Fairy prince

"Fairy prince" is a fair title, since it does look fully like something out of a fairy tale. The unusual angle - nearly a bird's view of the objects - makes the painting that is already brimming with fascinating detail even more visually engaging. The design of the fairy prince is beautiful and ethereal. At the same time, the texturing, shading and the nicely humanising touch of having the scarf trail along the ground make him uncannily realistic enough to truly be a fairy tale come to life.

As colours go, you make a beautiful use of green - it is very much a "green picture", but the focal points stand out through their richness of detail and deviations of colour, such as the odd glimpse of blue, red and white. For that matter, the dynamic lines of the fairy frog's wings, the scarf, the sword, the branches and finally the swirling shape of the prince's clothing and armour all coalesce, like a tightening spiral, subtly guiding the straying eye to the focal point of the prince's face.

The painting also leaves much to the imagination as soon as you notice the fine details. The prince is looking up knowingly, straight into the eyes of the viewer, and while he is so full of otherworldly beauty that it is difficult to think of running or even looking away, one cannot help but wonder why he has his sword drawn, and just who or what he is hunting for.

If there are any complaints to be made, they concern the lighting, which, judging by the reflection on the water, seems to be coming from behind the figures, yet everything is painted as if the light source is above them and slightly to the viewer's left. However, these slight inconsistencies do little to detract from what is definitely an enchanting and very memorable painting.