I recently turned 28. And I’ve been thinking a lot about aging. Every year, I try to create a piece of artwork celebrating my birthday. This year’s project is called “27 Club”. The illustrations were completed in Procreate, the lighter animation was done in Moho, and it was composited in After Effects.
The 27 Club is a folklore-adjacent club of famous artists and musicians who died at 27. Supposedly, they all carried a white lighter when they died. I have been inspired by media that highlight the phenomenon of turning 28 without joining the 27 Club; most notably, the song of the same name by the artist Raleigh Ritchie.
I started with the Death tarot card. I do not practice tarot and had to research it for this project, but I have been drawn to the mysticism of it. Particularly how ideas so often perceived as negative are laid out as neutral and representative of larger themes. The “Death” card, for instance, does not represent a literal death, but rather major transformation, endings, and new beginnings. I also wanted to highlight the white lighter. And, or course, every card needs a back. The back of the card features an illustration of a birthday cake topped with a skull and a candle. It’s a still life and memento mori, both of which have been included in fine art depictions for centuries. It is meant to be philosophical rather than morbid.
The drawings on the card could be considered a version of myself, reflecting on what it means to age, progress in life, and struggle with my practice as an artist- along with showcasing elements representing me (the Virgo constellation, the aster as September’s flower, my actual birthday dress).
https://youtube.com/shorts/PXEaReQMrYU?feature=share
To see the behind-the-scenes of the creation process, check out my Milanote board:
