Originally done in March of 2004.


Well. This piece has about 32 hours of my life in it. Totalling about 325 layers and the .PSD file at around 1 gig in size. The full resolution was around 1200 x 2500, my biggest work at that time.

With this piece I started at the bottom. I defined a concept, a story, a thumbnail sketch of the idea, and then into it's production. For the record this piece was around about 4 or 5 months before Alyn released Icarus' Wish so for those just seeing it no flamin'.

The work flow of this piece was heavily influenced by the music of Edgen. Back in the day when it was easily accessible (He's a bit more famous now lol.) I had just about every track he had done. I treasure his talent and his music as a great part of my inspiration from Suns of Icarus forward. I cherish his work and will use it for years to come to aid my creative spark.


The story of this piece is a somber, tragic one.

Icarus was a lone planet surrounded by several tretcherous suns. Icarus had no real orbit as it's gravity was always tested by the Suns that surrounded it. Because of the perils that it was always subject to, Icarus became the home of a band of rebels fighting against a great enemy. Over the centuries the war was forgotten and this planet thrived with life. The people lived in great peace and prosperity and they never wanted for anything.

Soon though, the planet became trapped between the suns and the result was a coming destruction. The people decided it best to leave, but one old traveler decided to take his last remaining moments of life and wait to see what would become of Icarus. The planet eventually emptied of people except for this one old man. He wept over the land he had lived his whole life then departed his home with the quick burst of the rockets on his ship. As he cleared the atmosphere he watched as the suns heat began to burn the planets surface. He flew into the void of space on his final journey of life never to return again.

On a softer note, Icarus would remain. It would be taxed heavily with fire and heat but it would remain as a testament to a richer time when peace and prosperity held at bay the wills of the Suns of Icarus.


This piece had much of my time and attention. While looking back on it now I see so much that agrivates me and I've often come back to the PSD to tinker. In the end though I feel this piece is at it's highest peak in this form. There is a file on my HDD entitled Return to Icarus which would take place several centuries later as a young traveler made his way to his ancestors homeworld. It never met completion.

This piece would go on to become my most recognized work. It was featured in Greg's Capturing Heaven article and appeared on the front of 3Dtotal.com as the image selected to advertise Greg's article. For these feats I'm most grateful as it has proved to me that time and attention to a piece does pay off.

Enjoy.

-absolute halo-