I suppose I could be doing two Kino no Tabi Novel Illustration series: the Chapter Illustration series of black-and-white art (although some of them I have colored afterwards) and the Frontispiece series (containing color artwork.) If so, this would be the second, the first being "Angel?" Anyhow, this is one of the color pages from the frontispiece story, "A Tale of a Tank -- LIFE GOES ON" from novel 6. Fans of the anime will remember a short story of a tank related in the Country of Books episode as well. The idea is that this tank has been wandering through the forests, trying to fulfill the last orders of his fallen Commander - to find an enemy tank with three red stripes on its back and a white tapir/pig on its turret. The thing the tank doesn't realize is that IT has the stripes and the tapir - it is hunting itself. A story of irony and futility, which is an apt symbol of war itself.
I like Kuroboshi's frontispiece artwork because so often it's got a wonderfully crisp, flat style that works perfectly for vector artwork. Plus, the framing of the image using the tree trunks in the foreground set a really nice tone. I saw this picture when I was scanning the artbook for the Novel Illustration series, and decided to trace this drawing, too.
Additional resolutions (the traditional ones) available at DA! Desktop Anime, soon to be renamed That Kino no Tabi Wallpaper Site.


...not really, but not that anyone would notice.