For this project, I decided I wanted to represent Russia’s October Revolution of 1917. I am a monarchist, but I can’t deny the romantic appeal of revolutions, especially when they involve flags.

The original drawing, which I jumped straight into. No references, no thumbnails, and I completed it in about an hour and a half. I normally go for clean, simple lines but I decided to make an exception in this case, as I was feeling impatient, and a rougher, sketchier style would be infinitely easier to bang out before boredom overtook me. It’s rather ironic that the flag bearer ended up bearing a striking resemblance to Tsar Nicholas II.

The flag, with cutouts to accommodate the soldiers’ hats. Overall, it didn’t work out as well as I had hoped; I initially intended for it to be more prominent in the illustration, but it kept making the whole thing appear top heavy. I think the final version looks much more grounded, with an emphasis on the soldiers themselves, rather than the flag.