Cover stories: Issue 20.2 by Tom Jay

Cover stories: Issue 20.2 by Tom Jay

Dubbels, Tripels, Trappists and Saisons. Illustrator Tom Jay gets the beers in for the cover of our Belgian special

Beer Belgium Cover Stories cover story illustration Magazine covers Racing rouleur magazine Tom Jay

Rouleur’s Editor Andy [McGrath] emailed me to see if I would be interested in illustrating the cover of Rouleur 20.2. It was to be a Belgium special, celebrating all things Belgian. There was quite a lot to include: a Patrick Lefevere interview; heart problems with Johan Vansummeren; cyclo-cross; Tour of Flanders. Of course, I said yes.


My initial ideas were to go with an iconic Belgian landscape, or a lay down of different illustrated elements pulled from all the individual stories. This could’ve been quite straight forward, but I felt it lacked a cohesive element that would pull it all together. As an illustrator you’re always looking for the most effective way to communicate the brief. Is it intriguing? Is it entertaining? Does it bring something else to the table? And does it work with the text?

Tom Jay

I thought that as Belgium has a long tradition of brewing, and as some of its beers are often an an accompaniment to Belgian races, it could be fun to use the bottle labels to illustrate the different stories to be featured. I sent some really rough sketches over to Rouleur, and they went for it. Andy and I chatted through how it could work, using the the text on the labels to write the sub-headlines. It would mean the whole cover would be illustrated, apart from the main headline, which I think is a first for the retail cover.

Tom Jay


With this all in place I could start the final illustration. I draw all elements by hand using pencil, ink, chinagraph pencils and acrylic paint. I then put them together in layers on the computer, where I can control the colours. The colour pallet was obvious here: red yellow and black to really ramp up the Belgian-ness!


More Rouleur cover stories


As always the team at Rouleur were great with their feedback and comments, making sure I was drawing the right things the right way and spelling things correctly. (I managed to spell Belgium wrong on one of the first edits!) It’s also a credit to the magazine that they are so open to doing something different. It was a pleasure to work on, and I’m looking forward to seeing it on the shelves.

Tom Jay is an illustrator whose work, as well as Rouleur, has been seen in the New York Times, The Independent, The Daily Telegraph and The Financial Times, and many others. See more of it at www.tomjay.com.


Rouleur 20.2 is on sale in the Rouleur Emporium now

 
 

The post Cover stories: Issue 20.2 by Tom Jay appeared first on The world's finest cycling magazine.

Beer Belgium Cover Stories cover story illustration Magazine covers Racing rouleur magazine Tom Jay

READ MORE

From the Editor: No. 135 - Giro

From the Editor: No. 135 - Giro

Dear Reader, Johnny Green was the former road manager of the Clash, a sardonic, literate, poetic and sharply dressed chancer from Kent whose natural habitat...

Leer más
Liège-Bastogne-Liège Femmes 2025 Preview - Can Demi Vollering finally get her win?

Liège-Bastogne-Liège Femmes 2025 Preview - Can Demi Vollering finally get her win?

The last round of Ardennes week is the toughest challenge yet – who will come out on top?

Leer más
My ongoing three-year battle with cancer, by Lidl-Trek manager Luca Guercilena

My ongoing three-year battle with cancer, by Lidl-Trek manager Luca Guercilena

Lidl-Trek manager Luca Guercilena was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma in the autumn of 2021 aged 48, an aggressive but treatable type of chronic cancer. For...

Leer más
‘I listened to my DS for a change’ - Perseverance has finally paid off for Puck Pieterse

‘I listened to my DS for a change’ - Perseverance has finally paid off for Puck Pieterse

Fenix-Deceuninck rider claims her first Classics win at La Flèche Wallonne

Leer más
Has order been restored? Tadej Pogačar is the King of Huy

Has order been restored? Tadej Pogačar is the King of Huy

No one could come close to the world champion when he attacked on the final climb of La Flèche Wallonne- what does this mean for...

Leer más

READ RIDE REPEAT

JOIN ROULEUR TODAY

Get closer to the sport than ever before.

Enjoy a digital subscription to Rouleur for just £4 per month and get access to our award-winning magazines.

SUBSCRIBE