Alkerdeel – album illustration ‘Lede’

Final sketches for the comic included in Alkerdeel’s ‘Lede’ album.

A surreal story, constructed in my head for five years, which concept relates to ‘The Fables of Jean de La Fontaine’. Stylistically there are parallels to be traced with the work of Uk illustrators Aubrey Beardsley and Arthur Rackham but also dutch book illustrator Rie Cramer. The comic frame was inspired by the well-known graphic novel illustrator Chris Ware; not only the square shapes and pattern but also those two empty areas, that include titles of the album – these spaces refer to Chris Ware’s use of short pieces of text such as “thus” or “meanwhile”.