For Akello's pinup, I enlisted the help of my friend Birdie because I wanted to take maximum advantage of their gorgeous painterly style and they were already a big fan of Akello so the match seemed perfect. Right away, Birdie was into my ideas and her thumbnailing was really creative. Birdie's a super talented artist and animator but one of my favorite features of their art is their color and highlight work. All her characters boast really beautiful, perfectly synchronous highlights and contrast on their skin but she's got an amazing eye especially for characters with dark complexions. The way she's using such a rich warm gold on Akello here just makes me swoon.