Phoenix of the Elements

11/29/08: You guys are so awesome xD. over 1,800 faves! Ridiculous o_o. Ridiculously awesome, that is! Anyway, thanks everyone <3.
11/22/07: .....1000 faves....omg o_o. THANK YOU EVERYONE. I can't believe it...:'D
EDIT4 9/29/07: Over 900 faves O___O -shocked- Ya'll are the best eeee !! And I'm uploading a newer version with even more watermarks due to more people trying to sell it. ....please, guys, DON'T steal and sell!
EDIT3 8/7/07: Wow.....800+ faves OMG XD. I'm so, so happy that you guys like this picture so much. Thank you all!!!

EDIT2 8/12/06: Almost a year later, and 300+ favs! Thank you all so, so much!! Unfortunetely, after an incident with an art thief who was selling this picture...., I have decided to watermark it. I really didn't want to have to, since I find that watermarks that do their job well usually wreck the presentation of the image completely. I'm going with minimal watermarking--I placed my little mini dragon watermarks on all four phoenixes as well as a text one, so hopefully that will be enough. If not....I guess I might have to watermark across the phoenixes.
So, PLEASE, guys, don't give me a reason to have to do that. DO NOT steal this picture. It is NOT yours; you did not spend hours making it. And, guys, this should really go without saying, but apparentely some people have to be told: definitely do NOT sell my art without my permission.
Anyway, thank you all for 300+ favs and enjoy the four phoenixes of the elements ^___^!

Available as my first ever Print!

The complete "Phoenix of the Elements" series!

All the birds here are phoenixes, as in the Phoenix or Firebird, the fantasy bird who can burn itself into ashes at the end of its life and be born anew. Thinking about that bird, I thought, why not make a phoenix who is reborn from water (the Ice Phoenix), or never dies (the Earth Phoenix), or dissapears with the weather (the Air Phoenix)? And that's where this series came about from. I made up all the phoenixes, except the fire one, of course. The traditional phoenix is usually described as being a swan-sized bird with scarlet and gold feathers (sometimes the feathers are sapphire colored) and a brilliant crest. All of my phoenixes have necks more like real birds instead of swans because, let's face it, they might not fit into the picture otherwise XD.

Here's information on all 4 of them (I made up all this info, by the way ):

The firey Phoenix of the Volcanoes and Fire is in the top left. This is the well-known phoenix of fire, also called the Firebird. He is commander over all that is flame. When his busy, hot-headed life is over, he soars into a volcano. When the volcano erupts, his ashes reform themselves into a new phoenix. Fire can always be reborn, as all that's needed is a little spark from nature or humans. This one here has just been reborn and shows off his majestic beauty in front of his "pyre."

The cold Phoenix of the Ice Caves and Ice/Water is in the top right. An ice phoenix is a brother of the well-known fire phoenix. It is very similar to it's brother, the exceptions being how it is reborn and it's coloring, which consists of vivid blues and whites. When it is time for an ice phoenix to be reborn, it builds itself a pyre and sets itself alight. Instead of turning into ashes, however, an ice phoenix will melt like an icecube would and turns into a puddle of frigid water. Within the hour, a new chick emerges from the water. You'll know when it's about to come because the water freezes solid, and then the chick bursts free.

The aware Phoenix of the Earth and Ground is in the bottom right. The phoenix of the earth is a creature who has been called by many names over the years: Mother Earth, Nature, and others. He creates mountains with the beats of his wings, ridges by scraping his talons against the soil, and flat deserts with his tail feathers. The Earth Phoenix is unlike other phoenixes in that he does not reincarnate. When he dies, there will be no place to live, and therefore no rebirth. We must help to take care of him and his earth.

Lastly, the fabulous Phoenix of the Skies and Weather is in the bottom left. The Phoenix of the Skies, also known as the Air Phoenix, is a truly important bird. She is in charge of of all things related to the sky, such as light, dark, clouds, weather, stars, and the colors of the world. Pretty important job, don't you think? She shares an almost ying-yang connection with the Phoenix of the Earth. Unlike the Earth phoenix, however, and more like the Ice and Fire, she can become reborn. At the end of her life, she fades into mist and cries. The tears fall down to the earth as rain and the mist makes up the storm clouds until, finally, she returns to her solid state, a brand new bird. Her joy is expressed in a beautiful show of colors: a rainbow. And then she resumes her job over all things in heaven's domain.

I'm so happy to be finished. Here you can see that all along (from picture 2 onward) I was planning for this print. I made them facing each other in alternating poses and there are many similarities among them. (For example, the fire and ice both have their wings folded and are in side views. The earth and air both are in 3/4ths view and their wings are spread. Other similarities exist .)

Thanks for looking and please do comment! If you would like to buy a print, go ahead .

All these pictures are © to me, "Kalico" Kat, 2005. Do not redistribute or use without my permission (just note me or tell me--most likely I'd say yes! I'd just much rather know ).