Ny Daily News: Relatives Have Hope

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/relatives-missing-malaysia-airlines-passengers-hopeful-article-1.1723195

Looking at several articles online has given me an insight into the anguish the relatives of the missing passengers of Malaysia Airline flight Mh370 have had to face.

I have illustrated one of the photographs from this article:

'A man cries at a prayer ceremony for passengers’ family members Saturday in Subang Jaya, Malaysia.'

The deep tones I have used bring out the detail and emotions of the relative. He is situated within a large white space signifying the loss he has suffered. However, the watercolour is quite dark portraying the image as quite harsh in comparison to others. Even so, the composition is effective to demonstrate his emotions and significant loss, once again touching upon the idea of a 'void' felt by the relatives.

Keeping the illustrations quite simple is effective for focusing on specific aspects of the news coverage of the missing flight MH370. As there are so many variations and elements to the story as a whole, along with past, present and ongoing articles, I have picked out specific articles relating to the emotions of the relatives which they have to endure without finding answers to their questions and any knowledge about what really happened to the flight.

Future illustrations will be more subtle, although this image could be de-saturated in Photoshop to make the tones less harsh.

Reportage Illustration: Relatives of the Missing Passengers (MH370)

A series of illustrations in mixed media watercolour and watercolour pencils, depicting the relatives and supporters of the passengers who went missing on the Malaysian Airline Flight MH370. All imagery has been illustrated from various news articles, re-invented in my own style to convey the sensitivity of the tragedy, and focus on the heartache, anger, frustration and hope of the relatives.

Some references to the original articles are provided as links of the imagery.

Relative of a passenger lighting a candle of hope

Relatives Protesting in frustration about the lack of information they have been receiving

Relatives lighting candles of hope

The subtlety of the watercolour demonstrates the sensitivity of the topic which I believe works very well. Reporting these areas of the news is important to generate a sense of empathy with the viewer who may or may not be familiar with the tragedy. For the standard viewer, the plane has been found. However, to the relatives of the missing 239 people onboard, there will not be any closure until the truth has been found and their questions have been answered. These images portray a sense of long-term loss and hope that some day they will be able to let go.

This is what is important.

Paul Weeks: A Missing Passenger of Flight MH370

Through reading many articles on the missing Malaysian Flight MH370, I came across a touching article on the Daily News America online about how one New Zealand missing passenger, Paul Weeks, left behind his ring and watch to his two children before he went away. 

The article introduces with the line "It may be their last gift from daddy". The use of the word "daddy" puts the viewer into the perspective of the children and how the loss of their father has affected them. 

Below, I aim to portray this sense of emotion of the children and their vulnerability towards the situation. The boy is playing with a toy plane in reference to the missing flight, but also to convey his youth and naivety about his missing father. 

To create the next two images below, I have used white oil pastel to draw the image and text with a wash of watercolour over the top. This creates a rustic, child-like effect giving a sense that a child has contributed to the illustrations, making them more personal.

The use of watercolour reflects on the sensitivity of the tragedy. The motto 'when is daddy coming home?' is an attempt to connect the viewer to the child relatives and empathise with them. However, I feel including this text in the illustration is too literal when, in fact, the image is self-explanatory on its own.

These illustrations are effective in portraying the relatives trauma throughout the event, in particular the children. However, it also demonstrates the distress of how a question like this could affect the mother who cannot answer truthfully, and is grieving the loss herself.

This watercolour illustration portrays Paul Weeks' sons in his arms, an image included in the Daily News America article, with himself absent from the image, conveying the mystery of the missing plane and how it has not been officially found. Weeks still wears his wedding ring and watch as he left those behind, however he has been left out of the image as a blank space, not portrayed as alive or dead, just 'missing' along with Flight MH370.