Create for the Throne: Artists make the weapons of Westeros
As part of its marketing push ahead of Game of Thrones season 8, HBO asked 18 artists from around the world to recreate some of the show’s most iconic props. It’s the Create for the Throne campaign, and its off and running. HBO has now posted a bunch of new creations, most of them involving weapons, and they look amazing.
First up, ice carver Shintaro Okamoto from New York made a replica of the Night King’s frosty sword…and the king to go with it:
“It was natural to sculpt the Night King himself out of real ice,” said Okamoto. “I spent hours studying the reference images and rewatching the show. First, I had to get the dimensions to match with the sword and calculate the build plan with ice blocks. Then I figured out how the sculpture would hold the sword safely and stably for the final pose.”
Okamoto had to stack ice blocks in place, then drew the Night King’s likeness on the ice and begin carving with an electric chainsaw. The detailed work was done with chisels and saws, while a “series of die grinders with specialized bits were used for specific textures and the face.”
"Ice is fragile and evanescent so the biggest challenge was the commitment to getting the details right: the dimples of the armor, the curvatures, facial expression and the horns of the Night King. It was important to capture it all to satisfy the audience."
Mission accomplished. Next, artist Kris Kuks from Lawrence, Kansas created dragon glass daggers, complete with a gorgeous display box:
“Observing such captivating quality in these simple props led me to consider presenting them as though they were hypothetically revered as sacred relics,” Kuks said. “An immediate idea included an ornamental case in which they would be stored: A vessel which would guard them for transport as well as magnify their importance as the use of killing White Walkers.”
Kuks built the core shape of the daggers out of wood. Later, he used embossed decorative paper, wood appliqués, small figurines, and a painted finish to get that wintery look.
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Finally, Brooklyn Glass in New York City created Beric Dondarian’s flaming sword using neon lighting for the fire:
“It’s always interesting to see behind the curtain of TV magic,” the artist explained. “The original design required some finesse in order to make it ‘neonable.’ We spent a good amount of time figuring out how to configure the wiring, but once the logistics were worked out it was smooth sailing.”
"Our design was incredibly complex and required our most skilled benders to nail the intricacies of the lettering while maintaining its structural integrity — it was an exciting challenge to say the least"
I like how Brooklyn Glass thought outside the box with the neon lighting, but Kris Kuks’ dragonglass daggers and box really blew me away. The detail is simply exquisite.
You can find even more prop creations on the Making Game of Thrones blog.
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