This illustration was designed to inform visitors of the National Aquarium why Baltimore Harbor appears green during particular times of the year, a phenomenon known as a “Pistachio Tide”. Insets walk the viewer through four main steps, from the conditions that cause the tide to its impact on local wildlife. I chose to depict an underwater view of the Harbor to accentuate the migration of green sulfur bacteria from the Harbor floor to the surface. To create a more dynamic scene engaging to viewers of all ages, I chose to render in a whimsical, watercolor style and emphasized the bright green color of the Pistachio Tide. Because minimal literature exists of the chemical process related to the Pistachio Tide, several experts (including a University of Maryland associate professor and a biochemist as well as National Aquarium staff) were consulted to confirm the chemical accuracy; this illustration corrects an error present in previous Aquarium documents on the chemical compounds involved in the process. All text meets the requirements for WCAG level AA, with a contrast ratio of 4.5:1 for all body text and 3:1 for the title. Scroll below to see my process!

A couple doodles and thumbnails

The most dynamic and engaging layout was determined and developed further

A very quick color thumbnail done in Photoshop to get a feel for what the final will look like

Final transfer sketches of each individual asset completed in pen & ink and compiled in Photoshop. Text placeholders added to better gauge the final layout.

Final rendering was completed in Photoshop. Through multiple revisions, the word story was added and tweaked for clarity, and the leaf inset changed to better depict the process of thermal inversion. During the process, the anoxygenic photosynthesis formula was revised after noticing an error in the original literature.

Here is the final piece!