The Olympics are upon us. Cue in acute curiosity and inner dread. Do we airbnb the Dickens out of our place? Or do we hunker down and not leave our neighborhood? The kids at school are getting the full propaganda. I’ve watched Cool Runnings 20000 times with my little one in preparation (Ask me anything!).
Although my feelings for the Olympics are mixed, I can’t say it has been an interesting source of inspiration for my illustrations. One of the lessons I was happy to learn as a young illustrator is that you don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Some artists learn toward fantasy and the imaginary, but a lot can get ideas generating like merging together two contrary things. Including the easy pairing of the Olympic Games and Paris. Today you will create a series of spot illustrations (or small, easily understandable graphic illustrations) inspired by Paris 2024.
Think if these like the little black and white illustrations peppered throughout the New Yorker Magazine. See the terrific ones above by illustrator Hanna Barczyk.
As a commercial artist and illustrator, I’m not just drawing off the top of my head. I have a list of needs my drawing needs to fill: format, size, ideas to communicate etc. Sometimes you need criteria and restrictions to get ideas flowing. Let’s begin!
Step 1: Brainstorm
Take out a sheet of paper and draw a vertical line down the middle.
Column 1 / Olympic stuff
Sketch out all the things you think of when you imagine the Olympics: the running of the torch, watching on tv, brands overload, the rings, sports old and new, excessive crowds, flags of the world, etc. Jot down words, sketch out ideas or both. Don’t over think these.
Column 2 / All things French
In the next column, sketch out or write down all things that come to mind when you think of Paris and France: food culture, café chairs, Metro signs and tickets, pigeons, etc.
Now compare and contrast the images in the visual columns. Mix and match to see if any ideas reveal themselves. I hate how visitors always go on about carbs in France as if they pose an actual threat. Perhaps there’s a way to mash up pastries with Olympic sports? See how I merged together the shot-put and the pain aux raisins. Since there are so many sports and so many types of pastries, this is a good fit.
Step 2: Sketch
Now that I have my base idea merging sports and pastries, I start sketching this mashup. I am going to scrap the jambon beurre baguette fencing in the lower right corner because I don’t think it reads well. Make a selection of your top 4.
Step 3: Paint
Before I move onto the paint, I ask myself how I can use color to reinforce the visual concept. I automatically think of the 5 colors of the Olympic rings. Perhaps this is another unifying element? Since I want these spots to be graphic, I’m going to paint with wet-on-dry to get saturated colors and not mix the colors together. For more about watercolor techniques, catch up on my series here.
Here are the final four. What do you think? Do you understand the concept off the bat? Now it’s your turn to give it a shot. Please share your final product in the comments section below and I’ll let you know what I think.
Did your you hear I am hosting an intimate watercolor retreat in Paris this May? Spots are going quickly so consider reserving today.
Take good care, dear reader. And don’t drink the watercolor water. -jkw