Editorial Photo Illustration- Sammi Digman

Initially, this project was a bit of a struggle for me. I had a hard time brainstorming an editorial illustration idea that both related to the article and didn’t have some sort of cliche imagery. Another struggle that came to be while working through this prompt was to have a subject matter that was interesting and something I felt passionate about. So I shifted my mindset and decided this project would be a great opportunity to incorporate photography. For my main image, I used myself as the screaming subject matter. I used intense colors to create this sense of overwhelming and strong emotions. These feelings were present in the article about burnout in life so I knew I wanted to translate that into this piece. I know at times life can feel very mundane and the little things start to pile up and you feel that burning warmth of overwhelming emotions and you just want to scream. This is the feeling I wanted to capture for this primary image.

For my second image, I incorporated a similar texture to the halftones in the primary image to make the two pieces feel cohesive. I included bright blue and red colors as points of stark contrast to the black and white. As well as to create a loud focal point and keep the eye moving around the image. I played around with the scale within this piece and aimed to create this disproportionate scale to further reiterate this sense of overwhelming crushing force. With this illustration, I photographed my leg and foot imaging it as a crushing force. I then included the blue figure underneath it as one to be related to. To relate to the crushing and overwhelming feeling of life and no longer feel that excitement for it. I also added the Converse and leggings as a symbol of today’s fashion as it is relatable for a large majority of millennials. As mentioned in the article this look is often for convenience as well, the athleisure may come off as sloppy and lazy. Similarly, both the leg and figure within the image can be interpreted be a means of relating to the figure crushing and being crushed. This can also relate back to the article and be representative of the feeling of being very hard on yourself.