Breathing Life into Old Work: Tips from High School
Let’s talk about something I’ve been doing for years: taking old artwork and giving it a fresh purpose. It started way back in the 1970s when I was in Commercial Art training—a program with a mix of graphic design and illustration. My mentor, Mr. Sandeman, taught me one of the most valuable lessons I use to this day.
I used to love to start my week with this. I eventually changed the name of it to "The Monday Challenge". This assignment was all about having students consider reusing existing illustrations. I would make them go through their stash of past assignments or personal pieces and rework them to fit new project briefs. The goal? The intention was to have them look at the work they had in a different light. It could be to create a book cover, some packaging, or perhaps a poster—all using artwork they already had.
Why Repurpose?
This mindset of reusing old work isn’t just a time-saver—it can expand your
creative portfolio in ways you might not expect. Art doesn’t expire just because it feels “old” to you. In fact, some of my favorite pieces came from reworking things I almost threw away. Trust me, the trash bin holds treasure sometimes.
Practical Ways to Refresh Old Work
Ready to breathe some new life into your old creations?A simple color adjustment can do wonders. Try experimenting with seasonal trends, muted palettes, or even switching to monochrome. You can use tools like Photoshop’s hue/saturation sliders, or explore your vector software to find quick ways to update the look. Little changes here and there can completely transform a piece. This piece was sold in all colorways on ArtWall.
Look at the piece and decide if it would work better with fewer details (like turning it into a silhouette) or if it could benefit from more texture or elements. Sometimes, removing clutter can make a design shine, and other times, creating layers and depth adds the wow factor you’re looking for. I have licensed all 4 of these pieces based on the same line work I created in Adobe Illustrator about 8 years ago:
Don’t underestimate how scaling up or down can change a design’s entire personality. You can make some motifs pop by enlarging them, or create intricate patterns by shrinking and repeating elements. It’s a small adjustment but can lead to big changes.
Change the arrangement of your motifs to create a new pattern type. Try playing with tossed layouts, half-drop repeats, or other pattern types that give your design a fresh feel. Rotating your elements or experimenting with symmetry can also create unexpected results.
For a richer, more complex look, try layering your motifs. Place silhouettes or abstract patterns behind your detailed elements to create depth and versatility
My Go-To Process
When I’m looking for inspiration, one of my first stops is my old sketchbooks or personal art files. Sometimes I don’t use anything directly, but they give me ideas to build on. I do keep keep physical sketchbooks and files, but I also scan and organize my artwork digitally by motif type or in general categories, like backgrounds. This system saves me from drowning in paper and lets me quickly pull up past work when I feel stuck. Plus, if space is tight, digital storage is a lifesaver.
There’s beauty (and practicality) in recycling your work. Not only can it fill gaps in your portfolio, but it also opens doors to new ideas you may not have thought of before. Developing this habit turned into one of my most valuable tools as a designer, and it’s something I encourage my students to do as well.
So the next time you’re feeling creatively stuck or pressed for time, don’t start from scratch. Dig into your archives—whether it’s a dusty sketchpad or an old design file—and see what you can create.
Old work doesn’t have to sit forgotten. With a little effort, it can shine in ways you never imagined.
