NOSTALGIC ILLUSTRATIONS
Some old illustrations that we found lying around in our old computer.
FLOATING AMONG STARS
Old illustrations can still be pretty. The problem is that we have a short memory span and we don’t remember much about them. We know that those fish aren’t goldfish, but we have forgotten whether those shiny things were supposed to be stars or snow.
If they are snow, then the illustration has a different meaning. Because marine snow are remnants of dead things. And being stuck, unable to float, isn’t how life is supposed to be lived.
If they are stars, the illustration is rather harmless. Because stars hang from the sky. Lights of things long gone. They make for pretty memories. And sometimes it’s nice to spend time hanging around them. Without drowning in them.
A TRAIN TRACK FROM A FLOWER TO A HEART
It started with the eyes. Darkness at the end of the tunnel. Then came the train tracks. And we loved that they resembled tear stains.
The eyes and the heart usually are connected. Thus, the second tunnel, darker than the first. We like the idea of going through that tunnel. There is an exit on the other side. The train tracks go on. But the light doesn’t reach the heart. Because the heart is located in the darkest point of that tunnel, out of the light’s reach.
If memory doesn’t fail, the smile was supposed to be a loose tightrope. The teeth awaiting the acrobat’s fall. Why? Because the light at the end of the tunnel stands for hope, but when we think of hope acrobats are what we picture. A balancing act.
And last, but not least, we have the train flowers. Let’s say that feelings bloom in the heart, just like pictures and dreams bloom in the eyes. If the train is bound to reach a hopeful light, we like the reminder that hope not only blooms but also withers, just like flowers do.
SOCKS AND A UNIVERSE
What if creating the universe had not been an act of wonder? What if it had only been a chore? With that thought in mind we drew this illustration.
Nonetheless we chose the chore that has a special place in our memories. Because there used to be a time when we weren’t confined to a dryer. A time when we could breathe in the open air, the soothing smell of sheets dried by the wind.
We pair socks with the universe because they are the only clothes fit to contain a little world. And the world falls to the ground, because sometimes acts of creation are just the result of indifference.
CHEESY SMILES
The concept is really simple, mice doing a pedicure.
The main character’s nose made us think about mice for some reason. And we like the idea of smiles leaving holes in the cheeks.
PENCILS AND ERASERS
We were talking about the creative process and even though we went digital a while back we still think in terms of pencils and erasers. And since creation is all about the hands, we wanted to show how the creator loses a part of himself, whether he draws or erases.
JOURNEY
It’s the beginning of a journey. One points the way, another gets distracted by a jumping fish, and the one that has to carry them both is reluctant to take the first step.
We have always believed that journeys should start during the night. Because stars shape destinies, and journeys have a similar influence. And our starting point is always near the sea, because that is where we were born and our imagination has a wavy nature.
We love those pointy little teeth and the fact that the eyes are shaped like fish. But the noses are what speaks to us the most. At first, we wanted them to resemble horseshoes for good luck. But in the end, we went with those things that close the nose while you swim. Because neither the journey nor the imagination should make us completely forget how our home smells like, how we smell like.
FROGGY SIBLINGS
The first thing we drew were the eyes shaped like butterfly wings. But the noses made us think about tadpoles, and that is how the frog brain-eaters came about. We don’t know if frogs eat butterflies, but we like the idea that the way you think decides how you see things.
The legs and the arms resemble bedsprings, because frogs and butterflies are dreamy and make us wish we could fall asleep.
POTATO ISLAND
Potato is what we used to say around here when we wanted to feign a smile. So, the island represents happiness.
And our pretty, our ugly bags of potatoes either choose to stay on the island, or they leave. Because not every smile belongs in that island, and even happy shipwrecked bags can feel more comfortable feeling other emotions.
SNAKE NEST
We love toothy smiles. Because they remind us that back in the old days smiles started as a threat, and they should retain a little bit of that feral nature even after having been domesticated, otherwise it would be too sad.
We ignored the direction the nose wanted us to follow (either tadpoles or big-eyed fish with long flowing tails) and we ended with three pretty snakes. And it may seem that the snakes are about to feed on some bird’s eggs. But that is not what is about to happen. Because the world is full of clever snakes. And there are barely any bird’s eggs left.
If we remember correctly the snakes stood for dreams, whereas the bird stood for reality. Because dreams feed on reality. Clever dreams, clever snakes, that steal us away from a bird-like reality. Because birds cannot remain in the sky, they always land in the end. Reality is always bound to disappoint. But snakes embrace the ground, like a never-ending dream.
SWEET KOALA DREAMS
Koalas sleep almost more than any other creature on the planet. It could be said that they live just to sleep. And to us sleeping means dreaming. But it also means remembering, or rather fixing memories so that they don’t get lost. So, sweet dreams and sweet memories.