Digital color - Seal

I started my advanced drawing today and my first crit is Thursday, thankfully it doesn't have to be a finished piece, but here's my first planned portfolio drawing in a LONG time (last time I did a large, traditional drawing like this was high school blergh, college does things to you!)

Basically I'm a fanatic when it comes to symbolism, whether it is cultural, mythological, or religious. I'm no expert when it comes to any of them, but I try hard to research them.

Here you see a Harp Seal, it is approaching the breathing hole and preparing to break the surface. The main theme is "Life is dangerous", the breathing hole represents light. How you think of the light is up to you, going toward the light normally is a phrase that means one is dying and death might be what the seal is approaching. Normally predators (polar bears, seal hunters, etc) are waiting for a seal to appear at breathing holes and the ice is so thick anything above it is invisible.

A hole in the ice below could represent the deeper, safer depths of the water, but could also mean a case of ice the seal could become trapped in or lead to open water where there are more predators such as killer whales. Right now it would seem the seal is stuck in an in between and it'll eventually have to choose to breathe or die trying.

In other ways light could symbolize hope, the ability to live by breathing and the way of life for mammals, of which the seal is. I was also clever enough to incorporate the cross in the picture (the way the seal is posing). For this image, the cross only represents sacrifice (there are plenty of other meanings, but let's keep it simple). If the seal is taken by a predator it's body and energy will be sacrificed to keep something alive.

This is only a digital coloring, I will be making this drawing on a much larger scale in pastel and pencil ~

I may also plan on selling it later next month if the contest I'm entering accepts it, so I'm water-marking it for that reason!