Really, it is December already? Where on earth did this fall go? It seems like they were just bringing out the Halloween costumes. Since the stores do that in the middle of August these days, you really know time has flown by. There's been lots of art happening, whether I like it or not. This semester, I only took two studio classes, but one is mostly computer work. The other class is Illustration. I guess you could say illustration is a pretty broad term, but the basis of it is that the image portrays a specific idea, action, or has a specific purpose. In other words, there shouldn't be a group of scholars squinting at it, reading meaning into every brush stroke 200 years later...
Used in advertising, editorials, children's books, they are supposed to be concise depictions of what the client wants. Lots of planning, brainstorming, and revisions goes into a finished illustration. My professor said you should never go with your first idea. So, shhhh...don't tell him I always went back to my first thought. I personally have to find a balance between planning and just doing when it comes to my artwork. If I over-think it, it doesn't turn out as perfect as I imagined and I get frustrated. But if I don't hunt down some reference material, which is often the hardest part, then my work ends up looking unresolved.
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Here are some of my better illustrations I've done this fall. For the first piece, we had to make our own scratch board out with crayons. It was really easy, just time consuming. First, your had to lightly lay down the base color on smooth illustration board. Then you went over that color with the black crayon, building it layer by layer and rubbing it with your finger so it had almost a varnish look to it. To create this image, we were to take an everyday kitchen utensils and a fruit and depict it as something else. I had measuring spoons and an apple. Don't ask me what specific meaning it has, because even I don't know...
For the next set of illustrations, we had to turn ourselves into caricatures. We had to complete four different drawings that included one that showed an emotion, a close-up, one that put us into a fantastical place, and put ourselves into a famous image. So, first I want to say that there is absolutely no copyright infringement intended what so ever...
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| So yes, I'm a bit of a Lord of the Rings fan...this is pen. |
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| Ink wash (basically watercolor) |
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Black Colored pencil on coquille board.
If you don't know, this is a play on Norman Rockwell's Triple Self-Portrait. |
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| India Ink |
