THE COUNTEROFFENSIVE
This personal illustration is dedicated to the ongoing Ukrainian counteroffensive 2023.
In it, I reflect on the human cost of Ukrainian fight for freedom. Ultimately, it's not HIMARS, Bradleys or Leopards who liberate the occupied territories. Behind every liberated square kilometer is a human life.
A concentrated soldier's face is juxtaposed with a map of the Ukrainian counteroffensive in the south of the country. The face is divided in halves with a curvy line representing the current frontline. Below the line are the territories under Russian occupation.
The blue sky in the top part of the image and the yellow, red and orange colors in the bottom part of the illustration allude to the typical steppe landscape of the Ukrainian south in late summer. This is also an allusion to the colors of the Ukrainian flag.
STYLE AND RENDERING
Ink linework
Fully rendered character
THE MAP
Screenshot of the open-source map VS traced version used in the illustration
I used an open-source map of the Ukrainian control of terrain (available here) and traced it onto the illustration. The traced part represents a part of the Southern Ukrainian territories under Russian occupation as of August 2023.
The map bears a personal meaning to me, since my partner's home city Berdyansk (bottom right) is under occupation. When travelling to Berdyansk (pre-2022), we often used the roads from Vasylivka to Berdyansk, either via Tokmak or Melitopol. These may be just traced lines, but to me they represent our common memories.
THE COMPLETE ILLUSTRATION
THANK YOU!
