Editorial Roughs

Here are the beginnings of ideas for what will eventually be my 3 final editorial illustrations based on Burroughs.

I started by generating imagery and motifs that were very Burroughs to me. Very initial roughs, getting a feel for composition and arrangement, trying out ideas, deciding not to take some forward.

The later images show the more refined rough concepts (6 for each format). The ideas gradually become a little less scrappy, and start to form what could be used as the final editorials.


Themes that cropped up were drug use (naturally), as well as more visceral ideas of mutation, body horror, transformation, which I thought was the less obvious side of this author. I liked the little 50s gangster characters, they are odd and funny and depict the dark subject matters in a dynamic and energetic way.

Even though drug use is a huge part of Burroughs' work and life, I am a little reluctant to focus too much on it because I don't want my illustrations to look generic or be similar to existing material. This will be something to think about.