#Gruss Von Krampus

[eregyrn-falls-art]

Gruß vom Krampus! 

December 5th is Krampusnacht, and I've done some pieces related to that over the years. This year I decided to update my depictions of Stan and Ford in the older two pieces (from 2016 and 2017 respectively), and to put the three all together. The original piece from 2016 was done for the 2017 Hunkles calendar (December of course), and the sequel was done for New Years the following year, with the final pic in the sequence appearing in Dec. 2020.

As I said in the original post, my version of the Krampus is based on looking at traditional folk costumes actually worn by krampus figures in Austria for the Krampusnacht festival.

And finally, just to keep it all in one place: after posting the 2020 piece, I got an ask about the little collection of Pines dolls that hang off of Krampus's basket in the second pic, and that Stan is holding in the last pic. I went into a long explanation (including an overview of the Krampus tradition and celebrations), so I'll put it below a cut here:

fernikart57 asked:

In your Krampus art... what's with that belt, neclace, bead (?) of plushes from the Pines Family?

Okay so like… the explanation is probably kind of dumb.  And it’s me making stuff up, rather than relying completely on the actual folklore.

So the Krampus figure is actually a collection of figures from Central Europe, particularly in the Alps, and the specific traditions associated with the Krampus can vary from region to region and town to town.  Thus, while a set of the Krampus tropes have kind of been exported and caught on in popular culture, that pop culture figure now only resembles *some* Krampus traditions.  I don’t think it’s accurate to talk about “a” Krampus or “the” Krampus, exactly, because of that regional variation.  It’s also worth noting that Krampus celebrations are very much alive in various towns in the Alps.

Generally speaking, though, Krampus is a “wild man” figure, often with a demonic face (mask), a furry body, and goat-like features (especially horns). There are some theories that the basic figure itself is pre-Christian (like a lot of the wild-man traditions of Central and Northern Europe).  (I personally think that’s pretty plausible, given the range of costumes we see.)

After the advent of Christianity, though, the Krampus became associated with “the devil” or demonic figures.  And eventually, in a lot of traditions within the Central European mountain area, Krampus got paired with St. Nicholas, as a kind of tag-team.  St. Nicholas in those traditions is almost certainly one of the origins of Santa Claus, in that he rewards well-behaved children with presents.  (But, traditionally he dresses like a bishop, and not in the outfit that a lot of Americans are familiar with.)  The 6th of December is the Feast of St. Nicholas, so Krampusnacht (”Krampus night”) is the 5th of December.  And Krampus acts as the opposite of St. Nicholas – if presents are a means of encouraging good behavior, then Krampus is the threat used to discourage bad behavior.

So, some of the accreted trappings of the Krampus are a whip and a bundle of birch branches, for beating children / people, and a basket that he carries on his back, into which he puts the naughty children he finds, to carry them off for punishment.  (Obviously, the message there is: don’t be naughty or the Krampus will get you.)  A number of the Krampusnacht traditions involve men costumed as Krampus running wild through the streets, threatening people with their birch branches or whips and so on, making noise (thus all of the bells worn around the neck) and kind of terrorizing people (not just kids), as a set-up for St. Nicholas to come in the next day and reassert order.  (Sometimes it’s only “terrorizing” in an “all in good fun” sense, similar to Halloween scariness; but apparently in some towns, it can get kind of rough.)

So with all of that background… I was originally just looking for a sort of “crytpid” or monster for Stan and Ford to be fighting, with a December theme, for that 2017 calendar piece.  They are encountering more of a magical, “real monster” version (rather than the folkloric ritual version), and therefore I took some liberties with the idea, even though I incorporated a lot of design elements from a variety of real Krampus costumes.

I didn’t want to put any actual children into Krampus’s basket for Ford and Stan to rescue, though (in the original calendar piece, they wouldn’t have been that visible).  But when I did the second piece, I included the doll versions of the four Pines, hanging from Krampus’s basket, as a sort of… symbolic magical threat, an expression of the idea that the Pines are its supernatural targets.  The dolls act as kind of representations of Krampus’s targets, and I also thought of them, in that sense, as a darker reflection of the St. Nicholas gift-giving tradition (still toys, but toys with a sinister meaning). If Krampus was a “real” supernatural being that goes around punishing the “naughty” or “wicked”… then what is its definition of “wicked”, and would it be a fair one, or unfair? 

In this scenario, Stan and Ford are not in the mood to debate with it over whether it is fair to take them to task for being “naughty”, but they are DEFINITELY not going to stand for the idea that the Krampus might go after Dipper and Mabel, so – time to take it down!

Anyway, for more about the actual Krampus, I recommend taking a look at the Krampus article on Wikipedia, or listening to this excellent podcast (which I was listening to as I finished the piece the other day; am very interested in getting that guy’s book!).

[theglutenfreezookeeper]

Gruss Von Krampus - Fröhliche Krampusnacht meine kinder! Hope you've been good this year. Your #ElfontheShelf ain’t got nothing on my #Krampus. December5 #Germantraditions #stnicholas #stnicholasday #krampusnacht #krampusonthemantle #stnick #krampuslauf #krampuskarten #christmas #holidays #holidayseason #traditions #christmas2022 #christmas #december52022 #krampusnacht2022 (at West New York, New Jersey) https://www.instagram.com/p/ClzQOjqPZOi/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[prometheusinitiative]

Chapter 1 Event | Silent Night

There's a crash.

There's a shout.

A creature-- dark furred, quick footed, jingling-- blitzes out of Room 2 in the broken dead of night.

A person-- dark haired, bright eyed, focused-- peels after them.

There is little following them-- and perhaps Jules knows better than to abandon the red gift box in their room. Wouldn't it suck, if Petronella had managed to nearly catch it red handed, and it had circled back to steal the present anyways?

That doesn't make waiting easy by any means. The silence hangs heavy in the hall for a long, long time. A minute. Ten minutes. An hour. At this point, others have been roused, and present-sitting duty is passed off so Jules is free to search for Pet. Around the quarters, down the elevator, Jules finds their hint hastily stuck onto the tree for the others to have seen:

"You quit? Sure, Jan."

There's no other sign of Petronella or the thief. Even a cursory search in the freezing woods by those who would brave the darkness turns up neither individual.

Then the morning sun breaks. Light spills through the trees and reflects glaringly off the lake. The sound of bells can be heard approaching from the north.

Pet returns from the woods-- covered in dirt and melted snow, hair wild and arms whipped from branches, her eyes are triumphant as she holds up--

(Lineart by Juni, sketch and colors by Yasmine)

--a chain of silver bells.

This will continue in the #pub-3 rp channel, for characters who would like to stick around!

[scurybooween]

German Christmas cards depicting a female Krampus that punishes bad men (1920s)

[bowbow-the-clown]

.... Red And Green ....

... I Did This Drawing Around Christmas Last Year ...

... I Think One Green Pin Died That Night To Help Make This ..

... BUT WHATEVER ...

... GREEN IS NOT A CREATIVE COLOR ANYWAY ...

[crossroadart-seabear]

Last day and a bit (order before the 18th) to have Krampus stickers arrive in time to show whoever will listen just how optimistic you feel about this Christmas. My store link for Krampus stickers (and a comic if you like) HERE!

Additionally you can become a $30 patron and get a Krampus sticker pack plus art for the December reward.

Or become a $10 patron and get a glittery centaur deer sticker plus art.

Also my undying gratitude. But that goes without saying.

https://www.patreon.com/crossroadart

In other news, here are some blameless ingredients that never hurt anyone.

And yet terrible things are going to happen to them.

I’m expecting very tolerant sideways looks from my housemate when I try to turn some of them into Krampus. I’ll keep you posted.

Some days into like a home shared by a paladin and a warlock. For anyone in a similar situation, I find so long as I keep making her chocolate custard with crushed oreos, I can get away with uttering a whole array of concepts that some christians might consider red flags.

Here’s a good recipe. Keep cups of it in glasses in the fridge for them to eat 👍

https://www.goodto.com/recipes/chocolate-pudding-with-chocolate-custard

If you want to know more about my long stuffing housemate putting up with my plus more Krampus art, then here’s a thread.

Also thank you to those that gave me puns and laughs with last night's mug ordering business for my housemate. It wasn’t a bad way to sign off the day 😂.

[horrorandhalloween]

by Douglasbot

[missyzero]

Kramp time! Having fun with this program!!

[acciosilver]

[Halloween Series; Halloween Hootenanny] [Krampus from Krampus (2015); played by Luke Hawker]

And now we come to the finale. On the border of Halloween and the beginning of the Christmas season I bring you the shadow of Santa Claus, Krampus. Drawn to conflict and suffering, Krampus will come for naughty children to punish them for their misdeeds. He brings no gifts, only birch branches to hit with and a bag to drag those who have lost the Christmas Spirit down into Hell. Truly a specter of the holiday season, Krampus is a grim warning to those who ignore feelings of cheer and goodwill, and serves as a threat to those who would do wrong when he comes to call. Happiest of Halloweens, and a Cautious, Yet Merry Christmas to come.

I sincerely hope you all had as much fun following this series as I did making it for the second time. Happy Halloween, everyone! 🎃 ❤️

[felislapis]

Felt festive today, so I expressed it the best way I knew how: The Krampus.

He was so fun to draw! I really like how his legs turned out.

[gothfortheholidays]

Krampus 2010 shirt design by missmonster

[pinkipecac]

365 Days of Drawings: Year 5 Day 58- Dec 23rd, 2017 © Ethan H Hutchinson

[eregyrn-falls-art]

Gruß vom Krampus!  The sequel!

Hah, it’s been a while for this!  But this is sort of a sequel to my previous two “Sea Grunks fighting the Krampus” pics - from 2016 and 2017. 

Hey, whaddaya know?  The boys actually triumphed!  (We knew they would.) Only a little the worse for wear.

[eregyrn-falls]

Krampus plushies from Etsy!

One, two, three, four, five, six.

[scurybooween]

Gruss Von Krampus

Art By Miss Alice Meow  

[bowbow-the-clown]

.... My Attempt At Being A Krampus ....

.. Happy December The Second ..