Using artistic illustration to communicate abstract and invisible ideas in the software engineering domain

Computer software is invisible and the discipline of software engineering includes a number of complex abstract concepts which are near impossible to visualize. We educate learners in a variety of ways using metaphor and comparative example but often people need to see the problem before they can understand even the need for a solution. To this end a set of illustrations have been created using the metaphor of bridge engineering to help beginners in software engineering to understand the fundamental problems of coping with changing requirements and evolving systems. These, along with the narrative they describe, are presented as an example of one possible approach to making software engineering more accessible.