Gone With The Wind

I'm pleased to share some illustrations that I've been gradually working on in my free time since October. I dreamt/ thought up this idea for a series of three pieces, two of which are finished. I don't normally share progress work, mostly because my sketches are so sloppy. But I always love it when other illustrators share their progress, so I thought I'd do the same.

The first in the series is of Harold Washington Library in Chicago. When I lived there, I occasionally went to the library to work. One night I dreamt this image, possibly inspired by the daunting figures perched on the library's roof.

Years ago I wrote a playful poem, one of the lines was "the girl with tortoise shell glasses and a turtleneck sweater." I decide to base the second piece in the series off this imagery, making the girl in the poem, a librarian charged with the task of protecting the books.

Most of you will notice the resemblance between the librarian and myself, and though I didn't originally plan it, she did become a sort of fantastical self-portrait.

I've got the third and final piece of the series sketched up. It will reveal the cause and purpose of the storm and hopefully offer a playful twist.