I’m working on my next
coloring book, and I thought it might be fun to document the process on my blog
as I go along.
In
Part 1, I talked about some
stuff that inspired me and got me thinking about creating a fun, beautiful world
that people could escape into for a bit and fill with their own colors.
I started out by sketching some
colorful critters. I wanted to create
some interesting characters that had personality and charm, and would also be
fun to color. I started thinking about
colorful animals, or interesting parts of various creatures that I could
combine into something new.
Things like: butterfly wings, curly
antenna, floppy ears, giraffe spots and other patterns and markings, feathery/leafy/curly/fluffy tails, feathers and feathered wings, chameleon
skin, fins, glowing angler fish lures, fat elephant feet, big, glowy, shiny eyes.
I also wanted a variety of kinds of
characters - different shapes and sizes.
I wanted them all to look like they came from the same world, but were
also unique to themselves. I wondered:
what if there were different “species” that lived together in harmony?
What if the whole world lived
together in harmony?
I really liked this idea. What if the world functioned like a perfectly
balanced, symbiotic ecosystem, where everyone did their part and contributed so
everyone would benefit from a thriving and abundant natural “economy”…?
What would it take to create a
world like that? How would a world like
that naturally evolve?
I decided that in my world, there
wouldn’t be any social distinction among “species”.
They are all just considered “earthlings” (though this isn’t Earth,
obviously. I haven’t figured out what to
call them yet!). There are beings
that are more like animals, and beings that are more like plants, but they
all have a certain degree of sentience and they all hold each other in mutual
respect. The animals would take care of the plants, which would produce fruit to feed everyone. Plants would be more than
just providers of food or pretty things to look at – they could participate in
society, be considered valuable allies – even friends! Plant friends! I like it!
The “animal style” creatures would
have a variety of features and body types that I could mix and match. There would be some that looked more female,
some that looked more male, some that were more androgynous. Some more cutesy, some more elegant. Some would be more mammalian, some more avian
or amphibious, or combinations of all of those.
Because everyone considers everyone
else their kin, they are naturally inclined to work together and share the
resulting abundance with everyone else, so no one has to struggle to survive. No one would have to resort to crime. They
would work, but the work would be rewarding and perfectly suited to each
person. They would do their work with enthusiasm and
have plenty of time for creative or relaxing pursuits.
Their technology would work in harmony with
the environment. If you have cooperative
plants that you can communicate with –
there are all kinds of things you could do with this idea! Plants could be part of the architecture –
supporting and wrapping around structures made of stone and earth and the only
plant materials used would be stuff that wouldn’t harm the plants to harvest.
Energy would be generated with
green technologies – wind and water power.
Some of the beings could produce bioluminescent light. What if the plants could produce different useful
compounds like medicines or glues or paints – just by communicating with them
and feeding them different things…? What
if some creatures could produce cloth like a spider spins a web?
I began coming up with benign, organic solutions
to various needs. This helped shape the
look of the world – natural shapes, rounded forms, curling vines. Decorated pots and baskets, fruits and flowers that look
like cool, ornate lanterns. Stacked and
standing stones with swirly carvings (just because I think they are cool looking!), pathways made of
tree limbs, stairs made of mushrooms spiraling around a tree. Windmills with sails that look like leaves,
or wings – or wings made of leaves! Waterfalls and bubbling streams, ornate tents and banners, colorful costumes and funky hats.
My world would be shaped by a form
of evolution that relies on symbiosis and mutual benefit instead of “survival
of the fittest”. A world where the
people work together with the environment to create abundance instead of just carelessly
using it. A kinder, gentler world that
we can escape into from time to time when our complicated world gets us down.
After awhile, it dawned on me that
I was working through some fears and frustrations about the current political situation
in the U.S., as well as environmental issues and other problems facing the
world in general. I think by creating my
own little ideal hippie world that I could design from the ground up, I was exploring
my own ideas of what I wished the world could be. No conflicts, no poverty, no greed, no
crime.
I don’t want the book to be
political – that’s not my goal at all, but I found that all the things I’ve
learned about ecology and societies began to come into play as I began to
fiddle with these ideas. I am creating my own cozy little Utopia!
And most of this information won’t
even be explicitly mentioned in the book (I'm not even sure there will be any writing in this book. Perhaps some poems to go with each art page...if I can come up with anything decent!)...this is just stuff that sets up the
world in my mind, that will come through in the design and artwork. These things will be expressed visually
through the scenes I choose to present and the details of the pictures.
I’ve found that once these kinds of
establishing ideas start fitting together and gelling, that’s when everything
else starts to “bubble up” naturally.
There’s a rhyme and a reason for things to sprout from.
Years
ago, when I was deep into exploring visual symbolism from cultures around the
world, I came across a symbol that really appealed to me. It’s an African adinkra symbol, one of a
whole lexicon of icons used to decorate cloth and express specific ideas. It’s called Funtunfunefu Denkyemfunefu (easy
for YOU to say!), and it depicts “Siamese crocodiles” that share a stomach, but
have two heads that fight over food. It’s
a warning about the dangers of infighting and tribalism, and a call for unity
in diversity.
I think
that’s a pretty good theme upon which to build a peaceful and thriving society.
Stay tuned for future updates!
I’m having trouble coming up with a name for my world and its
inhabitants, which will also likely be the title of the book. Any ideas? Please share in the
Comments section below!
