Matchstick of Hope

Sparks of Hope competition entry for EOY 2007.

Took me a damn long while to CG this piece, and all my effort. BG not that satisfactory but i think i got the feeling right. I took a while to do the snow as i analyzed how it would look like. Also, it was quite challenging to make her garments feel old and worn out because of the rich colour scheme i used for her clothes. Eventually i did it somehow lol.

Regarding the theme however; It's horrible of me but i felt that to bring out the true theme of Sparks of Hope, i have to make use of Despair to enhance the need for a Hope.

Initially the inspiration came from a text i read when i was a kid. The story of the matchstick selling girl in the cold winter. I couldn't remember the exact details since it was a long time ago and the details may not be the same as other versions of the story



In a cold winter night, a little girl is selling matchsticks in the streets. The cold society however, shunned her because of her poverty.

Her stepmother forbid her to return until she finishes selling the matchsticks. Looking at happy families through lit windows, the girl feels envious but yet sad at her predicament. Desperate for warmth, she sits in the snow and struck matchsticks after matchsticks. However, the cold winter winds eventually took her as she fades into her dreams of a comfy quilt in the warmth of her mother's laps.




Personally, i felt that for each match the girl struck in the cold winter, it's a spark, a splinter of a desperate hope for warmth and love. I can't explain how painful it is to try to enhance the feeling with this piece as i hoped to convey the small prayer she holds in her silence.

Maybe i long for that spark of hope as well, in my life.


On a lighter note, who in the world would wear Zettai Ryoukis instead of proper pants in the cold winter night....


Time taken: can't count
Lineart: SAI
Colouring: SAI
Effects and SFX: Adobe Photoshop CS1