This prop is also a realization of one of Alice Graff’s book characters, Aratis. Aratis is a sun fae and head of the fae clan. Though she is soft-spoken, she is powerful and able to wield all the powers of the light. The model is Abby Lee.

This piece was constructed by repurposing an old mask, cutting it up to create an interesting shape, and then attaching pieces of EVA foam for the rays. To create the texture and color, I stippled acrylic paint on the rays and added puffy paint. Lastly, I attached dyed chords to frame the face.

These are the original sketches I made of Aratis for the author. Alice ended up loving the mask because she felt it was “in keeping with her character to hide her true self a bit from the public.”

The reason I decided to include this piece in my portfolio is because a sun fae is the perfect representation of the fantasies people harbor to cope with the darkness in their day-to-day lives. This is the light people reach toward when shrouded in darkness.