A friend had an idea for a book. It was about the sea and the Divine and it came to him fully formed, all he had to do was write it down. He asked me if I would do some illustrations for him. He had very specific ideas, he could already see in his mind's eye exactly what he wanted. I had ideas too, I knew the techniques I wanted to use and I had a sense of the feel of the images. I also knew that I wouldn't be able to reproduce exactly what he had in his mind's eye. It would always be an interpretation. I thought to myself that I would do one image for him and I wouldn't hold him to it if he wanted to look elsewhere for an artist.
I loved doing that first image. I decided to work digitally so that if he asked for any changes they could be easily done. I used gel print images that I had created to form a digital collage and a simple line drawing of a boy, shielding his eyes, looking out to sea. I emailed him a copy and waited for his response.
His response felt a long time coming. I convinced myself that he was working out how to tell me that it wasn't what he was looking for. I told my husband that I loved the image regardless, whatever its future. When my friend finally replied he said, "it's not what I expected, but I like it". He had to sit with the image for a while to decide if it was right for his book. I get that. This idea, this book is his.
Interpreting someone else's vision is interesting. I learnt a lot. Translating images from imagination into reality is hard! Learning how to draw is often equated with learning how to really 'see' something. I usually work from life or photos with my own projects. Judging scale and distance with nothing to anchor it was a challenge. But I loved the common language that ran through the images, the colours and the simplicity of line.
It's his book to share but I will share one image with you. A sea under stormy skies, the bright line of the horizon only just visible.
