#asianvampires

The Philippines (Manananggal and Aswang): The manananggal is one of the most uniquely terrifying creatures in global folklore. Disguised as an ordinary woman by day, at night she severs her upper torso from her lower half, sprouting bat-like wings to fly through the night (Ramos, 1990). She preys on sleeping pregnant women, using an elongated, tubular tongue to extract the blood or hearts of fetuses. She falls under the broader category of aswang, which includes various shapeshifting evil spirits, ghouls, and vampires (Ramos, 1990).

Malaysia and Indonesia (Penanggalan and Pontianak): Similar to the manananggal, the penanggalan is a female vampiric ghost whose head detaches from her body, flying through the night with her stomach and intestines dangling below her (Skeat, 1900). The entrails are said to twinkle like fireflies as she hunts. The pontianak is the vengeful spirit of a woman who died during childbirth, a ghost known for her pale skin, long dark hair, and horrific laugh, tearing the internal organs from her victims (Bane, 2010).

Bane, T. (2010). Encyclopedia of Vampire Mythology. McFarland & Company.

Ramos, M. D. (1990). The Creatures of Philippine Lower Mythology. Phoenix Publishing.

Skeat, W. W. (1900). Malay Magic: Being an Introduction to the Folklore and Popular Religion of the Malay Peninsula. Macmillan and Co.

Wikipedia: Manananggal https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manananggal

Iya sketches !! Top circa 2019 and Bottom January 2021. 

Iya is a Manananggal and a film student, she makes small indie horror movies inspired by 80s gore and Japanese horror films. She is quite introverted and lacks self confidence, and struggles with depression and anxiety in ebs and flows. However she loves her craft, constantly writing and daydreaming about scripts, she is at her happiest behind a camera directing her actors. She works in big spurts, writing and sketching until 3 am, black circles under her eyes, for 5 days non stop, and then will not touch anything for 2 weeks.

She struggles with her bodyimage, and likes to emulate pretty women from anime she grew up with, with a modern streetstyle twist. She wears purples, neon yellows and pinks mostly. 

She takes terrible care of herself, generally favouring helping other people and her friends than actually worrying about her own issues. She mostly lives off instant ramen, fried octopus, boba tea and pretty much nothing else.She is very funny, but nervous around other/new people. It takes a while to really get to know her as a person. 

Top sketch: Iya & Qued. They were “platonic” best friends who took art class together.