This work is Panel 1 from the "Fall Series."

The "Fall Series" was created while enrolled in Design Technology and Concepts, a graphic design course, at the University of South Carolina.

The assigned prompt instructed students to choose any particular word, and to explore the different definitions via four graphic design panels. I chose the word "fall" and created a series that explored four metaphorical definitions of the word. This work features various historical figures and fictional characters.

Created with Adobe Illustrator and Adobe Photoshop.

The "Fall Series" was displayed at the Founders Hall Gallery at the University of South Carolina Lancaster during a group exhibition that focused on student works from Design Technology and Concepts and Typographic Design I.

Concept Design & Creativity [Group exhibition]. (2026). Founders Hall Gallery, University of South Carolina Lancaster.

For this panel, I chose to focus on a "fall from pride," I was inspired by the quote; "Pride comes before the fall," which originally comes from the Christian Bible. The quote is thus: "Pride goeth before destruction, and an haughty spirit before a fall."

Another version of the quote is from the Jewish Torah: "Pride goes before ruin, Arrogance, before failure. Better to be humble and among the lowly…Than to share spoils with the proud."

I chose to focus on the Trojan War from Greek Mythology. The original myth is featured in the Iliad by Homer. More specifically, I chose to focus on Achilles. Pride is an major theme in the Iliad, and I wanted to explore consequences that stem from the arrogant actions of man.

The panel features a soldier in Troy while the city burns. Blood is stained on the stone walls of Troy, and there is a red sunset.

The silhouette of a Greek soldier can be interpreted as Achilles or as another character from the Iliad.

The fire represents the literal burning and metaphorical end of Troy.

Next, the stone wall represents the wall that Odysseus threw Hector’s infant son down to prevent a tragic prophecy from coming true, and it also displays the setting.

The blood on the walls represents the blood spilled during the Trojan War, especially during the burning of Troy.

Lastly, the red sunset represents the end of Troy, as a sunset is the end of a day.

I used red, orange, and yellow shades to symbolize the horrific events and bloodshed that happened during Troy, and to represent the fire that had engulfed the city. Red, orange, and yellow are colors that are often associated with rage, blood, aggression, ruin, danger, and desolation.

Pride comes before the fall. Arrogance and the haughtiness of men will be their downfall.