At the beginning of 2023, I was approached by coworker and Creative Content Producer Giovanni Lamonte to help him out with a docuseries he was producing titled The Climb. It covered the 2022-2023 LSU Gymnastics team in real-time, highlighting their journey as a whole and as individuals as the season progressed. Each episode opened with a hand-drawn title card on construction paper– similar to how the team illustrated their goals for the season– that creatively represented the story being told. The upcoming one was going to be a little complicated, so Giovanni asked if I could help him out with it! I of course said yes and whipped up a drawing for him. Next thing you know, I was the designated title card illustrator!
What sets this group of drawings from most of my LSU projects was that this was fully-traditional art. There were no undo buttons, guidelines, or automatic fills. (However, I will admit that I tried to "zoom in" on physical paper an embarassing amount of times.) I had to reach back and remember all the lessons I remembered in my studio art courses on how to control line weight, shading, and coloring. Looking back, these drawings are the ones I'm most proud of (especially the season finale's card). They were made with ink, color pencil, and a whole lot of love!
After the conclusion of the first season, the series went on to win a 2023 Suncoast Emmy Award, making this collection my first Emmy-winning pieces of artwork!
What sets this group of drawings from most of my LSU projects was that this was fully-traditional art. There were no undo buttons, guidelines, or automatic fills. (However, I will admit that I tried to "zoom in" on physical paper an embarassing amount of times.) I had to reach back and remember all the lessons I remembered in my studio art courses on how to control line weight, shading, and coloring. Looking back, these drawings are the ones I'm most proud of (especially the season finale's card). They were made with ink, color pencil, and a whole lot of love!
After the conclusion of the first season, the series went on to win a 2023 Suncoast Emmy Award, making this collection my first Emmy-winning pieces of artwork!
As production began on the second season, I took what I had learned from the previous title cards and used it as a jumping off point. Season 1 started with only ink drawings and, as the show progressed, I steadily incorporated more colors to add some variety. This trend continued in its successor, and the amount of color grew exponentially as I continued. Color was no longer a subtle addition, but a crucial part of the works! Another fun twist was now getting to do the titles myself instead of it being written out. It allowed me to have some fun incorporating the titles themselves into the art, adding a whole new level of personality! We even got to the level of being self-referential, with Episode 7's "Joy + Intensity" cover being a reference to Season 1 Episode 8's "Diamonds" card. It was a poetic way to see the difference a year makes, both in the team's story and my own skills.
As the final scores were revealed and the team lifted the 2024 National Championship Trophy, I knew that I would have to go all out for this season finale. I wanted to keep the traditional arts feel of the title cards, but wanted to do more than something on a piece of paper. Therefore, I thought it was only fitting to do a full acrylic-painted piece on canvas.
Since the overall theme of the season was building off of the success of 2023, it only felt right to recreate last year's finale drawing in this new medium. This also led me to including both elements from season two AND one, connecting the journey into one piece. And then to fully bridge the gap, I utilized the colors and gradients used in the regular season graphics so that it didn't feel too reliant on the past.
But, of course, this wasn't just a normal season finale. It was the one where our team became National Champions. And this became a challenge on what we wanted to do about the trophy. On one hand, we didn't want it to be the absolute focal point – we wanted to make sure to honor and cherish the journey they took to get there. I mean, its literally called "The Climb." But on the other hand, we couldn't just ignore it! It's the very thing they climbed for! Therefore, I honored both ideals by incorporating the trophy into the side of the mountain itself. It's quite literally the summit they had to face, and what they now claim with a crown at its peak. But it doesn't take away from the moments that preceded it. Because its those moments that are the reason they got there.
But, of course, this wasn't just a normal season finale. It was the one where our team became National Champions. And this became a challenge on what we wanted to do about the trophy. On one hand, we didn't want it to be the absolute focal point – we wanted to make sure to honor and cherish the journey they took to get there. I mean, its literally called "The Climb." But on the other hand, we couldn't just ignore it! It's the very thing they climbed for! Therefore, I honored both ideals by incorporating the trophy into the side of the mountain itself. It's quite literally the summit they had to face, and what they now claim with a crown at its peak. But it doesn't take away from the moments that preceded it. Because its those moments that are the reason they got there.
