Summer Days Cut Paper Illustration

I've always loved Volkswagen Beetles! I remember living in Sao Paulo as a kid and begging my mother for us to take the Beetle taxis. When we were older, my brother and I shared a 1985 light gray VW Beetle and I just loved moseying all over town in it! It had a few interesting quirks like an engine kill switch under the rear hood (anti-theft protection!) and it ran on sugarcane ethanol. It was a great car!

I was thinking about my old car and the beach the other day and just wanted to capture that bright, colorful, happy time in my life with a cut paper illustration. After making a rough sketch, I started work on the Beetle.

Since the illustration was about heading to the beach and the classic Beetles have no trunk space to speak of, I added a roof rack with all the essentials for a day at the beach! And finally, the driver.

I sketched out the background on my base paper, outlining the layers of sand dunes and roads, as well as the horizon line. I then cut out the sand dunes and roads, the ocean's layers of waves and foam, and the sun.

I wanted rays of sunshine to radiate across a big bright sky, so I first chose a position for the sun. Using a protractor, I then divided the circle into 24 parts, twelve 20 degree sectors (in orange) and twelve 10 degree sectors (in magenta). Inside the 20 degree sectors I added 15 degree sectors of yellow rays of sunlight.

I painted the sand and added some beach grass, then glued all the pieces together!

Summer days are finally here!

For more information on the tools I use, visit my post Paper-Cutting Tips and Daydreaming Girl.