24th artist added to the collection in 2024 and this one’s a biggie. Anand Radhakrishnan’s (aka Anand RK) sublime take on Dani Moonstar and her nemesis, the Demon Bear (DB). This is only 1 of 2 commissions I believe Anand had done so far (check out the other, an outstanding Miles Morales Spider-Man, in my man M L’s gallery -
https://www.comicartfans.com/GalleryPiece.asp?Piece=1994960) and he really threw himself into it. I gave him the choice of either Dani/Demon Bear or Brainiac. I knew he would kill both but seeing this I’m glad he went with the former.
He didn’t know Dani as a character so went back and read the New Mutants issues to prep and saw how the DB stands for a lot metaphorically, how powerful it gets with each attack, and he thought of Dani taking it down in a brutal showdown in that bitter cold. And after, maybe to survive in said cold for a period, she wears the vanquished bear skin. He thought it would be an evocative image and imagined the bear rattling and making an eerie sound as she moved through the snow. Was awesome to hear how he approached it, and of course we’ve got this result.
When you see Anand’s work there’s no doubt it’s him. He really is singular in that way, here melding Dani, the defeated DB, and lots of other subtle imagery in such a unique way. Those additional heads and other ornamentation…Anand said he was just bringing more of him into the piece that way and I’m all about it. The color work is next level in person as are the textures they render. LOVE it.
If you haven’t checked out Anand’s work, I highly recommend it…”feast for the eyes” comes to mind.