Illustration Landmine
posted:
There's a rush of excitement and fear that accompanies a call from Aviva Michaelov, AD of the New York Times Op-Ed. For me, the rush isn't about the fast turnaround times (often just a couple of hours from concept to final), it's about the responsibility of trying to distill potentially explosive opinions about complex international issues into accurate and powerful symbols. A fellow artist once referred to these Op-Ed calls as "Oh, F**K!" calls. "A sinister blend of happiness and sheer terror."
"Yep, I'm feeling that", I replied at the time.
So it was, when I got the call last week to do an image about the revival of peace talks in the Middle East and how religious settlers obstruct any chance for piece. (Insert waves of anxiety and fear here).
"Here’s where the complication comes, its the middle east, its Israel, its the Palestinians, it’s a landmine for illustration", wrote Aviva.
My thought, "Yep I'm feeling the complication."
She continued, "Could you come up with a solution that doesn’t portray a religious settler, a Palestinian or any middle eastern stereotype/flag/symbol? Can you be as abstract as you can, focus on the idea of blocking peace?
My thought, "Yep, now I'm REALLY feeling the complication."
Shown below is the sketch sent. This was my first idea. The handful of others fell into the traps Aviva warned of so I didn't even sketch them. This one just felt right. Luckily she agreed. (article here)
"Yep, I'm feeling that", I replied at the time.
So it was, when I got the call last week to do an image about the revival of peace talks in the Middle East and how religious settlers obstruct any chance for piece. (Insert waves of anxiety and fear here).
"Here’s where the complication comes, its the middle east, its Israel, its the Palestinians, it’s a landmine for illustration", wrote Aviva.
My thought, "Yep I'm feeling the complication."
She continued, "Could you come up with a solution that doesn’t portray a religious settler, a Palestinian or any middle eastern stereotype/flag/symbol? Can you be as abstract as you can, focus on the idea of blocking peace?
My thought, "Yep, now I'm REALLY feeling the complication."
Shown below is the sketch sent. This was my first idea. The handful of others fell into the traps Aviva warned of so I didn't even sketch them. This one just felt right. Luckily she agreed. (article here)
