The Sacrifical Altar

Added some vines and other elements to help to enhance the composition a little... Was fun to paint and render the tourist properly :) 

S I photobashed some photo element for the rock texture, added some boat last minute felt it was also scale refereing the statue also demonstrating the transport recquired to access the altar. Played a lot with the ocntrast and the mist to create the atmorspheric density. Added a little tourist as the character, jsut to make the contrast in time and also a little comic relief.

Everything is starting to be shaping up nicely; I try not to over render in this stage of production. I am trying to arange the composition better, and roughly paint and add texture. I added the birds in the middle ground to create a scale reference for the giant statue. I painted the main architectural aspect for the ruins; also, I added a water wheen to create a sense of mecanism that remain intact and functional after all the years of decaying. The waterfalls add a little bit of verticality to the composition which I feel balances it a bit.

Here is t he thumbnail and the greyscale sketch for the concept. It will have this altar in the center of the statue's chest, where the sacrifice will be perform. Also, I plan to create some architectural aspects on the underground lake and on the rocks. 

So for this concept art entry, I was very inspired by Mayan architecture. I did this trip in Tulum, Mexico where I visited underground cenote. Their clear water and interesting rock formation will be visually pleasing; saturated blue water and intersting lighting will be what I aim for. However, I feel like I need something more than just a temple, something that explain why this underground place was built. I was thinking a sacrificial altar, with a giant statue of a woman crying waterfalls. I will represent a divinity, or a higher power that this nation will offer their citizen for (a little bit dark but hey sound pretty cool). I just love how greek statues have this neutral yet emotional look in their eyes. I will for sure be using this portrait as a guideline to design the main element of my design.