Maria Franz Portrait 9×12, Charcoal on Toned Paper.

I don’t do a whole lot of fan art even though it’s know to be one of the best ways an artist can draw folks to their social media. I’m simply not fanatical about many things and the thing that do get me energized probably wouldn’t have mass appeal. That said, I have a little time before I dive deep into a fairly large commission so I decided to create a piece of fan art that I’ve been thinking about for a few months.

The viking-inspired, experimental folk band, Heilung popped up on my radar recently and it was love at first sound. The band has members from Denmark, Norwary and Germany and, from what I can tell, they sing in a variety of languages making unique use of their voice and nature-based percussion instruments (think rattles, animal skin drums, bones and antlers). My husband and I agree little on music but we both took to Heilung right away; needless-to-say, we listen to a lot of it. I can hear them playing downstairs as I sit and write this.

A love of the music isn’t entirely what inspired me to draw the lead singer, Maria Franz. Second, only to her mesmerizing vocals, are the captivating theatrics of their live performances. The costumes, the smoke, the sparse, but careful use of light is a feast for the eyes. I was curious about the authenticity of the band’s look, and read their costumes are historically correct reproductions of early Viking and Celtic clothing. They have a great look and are a lot of fun to draw.

I may draw other band members in the future, but for this first piece, I centered on Franz, the only female (I think) in the band, who often stands center stage contrasting the men’s dark, smokey face paint and animal skins with her flowing white tunic and iconic eye-fringe. I emphasized the contrast by drawing her in black and white charcoal on toned paper, giving the viewer the sense she’s popping off the page. The final drawing size is 9×12 inches.