Life's A Witch

Every winter the Illustration Dept at my alma mater, Montserrat College of Art, holds a theme show, showcasing work from students, alumni, and faculty. The show is always a push/pull for me. I love the challenge of doing "themed" work, and I push and push myself to create the best and most conceptualized piece I can, but it all comes falling apart a week before opening night and self doubt riddles my insides, and I toss away my original idea to come up with something brand new in a rush, which I normally end up unhappy with. NOT THIS YEAR.

This year's theme is The Wizard of Oz, something that has been deep rooted into love of fantasy since an early age. I VOW not to screw this one up. It would be such a disappointment to myself, especially since I have work so LONG on my idea this year.

Here's my (current) piece in progress:

If you aren't familiar with the deeper stories of L. Frank Baum's Ozian series, you might be saying, "wait Heather, this looks NOTHING like Judy Garland, what are you playing at???"

Fear not, friends! This is Ozma, princess of the Emerald City. She was the basis for the third book in the series. The piece itself is based on Alphonse Mucha's poster for the Sokol Festival. For me this piece is a tribute to Mucha, to Baum, and to the creative minds of that time.