COMMISSIONS: "Notes From Underground"

Another intensely challenging commission. This was for an illustration based on the novel Notes From Underground by Fyodor Dostoevsky. I hadn't read the novel when this was requested, but I was familiar with it and had always been intrigued by the work. Plus, due to the nature of the request and the intended recipient, I simply couldn't turn this down. I knew it was a slim novel so I would have time to read it closely and respond to it properly although, like Heart of Darkness I found it to be a bleak and haunting tale. These commissions have gone surprisingly well, and it's been a good feeling to challenge myself like this and create work outside of my comfort zone that I can still be very proud of.

Title: From Underground

8 inches by 10 inches
ink and pencil on watercolor paper
December 16, 2012