Touching the Void is a true survival story that follows two mountaineers, Joe Simpson and Simon Yates, on their expedition through the Peruvian Andes. This book was a favourite of mine throughout highschool and, having grown up in the Southern Alps, feel a strong connection to this story and its characters! I adapted the book from a 200 page novel to a 4 page script and from there, decided I wanted to tell the story visually with limited text. As this is a true story, I wanted the landscape of the mountain to be accurate to that of Siula Grande, while still maintaining a ‘comic book’ feel.
The style changed a lot in the beginning but I stuck to a few ground rules to keep the piece cohesive, (three/four colours, small figures) and ensured the evolution of the style was seamless. This assignment really pushed me to learn the way people perceive sequential art and how to make sure the reader can follow the story with ease. One particular challenge was trying to create a sense of tension and suspense with only text and colour. I have learnt a lot from this project and look forward to using this experience to inform my future illustrative works.
