Twenty/Twenty

For my final project, I made a sort of graphic novel, entitled “Twenty/Twenty.” The idea started with a specific medium I wanted to try out: transparencies. I like the idea of drawing on something clear, using black and white so that when you place the image over different surfaces and backgrounds, the image itself transforms. By drawing on clear sheets, I was able to view the drawing as a separate image, but also as part of the layer which it was placed upon. I thought that clear sheets might be particularly interesting to use with narrative/sequential art because by placing a clear sheet over another picture, you can alter the original image and use those changes to motivate a storyline. When the book is opened, there is a color image on left-hand page and the right-hand page is transparent with black line drawing on it. The right-hand page is laid on top of a black sheet, so that you can’t see what image the transparent sheet contains. Then, when the reader flips the transparent sheet over the adjacent color page, the black and white image lines up with the color image, changing it entirely. So essentially, each image is read twice: once in fuzzy pastel and again with sharper line-work and some changes.

In the end, this specific format inspired my story. In my physiology class, we had been learning about vision and the way different species’ eyes have evolved, so I thought it would be interesting to make a story in which all of the initial color images are out of focus, and then the black lines on the transparencies bring the fuzzy image into greater detail. The story itself is about a man who has very poor vision, but doesn’t realize it. The first panels are just in low-resolution pastel, depicting a typical day in his city, through his eyes. Everything is sort of frothy and dreamlike, with most of the details, text, and faces absent. However, in a crosswalk, he is almost struck by a car, and the irate driver sends him to a doctor to correct his poor vision. When he puts on his glasses, suddenly all of the images from his typical day are thrown into harsh resolution, revealing details that he previously had missed. The details aren’t alarming, they’re just unpleasant. His fuzzy, ethereal view of reality changes into a world that acknowledges the existence of cracks in the floorboards, sweat on a runner’s brow, and cigarette smoke in a nearby park. In the end, he smashes the glasses, in favor the blurred and hazy version of the world.
























































The biggest challenge with this project was working with the transparencies because they are slippery and don’t allow for much detail when drawing. But I adopted a sketchier style for this project, so in the end, I think the materials worked reasonably well. I’m pleased with the overall impact of flipping the transparency onto the color sheet.