Updates

This is the final update for this account. The banners are all done and posted, so make sure you take a look at the awards page.

Once again, thank you to everyone for your support in making this contest great. It means a lot. Take care.












News Article for HakuBaikou/Charlene Sun --> [link]
To send condolences --> [link]

Loss of a Friend

You were always two steps ahead of me
And I was happy to follow
But now your footprints have vanished before me
For you now walk where I cannot

Now I stand where your path ends
And as I look forward I wonder
Is this where you wanted to go
Or were you planning to go much farther

In my heart I know I will head toward the horizon
As I'm sure you planned to do
I will carry your memory with me forever
And I will walk where you could not


Dragon Dreams

And afterwards, all of my tears
began to overflow
"Last night I dreamt of dragons
This morning when they came
I let them take me with them
And left the world the same"

One night she dreamt of dragons
This morning when we knew
Her spirit had grown wings then
We mourned her as she flew

Tonight let's dream of dragons
Tomorrow we'll recall
The one who dreamt of dragons
And shared them with us all.
And the dragon's song, so wild and strong,
fell from the sky like rain

By ~bitter-melon


About Hakubaikou
I am pretty sure that every Kenshin fan on dA knows Hakubaikou.
. for her amazing Kenshin fan art, her fan site, and the annual Kenshin contest. I am sure a large percentage of fantasy art lovers know her as well for her breathtaking landscapes and fantasy characters painted in her gallery... so I am sure that a great many of us will feel the same sadness I feel to learn of her death.

She died in a car crash Jan 27, 2009. We are told it was instant and that she felt no pain... no, it is us who feel the pain.

Haku was an inspiration to me for so many reasons. When I first got on dA, I was just an anime fan artist... but Haku showed me that I could take my skills further by drawing realism that still looked like the anime, and because of her beautiful fan art, I was inspired to do the same. Then she started doing other, non-fan art related works, which showed me again that there is more to dA than sharing the love of existing anime. I started working on my own original stuff in part because of her example. Her annual contests showed me that by doing something every year, it can get big, and now I hold my coloring contests every year because I wanted to give colorists something like what Haku gave Kenshin fan artists. In a lot of ways, she inspired me to become the artist I am today, and now she is gone from this world forever. The saddest thing is that I know that I will never have the chance to tell her how much her work helped me to grow now. I was always too embarrassed to tell her so, but now I wish I had because now I will never have another chance to.

I wasn't the only person who felt a loss at her parting, and many of us shared the sentiment that a fitting tribute to her, and a way to help us find closure would be if we held one last Rurouni Kenshin contest in her name. That is what this site is all about.

Please take a moment of silence now to remember her, and all that she has given us.

Updates


Most everything has been figured out for the contest, but keep in mind that the prizes will be modified as more prize donations come in. We are accepting donations both big and small.
Also, depending on how many entries we get, we may drop some or all of the subcategories. If you donate a prize to a subcat and it is dropped, you will have the choice to move your prize donation to a different spot or just remove it from the contest. Thank you for your understanding.



2009 Contest Theme: What you mean to me

The theme for this final contest is simple. What do you mean to me. This can be interpreted in a lot of different ways.

1. Draw one character thinking about another character.
2. A scene where one character's actions or presence has changed the life or attitude of another character.
3. One character seeing another character in a manner that the other character might not agree with.
4. One character's reaction to another character's presence. Or both characters reacting to one another.
5. What the series or a character in the series means to a particular artist, anime watcher, writer, or Rk fan in general.
6. Any other interpretation of the phrase 'what you mean to me' that I haven't come up with. Be creative.

You can draw something romantic, action packed, comical, or simply touching with this theme. Make it yours. When I see this phrase I first think of a loving embrace between two characters... followed shortly by the scene where Saitou is thinking of various female characters and pairing them up with the animal that they look most like. With a theme like this, any number of interpretations can be found. Have fun with it.

Rules

1. No more than 3 entries per contestant.

2. Your entry must be new, made after the start of the contest (June 15), drawn for the contest.

3. It must be appropriate for all ages, Rurouni Kenshin appeals to both younger and more mature audiences, so lets keep it clean please. This means no overly sexual content, keep the blood and gore at a reasonable level, no foul language, no trying to elicit illegal activity in the viewer... you know, the usual. We'll let you be the judge of what you think is appropriate and inappropriate, but if we disagree with your verdict, we may override it. If you aren't sure if your piece is acceptable, feel free to ask us and we'll take a look. We're pretty open-minded here though, so if you aren't sure, it can't hurt to ask.

4. Your piece must be a work of art, either three dimensional and photographed, or two dimensional and copied. All styles and types are acceptable except photography and photo manipulations. Sorry, this is an art contest, not a photography contest. The only exception is a photograph that is of a three dimensional piece, in which case the piece in the picture, not the quality of the photograph will be judged. I understand that manipulations can be an art form too, but it isn't fair to put manips and art in the same category. Sorry. No literature or poetry either. If you wish to include literature or poetry with the entry, you may, but it will be the picture that is judged.

5. You can use any style of art that you like, and we encourage variety here.

6. Your entry must fit the theme.

7. Your entry must include Rurouni Kenshin characters. This means any characters that you like, it doesn't have to be Kenshin, but they have to be from the show, manga, or movies. Alternate universe characters are ok as long as the picture still includes a character from the manga, movies, or tv series as well.

8. You may not copy official Rurouni Kenshin art, we want your works to be original poses and scenes. You may not copy a scene directly from the manga, or the tv, or computer. You may draw a scene from the manga, movies, or tv series, but it has to be from a different angle or perspective or point of view. There are a lot of hard core Kenshin fans involved in this contest, and if we find that your entry is a copy, it will be removed from the contest. Please don't copy other people's fan art either.

9. You may not trace or exactly copy poses from photographs. We want the art to be original. That doesn't mean you can't use references... just don't draw exactly as you see the pose... make it your own.

10. you can do fan art for a fan fic. If your piece is based on a fan fic, please provide a link to it so people can read it.

11. If you donate a prize, you can still participate.

Categories

Please note, if we only get a few entries, I will remove the subcategories from the list.

We will have our usual first second third and fourth place winners, as well as a popular vote winner. Along with these, we will announce winners for the following sub categories:

*Best by an artist under the age of fifteen: there are a lot of younger people who like RK, if you are one of them, this prize is for you.

*Cutest: for the most "awe inducing" picture

*Most ambitious: for someone who really pushes themselves to exceed

*Most dramatic: for a real drama queen (or king) of a picture

*Kenshin and Tomoe: For Haku's love of Tomoe as a character, draw a great picture that features their relationship in one way or another.

Prizes
More prizes will be coming as people send in donations. Please note that the prizes locations are subject to change as more prizes are given.

First Place:
*winning banner donated by amie689
*1 year subscription donated by s-girl
*1 Rurouni Kenshin or Shinsengumi art request donated by eikomakimachi
*1000 word short fan fic request donated by Jade-Lightning-Wolf
*1 month journal feature of winning piece and one other work from your gallery donated by Paranoid-Duckkie

Second Place:
*second place banner donated by eikomakimachi
*1 year subscription donated by angiechan13
*fanart request donated by SachiAmi
*750 word short fan fic request donated by Jade-Lightning-Wolf

Third Place:
*third place banner donated by ladybattousai
*6 month subscription donated by amie689
*500 word short fan fic request donated by Jade-Lightning-Wolf
*3 week journal feature of the 3rd place winning image and three other images from the gallery donated by LeahHimura24

Fourth Place:
*fourth place banner donated by amie689
*3 month subscription donated by Paranoid-Duckkie
*250 word short fan fic request donated by Jade-Lightning-Wolf

Popular vote winner:
*popular vote banner donated by eikomakimachi
*1 month subscription to deviantart donated by SachiAmi
*1000 word fan fic donated by Leilawinters

Best by an artist under 15:
*banner donated by ladybattousai
*sketch request donated by eikomakimachi

Sub Category winners:

Most ambitious:
*banner donated by amie689
*100 word short fan fic request donated by Jade-Lightning-Wolf

Most dramatic:
*banner donated by eikomakimachi
*a drawing of your favorite RK character donated by yahiko-chan

cutest
*banner donated by ladybattousai
*A full rendered RK chibi fanart by LeahHimura24

Best Tomoe and Kenshin pairing
*banner donated by ladybattousai
*sketch request donated by eikomakimachi

How to enter
We are now accepting entries. It started June 15.

Option one (preferred)
If you are a member of deviantart, send us a note with your entry, and we will add it to the collection

Option two
If you are not a member of deviantArt, send in a note to azure_iolite@yahoo.com with a digital copy or URL of your entry and we will add it to this site's gallery and then add it to the collection. If you choose this option and send in a digital copy, please follow the specified rules below:
*image must be no bigger than 700 pixels wide
*image must be in jpeg format. (If you need help figuring out how to do that, let me know, and I will assist you.)
(please indicate in your message if you wish to have the image removed after the contest.)

Timeline
`Contest will start Monday, June 15
`Last day to submit will be Tuesday, September 15
`Popular Voting will begin Wednesday, September 16 and last until Wednesday, September 23
`Judging will be from Wednesday, September 16 until Wednesday September 30
`Results will be Posted Thursday October 1 or Friday October 2
`Prizes will be handed out based on the schedules of those who donated. You will be contacted about that when the time comes.

judges


More ways to get involved
This contest is in honor of a great artist, and it is not my intent to run it all by myself. I am making it a collaborative effort. If you have any suggestions or would like to help, don't' hesitate to drop a line and I will take any suggestions you make seriously, and I am always willing to accept help. We need prize donations for the various subcategories as well as the popular vote winner and best by an artist under 15 right now, and of course, we need entrants. Thank you for your support.

Previous Years--> [link]
Entries--> [link]
Contest Home --> [link]
Updates --> [link]

Awards

First, I would like to take a moment to thank everyone who participated, by donating prizes, entering, judging, or simply helping to spread the word. You all helped to bring this contest together and make it what it was. I think Haku would be very proud of everyone, and touched that we would do this in her name. Thank you.

This was also a very difficult contest to judge, every entry was a gift to Haku and every entry brought something wonderful to the contest. I really mean that. Thank you for your entries.

Honorable Mentions

Beautiful.

Redsama’s interpretation of Kaoru in this makes her look lovely and sweet, the style is stunning with a sense of realism to it even though her hair is blue, and the details are stunning, especially in the flowers.

Tender.

Red-winged-angel’s image here of Kenshin and Kaoru was a bit of a favorite in the voting and one liked by the judges as well. The tenderness really catches the viewer’s attention in this. I love how it shows them when they are older, happy and at peace. It is also nice to see Kenshin being the one taken care of after all he does for so many people. There is a gentleness to this image that really stands out.

Striking.

The first thing that I think when I see this image is, “wow, I like the style!” Then I notice how well executed this portrait is. The hair is stunning and the shading is subtle and smooth. I also enjoyed what the artist wrote about Kenshin and what he means to her, and I feel that a lot of fans can really relate to her. Even the title is a perfect summary of Kenshin as a character: one body, two souls.

Cutest

Congratulations to himura-kyou for winning the cutest award with

This just shouts “KAWAI!!!!’ Kenshin on his tippy toes; his and Tomoe’s expressions – priceless. The simplicity is also a plus point which actually enhanced the picture. All in all, it is just darling.

Most Ambitious

Congratulations to lizbomb for winning the most ambitious award with

There is really a lot put into this piece that really makes it stand out, starting with the choice of characters to feature. You don’t’ see much of Cho and Saitou, but they really are a great (as in amusing) team. I love how Saitou has a tolerant expression as he lounges in the back and Cho has a boisterous look to him. Overall, it captures the characters very well, they are well rendered and the lighting is stunning. This is a very ambitious image as well because of the elements of perspective, lighting, and a full scene painted out. All in all, it is a fun image to look at.

Most Dramatic

Congratulations to AngieVX for winning the most dramatic award with

Nothing cries dramatic like lighting in the dark. I love the dark colors and the turbulent sea in this, with the ran blowing in and Kenshin in the foreground looking out- calmness clashing with chaos. I can almost feel the wind and taste the sea air as he rides the storm. This is of course a very symbolic image in that regard as well, seeming to effectively sum up the mood of the Kenshin’s life as the Battousai wonderfully.

Best Kenshin and Tomoe Pairing

Congratulations to equigoyle for winning the best Kenshin and Tomoe award with

There were so many wonderful Kenshin and Tomoe themed images in this contest, but this one stood out as a particularly lovely one, with lovely colors, a nice composition and a sweet feel to it that really draws the viewer in. Most striking of all are their expressions of deep love, and just a touch of fear, reflecting the turmoil of their lives without having to show it.

Popular Vote Winner

Congratulation to Englehart for winning the popular vote with

It is clear to see why it won the popular vote, it is a very touching piece. The hair is very vibrant and soft looking, the gentle tones are pleasing, and their expressions are very moving. The emotions just jumps at you in this scene. Kenshin ramrod straight showing his resolve, protective and caring. Tomoe vulnerable and overcome with emotions. They are both wonderfully rendered, and overall, it is a pleasing picture to look at.
To see full results of the popular vote, go here--> [link]

Best by an artist of 15 and under

Congratulations again to Englehart for winning the award of best by an artist under 15 with

This was a surprisingly fierce little competition with so many incredible images by artists who are younger than fifteen this year, but in the end, I decided that I had to give the prize to this artist. It was a favorite to many of the judges, and as I already mentioned, it is very clear to see why.

Fourth Place Winner

Congratulations to Armelia for winning fourth place with

Showing one of the most touching scenes in the series from near the beginning, when Kenshin and Kaoru are just beginning to discover how they feel about one another, it is exquisitely drawn with vibrant colors and a sense of caring. Extra little details in the kimono lips and eyes help to draw the viewer in. I feel that the symbolic gesture of giving Kenshin her ribbon really shows how Kaoru feels about Kenshin, and we as viewers know that she has given him more than a blue ribbon, even better is when he says that he doesn’t’ know what to do with it. So true, and so sweet. A perfect match for the contest theme.

Third Place Winner

Congratulations to AngelMistake for winning third place with

I love seeing the young and old Yahiko in the same picture, perhaps painting a memory for us that illustrates very clearly the relationship between Yahiko and Sano and Kenshin. I sense the nostalgia and the warmth in this picture. The deep blue contrasts nicely with the bright yellow, the soft faded colors give it a dream-like quality, and the style the characters are drawn in is very friendly. Simply put, it is lovely.

Second Place Winner

Congratulations to naminote for winning second place with

This entry is one of the best executed picture in terms of overall quality and picture appeal. It is just lovely to look at, very dramatic and emotive, as well as nicely composed. I appreciate the inclusion of the blossoms and the newly formed scar. This scene and how it is shown here perfectly interprets the theme. It is rich with beautiful colors and deep running emotions.

First Place Winner

Congratulations to Yahiko-Chan for winning this tribute contest with

A favorite of many of the judges, this image centers on Yahiko and Kenshin's relationship, and I really loved the artist’s interpretation here. The title suggested Yahiko following Kenshin’s footsteps and yet this picture show Kenshin’s shadow not walking ahead, rather he is beside him with their arms linked. This is I think is a good representation of their relationship, because as much as Yahiko idolized him, Kenshin was never a distant figure and had always gently guided Yahiko’s actions. This was really a wonderful thing to focus on, and I feel it really captured the essence of the theme beautifully. I really like that we come to realize that Yahiko is moving forward in the future with an absent Kenshin alongside him. He may be not there, but he is always a part of who Yahiko has become. The inscription in the artists comments is meaningful as well. This is a very thoughtful gesture that speaks volumes to what this particular contest is about. Thank you so much for your kind thoughts. I was deeply moved by this picture.