Visual Book Cover for "Mothers, Lock Up Your Daughters Because They Are Terrifying"

 






    The short story "Mothers, Lock Up Your Daughters Because They Are Terrifying" portrays three friends who are very different but all share the same circumstances. Ronnie, Caroline, and Mini are all Korean adoptees who meet at a gathering for Korean adoptees. Ronnie is not very talkative and can get angry quickly, Caroline always feels like she has to be the first to do everything and prove herself, and Ronnie is more focused on living life to the fullest. I chose these three main characters to be the main subject of my illustration because they are the subject of the story. They are driving in their car in the dead of night, while the menacing figure of "mom" composes most of the background.

    The three girls are driving in Mini's car, which is the main setting of the story. While it may seem like an unimportant object, Mini's car actually plays an important role in the story. It is here where they perform the dark magic that begins their troubles in the first place, and it is also where they meet their "end". I put dirt marks under the tires to show how the car is driving fast, as the girls speed toward their "death". As the story is set in the dead of night, I had to make the background sky black.

      Since they are adoptees and have never met nor heard of their real mothers, they live with a lot of question about who their mother are and what they may look like. I chose the color purple to resemble the influence of "mom" on the three girls. The four of them are all dressed in purple to show their spiritual and imaginary connection. There is also a faint tone of purple trailing behind the car to resemble the influence of "mom" on the three girls and the weight they carry with them. Another important aspect to note about this work of art is the yellow aura around "mom". While she is very violent and causes harm upon the girls, she is still idolized and looked up to, which is why I decided to giver her an aura of brightness to contrast her mean expression and the black sky behind her. The fourth paragraph on page 451 provides an example of the idolization of "mom": 

"'have you been hanging out with mom?' 'Yeah. We went shopping yesterday.' 'I haven't seen her in a long time.' 'Caroline, that's not fair! You had her first.' 'I just miss her.' 'Don't be jealous.'"

This little dialog between Caroline and one of the other girls shows how "mom" is seen as a prized possession. "mom" is seen as a single person that is shared among the girls, and they become jealous of one another when one spends more "time" with her.




Comments

  1. KnoxOctober 10, 2023 at 11:33 AM

    I really like how you used the mother as a larger, more present, and more real figure to the girls, as it seems she was a burden on their shoulders at this point, and could be seen as something larger than life. Good post!

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  2. Anna WilliamsOctober 13, 2023 at 12:55 PM

    I appreciate the fact that you chose to represent the girls in the car for your book cover. It is where they first summoned Mom, and also where they end up in trying to escape her, so it's a very important element in their journey. I also like how you've characterized Mom as reaching for the girls, because throughout the whole story it seems like she is desperately trying to get to them, failing with all but Ronnie.

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  3. RossOctober 13, 2023 at 7:24 PM

    I thought you did a really good job representing the story in your art. I liked how you used the mom's hand to show her reaching over the three girls in the car. I also like how you payed attention to small detail like using the color purple. The mom has a lot of control over the girls and how you portrayed her so large and menacing reaching over the horizon really showed that.

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