Caroline Barrett Lee - Concept Art 2024

Hello! My name is Caroline Lee and I am a self-taught digital artist from Manhattan! Thank you for taking the time to look at my artworks!

The Shepherd: the design of this character focuses on functionality and practicality over decoration and excess. The inclusion of a sheep-skin cloak and a wooden walking stick gives visual insight into his life as a farmer. He wears a hag-stone necklace, a protective trinket thought to dissuade evil spirits.

Alva: This character, Alva, is the protagonist of my story. She's a daughter of the Fae King who was taken in and raised by Ciaran the shepherd. Her visual design was inspired by descriptions of aes sídhe, the supernatural faerie folk of Irish and Scottish folklore, described as being both beautiful and strange.

Fae Queen: archaic, mystical, and opulent- these were the traits that I wanted to prioritize in this character. Her design is inspired by descriptions of the 'Seelie' court of faeries. These beings are associated with sunlight, summertime, and good fortune. Another point of inspiration came from the gold and amber jewelry that were worn by women in Baltic cultures during the Bronze and Iron Ages.

Fae King: this design was my take on a faerie king based in Celtic and Gallo-Roman mythology. To help create this design, I borrowed from descriptions of deities such as Cernunnos, a woodland god who wears a torq necklace and has stag antlers. I wanted my Fae king and queen designs to evoke a yin and yang type of symbolism with each other. Unlike the queen, the Fae king in my story is inspired by the 'Unseelie' faeries, who are described as dark, mysterious, elusive, and associated with misfortune.

The Selkie: Selkies are some of the most prevalent creatures in Celtic Mythology. They are shapeshifters possessing of the ability to change from a seal to a human using a sealskin cloak. Most commonly featured in stories about love, they are described as beautiful, graceful, and wise. Selkies are also feared as much as they are loved, as they sometimes appear as vengeful avatars of the sea. The notion of duality is fundamental to the mythology of selkies: beauty and ferocity, human and inhuman.

"Bonnie + Clyde" is a retelling of the classic story that is set in the not-so-distant future. We follow the story of Bonnie Chen, who, despite her lucrative job at Comptech, cannot afford life-saving treatment for her ill mother.

Out of desperation, Bonnie joins forces with her delinquent cousin, Han. Throughout the story, Bonnie teams up with new friends, including a medical service robot stolen from Comptech that they rename 'Clyde'. The stakes are raised when Bonnie and her gang gain the attention of the district attorney. Will Bonnie and her friends make it big while evading enforcers of the law or will it all go down in flames?

The world of Bonnie + Clyde is in a transitory stage between our present day and the futuristic, dystopian cities seen in Bladerunner, Akira, and Cyberpunk 2077.

City vistas and cluttered subway platforms alike are crammed full with abrasive advertisements, neon lights, and grimy garbage.

Police patrols suffocate the streets amidst a skyrocketing crime rate and shining skyscrapers tower over crumbling infrastructure.

Thank you very much for taking the time to look at my portfolio! I've always had a passion for digital art and this past year I have shifted my focus towards a career in concept art! Since I've started, I have learned a lot about concept art and I recognize that I still have a lot to learn about and improve on. Going forwards, I hope to improve my skills with environment/background design!

Artstation: https://carolinebarrettlee.artstation.com/

Insta: @caroline.illustrator

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/caroline-barrett-lee/