Cash and Empire: A Junior Narrative Illustration by Stefan Cook (2012)

For my illustration ''Cash and Empire,'' I created a grandiose illustration of the empire state building occupying a small island. It reflects the theme in my story that cash and money will occupy any part of society, and that there is no stopping it. This cash based empire entangles all aspects of society through time. With all this excess development, corruption often directly follows the path that cash flows. The image depicts the water, which i made using path blending, This water surrounds the island, which I kept very simple to reflect its contrast to the buildings. The palm tree was made by using gradients and duplicating the leaves, made by the pen tool. the strobe lights were made with a mix of layering, transparency, and gradients. Behind that is a large gradient showing the dark, yet spectacular spread of modern culture/empire.