Seasons in the Sun

Society of Illustrators 48th Annual of American Illustration, 2006, pp244-245
Illustrator: Andrew Selby

This illustrator creates entire landscapes with simple geometric shapes and limited color palettes. His work is interesting because the more you look, the more you see. I love the illusion of hills and how each drawing has a feeling of perspective created with the bottom of the illustration appearing to be closer. Both illustrations create perspective by size with objects in "front" being larger in proportion to objects at the top of the drawing. Notice the pumpkins larger than trees and the fox larger than the horses. The autumn image also has a road which appears to wind toward the "back" where it eventually disappears in the horizon. Even the ground appears to be flatter in the front with the shapes becoming more rounded and then pointy, indicating hills turning to mountains, as your eye travels upward. The final clue is the cloud shapes at the very top.
Another detail I enjoyed is the illustrator's buildings. None of the buildings are squared. They seem to lean every which way furthering the concept of hills and uneven ground. The combination of the misshaped buildings and curvy shapes create an inviting, interactive atmosphere enticing the viewer to stop and gaze for a while.
As for color, the illustrator's limited color palette very clearly indicates which season each image represents. The limited use of white creates added interest and breaks up what would otherwise be monotonous image.