PEN Canada Campaign Poster

A mock poster campaign designed for the independent, non-profit organization PEN Canada. PEN Canada is committed to defending freedom of opinion and peaceable expression on behalf of writers worldwide who are mortally persecuted for elucidating necessary truths. The authors and journalists they support confront a variety of dangers for their craft. They often become embroiled into wars, imprisoned, exiled, live as refugees and are intimidated by tyrannical government regimes/gangs. Even in democratic countries, writers are the target of censorship. Despite being stifled in their native homeland, their voices must be heard and their passion for communication undeterred. On November 15, PEN Canada honours the Day of the Imprisoned Writer. In November 2005, one of these honoured victims was Roya Toloui, a Kurdish journalist, human rights activist and feminist. After discovering a very unsettling interview about the horrors she experienced in an Iranian prison, I chose to make her plight to subject of my poster. Simple enough, the silhouette created by a woman in a burqa (in essence, a mobile prison and global symbol of male subjugation) is fitted with a damaged letter containing the wise words of Toloui who exhorts politically active Iranian women to be fearless link.

This painting was a nightmare to complete. I aimed for a fully traditional rendering which included the figure, background and calligraphy. I had no intention of doing the type digitally in fear of losing the integrity of flawed handwritten script. Well…after placing a graphite transfer on the painting and trying to ink the letters in…I made countless mistakes and my hopeful experiment failed. I was forced to re-paint a good quarter of the figure over again. Alas, I was unable to correct the imprint of the type beneath the newly applied layers of paint. After my merciful professor allowed for an extension, I used a buddy combination of Photoshop and Illustrator to salvage the piece :). As for the Islamic wedding henna on the girl’s hand, I referenced photos of original henna designs that my friend Rachael had done for me. Thank you for your artistry Rachael :) 

   
The henna designs were inspired by those done for me by my talented friend Rachael, a fellow student in third year Sheridan Illustration. Thank you Rachael for your artistry :)

Ivan and the Chestnut Horse

After sifting through a book on Edmund Dulac’s fairytale illustrations nearly two years ago, I came across his beautiful rendition of the Russian folk tale ‘Ivan and the Chestnut Horse’. Dulac’s image, rendered in a style strongly reminiscent of Russian iconography, depicts the climactic moment when Ivan prompts his steed to fly to the extremity of Helena the Fair’s tower and the couple share a kiss link. I am naturally drawn to historical romances, so it was no doubt that Ivan and the Chestnut Horse would catch my immediate interest. The story recognizes several interwoven themes of love, loyalty, responsibility and above all, intuition. You have a son struggling to fulfill the dying wishes of his father, a demeaning set of arrogant brothers and a princess who wills her own captivity so that she might become the prize to a bridegroom who accepts the challenge of liberating her.   

I sought to combine all these narrative elements into a single illustration that made exclusive use of negative shapes. I turned to optical illusion as an ideal form of visual communication. By juxtaposing the royal couple with the silhouette of a horse in profile, I learned the importance of balancing value and creating colour associations. Plenty of my research was devoted to accurately representing the elaborate clothing from the age of Russian Imperialism. I sense that the greater part of my work in the future will deal with the history and folklore of world cultures. In recent years I’ve enjoyed studying the histories of various countries, notably Italy, England, Poland and Russia.  

Two-part reading of 'Ivan and the Chestnut Horse':

link

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An initial sketch for 'Ivan and the Chestnut Horse', a variation of the Edmund Dulac scene.

Sincerely, Richard Murdock

A series of three conceptual illustrations which used the content of Nigerian fraud letters as literary source material. I chose to re-contextualize the elaborate story proposed by the email scam artist in the Silent Film Era. Turn of the century films relied heavily on music and images alone to communicate complex plots. It was age of acting gold, giving rise to the careers of Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton, John Barrymore, Louise Brooks, Clara Bow and Mary Pickford.

I thought the style was fitting to my visual representation of the letter. As in a silent film, every element of the sequence was carefully considered. In addition, the scammer's epic English name immediately recalled the time period. The short amount of time I had to produce these three pieces allowed for a harmonious combination of detail and expressive ink washes--something estranged from my regular portfolio work.

 My selected story was more of a mercenary opportunity than it was a plea for help. The client of an  attorney named Richard Murdock has recently died along with his daughter in the London Bombings of 2005. After receiving the news, the wife died shortly afterward of a heart attack. The predicament lies in the fact that the former client willed his $35 million fortune to his only daughter. Richard Murdock wants to capitalize on this fateful accident by asking you to act as beneficiary of the will...leading to one devastating and inevitable con.

http://fraudgallery.com/2006-07-06.html

Double, Double Toil and Trouble

A visual recipe for The Hero's Journey in three stages: Departure, Initiation and Return. This piece pays homage to a plethora of children's book illustrators whom I've idolized since childhood.

Taxidermy Field Trip

Over the Christmas holiday I finally managed to make my way down to the Royal Ontario Museum to sketch their vast array of exotic animal displays. These are a few results :)

 

First Post of 2011

A fond farewell, whether said to a cherished loved one, old habit, place or perhaps your former self requires insurmountable courage. In memory of Vincent Dang (1990-2010) and to all his family and friends who truly miss him. This artwork was inspired by a very common theme in children`s literature and films: The child who befriends and tames an otherwordly creature. A particular painting by Russian artist Ivan Solyaev depicts a little boy and a large, nebulous creature at his back, presumably his pet. The docile expression in his eyes and the pair`s interaction compelled me to paint something similar.

Credit to celestial texture: [link]

Many Meetings

Hello friends and visiting spectators, I am a novice to the world of art blogging but certainly not the world of art. My name is Danielle Storey and I am currently a student entering into her third year of Illustration at Sheridan College. For years I’ve endeavoured to school myself in the drawing and painting tradition of history’s greatest masters. Here you will find a reasonably updated account of my portfolio work and various inspirational tidbits I feel compelled to share :D


“In every block of marble I see a statue as plain as though it stood before me, shaped and perfect in attitude and action. I have only to hew away the rough walls that imprison the lovely apparition to reveal it to the other eyes as mine see it" Michelangelo Buonarrotti (1475-1564)