Wall calendar with original illustrations inspired by episodes from a podcast
Spring 2019 BFA Senior Illustration Capstone
'Stuff to Blow Your Mind' is one of several ongoing productions by HowStuffWorks and iHeartRadio.
The show itself functions to inform and educate, covering a range of topics while running each through historical, scientific, and literary contexts (among others). Each episode runs between 45 minutes and 1 hour. I first came across it late in the summer of 2018, and was then hooked on its episodes through my fall semester as I listened in during commute on/off campus and while working on projects for class.
While most students committing to an illustration capstone will choose to work off of narratives, I was faced with the challenge of finding an appropriate form for non-linear radio content like that of ‘Stuff to Blow Your Mind’. Ultimately, I drew inspiration from another one of my all-time favorite podcast producers, NPR. NPR would collaborate with well-known illustrators to create calendars as a part of their merch, where they’d ask each contributor to respond to the prompt, What does NPR mean to you?
Although their content was vastly different from mine, I realized that a calendar form would be perfect for presenting episodic, editorial-style illustrations while sharing my enjoyment of the podcast with my audience.
JANUARY — Based on STBYM episodes "Where's My Eternal Youth?", Parts 1 & 2
FEBRUARY — Based on STBYM episode "Lingerie Probabilities"
MARCH — Based on STBYM episode "Leprechaun Hallucinations"
APRIL — Based on STBYM episode "Hyper-real Religion: Pastafarianism and Beyond"
MAY — Based on STBYM episodes "Is Social Media Driving Us Insane?" and "The Great Eyeball War", Parts 1 & 2
JUNE — Based on STBYM episodes "Aquatic Humanoids", Parts 1 & 2
JULY — Based on STBYM episode "Leaping Mullets! Flying Fish! Breaching Sharks!"
AUGUST — Based on STBYM episode "The Dreams of R. Buckminster Fuller"
SEPTEMBER — Based on STBYM episodes "Squirrels, Part 1: The Bloody Beast" and "Squirrels, Part 2: A Skugg Mystery"
OCTOBER — Based on STBYM episodes "The Halloween Costume Made Me Do It" and "The Killer's Mask"
NOVEMBER — Based on STBYM episodes "A Six Course Feast of Dangerous Foods" and "Dangerous Foods III: A Festival of Pain"
DECEMBER — Based on STBYM episode "Tree of Life"
Each illustration is inspired by episode(s) specifically curated for each month. For example, July references an episode discussing strange situations that prompt various species of fish to take to the air—including the ‘breaching’ behavior of sharks, which occurs rarely and only when attempting to capture fast-moving prey, such as seals—and Discovery Channel’s first Shark Week aired in July of the late 80s. November always made me look forward to Thanksgiving and good food (as it did for the hosts of the show) so I dedicated that month’s illustration to their episodes discussing potentially haphazard dishes across the world.