Alison D. 2023 | BASIS Independent Silicon Valley
- Project Title: Illustrating Jane Eyre: Reviving Classics Through Art
- BASIS Independent Advisor: Swetha Bhattacharya
- Onsite Mentor: Marco Bucci
Many classic novels have been adapted into visual mediums like TV, graphic novels, and webcomics to give an element of modernity to historical stories and make them appealing to students. However, these works are often far more simplified than the original and fail to embody the complex themes and nuances of the text. Additionally, since the visuals portray each scene explicitly, readers no longer have to pay close attention to the writing in order to visualize the descriptions. My project explores a middle ground between a graphic novel and a text-only book. With the guidance from my advisor, Mr. Bucci, I will create a few illustrations for a novel that will provide the reader with a visual base for their imagination while preserving the original text. I’ve chosen Jane Eyre as my book since it is a well-known and ever-relevant classic. I will use the Medibang Paint software to digitally draw my historical illustrations in a modern art style that will appeal to the younger generations and encourage them to read the book. The final product will be a set of 5-10 illustrations of scenes from Jane Eyre.