Tuesday, July 9, 2019

Reworking an Illustration: B is for... and some thoughts on failure

A few years ago I created an illustration that was visual failure. It haunted me. There were so many problems with it. I loved the concept and the idea, but the execution was pathetic. A lot of the mistakes were due to lack of planning and lack of a proper amount of time to really do it justice.

Luckily, it was for a personal project, It hung in a gallery exhibit and was posted as one of my failures on-line. It still haunted me. 


Over the past year or so I have gained a greater appreciation for failing. Although I still fear certain aspects of it, the fear of failure does not plague me like it has in the past. I have started approaching it with a more positive perspective and an understanding that failure is inevitable. I will fail. I will fail often, I have failed and will continue to do so. How I approach each failure is more important that failing. My failures are now strengthening me and helping me to get better. This one thought has freed me in so many ways. It is liberating. I am ok with messing up now.
The last few months, I made time in-between projects to rework it. Slowly, I tweaked the composition, redrew each aspect, and lightened it up. In the end it is much stronger. 



This is from my personal project “A is For Alliteration” and is for the latter B. The title is “B is for a bevy of beatnik blue footed boobies boogieing to the bodacious blues beat of The Baby Blues Brothers, a blue whale bleating on the bassoon, a blue lobster banging on the bongos, a blaring bagpipe, a blue agama on the base, a boar on a banjo, and a blue jay belting the ballad, is the bee's knees.”

No comments: