“Richard Papen arrived at Hampden College in New England and was quickly seduced by an elite group of five students, all Greek scholars, all worldly, self-assured, and, at first glance, all highly unapproachable. As Richard is drawn into their inner circle, he learns a terrifying secret that binds them to one another…a secret about an incident in the woods in the dead of night where an ancient rite was brought to brutal life…and led to a gruesome death. And that was just the beginning….”
An entry in to the Penguin Book Awards, my aim was to create an illustration that captured the mystery of the book, encouraging the reader to be the explorer.
Illustrating the spooky atmosphere in the woods where the unnerving incident happens, inspired by German Expressionist Ernst Ludwig Kirchner’s powerful use of colour.
Confident, use of the paintbrush to capture the moving mist between the trees. The deer, which appears in the story, is painted using the same colour palette but a darker tone, letting it merge into the background. The trees are produced using kitchen towel stained with coffee grains to create an interesting texture, pen and ink marks were then added to show the details of the beautiful nature. Twisting inbetween the trees are Greek letters symbolising the Greek songs, which could be heard in the forest.
Hi! I'm Charlotte Wood, a freelance illustrator living and working in both UK and Luxembourg. I hope you'll enjoy my illustration portfolio. If you would like to commission a project or just say hello please contact me. 
