Moms In The Wild

In July of 2022, I was commissioned by HarperCollins Publishers India for a book cover illustration.

The story, a satirical take on motherhood, includes sharp insights into professional and social life in Bangalore. The main character is a multitalented mother-of-two, and the author wanted to highlight and portray a fierce side of her through the cover.

The initial sketches were of a lioness (a powerful maternal figure from the jungle) dressed in the attire of an affluent mother. I also included ideas with the cub and the map of the author's home city (symbolising navigating the wild), to add easter eggs of information about the author into the cover design.

Upon further discussion, the publishers were keen on referencing social media through the illustration. We finalised the art style and colour palette, after which I moved on to digitally creating the cover.
The final design was a version the publishing company took further with their design team. However, the experience still showed me the ropes and provided me with insight about where I could improve as an up-and-coming designer.