Project One (con't): adding a background to our design

The video capture features a straight background where the fence cuts horizontally across the picture, the hedges create a backdrop against the fence, and the city buildings are vertical, straight up and down.

That's fine for a cartoon but for our Golden Book page... or cover... or inside cover... I want to put Wally dead center and build the scene around him.  I figure something like this will do the trick:

Notice that our perspective of the fence has changed; it now curves a bit around the little pond.  The hedges still form a backdrop and the city buildings are still up and down.  I've also plugged in a "City Zoo" sign to sort of beat the storyline to death: Wally's stuck on a little island in a little pond in the city zoo.  No place for an adventurous alligator.

See how the picture already seems to suggest a story?  What's Wally thinking about?  Bet it's not how satisfied he is staying on his little island.  Is that itty-bitty chain-link fence supposed to stop him from exploring?  Well... would it stop you?

I'm using different colors to isolate the elements: foreground and background.  The sign was slapped together but the final product won't be edged by thick lines like that.  In fact, the sign and the background will be "drawn with paint," no boundary lines.  The lettering is effective but maybe it'd be better to hand-draw the letters.  What do you think?

Well, we've got a pretty good design here.  Now to make it into a painting!  Stay tuned.