Nene Thomas

Nene Tina Thomas (born August 31, 1968) is an artist living in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Biography

In 1994, Nene Tina Thomas was approached by Wizards of the Coast to produce artwork for their card game "Magic: the Gathering." Her artwork is also featured in such card games as Shadowfist, Legend of the Five Rings, Galactic Empires, Tempest of the Gods, Wyrmwars, Gridiron, Vampire: The Eternal Struggle, Xenophiles, and Battlelords of the 23rd Century.

Nene's earlier works were all produced using watercolors, but her more recent pieces have been created using digital media. Her images feature both male and female fantasy characters as well as a variety of different faeries. She places her characters among breathtaking backgrounds and clothes them in exquisitely painted cloth. The detail in the dresses is particularly stunning.

A variety of products have been created based on the artwork of Nene Thomas including statues, ornaments, stickers, keychains, blankets, t-shirts and magnets. Her artwork can be found at her website as well as through a variety of other vendors. Licensed products are available online and through retail stores such as Hot Topic.

Nene currently lives in Oklahoma City with her husband Steven Plagman. Together they are working on a series of fantasy novels entitled "The Zarryiostrom", the first book of which is entitled "Powerborne". Text and illustrations for this fantasy novel can be found at her website.

The Zarryiostrom

"The Zarryiostrom" is a sweeping fantasy epic following the lives and stories of characters from three separate kingdoms in their struggle to achieve dominance over their neighbors and to reestablish an ancient empire created by a legendary powerborne named Zarryiosiad, who died 2500 years before the main events of the novel. The three kingdoms that vie for power are Illymar, an island nation that was once the seat of power of Zarryiosiad herself, warlike Dakkadia, a land with a long and proud martial tradition, and vast Ferralin, an empire in and of itself. At the beginning of the series there is a tenuous balance of power in existence between these three realms, for Illymar as an island nation Illymar has a powerful navy but a very weak army, Ferralin has no navy but an incredibly huge army, while Dakkadia has a technologically superior military...smaller in numbers but incredibly powerful on a man-for-man basis.

Many of the characters that are featured in the story are characters from the various paintings that she has completed throughout her career. In the prologue, three of her popular "Dragon Witch" characters are introduced: Furionchires, the Queen of Battle (from 'Dragon Witch #1: Dragon Moon'), Severeielle, the Queen of Shadows (from 'Dragon Witch #2: Witching Hour', and a newer painting entitled 'Queen of Shadows'), and Astranaithes, the Queen of Fate (from 'Dragon Witch #5: Oracle'). As the series progresses, more and more characters from her artwork will be revealed, including all of the Dragon Witches and many of the faeries.

Conventions

Artwork by Nene Thomas is frequently made available at various conventions throughout the year. Among these are Dragon Con in Atlanta, Georgia, Gen Con in Indianapolis, Indiana, Anime Expo in Southern California, Project A-Kon in Dallas, Texas, Scarborough Renaissance Festival in Waxahachie, Texas and the Kansas City Renaissance Festival in Bonner Springs, Kansas. On occasion, Nene will make an appearance at these conventions.

Art Collections

*"Parting the Veil", (2005) ISBN 0-974461-29-6

External links

* [http://www.nenethomas.com Fantasy Art by Nene Thomas]
* [http://www.nenethomas.com/zarryiostrom.shtml The Zarryiostrom]
* [http://nenethomas.livejournal.com/ Nene Thomas on Live Journal]
* [http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=14135843607 Nene Thomas Illustrations Facebook Page]
* [http://www.celestopea.com/celestopeatimes/Art-Music_art-interview-with-fantasy-artist_Nene.Thomas.htm Interview with Fantasy Artist Nene Thomas]
* [http://www.crescentblues.com/3_6issue/thomas_thompson.shtml Nene Thomas and Ruth Thompson: Partners in Paint]