Series of graphic props belonging to John Blacksad, the main character of the comic book series “Blacksad”.

Set in 1950 New York City, the story starts when John Blacksad, a private detective, discovers that his ex-lover Natalia Wilford has been murdered. He decides to find the culprit and make them pay.

I have created some items that could be found on Blacksad's messy desk, based on the 4 books: a cigarette pack, the photo of Natalia Wilford, torn from the newspaper announcing her death, his business cards along with a couple of fake ones used during his investigations, a letter wrote to him by his friend in the 3rd book and a bourbon bottle. Even though the characters are anthropomorphic (Blacksad is a black cat), I made them humans for this project, to make it more real.

I designed the props based on real American ephemera from the 1950s, using stock photos. I illustrated the cigarette tax stamp (the original also has a portrait of DeWitt Clinton) and created the pack using cardboard and foil. I had an empty spirit bottle at home, so the label was made to fit on it.