RIDER

A few months ago I was asked to put together some samples for a potential proposal for a campaign. Unfortunately, it didn't end up following through, but it was a good challenge to produce work that I am not normally asked to do, and the outcome proved satisfying. I was given a photograph by the creative director and asked to create a hyper-realism based on the excitement and danger of the sport.

The picture I was given:

After some art direction:

I've never done work like this before and it was incredibly challenging - at one point I felt like I couldn't deliver - but hard work and sleepless nights prevailed and it was an excellent learning process! What was cool was that the creative director trusted in my capabilities to do this kind of work, though I have nothing similar in my portfolio to prove so. I think it's this kind of vision that makes a good art director from a bad one.

I heard funny stories from other illustrators before, saying how they didn't get commissioned for a piece because there were no 'dogs' in their portfolio. Despite showing talent and being able to draw, the art director doesn't trust that the illustrator is able to draw a dog. Hahaha. In Dog we trust.