HATCHLING
PROJECTS
A collection of short stories about loneliness and finding comfort in the alien, written and illustrated by me. Below features the covers, plus the inside inkwork.
STORY EXCERPT - Animals
The creature squirms through the sand. It has the look of an oil victim, like
in the old detergent ads, waiting for outstretched hands and a nylon brush,
flailing and splattering thick black blood over the beach.
Only, that isn’t blood. As it squirms through the sand those tendrils follow.
He sort of sniffs at it. Crouches along the waterline alongside, ocean
creeping at his ankles and soaking his shoes.
It comes to a stop some ways up the bank; heaving up and down.
Injured. Of course, it’s man’s second instinct to touch it. The first, to recoil
and pace circles around, no progress made. That doesn’t last long.
And a stick is good enough for him, yanked from a tangle of driftwood
halfway down the dunes. Though by the time he huffs his way back, it has stilled—an ink blot staining beige sand, smelling like salt and ash. The stick slides off its surface, catching faintly and pushing at glistening things like scales. It does not move anymore except to roll over in its little divot...
Alienation
The Alpics
A team of human researchers journal their exploration of an alien planet and integration into the culture, highlighting the differences and similarities they feel with an alien culture.
Somewhere between a casual research journal and a more structured educational magazine, this was written and illustrated by me and done entirely in ink.
Canadiana
Two friends decide to go on a road trip across the country after a historic vote deciding that it would split up. Meanwhile, they muse on the failings of their families and relationships.
Short story illustrations -
Your Orisons May Be Recorded
A cover and set of inside illustrations done for Your Orisons May Be Recorded, by Laurie Penny.
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​Really interesting short story about angels and demons running a call centre for heaven, humanity and the connections we have with spirituality. The cover is meant to be fairly literal, done with a lot of collage layers plus gouache and ink. Mostly, I tried to image the lineup of people calling heaven. There's a moment where a young girl talks to the MC and I liked that image a lot so tried to include it.
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The spot illustrations relate to the true nature of the MC, revealing themselves as an angel in certain points of the story. Also done with some collage and ink to try and and make it seem overwhelming in light.
COMICS
Short Comic -
All Crows Are Black Everywhere
"All crows are black everywhere", a Chinese proverb describing how evil reveals the same no matter where you go. Or, in this case, an ancient passage whose meaning has been lost to time. This short comic imagines a world of crows where two debate the meaning of the lost phrase. Ultimately, they come to no conclusions and fail to find common ground.
Short Comic - Two-Pager
A short, two page comic where a mouse and mantis duo argue about the mantis carrying the mouse up a large set of stairs. Ultimately, the mouse rejects him and regrets it immediately. Done mostly in ballpoint pen, with some watercolour wash.
DRAWINGS
Spiderweb City
The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse
A small illustration based on the Aesop, The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse. I wanted to play around with space, putting the cat outside the picture showcasing the idea of a hidden danger even as it's caught the town mouse already.
Based on the Spiderweb city from Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino. Done more literally based on the descriptions in the book, but I really wanted to capture the danger and verticality of what a city suspended between cliffs might look like.
PAINTINGS
Narrative Postcards
A series of narrative postcards cataloguing a trip through Oakville. Based on observations on the suburban and urban developments and the way they intersect with the nature trails around town. Each postcard focuses on different aspects--from the suburbs, to the forest, to the city, with each one still carrying hints from the others.
Mock Poster
A mock poster for the Tony Kushner play, Angels in America. Meant to show the intersection of spirituality and modern America, as expressed through an electrical pole.
A Corner at Home
An oil painting of a corner in my parents' house. Highlighting a nostalgic place and the objects there that have a personal connection to me.