Post a Contest

Illustrate a story called "The Pink Donkey"

Status: Closed
Prize: $50
Entries Received: 4
Winner: bcmf2011

Winner

Contest Brief

I need someone to illustrate a short story. I have attached a bad sketch to this brief as a guideline for the illustration. You do not have to reproduce the sketch exactly as I have drawn it. It is just a suggestion. I have a literature website and the illustration (1200 x 450 px) will be used as a banner image for a short story called "The Pink Donkey." I also plan to shrink the image (or part of it) to (470 x 246 px) for use on social networks and in online advertising campaigns.

The story is about a boy on his birthday who is forced to swing at a pinata against his will. It is a humorous piece where the boy goes berzerk and accidentally starts smashing everything around him except the pinata.

I would like the illustration to incorporate the color scheme of the story's html as much as possible so that those clicking from the social network or the advertisement to the website will experience a chromatic consistency. You can even make the background and the road some shade of the burgundy colors I give below. Also, feel free to move the elements of the illustration around or remove some if you think a different composition will make it more effective. I have attached two versions of the sketch. One is annotated so you can see what my bad drawing is supposed to represent. The other is just the drawing so you can see it as a whole. The annotated elements are suggestions. You do not have to include them all. My main objective is for people to click on the ad and read the story.

This is my first experiment with using illustrations. I have thirty pieces on my website right now, none of which have been illustrated. I may just run a lot of contests for the illustrations, or I may try to work with one person, or I may do both. I'm not sure yet. I am also considering illustrating a couple of the shorter existing pieces from beginning to end as graphic stories.

So--
-1200 x 450 pixels
-If you want to do a 470 x 246 version that's cool, but not required to win the contest.
-Please incorporate these colors as much as possible:
darker burgundy--rgb(70,0,13); burgundy--rgb(91,0,16); pink--rgb(255,204,255)

Annotated suggestions (in case you cannot read my writing):
-helicopter
-tv reporter and tv camera
-blindfold
-big smile (very important)
-cafeteria with broken windows
-pink donkey pinata (I think in my version the pinata is too small)
-unconscious teacher
-his mother covering her eyes
-children running away
-broken windshield and headlights
-police in riot gear

You can see the story's html and/or read the story for background at this web address. This is a mockup. The piece will not be linked into my site and promoted until the end of March or April.

http://www.johndishwasher.org/stories/pinkdonkey.html