From Curt: The Final Post of Challenge XIII - Méliès' 'A Trip to the Moon' (22 Points)

Well after 800 or so posts here we are at the end of Challenge XIII, and what a wonderful time it's been. This is the first year that I largely stepped back from taking part in the posting and scoring and I have to say that it allowed me to enjoy the event all the more. Of course, this meant that I had to rely on a full roster of helpers and, as I knew, I was not disappointed. So my cap is in hand when I say thank you to Peter, Tamsin, Miles, Teemu, Phil, Stuart and Martin. You folks were absolutely brilliant in maintaining your individual crews, while also promoting the Challenge's open and welcoming character. Also, a big thank you to Millsy for keeping track of the Duels, Barks for his ever-entertaining 'Skull Challenge', and to Miles for making sure the Spreadsheet of Doom did not blow apart into its constituent 1s and 0s. 

Arigato, Kiitos and Cheers to you all.

As is customary, I close out the Challenge with our final entry. I usually try to stretch out a bit and do something ambitious, but I have to admit that my spirit was just not there for it. This past week, Oscar, one of our two beloved dog companions, passed away, leaving Sarah, Felix and I completely heartbroken, dearly missing him, and his place in our lives. Nonetheless, I know spring is in the air, and time will heal - just not for awhile.

So, with this recent loss weighing heavy on my heart, I wanted to do something that was simple, but also still captured the spirit of our 'AHPC Studios' theme. 

As a little backstory, Sarah and I were fortunate enough to visit Lyon, France this past autumn, and as a part of our wanderings, we visited the Lumiere Museum, which showcases the art, craft and process of early film making and photography. Highly recommended.

One of the films referenced in the museum was George Méliès' 1902 adventure, 'A Trip to the Moon' - the first sci-fi film ever created. 

I loved 'A Trip to the Moon' as a kid as it seemed so whimsical and weird. As it was inspired by Jules Verne's 'From the Earth to the Moon', Méliès' work was the start of my love of pulp science fiction which moved on to 'War of the Worlds' and 'John Carter of Mars' and of course, 'Star Wars'. 

Anyway, on Cults3D I found this wonderful 3d design by Printorama3d of the iconic image of the Moon's face with the space bullet in its eye. I thought it would be a great excuse for me to drag out my monochrome paints to try to give it a greyscale treatment.

As with my old 'Great War in Greyscale' project, I tried to incorporate both warm and cool grey tones to differentiate the face, the surrounding moon, and the crashed spacecraft. Thankfully, I keep an old Moleskin notebook that has all my paint recipes in it, so I could reacquaint myself with how I did these things in the past. I'd be totally lost without it. 

Even though it's a small and relatively straightforward piece, I found it nice and comforting to return to this style of painting after all these years. Again, it's a modest piece, but I hope you like it.

I'll claim 22 points for this. Two for the model, and 20 for the Black & White Studio.  

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I want to thank all our participants for their fevered industry and good natured humour. The Challenge is characterized not by me or the minions, but by all of you who participate in it. So again, thank you for the wonderful experience. I can't think of no better way to spend the winter months.

In a week or so I'll post a poll for 'Challenger's Choice', and a little after that we'll have an awards wrap up which will include the Challenger's Choice selection, the Minions' Choice, my SnowLord's Choice and Sarah's Choice. Stay tuned for those announcements.

In the meantime, if you will indulge me, I ask that everyone submit a post featuring a picture of themselves along with their Challenge efforts this season.

Thanks again, and I hope to see you all next winter for Challenge XIV!

- Curt