I was working on this over break, and I'm not sure I'll take it any further than this. I had wanted to set some type to it, but can't find a proper idea that doesn't feel forced, and I'm pretty happy with how it is.
So, as you probably already know, I won the Hallmark contest. I am really happy about it, and blown away by how many people helped me win. I still have a lot of thanking to do, and I hope everyone knows how thankful I am. As for the money, after I take my lovely roommates out for a nice dinner, and maybe buy myself one small nice thing, I plan on saving it for when I graduate in 4 months, and will probably have to move across the country somewhere.
Still readjusting to being back. Still haven't cleaned my room. Still, pretty happy.
LAST CHANCE TO VOTE
Hey everyone, this is the last time I'll mention this. The hallmark contest ends Today, Thursday, at midnight. If you can vote, and ask your mom, neighbor, and second cousin to vote, I just might make it. I'm a poor college kid and I'm nice to my elders, and I think I have a pretty nifty card. Thank you very much, for everything you've done for me already.
Also, if you need to contact me, please email me at emcguire@ringling.edu , rather than here, I like this to stay a nice and happy place. Thanks!
Handmaid's Tale
first thesis piece in progress
For my thesis, I'm doing dystopian literature. In high school, I loved reading Brave New World, The Handmaid's Tale, Clockwork Orange, etc etc. So, in coming up with an illustration thesis idea, I figured, now was the time to do work about what I really loved.
So, after doing the book covers back in November, I realized that there was one thing I knew for certain when it came to illustration. I love books. Children's books, comic books, art books, journals, and novels. I have since I was little, and my life has never seemed to stray too far away from reading. I do work in a library, after all. After I thought of it that way, no other idea seemed to stick with me that I felt so strongly towards.
I was initially concerned that the work would be too serious, that in doing a body of work about nightmare societies, I'd completely ruin my portfolio for children's books and greeting card markets. But after spending the break reading and rereading dystopian books, I found that they weren't any more depressing than how life really is, and that the universal idea presented is that people will fight for a better way of life, always. It reminds me of that Gandhi quote-
"Whenever I despair, I remember that the way of truth and love has always won. There may be tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they may seem invincible, but in the end, they always fail. Think of it: always"
In other (happy, awesome) news, I finished my first children's book!! I won't post all 18 adorable pages, lest I lose my street cred, but here's one I like. The book is about a bunny who goes to the zoo and after causing all sorts of shenanigans, settles in for the night. This is the last page.
And with that, happy new year, and adieu.
