Final Project

(For some reason the image is sideways...)

Over the course of the semester the novel that stood out by far was the Robert Matheson novel, I am Legend. This novel not only stood out for its adaptation to a full length motion picture, but also for the concept of survival of the fittest mentality and the ability for the reader to buy into the character of Robert Neville. Survival of the fittest has been a concept that only the strongest survive in the order of creatures. Vampire-Zombies are played out to be the fittest creatures in Robert Neville’s world as so they think.

            The reader is lead along a path in which these Vampire-Zombie creatures are stalking Robert Neville and are out for his demise. The creatures are storming Neville’s house to the point that his days have almost become ritualized. He spends most of every day rubbing garlic on his house and growing more garlic, he also spends time repairing the damage the Vampire-Zombie creatures do to his home during the night time hours, when the creatures are in full swing since they are nocturnal beings.

            Secondly, the character of Robert Neville is an easy buy in for the reader. He is a character the reader can relate to and feel a level of comfort with in regards to surviving something others cannot. Robert Neville feels like the last man on earth and he very well could be for all he knows at the start of the novel. He befriends a dog, ie man’s best friend. Many find comfort in animals and Robert Neville was no different. He found comfort in something as simple as a dog.

            With these two concepts in mind the construction of a piece of artwork was in order. I constructed a piece based on these two concepts. As shown in the graphic image above, I constructed by version of what a Vampire-Zombie like creature in Robert Neville’s world would look like. The black background depicts the darkness of the world these creatures survive in, the nocturnal haven that they are able to strive in. The black background fades in around the Vampire-Zombie creature I envisioned while reading the text.

            The Vampire-Zombie creature I envisioned was of a bony structure. The creature also had a bald head and protruding cheek bones. I envisioned the protruding cheek bones that were set high on the facial structure to make more room in the jaw region for sucking the blood of the victims turned Vampire-Zombies. The high set cheek bones also allows for the powerfulness of the jaw when biting into its prey.  Also, appearing the Vampire-Zombie like creature is the main characteristic of a Vampire, the fangs. Visible to the viewer of this piece is just the fang on one side. This was done intentionally because the whole the creature is not meant to be seen.

            Only half the face of the Vampire-Zombie creature is to be seen because it is meant to look like the vampire is peering through at Robert Neville. Peering in through a crack or a hole in Robert Neville’s house, this is showing a fault in Neville, a down fall that could lead to his own demise. Which is also symbolized in the piece by the Vampire-Zombie creature melting into the candle below the creature, the creature’s demise is light due to the nocturnal being his has become. Light is a source of power for Robert Neville. Light is one natural aspect that Robert Neville uses to his advantage, during daylight Neville can still be a human. Whereas at night he is confided to the confines of his home, and he is stuck boarded up as a prisoner in his own home. Light is a source of power and prowlness for Robert Neville and the demise of the Vampire-Zombie like creatures.

            Over all the ability to relate to Robert Neville is what made the novel easy to read and buy into the thoughts and ideas of Robert Neville. This is what also made it adaptable to a major motion picture. A character that people can relate to and feel like one with is important to the human aspect of not only a novel, but a movie as well. A person needs to be able to put themselves in the character’s shoes. People in Neville’s shoes would have the same mentality; only the strongest survive and persevere.

            These concepts can easily be seen in my piece of fan art dedicated to Robert Neville’s I am Legend,  in which the novel, movie, and now this piece of artwork are easily put together in one overall context to pay tribute to the novel that has sparked creative juices among the masses in relation to the Matheson novel. The Vampire-Zombies may very well eventually take over the world, but not without a fight and not without hunger and drive. That is what Robert Neville brought hunger and drive to survive, to protect what was his, what he worked his life for and he was not willing to give that up for some Vampire-Zombie, like the one depicted in my piece.