Recently a new Legend of Zelda game was released by Nintendo, Tears of the Kingdom. Growing up, I loved these games. I found it amazingly fun to cut grass. (Yup! I cut all the grass. lol) Breaking pots and cutting grass were great ways to find extra money in the game. If there was a pot or a patch of grass they must be cut down. This is still true today, but to a lesser extent. Cutting the grass isn't as lucrative as it once was. 

Recently, I saw a listing on Etsy for a 3d printed, breakable pot that could be put together again with the help of some small magnets. I was instantly taken back to my childhood. I also thought about the Japanese method of Kintsugi for repairing pottery using gold. I imagined what the pot would look like when it was put back together again. 

I had to try it. Using Procreate, I drew a pot similar to those in the Zelda games. Brown clay pots with a pale wave shape to it and a darker ring around the bottom. I then added a layer of gold colored cracks on top. I loved the effect, but I thought it would be neat as a vase. 

The only flower, I've encountered in Tears of the Kingdom so far has been a bomb flower. I found those fitting because maybe one of those bombs exploded, leading to the broken vase. I added a couple of those. In the previous game, "Breath of the Wild', I remembered there were some pale blue and white flowers called Silent Princess. I added those and turned my attention to the backdrop. Have I mentioned before that I hate creating backgrounds? Ugh! At first, I thought I'd try a dark curtain or cloth in the background, but I felt it took away from the luminosity of the flowers. Instead, I opted for a solid, dark blue, which I ended up loving. I think it helps to make the flowers feel more magical because of the high contrast.

The bright, saturated colors provide a cheerful appearance, not unlike the colors of the outdoors of Hyrule on a sunny day. I named the piece "Fragile" because of the bomb flowers and the cracked pottery. Do you think the bombs may explode and break the pot again?

This piece is now available on prints, tote bags, mugs, phone cases, and more! Shop Fragile now.