Avast, ye maties! This is a spread I recently completed for Billboard Magazine. The story is about tacking a monthly fee onto your internet bill which will help offset the losses record companies are experiencing due to illegal file sharing. It’s a controversial idea and a tricky one to illustrate. I worked Billboard‘s creative director, Josh Klenert to come up with the concept and at one point, found myself on a conference call with the two editors, discussing concepts… I mostly listened. We settled on this idea, where a pirate is being charged a toll to go out and pillage the seas. Is it just me, or are all illustrators called in as a last resort to solve nearly impossible conceptual challenges? Anyway, I had fun with this and I really like the design of the spread.

Below are the sketch, final inks and an in progress screenshot. And while we’re on the subject of pirates… If you find yourself in the Bay Area, be sure to pick up an extra glass eye at the 826 Valencia Pirate Supply Store on your way to L.J. Quinn’s Lighthouse for a shot o whisky with Skip Henderson and Starboard Watch.