Illustration & Visual Narrative - Task 1
07/09/2022 - 17/09/2022 // (Week 2 - Week 3)
Denise Anjali // 0342430
Illustration & Visual Narrative // Bachelor of Design in Creative Media
Task 1 - Vormator challenge
LECTURES
Week 2:
Illustrator is the basics of graphic design. The pen tool in illustrator is important as it is versatile and can be used in various ways. Understanding how the pen tool works is the main goal of today's class.
INSTRUCTIONS
Exercise 1 : Vormator Challenge
Denise Anjali // 0342430
Illustration & Visual Narrative // Bachelor of Design in Creative Media
Task 1 - Vormator challenge
LECTURES
Week 2:
Illustrator is the basics of graphic design. The pen tool in illustrator is important as it is versatile and can be used in various ways. Understanding how the pen tool works is the main goal of today's class.
All characters have a base shape. Their silhouette. Shapes of a character can give a certain connotation about their personality or role.
Week 3: Character Design Basics
Week 3: Character Design Basics
Most memorable designs are stylised, with simple shapes and colour palettes. The most famous character designs are iconic, simplified, and unique. Design elements and principles are important in this as well. Shapes are the basis of any character. Strong characters tend to have a square base shape while villainous characters tend to have sharp edges. Colour establishes the basic roles of the character. Colour psychology is something to consider. Emphasis and contrast work together to help create memorable characters. All the elements in the design should work in harmony, consider the visual hierarchy. Bonus: Expressions and poses showcase what the character is like and what they stand for.
Week 6:
Process of the illustration is important to keep track of and cultivate. It is good for exploration and finding various solutions.
Week 6:
Process of the illustration is important to keep track of and cultivate. It is good for exploration and finding various solutions.
INSTRUCTIONS
Exercise 1 : Vormator Challenge
Starting the vormator challenge by using the pen tool to trace the shapes used in the challenge. This also served as practice in using the pen tool.
Figure 1.1: Traced vormator shapes, Week 2 (07/09/2022)
Using these shapes, we are meant to create a character. The rules of this challenge are that we cannot distort the given shapes and we cannot use strokes, only the filled shapes. For now, we are instructed to focus on the silhouette of the character rather than the colours, details etc.
I sketched out random ideas for various characters on Photoshop first based on the shapes we were allowed to use. The sketches are numbered in order of oldest to newest sketched. I started off with human ideas and then gravitated towards more non-human characters.
Figure 1.3: Character creation process, Week 2 (07/09/2022)
Figure 1.2: Character silhouette sketches, Week 2 (07/09/2022)
I sketched out random ideas for various characters on Photoshop first based on the shapes we were allowed to use. The sketches are numbered in order of oldest to newest sketched. I started off with human ideas and then gravitated towards more non-human characters.
Figure 1.3: Character creation process, Week 2 (07/09/2022)
I assembled the character from sketch #6 in Illustrator. I liked this one because it is mostly symmetrical and fairly simple. I used the coloured shapes while assembling so that it was easier to tell which shapes I was using. I mainly used the pathfinder and shapebuilder tool when creating the character to get the shapes I needed.
Figure 1.4: Character silhouette, Week 2 (07/09/2022)
Figure 1.4: Character silhouette, Week 2 (07/09/2022)
I made the final silhouette black and white for clarity. The mouth is an exception as I wanted to show some depth while still implying that the character has a hole in the center of its torso.
I also liked sketch #7 so I wanted to try my hand at creating it in Illustrator.
Figure 1.5: 2nd character creation process, Week 2 (09/09/2022)
Figure 1.6: 2nd character silhouette, Week 2 (09/09/2022)
I also liked sketch #7 so I wanted to try my hand at creating it in Illustrator.
Figure 1.5: 2nd character creation process, Week 2 (09/09/2022)
This character is a lot more rounded and has many fluid lines. This made it a struggle to see which shapes would fit best together to create the final shape. I used the pathfinder and shapebuilder tool a lot more often for this character.
Figure 1.6: 2nd character silhouette, Week 2 (09/09/2022)
The final character silhouette in black and white managed to look similar to the initial sketch. This character has more detached parts but it is still fairly symmetrical like the previous one. I like this character design more as it is more interesting than the previous design.
During class, we learnt about and experimented with the various blending modes and pathfinder tools in order to help us in adding colour and details to our character.
Figure 1.7: Class tutorial outcomes for blending and pathfinder, Week 3 (14/09/2022)
Using the skills learnt during class, I started adding colour and details to my character.
Figure 1.9: Coloured character design, Week 3 (15/09/2022)
Figure 1.10: Final character design, Week 3 (17/09/2022)
During class, we learnt about and experimented with the various blending modes and pathfinder tools in order to help us in adding colour and details to our character.
Figure 1.7: Class tutorial outcomes for blending and pathfinder, Week 3 (14/09/2022)
Using the skills learnt during class, I started adding colour and details to my character.
Figure 1.8: Character design colouring process, Week 3 (15/09/2022)
My character is a ghostly water spirit so I wanted to give it a pale, monochromatic colour scheme. Due to the affiliation with water, I kept it completely in shades of blue except for its eyes which are white like most dead things.
Figure 1.9: Coloured character design, Week 3 (15/09/2022)
I used the knife tool to cut the subtle patterns in the shapes for added detail. The scales in the bottom half were made using pathfinder while the shadows were created using knife tool and changing the shade of the colours.
Figure 1.10: Final character design, Week 3 (17/09/2022)
I went back and added gradients to some of the character to create more depth. I also used the over lay blending mode for the simple shapes such as the horns to serve as a highlight. This is my final outcome for the vormator challenge.
For week 6, after we had completed the digital triptych, we explored chiaroscuro on Illustrator. Chiaroscuro is the play of light and shadow on an image. During the tutorial, we experimented with this by tracing a pear and its shadows.
Figure 1.11: Exploration of chiaroscuro on pears, Week 6 (05/10/2022)
For our practical, we were instructed to do the same but with an image of a man. We were expected to be more careful with the details for this one.
Figure 1.12: Chiaroscuro of a man, Week 6 (06/10/2022)
For week 6, after we had completed the digital triptych, we explored chiaroscuro on Illustrator. Chiaroscuro is the play of light and shadow on an image. During the tutorial, we experimented with this by tracing a pear and its shadows.
Figure 1.11: Exploration of chiaroscuro on pears, Week 6 (05/10/2022)
For our practical, we were instructed to do the same but with an image of a man. We were expected to be more careful with the details for this one.
Figure 1.12: Chiaroscuro of a man, Week 6 (06/10/2022)
REFLECTION
Exploration: The first exercise, the Vormator challenge, was to create a character from a limited set of shapes. I found this exercise to be intriguing as I had to get creative with several Illustrator tools in order to create the silhouette I had come up with.
Observations: I found that while creating a silhouette was simple, executing it was harder. I also learnt that no matter the amount of experimentation I did, I had to stick to one to develop anyway so might as well leave discarded ideas at the sketching stage.
Findings: This exercise mainly lead me to explore the basics of Illustrator such as the pathfinder and shapebuilder tools, the gradient tool, the blending layers, and the knife tool.
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