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.

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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.

Tomas was born impoverished in a small Caribbean island. With the few local financial options, his parents decided to move for America. Once there, they found work and managed to live a decent, if frugal life. However, he still remained poor. It was not until he graduated high school that he began to keep up with modern society. He quickly and effectively embraced it, landing several jobs and moving up the ranks. By the time he was 30, he had already made millions. Over the next several years, he became CEO of a mass construction firm. His company effectively defeated or acquired all other competition, and he gained billions of dollars. By this point, his company almost entirely dominated competition in New York City. One day, however, he was walking down the street and noticed all the jobless and homeless people that had resulted from his acquisitions. With this in mind, and realizing his roots, he decided to leave all of his belongings behind and move back to the island where he was born. As he arrived there, he was faced with a sense of bewilderment, as the previously small, isolated island he had once inhabited now lay covered in skyscrapers. In fact, they were built by the company Tomas had once owned. He thought to himself “Nowhere is safe from corporatization”

The end