If you cast your mind back to all of ten days ago, you'll remember that we announced that we were running an illustration competition to mark Friendship Day 2017. After all, friendships are the cornerstones of, and the key to surviving most of our 20s, and we want to celebrate them in all their guises and forms.
The only rules were, the illustrations had to be on the theme of Friendship In Your 20s. Apart from that they could be in any medium and format. We had a fantastic response - clearly this is a subject very close to your heart, and picking a winner and five runners up took absolutely ages because the standard of the entrants was so incredibly high.
Anyway guys, Friendship Day 2017 is here, and the moment has arrived. So without further ado, here's the winner and runners up of our friendship illustration competition...
Winner
Katharine Hill, 32 @katharinemaryhill
'I think twenty-something friendship is hilarious because as friends you're all still living in the gap between who you want to be, and who you actually are. It's a time when everyone is trying on different identities and working out what suits them. That's what I wanted my illustration to show - in your twenties you might want to be the cool Chanel girl with sleek nails and expensive taste but you're actually still getting horrifically sunburned or eating McFlurries on the bus at 2am. So, I think twenty-something friendship is especially brilliant because it's all about supporting each other through those (often very ridiculous) contradictions.'
Katharine will receive a framed print of her illustration...
Runners Up
Alice Kiteley, 24 @alicekiteley
*I got the idea for my collage through my own experiences of friendships in my 20's. Your 20's are the time you pick your own family, I found mine at university. We had crazy nights out that we still reminisce about and some serious disagreements but we were always able to say sorry and cuddle up in bed and watch game of thrones together while discussing how we will all become old together and own a load of cats. *
Amelia Flower, 24 @ameliaflower
'My idea for the illustration came from my own experience of house-sharing with friends at University in my early 20s. Fortunately, we were all great friends, but I know that this can be a horrific experience for many people! Friendships can change drastically in your 20s, with new jobs, interests, and personalities, and so this was my inspiration for this image.'
Claire Sydney, Studio Flos, 33 @studiflos
*I usually illustrate women on their own, but for this piece I decided to take three ladies that I had used in previous illustrations and pose them together. The idea behind it is one of support and friendship, and that differences don't matter. *
Sarah Harvey, 28 @harveysprinkle
'There are so many wonderful things about friendships in your twenties that I wanted to try and convey but for some reason the only thing I felt like drawing was me and my friends wasted.. it may have had something to do with the fact I sat down to draw after a night out with my flat mate/bff .. so yeh, I drew the aftermath of a night out that happens so regularly where we come home with a shit load of food that we are too drunk to eat, talk about the night, our lives, the world, how much we love each other etc etc.. and put on a film/documentary which we are definitely too drunk to watch and end up falling asleep together on the sofa (which is really cute and we laugh about it the next day) .. waking up at 6am with the sun blazing in on us and then scuttling off to our beds. It's a truly beautiful thing.'
Silvia Sperduta, 26 @sperduteillustrazioni
The themes of nature and universe are quite often predominant in my illustrations. I look at the night sky and think of planets and stars as a mysterious and positive influence looking over us.
The inspiration for this illustration comes of course from direct experience.
*The habit of having a drink, some tea or coffee, with a friend to spend some time together in complete relax, sharing intimate thoughts, talking about the future or just enjoying each other’s company, even in silence sometimes. *
These are some of the sweetest moments, and to me it is like some sort of ritual. It really does feel as you could be in your own peaceful universe, a little space cut out just for friendship with nothing else to worry about, just surrounded by the best people you could wish for.
**The runners up will all receive a print of their illustration - well done to everyone who entered! **
**Liked this? You might also be interested in: **
Ghosting: What It's Really Like When Your Oldest Friend Phases You Out
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.