Lonely World Album Artwork

Client: Josh Dugue / Avec Moi Project: Album artwork for Lonely World Medium: Hand-painted watercolor, India ink, hand lettering Final Size: 60" × 12" across 3 illustration boards Role: Illustrator + hand-lettering artist

Lonely World was a commissioned album artwork piece for Chicago-based songwriter and musician Josh Dugue and his band Avec Moi.

The final piece was created as a 60" × 12" panoramic illustration across three separate boards. The Lonely World lettering was its own hand-painted panel, while the remaining two 30" × 12" boards formed an extended foldout-style visual world for the album.

The artwork was built entirely by hand using watercolor, India ink, and custom hand lettering. Instead of treating the lyrics as text placed over the image, I worked them into the composition as ribbons, banners, and pathways moving through the illustrated world.

The song had a somber, whimsical quality that pushed the visual direction toward floating landscapes, fragile characters, open space, and storybook-like details.

The final artwork became both an album cover and a physical storytelling piece. It translated the emotional tone of the title track into something tactile, handmade, and visually memorable.

Years later, I noticed similarities to the visual language of The Little Prince, even though I had never read the book or watched the Netflix movie at the time. That connection made the project feel even more meaningful because the style came from responding honestly to the music rather than following a reference.