The fantasy collection

Her reflection smiled back, eyes glittering in the fading sunlight.

By Ailene Cuthbertson

© 2015, Ailene Cuthbertson, Her reflection smiled back, eyes glittering in the fading sunlight.. Digital painting.
© 2015, Ailene Cuthbertson, Her reflection smiled back, eyes glittering in the fading sunlight.. Digital painting.

She had the sense the limestone was aware of her, watching with a sort of intense patience. She danced her hand along the stones until her fingernails snagged in the crack that spidered from the ground to the top of the archway. The wall shimmered like heat waves off desert sands, wavering into a murky mirror.

Her reflection smiled back, eyes glittering in the fading sunlight.

Except it wasn’t her reflection. Trianna knew the girl of course. She had been dreaming of her for years, remembered the Sashiana from her, knew a little of the magic from her.

She could almost touch her.

  • Title Her reflection smiled back, eyes glittering in the fading sunlight.
  • Artist Ailene Cuthbertson
  • Medium Digital painting
  • Year 2015

Part of the fantasy collection

Inspired by escaping into (& writing my own) fantasy stories. Stand in the forgotten wasteland of the fire dancers, awaken a legend, sing with water dancers, or twirl in sparking firelight…

Her reflection smiled back, eyes glittering in the fading sunlight.

is digital art, giclée printed with long-life ink on 100% cotton rag fine art paper – a high quality print that will last a lifetime.

© 2015, Ailene Cuthbertson, Her reflection smiled back, eyes glittering in the fading sunlight.. Digital painting.

This print comes professionally framed with a dark frame, ready to hang.

Detail of the frame for the limited edition fine art prints by Ailene Cuthbertson

Choose from two print sizes:

The medium size is A2 (42 cm x 60 cm)
and is limited edition of 25
$500

The large size is A0 (84 cm x 119 cm)
and is limited edition of 5
$1200

What others have wondered

Why is this a print? Where’s the original?

This image is a digital artwork created on the computer, which means the original artwork is data sitting on a hard drive. It needs to be printed to bring it into the real world.

What’s a giclée print?

Giclée is a term used to refer to fine art prints made with long-life ink and paper. It means your print is gallery-quality and will last a lifetime.

For ink, I use genuine Epson high dynamic range ink – a high-quality ink that has a longevity of up to 200 years and produces sharp images with beautiful smooth tones. For papers, I chose 100% cotton rag fine art papers from Ilford. They’re a thick weight, have a clean matt surface, and are perfect for crisp detail and bright, vivid colours. And these fine art papers have no optical brighteners so colours last even longer.

What does a limited edition mean?

For this collection, the large-sized print is a limited edition of 5, which means only 5 prints of that size will ever be produced – so it makes your print more exclusive. The medium-sized print is a limited edition of 25. And, to authenticate your print and make it a one-off, I hand-sign and number each print with traditional graphite pencil.

If you have a question I haven’t answered here, I’m happy to help – just fill in the handy form and send me a message!

Enquire about this print

Artwork Enquiry for medium/large prints
(to help figure out delivery - the print might be in a gallery or exhibition near you!)

What appealed to me most about [Ailene’s] art was how each piece both told a story in itself and linked with other paintings and the other figures to a wider story as well.

You feel like you have a chapter, a piece of the narrative, while the story continues to unfold elsewhere.

Also, each piece has its own strong, vibrant palette and colouration – almost again like a separate chapter – so I was able to buy the individual piece that spoke to me and fit with my home and other art easily.

Gareth from Cambridge

I like Ailene’s art because it seems like every picture is alive. I feel like it’s not just a picture, it’s a kind of unsaid story that makes me look closer and wonder about it.

I bought my favourite print and have told all my friends to look at Ailene’s art. My favourite painting is “Does the dance of the Sashiana mean anything to you?”. I loved it at first sight. I belly dance, and the artwork reminds me that there are people who share my passion for dancing.

Lena from Tauranga