Kreating Kyra

a photo taken from a magazine of an Arab prince diving into a palace pool. I was struck by how fin-like the shape of his feet and lower legs appeared. It let me imagine an interesting plausible blending of human and fish attributes.


This is Black Mermaid Kyra's image reference collage panel. The top shows several favorite Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood works portraying the classical depiction of White Mermaids and Sirens. I like these for the grace of the figures and fishywench details. Middle right shows real beauties in articles and ads that display the body and the confidence/attitude in question. The right shows them in beautiful dark skin tones from pitch black, espresso coffee, to alien electric blue. I think my Kyra will end up being as dark as I can make her in the richest, honeyed, warm, milk-in-coffee tone that I can. Below that are examples of the short crop tight curl hair that will be beaded with small snail shells, like a kind of sea buddha. The left middle shows ideas for underwater movement and light, or lack thereof and shot ideas for her emergence from water to land. At the bottom are enticing shorelines and other landscape/shooting notes.


Kyra is beauty, sensuality, innocent sexuality, and holds the key to our gaining entry into the realm of Halfland through her underwater doorway. Plus, I have NEVER heard of or seen a black mermaid rendered, referred to, or otherwise considered in all my reading of fairy folktales. There must be some, but it feels a startlingly original character nonetheless.