BLUE OPERA ILLUSTRATION
Illustration for the opera Blue to be used as advertising for the Toledo Opera performance. The story is of an African American couple in Harlem and their journey to parenthood and the loss of their teenage son at the hands of a police officer.This moving and timely opera needed an image that was equally provoking and thoughtful. Purposely representing this young boy in a symbolic hoodie, while montaging images of the Black Live Matters movement, newspaper clippings, the roses from his funeral, there is texture and new vignettes to discover at every glance. But the most provoking part of the illustration is the boy himself and the look in his eyes. Even though his role isn’t as large as the mother or father’s in the opera performance, his legacy is the true focus of the tale. He looks the viewer directly into the eye – not smiling, nor aggressive, but powerful, important and with a crucial message that needs to be heard.
Of the Blue illustration, NAACP Theatre Award–winning librettist Tazewell Thompson wrote: "It is extraordinarily beautiful! Stunning! Perfect! You've captured the true essence of the opera — The Boy — so powerfully. It is just the way I envisioned him when I wrote Blue."
This illustration was further expanded to be installed on a 15' wall mural in the Secor Lobby in Downtown Toledo. There are also limited-edition 24" x 36" fine art giclee prints for sale framed or unframed. Less than 3 are still available. Please contact for more information.
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Honorable Mention – 2023 Graphis Poster Annual – Toledo Opera Blue Poster | 2022
