We’re Working On It: A Group Publication
An exploration of the human condition and our relationship to nature, one of constant progress.
duration: 4 weeks
Completed using water-based marker and ink
This is student work completed at Cornish College of the Arts
This piece was created as a two-page spread to be used in a printed and bound anthology featuring the work of over a dozen Illustration students Cornish College of the Arts. The theme is “We’re Working On It”, reflecting the busy nature of the college experience and the constant growth that a creative individual experiences as they refine their craft over a lifetime. The illustration depicts a human with no distinguishable features gazing across to a natural world while being tethered to a decaying society.
For this project, I chose to focus on the growth of humanity. To me, “We’re Working On It” became a moral statement, one that encompasses the human experience as one of constant expansion. I interpreted this into the concept of humans craving a connection with nature and the idea that people that feel connected to their humanity must work on getting back to the true essence of that humanity, as it is rooted in the natural world.
This illustration went through a few iterations before landing on the final design. My goal was to create a composition that captures the loneliness and longing that we feel as humans as we become more and more disconnected from the natural world from which we come.
Process
The cover for the printed anthology features a small icon or image pulled from each featured work. I wanted to create a sense of mystery in regards to my own illustration and selected the nondescript character that is present in the final illustration.
Icon
The final illustration captures a somber scene of a decaying society, creating a sort of full-circle moment to illustrate the theme. In a highly-advanced and built-up world, there will come a point where humans feel an insatiable need to return to our roots in nature. It is from the natural world we find our origins as a species and it is where we will all eventually return in death. One way or another, mother nature will find her way back to us, even if that means becoming the invasive species into a technology-driven world that was once her coloniser.
The lonely figure represents everyone and no one and captures a deep sense of grief.
