Image of the Week: African Children
© Durga Yael Bernhard
Here's a single illustration that I was commissioned to do some years ago for an educational publisher. I was chosen because of the many images of Africa in my online portfolio/gallery. The visual content was completely dictated: I had to create a sunset scene of three children – a sister walking between two older brothers – carrying water on their heads up the hill from a river in the background, with details of an African village all around.
It was a pretty easy assignment. My own travels to West Africa enabled me to create the clothing from memory. I also knew how to wind twisted donuts of fabric around the children's heads to hold the water bowls steady. And I was good at drawing African people.
But how does an artist get inspired to create something so rigidly prescribed? No inner vision kindled this idea. I was an artist for hire, paid to draft a scene for a schoolbook. How to flick a switch to spark inspiration?
The answer is that there's always a creative challenge to be found in painting, no matter what its purpose. In this particular case, I found an opportunity to create a mood using color. An African village is a medley of both muted earth tones and bright man-made fabric. Could I bring the dusty rose of the land and the dark silhouettes of the people into harmony with the festive colors of clothing?
As is often the case, by the time I finished the illustration, I sensed the potential to go further, and could imagine doing a larger version of my own. It's hard to know when to stop. Thank goodness for deadlines.
Happy June to all my readers!
D Yael Bernhard