Illustration Master Class 2012

I am just hours away from flying back to San Francisco from Bradley Airport after another challenging week at Amherst College for the Illustration Master Class (IMC). This year, I took on a book cover illustration for the novel "Old Man's War" by John Scalzi. Surprisingly, I got the biggest response from the initial ideation work done for the design of the Consu aliens, and the human soldier. This meant quite a bit to me considering how I was just beginning to have doubts about whether or not concept art might be a good fit for my MFA studies. I truly enjoy the process of designing, even under tough time constraints.

My fascination with organic forms including bones, muscles, plants and flowers, also came through in the project, and again, became the main attraction at my easel. Time was scarce during the final days leading up to IMC, so my sketches in terms of presentation and quantity were lacking. This week was a  lesson in recognizing my strengths and primary interests, as well as patterns of procrastination, and poor decision-making along the way.

Many thanks to Rebecca Guay, her staff and the IMC faculty for their encouragement and for being a constant inspiration. I hope to improve considerably before attending next year's workshop.