Hedlef the Grey Sage
Knowledge is built from centuries of quiet observation.
Elder twin (to Timais) of the Wandering Order, Hedlef walks the mortal realms quietly, guarding ancient secrets and carrying centuries of forgotten incantations beneath his travel-worn hat.
The Inspiration
Hedlef, the sterner, elder twin of Timais, is an everyman’s thaumaturge: what folks probably see when you ask them what a wizard looks like.
Stylistically Hedlef is part Tolkienesque wandering spell-caster and part D&D ancient mage. He’s a gentle homage to both of these things as well as being an interesting character to render using pyrography: he has facial folds and shadows that require attention if they are to work properly.
The Craft
Technically, Hedlef is a combination of hard edges and gradient shading on neutrally grained ply.
The piece contrasts deep, black shadows and sharp edges with both gradient shading and line shading. The shading on the face enhances the almost leathery look of the aged skin of the wizard whilst the shading on the hat and in the beard provide depth. Both line work and shading were executed using a fine wire tip.
