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Illustrator/Character designer/Visual Artist
The Bell Jar:
Triptych Illustration
This is a triptych illustration of The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath that I created for my illustration class. Being one of my favorite novels of all time, it is a semi-autobiography of the author herself.
Despite its explicit and controversial nature, its haunting depiction of psychological trauma and poetic expression of visualizing invisible ideas such as mental illness and indecisiveness in life motivated me to create illustrations of this masterpiece.
The novel highlights the oppression of women under the patriarchal society and the oblivion of mental in the mid-20th century, leaving powerful and beautiful messages to the readers until now.
Below is my work process for the triptych, from research, ideation, and thumbnails to finished artwork.
Illustration 1: Beginning
The bright 19-year-old Esther Greenwood from the suburbs, slightly rebellious and cynical, is having a hard time enjoying her life during her internship in a fashion magazine in New York. Unfortunately, this is only the beginning of her madness.
Ideation Sketches
Character design sketches of the novel's protagonist, Esther Greenwood, who is inspired by Sylvia Plath herself.
Thumbnails
Rough Sketch
Value Comps
Color Comps: I was trying to use darker and cooler colors to create melancholy.
Clean Lineart: I tried to illustrate the smoke and the water ripple by emulating the marble pattern. Not only it creates the uncanny and sophisticated nature of the novel, but it also helps to enhance the overall composition with better flow.
Final Artwork: I tried to pay attention to the values and colors particularly, so it does not come out too saturated or busy. the smoke amplifies the storytelling as it guides the readers to the next illustration with anticipation. All in all, I had fun creating this piece and it sets a good tone for the overall triptych.
Illustration 2: Climax
Suffering from heavy depression and insomnia from numerous traumatic events, a falsely performed shock therapy intensifies her illness. Esther's inability to write or read landed a heavy blow to her life and self-esteem, and eventually, she attempted suicide multiple times.
Ideation Sketches
Thumbnails: It is challenging to decide which climax scene I should illustrate.
Rough Sketch
Clean Lineart
Value Comps
Revised Value Comps: I refined my value comp into lineless art, as lines can be distracting sometimes.
Color Comps: I went with the first color composition as the bright and warm colors depict the scene and the apocalyptic atmosphere clearly, with a lot of references.
Final artwork: More marble-inspired wind and sea waves to create flow. I chose a bold color palette to show the apocalyptic, yet anti-climactic climax, when Esther tries to drown herself in the sea but was easily dissuaded because of the cold temperature.
Illustration 3: Ending
Fortunately, Esther's suffering had come to an end, from better medical treatment in a private mental asylum, where she started to gain sympathy and gratitude. I tried to pick up significant moments that symbolize her path to recovery as a rebirth.
Ideation Sketches
Thumbnails
Rough Sketch
Clean Lineart
Value Comps
Color Comps: I created several color schemes inspired by landscapes and nature, cemeteries and gardens in particular.
Final Artwork: This is a scene where Esther attended the funeral of her friend, Joan who hung herself in the woods. The burial symbolizes Esther's decease of her suicidal past, and also a reflection of her alternative life where she successfully killed herself. The novel ends with a hopeful note as she was ready to leave the asylum after better medical treatment. Nevertheless, she never knew when would her madness descend again, just like a bell jar distorting and suffocating her.
Triptych Final Art
Feel free to tap on images for better resolution and details!
I read the novel for the first time back in high school for my English Literature course and I fell in love with it, yet I did not fully understand the motives and philosophy of the characters. Until I read the novel the second time thoroughly for my illustration course, I had a better understanding of the novel's themes and the psychic landscape of the protagonist, from making notes to marking keywords and doing ideation sketches, before creating the triptych. In conclusion, I had a blast creating the triptych and I admire Plath's ability to visualize madness to expose the patriarchy and oblivion of mental illness in society.
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