>>RAGANU NAKTS <<
Witches' night
Raganu Nakts (Witches’ Night) is a zine based on Latvian folk beliefs about the summer solstice.
I already have a whole bunch of illustrations based on Latvian Midsummer traditions and rituals, but this time I decided to focus on witches. Midsummer, or Jāņi, has always been considered a time when evil spirits are extremely powerful. There a lot of folklore about witches: beliefs, folk songs, spells etc. These ladies are always evil, but I like to think that there can be some nice witches as well.
![self-publishing pagan Summer Solstice witch midsummer Latvia Folklore mythology](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/e515e8173375671.64d89e99d29dd.jpg)
I began working on this zine by looking through the Latvian folk beliefs connected to summer solstice and picking the most expressive of them. Then, after a couple of very rough doodles in my sketchbook and a bunch of little sketches with markers, I made a lot of black and white roughs in PS capturing all ideas that came to my mind.
![](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/7c38bb173375671.64958f9385b7d.jpeg)
![](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/44c297173375671.64958f938815c.jpeg)
![](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/b0daf3173375671.64958f9387619.jpeg)
![](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/c61108173375671.64958f93868d9.jpeg)
![self-publishing pagan Summer Solstice witch midsummer Latvia Folklore mythology](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/605419173375671.648f76c1084a9.jpg)
In this project I wanted to try something that looks slightly different from my usual style. This is what I got after playing around with different brushes and shapes.
Witch of the grass snakes
![self-publishing pagan Summer Solstice witch midsummer Latvia Folklore mythology](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/dc672a173375671.648f76c1051cd.jpg)
Fern flower
![self-publishing pagan Summer Solstice witch midsummer Latvia Folklore mythology](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/0dd19f173375671.648f76c109d9d.jpg)
Making flower wreaths
![self-publishing pagan Summer Solstice witch midsummer Latvia Folklore mythology](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/a9ecca173375671.648f76c1079d1.jpg)
![](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/905868173375671.64d89e996b73f.jpg)
![](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/747ebe173375671.64d89e996a9ba.jpg)
![self-publishing pagan Summer Solstice witch midsummer Latvia Folklore mythology](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/7fc549173375671.648f76c106d3f.jpg)
![self-publishing pagan Summer Solstice witch midsummer Latvia Folklore mythology](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/e659e6173375671.648f76c108ff6.jpg)
Werewolf witch
![self-publishing pagan Summer Solstice witch midsummer Latvia Folklore mythology](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/8d4fc2173375671.648f76c105e3f.jpg)
Aside from the zine itself, I used these illustrations for postcards. Printed on 300gsm watercolor paper Tintoretto gesso.
![self-publishing pagan Summer Solstice witch midsummer Latvia Folklore mythology](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/ac351a173375671.64958f94b31a8.jpg)
Some illustrations didn't make it to the final version, so I printed them out as postcards as well.
A spell against evil witches
![self-publishing pagan Summer Solstice witch midsummer Latvia Folklore mythology](https://mir-s3-cdn-cf.behance.net/project_modules/1400/cdb237173375671.64958f94b264f.jpg)