Artists spend a lot of time looking for inspiration. I know this...

Artists spend a lot of time looking for inspiration. I know this because as an author I have a routine I use when I’m lacking my creative edge.

Part of that routine is scrolling through a folder of post-apocalyptic images I’ve collected over the years. And every time I do so I come across this drawing. For a variety of reasons I find this one to be particularly intriguing.

Today I think I finally figured out why…

A theme I’ve tackled in my recent work is life after the apocalypse, and part of that revolves around children. Can you imagine growing up in a world so very different from the one we live in? One with no iPhones, internet, Hulu, Sushi and Cheeseburgers? Think about all of the things you love and then forget them. Then think about all of the things you had as a child and imagine what it would be like to have none of those things. No roof over your head, constant hunger, a nagging fear and having to watch those you love die around you.

When I look at this picture I wonder who this child is, and what his life is like. How different it must be from the life I had as a kid. And that’s what’s fascinating to me. Even after the apocalypse life does go on. People adapt. They survive. We are a resilient species, but in the end the innocence of children is robbed and stolen from us. The future generations end up being the real victims.