I don't know the end of this.

I love it when a design comes together easily. I especially enjoy it when I'm in the middle of a block in creativity. This was the case with "La Fin", the new shirt design for Philadelphia's Rosetta (rosettaband.com).
When Dave contacted me about doing a shirt design for their upcoming European tour, he had given me the starting theme that included Gabriele The Arch Angel. The idea came from the song "Je N'en Connais Pas La Fin" from 2010's "A Determinism Of Morality" and painted a clear portrait of a man calling for the end:

For every pass
Of this moon
Embers wait
Commune
A dawn's harvest

Spores
Burrowing
Ash
Covering

My world
My home
My loves
My memories

So tell me how I've come so far

Repression of memories
Behind a door best kept shut
Suppression of daily deeds
A crushing venom weeping
Into these hands
A plague upon a frame
Growing on the inside
Withering a simple sullen home

I started by studying the paintings of Gabriele throughout history. The design of the old saint icons are gorgeous in their textures and flow and all seem to be of a similar style of the times. I wanted him to be subtly ambiguous as angels are supposed to be, so his hair and facial features are a combination of masculine bone structure with a feminine softness to it. I wanted his overall look to be dark and ominous as one would think the man who is supposed to blow a trumpet to signal judgment day and the apocalypse would look. The wings are drawn in a different style than I'm used to, though. I was influenced by the wing structure that many of the paintings included and felt that the heavy detail would combine the old idea with my style.

Let this go

Won't you play
Your trumpet well
Gabriele

And pray that I can rest

Spores
Burrowing
Ash
Covering

Towards his feet is the man who set this turn of events into action. As in the song, he seems to be looking upon his life and calling for the end. The "end" in this case, has already happened and the man's body is breaking down into mushrooms and other spore producing plants. From them come the streams of spores sending his body into the ethereal. The lunar cycle included in the design represents that of the days that the man has already spent tormented and how the cycle is just not in him, but a constant theme of man. It was a fun design to work on and any design that allows me the chance to add tons of detail is a design that will always have a place in my heart. So, thank you Rosetta for the design that tore through my creativity block.

It's right back to the art table and in the words of Mr. Brian Mercer, "NEXT!"

You can check out the video for "Je N'en Connais Pas La Fin" here: Music For Astronauts