It’s time, dear readers, for Issue 042! This issue contains 12 stories by emerging women-identifying authors bursting with creativity, and is available on our site, in print, and in digital format. As always, we’ve picked the best cover art, this time brought to us by the amazing and talented Eleonor Piteira! Eleonor was kind enough to talk with is about her art. Check out our interview below!
LSQ: Please tell us about the cover image “The Trevus Lock.” Is there a story behind this image? What is “Planet Meteora”?
Eleonor: “The Trevus Lock” is an illustration that is part of my on-going personal project Trevus. It’s a science-fiction fantasy story set in four different planets, the characters that live in them, and the ancient mysteries that tie them together. One of the planets is called Meteora, which is the one pictured in this illustration. The vertical structure in this illustration represents a sort of door, which has four locks but only one seems to be opened or activated—this signifies that there is a whole that is disconnected. Meanwhile, a lonely figure looks on towards an abyss. It’s a desolate image, for all that there are elements of beauty—even beauty has its end, and even endings can be beautiful. That’s very linked to the story of Meteora and Trevus as a whole.
LSQ: Your artwork is so evocative, even if no characters are present. How do you go
about creating effective storytelling through your art?
Eleonor: Thank you! To be very honest, I still have a lot to learn about effective storytelling. I do love to explore symbolic elements in my illustrations, and those elements often hint at a story. Things like light, color, geometric elements, characters’ expressions, poses and clothing, among other things, can all help to communicate something. Though I like to leave things open for interpretation, I always do my best to choose these elements with care and for a reason that serves what I’m trying to portray in the illustration I’m working on.
LSQ: Please tell us more about the subjects of your art: e.g., fantasy, science fiction, and space. What draws you to these subjects? Where does your inspiration come from?
Eleonor: I just really draw things that I love and that fascinate me. Space has always enticed me ever since I was a child, so I try to imbue that sense of wonder and mystery in my work. Considering that, an inclination towards the science-fiction and fantasy side of things seems quite natural—the possibilities, the scale, the different realities and characters, intricate lore and enigmas, these are all things that capture my imagination and that I like to explore.
LSQ: Do you have a personal favorite of the projects you’ve worked on? Or one that was memorable due to its challenges? If so, can you tell us a bit about it?
Eleonor: Certainly! I don’t think I will ever stop sharing this story: In 2018, I was part of a charity fanzine called “You’ll Never Know” (organised by Kathryn Simrell), about Guillermo del Toro’s movie The Shape of Water, where I contributed with an illustration that hinted at a slightly different take on the story. A few months after, in 2019, through an amazing Twitter tag called #VisibleWomen, Guillermo del Toro himself came across my work and
liked the illustration so much that he shared it on his Twitter account, and even shared his interpretation of the illustration and how it could totally be a part of the canon story of the movie. As a huge fan of his work, this was absolutely surreal but also one of the most amazing things that have ever happened to me!