Crete, the Minotaur, lays spread on the edge of the cleft of the 7th layer.

Beatrice appears to Virgil in Limbo and instructs him to guide Dante and come to his aid

"Her eyes were kindled from the lamps of Heaven. Her voice reached through me, tender, sweet, and low. An angel's voice, a music of its own"

Geryon - The symbol of Deceit,

i thought the best way to illustrate this would be to bring in CUBISM into the mix.
Cubism tricks your mind, deceives form and function yet is beautiful to look at.

The She Wolf who terrorizes Dante in Canto I, I have made it a thoroughly provocative and nightmarish creature, the visual of which should scare anyone.
Also the She Wolf is a metaphor for sins of incontinence (more,more,more, therefore sins of the flesh)

The Sins of Violence in Canto I is depicted by A Lion. Flesh, blood, hunger, claws, nails. I think i got it just about right

some sketches

The 3 furies, Megaera, Alecto and Tisiphone charge towards D&V. It is one of the few times in the entire journey, they literally fear for their lives. Virgil protects Dante and instructs him to close his eyes.

continuation after the 3 Furies, close up of the faces of Dante & Virgil

went through a few options here before settling on 3 and 5, first a wide shot (stylized) and then close up.
Something very simple to get down first was the pose -- what is a fear/cowering pose? what is protect mode pose?

the tower before the River Styx, two flares go up as Dante and Virgil approaches, summoning Phlegyas, the boatmen who ferries them to the City of Dis

Cerberus the ravenous beast howls through triple throats as he rips souls, flays and mangles them while sitting in putrid slush

sketches for cerberus

the freezing storm of filth raining down on GLUTTONS in the 3rd circle

sketch for the gluttons

The 7th layer - The river of blood, Phlegeton, with sinners submerged upto different lengths depending of their severity, guarded by Cenataurs.

Chiron the centaur. Wisest of all.

the centaur Nessus

the centaur Pholus

sketches for the 7th round - Violence against Neighbors and the River Phlegeton

sketches for Charon

The 7th layer round two. Dante and Virgil walk through the forest of suicides

in order to speak with one of suicides, Virgil tells Dante to break of one of its branches

the harpies

Violence against their substance.
D&V see Lano running through the FoS, he is set upon by ravenous dogs, who find and tear him to pieces, his limbs eventually rejoin, for the chase and process to start all over again

sketches for The Forest of Suicides

sketch for Lano
"Then at his back the wood leaped with black bitches, swift as greyhounds escaping from their leash"

The 4th layer - Hoarders and Wasters

sketches

sketches for the Minotaur

Antaeus gently lowers Virgil and Dante into the final circle of Hell

"Of Man's first disobedience, and the fruit
Of that forbidden tree whose mortal taste
Brought death into the World, and all our woe,
With loss of Eden, till one greater Man,
Restore us, and regain the blissful seat"

"Before the Fall"

"Advising peace : for such another field
They dreaded worse than Hell; so much the fear
Of thunder and the sword of Michael
Wrought still within them; and no less desire
To found this nether empire, which might rise "

Sin & Death
"About her middle round.
A cry of Hell-hounds never ceasing barked
With wide Cerberean mouths full loud, and rung
A hideous peal; yet when they list, would creep,
If aught disturbed their noise, into her womb"

some concept paintings for Sin and Death

sketch for the opening act

original sketch for Geryon done in HEAVYPAIN by Vaughn Ling. Try it out!

sketch for The City of Dis, started in blender, painted over.