Story Illustration- “Girl with the Iron Foot” (Bear)
One of two illustrations for a short story called “The Girl with the Iron Foot” (by Jessica Jernigan), to be published in the January/February 2008 issue of “New Moon: The Magazine for Girls and Their Dreams”. The issue is called “Through the Looking-Glass (Coming of Age)” and the story is about a girl whose blacksmith father tries unsuccessfully to help her fit in with other children. In the end, she goes on a journey by herself to discover that she is unique and wonderful in her own way.
The bear is a symbol for the girl as she leaves on her journey. I wanted to portray the bear as a sort of guide to her self-discovery; its presence is symbolic rather than literal. Its nose points the way as a light through the trees.
This illustration is tiny! The printed size is only two inches square, and I worked at a size not much larger. Since it’s so small, I knew that it would have to ‘read’ at a glance, but I wanted to bring the viewer in for a closer look, too.
Heather Parfitt responds:
Posted: December 6th, 2007 at 4:40 pm →
This illustration is a favorite of everyone in the office!
jessica j responds:
Posted: February 4th, 2008 at 9:46 am →
i really luv this picture, too. it’s wonderfully evocative.