A Fantasy Artist's Sunday Morning Musings and Drawings

Fairies are everywhere. And they are not human, nothing remotely close to us. They resemble us the way a dolphin resembles a fish - same, more-or-less fishy body plan - similar sleek, water-adapted forms. Just ignore the fact that dolphins and whales evolved fairly recently (in the grand scheme of things) from furry dog-like animals in the river valleys of ancient Pakistan who had decided to become fully-aquatic.

Which brings us to the point of water fairies. Every culture has them, they're supposed to look like beautiful women in fancy dresses who float up serenely from mysterious haunted lakes and rivers. They look like women but goodness, no, these things are, I repeat, not remotely human.

The Welsh, from their green rolling hills, call them "Gwragedd Annwn" - the Ladies of the Lakes.

But, gentle reader, looks are deceiving. They always are.

The typical "Lady of the Lake" is a massive magical amphibious creature, more like what you would know as a "lake monster". They are massive, with an assortment of spiny fins, a pair of massive jaws and large, intelligent bug eyes. They have also evolved to wield subtle forms of glamour in insidious ways.

A piece of bony tissue (essentially a modified dorsal fin) juts out from the back of their necks close to their heads. The fin itself mimics the cold, serene features of young adult human female, while a pair of grappling limbs mimics her hands. The skull and upper neck of a Lady of the Lake is coloured differently from the rest of its body, the smooth skin with its flowing fins mimicking the look and texture of a woman's dress.

It can become partially invisible, maintaining a cloak of invisibility on most of its vast body. A Lady of the Lake can appear as precisely that - a mysterious woman in a long ephemeral dress floating on the lake surface. The skull of a Lake Lady has a resonating chamber that allows it to project the most haunting and plaintive songs, attracting lone fisherman.

That's right! Beware, you silly fisherman! Lest the smiling fairy woman beckoning to you from the dark depths turns out to be an actual lake monster.

According to Welsh myths, Ladies of the Lake were said to herd magical white cattle. This is also an illusion. The 'cattle" are actually large, insectoid creatures that have the ability to "make" themselves resemble mundane cattle. A simple hex is all it takes to sever their illusions.

More images to come!