A Brilliant and Moving Idea
An avante-garde portrait for a child.
Mixing punk rock lyrics, dreams for the future, and fairy tale endings.
Very Cool Parents
Recently, I had a very unusual & cool commission. Two really neat parents got concerts tickets for their daughter’s birthday last year (punk rock band, Anti-Flag). Covid hits, they can’t go.
Flash forward one year, they contact the band’s singer and commission custom lyrics and a full song for her! And then hit me up and ask, would you illustrate these lyrics?
Yes. Yes, I will. Such a brilliant and moving idea. An heirloom.
The song title is “Make it Through This Year” written by Chris Barker (https://www.instagram.com/chrisnumber2/)
A Girl and Her Portrait (and song!)
View this post on Instagram
All in the Details
Here’s some details about the details. The typefaces and imagery all stem from the themes in the lyrics of the personalized song. Even the clothing was personalized, right down to her sparkly boots.
The title typeface is indicative of cut and pasted band flyers.
Incorporating the themes from the lyrics into the illustration – the mermaids.
Incorporating the themes from the lyrics into the illustration – love for travel.
The Great Wall of China and the Eiffel Tower, mentioned in the lyrics.
The lyrics with a typewritten style typeface.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Hello, I’m Deanna. Creating little worlds is all I want to do.
I spend my days in my illustration studio, surrounded by herbs and antique curiosities, in rural Pennsylvania. I enjoy many interesting adventures with my husband, daughter, and Shmoop, the “Office Cat.”
Since I was a young child, I’ve been creating. Some of my earliest memories are of drawing historic clothing, making fairy tale paper dolls, and designing my own “book covers.”
The work I make is influenced heavily by my affinity for historic eras: Color palettes, patterns, textures, architecture, typography – the list goes on. From Medieval to Mid-Century, I love it all.
My preferred method of working is to begin with a traditional sketch in pencil on paper, and then to colorize the image digitally. It’s a two-step process that allows for flexibility and speed, without sacrificing quality. I’m also quite adept at drawing and painting in miniature.
If you don’t want to miss anything, follow IG: #deannameyer for illustration and vintage musings. I’m an artist, herbalist, and mother with Multiple Sclerosis & Endometriosis.
I’m also an official artist of the Brooklyn Art Library’s Sketchbook Project.
— Deanna
