Welcome to the world of Metru Nui!

I thought it was time to mix things up a little since I haven't made a major image in a long time. This image gave me actual nightmares one night. It took 2 whole months to make from start sketch to finish.
64 layers. Also, i made like 6 new brushes for this image :D (Big Grin)

you see them as the waterlines, the sparkles and the city-texture.

What I love about Metru Nui as a location is its purpose. it lies within the skull of the giant Mata Nui robot and apparently functions as his brain. A perspective I had not really thought about back in 2004 and 2005 obviously since it was a secret back then, but this gave me great inspiration of what the city is supposed to be like. Because, Metru Nui is not there for the matoran, the matoran is there for Metru Nui. For Mata Nui. This whole thing is a machine, and the matoran are its gears. In many ways this gets me to think in the lines of 'Osmosis Jones'. (Great cartoon movie, watch it.)

I imagine the matoran commonly live at the groundlevel, while they work machines, or whatever they do, up and within deeper levels of each metru. This doesn't mean they are slaves though. They are having perfectly comfortable lives and the whole place is streamlined for their sake. They wish to work the city and have their world prosper.

Since this is not a Mata Nui Sights, I felt more free to interpret what the city looks like cause.. when looking for references it was actually hard to find consistent images of Metru Nui. The best ones are the overall map of metru nui and the 6 opening shots from the film 'Legend of Metru Nui'. A little note here, from the original official bionicle art there are 2 types of coliseum. one where it is like a huge tower, those are seen in the comics and the movies, and a second in the images where the coliseum is typically in the background as this 3-tower-sillhouette thing (4 towers seen from the side).. I went with the second, because i feel it is more iconic to Metru nui, even thought it really makes you wonder what the composition of the structure is inside.

Now tell me, where would you, dear visitor, want to live in Metru nui? By the shore? Downtown? What Metru? :) (Smile)

Background ambience for the mood: www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3YdFn…

Step-by-Step: iron6duck.deviantart.com/art/M… and also check out this gif i made of the process iron6duck.deviantart.com/art/T…