Eustace And The New Crisis — a UN Refugee Agency Collaboration

The New Crisis, An Acrylic and Collage on Canvas by Borbay created for the UN Refugee Agency

It began with a tweet. Alan Rich responded, recommending yours truly — one hour later, I was on a call with Brian Reich of the UN Refugee Agency, discussing the project.

The concept? A New Yorker-inspired painting, addressing the Global Refugee Crisis. Brian’s original 9th Avenue World View idea, transformed to a modern take on the original New Yorker cover, featuring Eustace Tilley… the New York Dandy.

You can view the entire process captured in time lapse, with a powerful soundtrack courtesy of MH the Verb and GR Stone...

The New Crisis, Painting Process by Borbay — Painting created for the UN Refugee Agency

Choosing the headlines for a project of this magnitude required careful, diligent collaboration. Following several back-and-forth rounds with Brian, we discovered a perfect balance.

The New Crisis, Painting Process by Borbay — Painting created for the UN Refugee Agency

Here, you can see the collage map alongside the trimmed content, ready for pasting.

The New Crisis, Painting Process by Borbay — Painting created for the UN Refugee Agency

Collaged and ready for paint.

The New Crisis, Painting Process by Borbay — Painting created for the UN Refugee Agency

Orange under painting, orange wash.

The New Crisis, Painting Process by Borbay — Painting created for the UN Refugee Agency

A gentle blue gradient in the sky.

The New Crisis, Painting Process by Borbay — Painting created for the UN Refugee Agency

Drawing in “The New Crisis” — found the appropriate typeface for The New Yorker, and re-created the masthead. Incidentally, for years, The New Yorker hosted “Eustace Tilley” design contests… I entered in 2010.

The New Crisis, Painting Process by Borbay — Painting created for the UN Refugee Agency

Painting in section by section… burgundy red, hunter green, shades of grey… regal.

The New Crisis, An Acrylic and Collage on Canvas by Borbay created for the UN Refugee Agency

And with the addition of a butterfly… The New Crisis. It was a pleasure working with you Brian.

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