GHAAST & CELEST
Ghaast was betrayed by death itself.
Condemned without justice, his soul was cast into the depths of Mictlán, where he endured the nine levels of the underworld, his body twisted with each trial. Life was promised—only pain was delivered. At the end, the truth: the promise had never been real.
In wrath, Ghaast overthrew the rulers of the underworld — but his victory cost him his humanity. Now bound between worlds, his only tether to life is a single jade earring.
At his side stands Celest, a goddess whose power was sealed within a mystical blade, now wielded by Ghaast.
Together, they face the coming end — an apocalypse where only gods shall rule the Earth.
This is the beginning of their war.
This project didn’t follow the usual creative process — and that’s exactly what made it special.
I started straight from the key art, without fully knowing where it would lead me. Ghaast and Celest became my study material for painting, anatomy, and character design in general. Instead of defining everything first and illustrating later, I let the visuals guide the worldbuilding.
At some point, I began building their standard concept sheets, refining ideas that had already been shaped in the key art. Then I went back and adjusted the key art again, based on what I had developed — kind of a reverse process.
Since this is a personal project, I allowed myself the freedom to explore new directions without being limited by conventional steps. And honestly, if I hadn’t done it that way, I don’t think I would’ve gotten this far or felt this satisfied with how Ghaast and Celest turned out.
