New “Avatar” concept art shows Na’vi’s early design

• The Way of the Water just surpassed $2 billion at the worldwide box office.
• An early piece of concept art that has recently surfaced shows an alternative appearance for the Na’vi.
• Joseph C. Pepe, a concept artist, just published his first Na’vi photorealistic illustration on Instagram.

The epic science fiction sequel Avatar: The Way of the Water just surpassed $2 billion at the worldwide box office, continuing to live up to the anticipation generated by its predecessor more than 13 years ago. An early piece of concept art that has recently surfaced shows an alternative appearance for the Na’vi in James Cameron’s original 2009 blockbuster Avatar, as the momentum for the new movie does not seem to be slowing down in the New Year.

Joseph C. Pepe, a concept artist, just published his first Na’vi photorealistic illustration on Instagram. An older man Na’vi is seen in the picture, which was also included in Lisa Fitzpatrick’s companion book The Art of Avatar: James Cameron’s Epic Adventure. The bioluminescent pattern on the character’s forehead was highlighted by a few close-ups, and the artist added a remark explaining how this was the earliest depiction of a Na’vi.

“While working for Stan Winston Studio in late 2004, myself, Christopher Swift and Supervisor John Rosengrant visited James Cameron at Lightstorm Entertainment in Santa Monica, CA to read the Avatar scriptment and receive a download of information and artwork,” Pepe said on Instagram. “This was our introduction to begin a two-week ‘trial by fire’ process to bring our take to the characters, the Na’vi, for Project 880, the working name of Avatar. We were given 14 days to show Cameron ‘something new, further develop the characters and bring them some new life.’”

Pepe said he felt “great pressure” to depict something that would impress the Oscar-winning writer and director of 1997’s Titanic when Cameron informed him that the final effort would be photorealistic. He continued by describing in a photorealistic manner Cameron’s immediate response to the very first image of the Na’vi he produced.

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A post shared by Joseph C. Pepe (@pepejcart)

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“At the time Cameron did not express any emotion during the review, only that he recognized the Sea Slug bioluminescence that I used on the forehead,” Pepe continued. “Cameron said ‘That is a Pelagic Nudibranch, Phylliroe bucephala.’ My mouth was agape in total astonishment that not only did he recognize what type of animal bioluminescence I had used, but he also knew its scientific name. Fortunately, my dedicated research paid off in a way that I would only understand after working with Cameron for a number of years. He loves to research about Earth, Science, Flora, Fauna, Anthropology and Ethnology. Not only is he a genius in filmmaking but also Science and Engineering.”

Cameron has stated that the Avatar franchise would continue with a number of sequels after Avatar: The Way of the Water attracted large crowds to theatres. The third movie, which is currently in post-production and is scheduled for release in 2024, was actually shot concurrently with The Way of the Water. The release date for Avatar 4 is 2026, and that of Avatar 5 is 2028.

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