Backdrop illustration for print advertisement of a cerebration improver Berokka

A client came to me with an idea to show famous inventions of the past, exaggerating tricks the scientists used to improve their mind power for the new discoveries.
The most famous anecdotes about three great scientists were to be used with good effect in fun scenes, and accompanied with slogan «If only N. had had Berokka…»

«Our consumers - mainly men between 30 and 50 years old, who constantly need to solve problems. That’s why it’s important for them to react fast on the situations and make optimal decisions and flexible response.
In this way Berokka - is an easy way to brilliant ideas, that we are going to present in these illustrations.»

1. Archimedes

Archimedes of Syracuse (c. 287 – c. 212 BC) was a Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor and astronomer.

The most widely known anecdote about Archimedes tells of how he invented a method for determining the volume of an object with an irregular shape. A crown for had been made for King Hiero II of Syracuse, who had supplied the pure gold to be used, and Archimedes was asked to determine whether some silver had been substituted by the dishonest goldsmith. Archimedes had to solve the problem without damaging the crown, so he could not melt it down into a regularly shaped body in order to calculate its density. While taking a bath, he noticed that the level of the water in the tub rose as he got in, and realized that this effect could be used to determine the volume of the crown. Archimedes then took to the streets naked, so excited by his discovery that he had forgotten to dress, crying "Eureka!", meaning «I have found!» The test was conducted successfully, proving that silver had indeed been mixed in. Wiki

The main accent of the illustration - Archimedes became a maniac of bathing, because it helps him to think more effectively. Though if only he had had this remedy…

For the illustration I used warm yellow tones of ancient Greek mosaics and a colour of stone of local ruins.

Archimedes is resting, do not disturb!

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2. Mendeleev

Dmitri Ivanovich Mendeleev (1834 –1907) was a Russian chemist and inventor. He formulated the Periodic Law, created a farsighted version of the periodic table of elements, and used it to correct the properties of some already discovered elements and also to predict the properties of eight elements yet to be discovered.

As he attempted to classify the elements according to their chemical properties, he noticed patterns that led him to postulate his periodic table; he claimed to have envisioned the complete arrangement of the elements in a dream:

"I saw in a dream a table where all elements fell into place as required. Awakening, I immediately wrote it down on a piece of paper, only in one place did a correction later seem necessary."Wiki

The accent. For Mendeleev the best way to find effective decisions was to put his head on the pillow and take a nap.

Mendeleev in his study and a typical home office of 19th century:

There is a bottle of vodka on the table.
A popular story is that a Mendeleev who came up with the 40% standard strength of vodka as a Director of the Bureau of Weights and Measures. This story has, for instance, been used in marketing claims by the Russian Standard vodka brand. Actually the standard was accepted when Mendeleev was 9.

Just a dream:

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3. Newton

Sir Isaac Newton (1642 – 1726/27) was an English mathematician, astronomer, theologian, author and physicist (described in his own day as a "natural philosopher") who is widely recognised as one of the most influential scientists of all time, and a key figure in the scientific revolution.
Newton himself often told the story that he was inspired to formulate his theory of gravitation by watching the fall of an apple from a tree. But became popular a cartoonish version that the apple actually hit Newton's head.Wiki

The illustration develops the thought showing Newton had exploited this situation (apples falling on this head) in order to find the new ideas.

Mood board:

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More stories here :)

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