What would you say an artist is? They can be many things: musicians, actors, writers. Personally, being a visual artist, I’ve seen a lot in these fields which has resulted in me creating my own characters from ideas and media I enjoy. One of my own characters I have been fixated on for the past months is Agnatha (A-nya-ta) Acosta, an original character based on the Spiderverse films.
Origins & Initial Ideas
Months before I got the idea for Agnatha was the release of Across the Spiderverse. I watched this movie in the theatres with a friend. Saying that it changed me is a bit of an understatement; the visuals and new cast of characters were extremely memorable to me. The release of the film revived the trend of spidersonas, or original characters by artists that were one of the many Spiderman variants from other dimensions. The art community had so many creative ideas, enough to have me create my own, and on September 9th, 2023, Agnatha made her first appearance in one of my sketchbooks.
First Pieces and Initial Design
Taking inspiration from my family’s culture, Agnatha’s initial design would have additions to her hero costume with large ruffles at the sleeves and calves. This would be from the traditional clothing of Cuba, which is filled with bright colors and ruffles in their dresses and skirts. Her hair was dyed at the bangs in an ultramarine blue. Her most prominent feature being her vitiligo. This is my favorite part of her design because it simply makes her prettier and more unique.
I played with her design a lot, especially with the shades of blue and touches of yellow. In these stages, I really liked her color palette.
Establishment but Later Misfortune
Personality-wise, Agnatha is a charismatic spirit with great empathy. I gave her traits that would demonstrate her as a trusting and reliable person, making her honest and sister-like to people who are younger than her. Being a chatty person who loves to have conversations, Agnatha has a good relationship with many people.
On the other hand, she tends to get emotionally moved and attached to people after the loss of one of her relatives. She also tends to get easily overwhelmed. I made sure to give her flaws to make her feel like a real person.
After a while of working on Agnatha, I slowly added some more to her design and character. I gave her a favorite drink, hobbies, a job, and at one point decided to give her a windbreaker jacket to further resonate with the period her dimension takes place in, the 1990s.
Despite me adding more to her character, I felt unsatisfied. When I drew her out more, for some reason, it didn’t feel right. So, I decided to do something about it.
Agnatha’s Revamp
At the beginning of January of this year, I came to the conclusion of giving Agnatha an entire revamp, or an update. Thanks to the tips of friends, I got to work. I opened a bunch of sources for references, where I needed to look for some new hairstyles, clothing, and overall aesthetics for her. I spent hours drawing out potential hairstyles, and frankly, her hair was the most difficult part of her redesign. I felt very indecisive.
I spent hours drawing out potential hairstyles, and frankly, her hair was the me character her iconic curly black hair and bangs. For her hero costume, I gave her a red jacket that she has an emotional attachment to, yellow leg warmers, and a color palette based on the golden silk orb-weaver spider.
The day after, I was so excited to draw Agnatha’s new design. From that point forward, she became like a comfort for me, and I never get tired of drawing her. I have more fun with her colors and drawing her in general. Her current design has so much more personality. And as much as I still cherish her last design, this one really resonated with me.
My Personal Attachment to Agnatha
I didn’t really expect to make an original character based on the Spiderverse films. I love these movies, and even I’m surprised I didn’t do this sooner. Agnatha is one of my favorite original characters, mostly because of how I have projected some of my family’s culture on her, therefore making her Hispanic heritage relatable. I have also experimented with art styles and methods when drawing her.
Drawing and writing her interaction with canon characters and other original characters created by other artists is too fun to miss. It helps me think of how her personality traits tie well with others. Her creation has helped me connect with other artists on the internet and keep an even more open mind.
