Imagination running... WILD!

Here's a project I recently had a preview for a few posts ago. I thought it would be fun to do a big watercolor (16"x 16") illustration of a bunch of things you do and play when you're a kid. It's the first part of a tripdic I did about growing up, but all three pieces are so loosely related to each other that they each work just fine by themselves. I'll post the next two pieces in the next two days.

So here's some process work for the "poster". I say that because, isn't it just crying out to be turned into one of those "Get LOST: in a book!" promotional posters they have at libraries? I specifically drew some stacks of books in the illustration because I couldn't get this idea out of my head.

Thumbnailing/list-making:


Next I drew a big loose inked drawing on a 16"x 16" piece of tracing paper. I later laid my watercolor paper directly over this drawing on a lightbox and drew right on the final with a pen.


Here's some very limited-palate color studies. I figured because the drawing is so darn busy, the color shouldn't be.


And the final:


Have a good Tuesday everyone!