Valyrian Steel Swords of Westeros Poster...

[Lorinjen]

Hi all, first post on the forum and i'm afraid its a self plug (i know i already sound like an arsehole, sorry!)

I've done a print based on the famous Valyrian Swords mentioned in the books and their last known wielders (Before the lynching, I'm aware Ned wastn't the true last owner of Ice and the Scaling of the Swords was a conscious decision). I loved making these and if anyone would like support a lonely motherfucker who neglects friends in favour of designing sword then you can buy one here! Full blurb on the project is under the images, thank you!

The Valyrian Steel Swords of Westeros - giclée / screen print

16.5” x 23.4” giclée archival pigment inks print with silkscreen varnish, on Hahnemühle German Etching 310gsm paper

Hand-numbered and signed edition of 150

Available now from my Shop

Inspired by the ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ books by G. R. R. Martin and the subsequent homage poster by Darrin Crescenzi, I was keen to create a visual catalogue of the Valyrian steel swords of Westeros.

Forged from a magical metal in the days of old Valyria, Valyrian steel swords are of the highest quality and extremely rare, which makes them some of the most sought after prizes in A Song of Ice and Fire. I wanted to illustrate the main* swords, referencing their last known wielders and each wielder’s house. Similar to Crescenzi’s poster, I intended the illustrations to feel modern and clean, juxtaposing the book’s grittiness.

Contrary to the description given in the books, I chose to make the blades almost luminous and glowing but retained the subtle waves in the steel and the red tinge within Oathkeeper and Widow’s Wail. The screen layer adds a varnish to the blades to give them a gloss shine.

I used a varsity-esque font for the sword names because I like the idea of them feeling like a sports team you might support. Everyone has a favourite character or house from the series, so that was something I wanted to bring through using a visual language that people would be familiar with but not necessarily expect. This is echoed in the use of only 2 ‘house colours’ to create each sword handle and name scroll.

*whilst other swords are mentioned, I have attempted to visualise the ones named and given importance by the book.

04/6/13

[Wolfheart]

Nicely done. Although It would have been nice to have the swords not scaled all to the same size.

[Lorinjen]

Cheers, yeah, i was torn about whether to scale them correctly, but the image as a whole started to lose its balance. I kind of wanted to tell their stories through the colours and subtle graphic differences.

[Ser Kennos of Kayce]

Is your for-sale screen print an officially licensed-from-GRRM product? If not, in creating it without permission and license you are in violation of Martin's international copyright and intellectual property rights; he strictly controls all the rights to for-sale products created from his Ice and Fire series. Be aware that his wife Parris is a member of this forum and looks for this kind of thing. She'll know about this print very quickly, if permission and a license has not been granted.