THOUGHTS, PRAYERS, AND BLOOD MONEY

The goal of this traditional illustration project was to choose a current news article and create an illustration that accompanied it. Following the mass shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in February of 2018, I chose an article about the issue with “thoughts and prayers” and the use of political blood-money in these reoccuring circumstances. To visually show this issue in today’s society, I used pen and ink to illustrate a fist full of money that is dripping with blood. Afterward, I added watercolor paint effects to add dimension to the piece, along with “thoughts and prayers” sayings following closely behind the fist. The deep red blood color in contrast with the grayscale of the rest of the illustration creates a striking effect that adds further meaning to the piece and its context.