I've wanted to try my hand at generative art and dive into the exciting world of NFTs with a big project. From my metaverse of Geoda I worked with a UX designer and a developer to create Yokai Kingdom a project of 8,888 hand-drawn collectible cards + NFT powered game, inspired by ancient Japanese mythology. I created a template for the Onis, where I've drawn many variations of eyes, noses, mouths, clothing, accessories etc to allow for unique combinations of characters to be minted with a look to expand into online gaming with Web 3 capabilities. 

Below are the screen shots from the Yokai Kingdom website but continue scrolling to see how I developed the Onis and their unique personalities.

The Onis are demons in Japanese folklore that are told of their evil natures and beastly acts. Samurai warriors would often wear ceremonial Oni masks into battle with their armour and I was inspired to draw my own version of these creatures for this project and turn them into the good guys, cursed warriors who have been turned into Oni.

I wanted the Oni to have a unique look to my own style and to reflect my interest in cartoons, manga, street art and vinyl toys so they have a slightly smoother look and aren't grotesquely ugly.

I wanted the colours to be vibrant and eye catching, with armour, facial features and even backdrop needing to be considered. On the early designs for the collectible card layout we played around with power/ guild icons within the layout but soon revised how these would work in a new frame format.