Editorial: Most Diverse Group Of Bee Species In San Bernardino Valley Desert

The project brief was to comprise an editorial cover page and animated spot illustration for National Geographic’s article regarding a vast group of varying bee species taking residence in the San Bernardino Valley Desert, becoming the most diverse array of bee species to ever populate one area. By transforming the bees into an organic shape, the article’s main point is driven home through the visual application noted in the artwork. Organic shapes are never all the same, with differences that showcase the diverse population of bees that coincide together, giving way to how the piece shows variation within a sense of consistency and cohesion brought on by the line quality of the work, colors used and wings each bee was drawn with. Another aspect to accentuate in the work was how this population of bees burrow in the ground creating tunnels instead of traditional hives, informing the shape language that grounds the animated spot amidst the bees that surround it.