The graphic designers legacy

2 MIN READ

Eastern Double Drummer cicadas spend six years growing underground.

Once mature, they emerge from the earth and leave the legacy of their youth behind as shells, then climb the trunk of a tree to sing, eat and be merry. As reputedly the loudest insect in the world, they sure make a statement - but only for a few weeks, until they die.

It’s this lifecycle of a cicada and its legacy of a shell which makes me think of my projects.

You may be able to relate to the cycles of deep work spent on your practice, for long periods ‘underground’, overthinking (in my case especially) and cross referencing and researching until finally it’s time to pitch the concepts.

** Insert loud, nervous laughter, over the merriment of cicadas here. **

The legacy? It’s that the project gets another life beyond ideation and revisions, as a platform, that lasts the trends and tells the story with purpose.

I take comfort in my comparison, that at least the people of Ancient Greece revered the cicada shells for their admirable and humble qualities. A friendly cicada, so the legend goes, once replaced the missing note when a string broke on a musician’s lyre. 

The illustration used in this post, was created underground, whilst trying out Adobe Illustrator’s greatest feature of all time (IMHO), the repeat functionality.