(Rokudai) - Aaron Expressions (HinoKit)

The matching full concept sketch is here: fav.me/d76iv5y
A Tumblr post of this set is here.

Concept sketches I commissioned from hino-kit(hinokit.tumblr.com/) to depict Aaron Leekpai for my YA fiction/art project, 'What We Learned at Rokudai'. (Uploaded with artist's permission) He is inspired by Aang from Avatar: The Last Airbender.
'Rokudai' (六大) is a word that encapsulates the idea: 'The Six Great Elements.' These elements are: Water, Earth, Fire, Wind, Void (space), and Consciousness (spirit). Since the story has six main characters, this seemed appropriate. In terms of visual symbolism, Aaron's hoodie is black (void) with four colored stripes (the four elements of nature) and then his body/face represents Consciousness/spirit. You can see a full set of color references of this character in different outfits here.

Aaron Leekpai is a Sophomore in college, a Thai/Korean art student who specializes in drawing, and who has a passion for equality/peace-promoting graffiti art. An orphan who is pushed through the foster care system for most of his life, Aaron was eventually taken in by an elderly monk in his adolescence. By the time Aaron finds his way to college through connections with his monk mentor, the man has passed away; Aaron chooses to take many of the monk's teachings along with him, and his experiences at Rokudai both reinforce parts of his value system while challenging him to reconsider others. With no other place to call home and no family or established friend group to lean on, Aaron quickly attaches to the campus and is taken in by Katrina, who longs to form her own close ties with fellow students. Aaron is a pacifist who is highly observant and very introverted. He gets along with just about everyone around him, but doesn't generally stand out or make his voice heard very much, lending himself to being pushed around by the will of others.

All pieces Hino has done for this series:
Katrina Kesuk - and expressions
Jun Tu Fong - and expressions
Jane Fitzpatrick - and expressions
Siku Kesuk - and expressions
Coral Kesuk - and expressions
Maya Chiao - and expressions
Saffron Fong - and expressions
Aaron Leekpai - and expressions

An introduction to this project's original form can be found here and an FAQ about its revision can be found here.
The project's full art gallery can be viewed here. The story (in its current, 'fanfiction' first draft) starts on DeviantAart here, and can be read on FF.net here. All art and fiction updates for the project can be followed on its Facebook page.