The above images are three illustrations of spinach I made for Sow True Seed, an open-pollinated and heirloom garden seed company. I illustrated three varieties of spinach: America, Winter Giant, and Bloomsdale Longstanding (shown in that order), and these images will be printed on the seed packets. I had my choice of vegetables and I picked spinach because it is a personal favorite of mine and it reminds me of my Greek heritage.

The company sent me reference images to work from, and I also did a lot of image searches online while researching. In the end, I used my own props and made up the spinach from my own imagination. It was a huge challenge for me to work from imagination and I’m glad I took a shot at it. The ink work is a little different than what I do normally – I was going for a more heavy handed look, like a woodcut.

I am thinking of framing these together and hanging them in my kitchen. The packets won’t be sold until the start of next year, and I will post a picture when that time comes around.