I see faces: First attempts at character

I tried a variety of different approaches to creating character so as to try and get a feel for both what I preferred creating and what seemed to leave more of an impact. Furthermore I constantly had in my mind what would and wouldn't work, or would be too difficult for my level of skill to animate correctly.

I think my main issue at this stage is that I haven't been quite as exhaustive or methodical in my approach to character design as I could been. Working faster and repeating characters, making adjustments/alterations and trying different poses and action would definitely have helped to flesh out some of these initial design more.

However despite this I think they do still have some merit.

In my mind there are two main issues with the character depicted in these first two spreads. The first one is aesthetic, with my previous thoughts on character design I think the use of a semi realistic face isn't memorable enough to fully hit the brief. Further more this level of detail may be hard to animate to it's full potential, especially in the form of a looping image.

Although still in it's initial design stage I actually like the simple character pictured above. In contrast to the first images I feel it has a certain weight due to how simple it is. The morose almost apprehensive expression is communicated really effectively and directly due to this which gives the impression there is some sort of back story going on.

Much like the first set of characters, i felt this yeti-esque design would be two difficult to transfer to moving image in the why I would want. I had envisioned it walking in a really jolty and awkward manner which, given the constraint of roughly 40 frames I don't think I would be able to animate smoothly enough.

I feel like there is a fair amount of potential with these last two designs. They are relatively simple yet have aspects that would allow them to be animated either dynamically or statically. For example I could see the pattern work/colour of the garments changing in a hypnotic manner or have them move in some sort of repetitive or uniform marching motion.

Leeds College of Art BA (Hons) ILLUSTRATION	Level	04
OUIL404 Visual Language	Credits	20
End of Module Self Evaluation

NAME	Christopher Martin Cooper

1.  Which practical skills and methodologies have you developed within this module and how effectively do you think you are employing them within your own practice?
On a practical level this module has completely changed the way in which I work. Through the various different techniques, media and processes we have been exposed to my work now tends to focus on a variety medias and visual processes most notably ink based and shape orientated work. This has resulted in me exploring more minimal and often graphic approaches to drawing with a focus on using texture to add warmth and interest to my images. Although I still have many hang ups with my own practice I much prefer and am even, to an extent, excited by this new way of working which contrasts greatly to the rough, lifeless and stale pencil based drawings I was creating at the start of the year.
2. Which principles/ theories of image making have you found most valuable during this module and how effectively do you think you are employing these within your own practice?
The most important principles learnt within this module have been repetition and risk taking in regards to creating drawings and using new processes. This is because the more adventurous you are with process and media, and the more you question how you create your images the more likely you are to come across a new and exciting way of approaching your own practice. However there is still a need for refinement and therefore drawing things over and over as well as repeating processes is essential in both focusing in on and further developing what is or isn't working within your practice.
3. What strengths can you identify within your Visual Language submission you capitalise on these?
My main strength has been my willingness to experiment as much as possible with new media and drawing processes. Within the module itself I capitalised on it by exhaustively exploring process, particularly with regards to line and shape which subsequently resulted in a very varied body of work. However the main way in which I capitalised on this was by transferring these skills into other modules which, particularly with regards to visual narratives led to a variety of highly successful and interesting outcomes.
4. What areas for development can you identify within your Visual Language submission and how will you address these in the future?
The use of lens and three dimensional elements is something I need to address. In future I need to spend more time considering the importance of art direction with regards to lens based work as it can result in work that has a strong and immediate impact on a viewer. This is something I felt I missed completely with my submission for the lens based task. As well as this I think the I need to improve in general on the refinement of my more exhaustive and experimental drawings that take place within my sketch book into more effective finished imagery. This is because in the process of refining artwork I often feel I lose some of the initial energy present in rougher work despite the final work not being slick enough to compensate for this loss often still feeling rough around the edges.
5. In what way has this module informed how you deconstruct and analyse artwork (whether your own or that of contemporary practitioners)? This module has led me to constantly question and deconstruct all aspects of my own work as well as that of contemporary practitioners. Although this hasn't been a concept driven module, this has mainly been through analysing and deconstructing what certain elements of an image do to the inferred meaning or tone within. The tasks focusing on the various elements of composition have been particularly enlightening in this regards as many elements, such as line of sight and value, were things I hadn't consciously considered in much depth before but which I now realise are essential to both the aesthetic and conceptual make up of your work as they are key to effectively delivering the ideas present in your work in a way that is harmonious and pleasing to the eye.
6.How would you grade yourself on the following areas: (please indicate using an ‘x’)  5= excellent, 4 = very good, 3 = good, 2 = average, 1 = poor
	1	2	3	4	5
Attendance				X
Punctuality				X
Motivation				X
Commitment				X
Quantity of work produced			X
Quality of work produced			X
Contribution to the group		X
The evaluation of your work is an important part of the assessment criteria and represents a percentage of the overall grade. It is essential that you give yourself enough time to complete your written evaluation fully and with appropriate depth and level of self-reflection. If you have any questions relating to the self-evaluation process speak to a member of staff as soon as possible.

Colour and Value

Value is the varying levels of light and dark present within a composition. It is essential to conveying a certain mood within an image, ie within a picture on a more solemn subject matter will have an ver all value or key comprising of much darker sets of tones where as something happier more jovial subject will have a lighter key.
However more than just setting a mood, value is of fundamental importance in separating the various elements within a composition and thus can be used to draw attention to key pints of interest. This is achieved by creating a harmonious sense of contrast between the light, mid and dark tones of an image with the areas of highest contrast (such as light on dark) being pushed to the front of the image and therefore often taking the centre of interest.

The main way in which value can be used to achieve this is by creating compositions which apply, light against dark, dark against light, dark and half-tone against light and light and dark against half tone some very basic examples of which are displayed above.

As well as value we also have to carefully consider colour within our compositions. This is both both in an aethetic sense (ie some colours don't work together/value is still needed to be considered so as to create harmony within the image) and a conceptual sense. As learnt in the visual skills module the wrong choice of colour can completely alter the intended meaning of an image.


Daniel Danger

For example in this above image by Daniel Danger the use of colour palette comprising of either reds or blue completely alters the mood. The one comprised of blues has a very ethereal, still and mysterious atmosphere to each that gives the impression of intense emptiness and silence. Conversely the red gives the image a very aggressive and tense feel that results in a foreboding sense of imminent violence.

Colour Ways

Subsequently we were given the task of creating a series of colour ways based off of an outfit we were wearing so as to better grasp how colours interact with each other.
In the below image I picked three similar but alternate colour ways. I think the bottom two should be more successful as both are composed of 4 tones of the same colour and then one contrasting colour used to accent them. However the value of the accenting colour (due to those present within the image) isn't of a high enough contrast to stand out from the other colours. Where as in the first image, although the contrast in colours isn't as dramatic, there is a wider and more harmonious range of values present.

Fan Art

So as to better grasp the use of depth within our compositions we were tasked with creating a screen printed fan art poster of any theme/subject we liked. On the technical sight of things it was important that we consider frame, depth , viewpoint and line of sight so as to better achieve a sense of depth. However aesthetically we were free to do what we wanted, however it was important we create our own interpretations of our chosen subject matter that should result in images that have been filtered through our own personal visual language rather than simple facsimiles of reference material.

A good example of this would be Jon Boam's work which often, as is the case in the above image, features characters and motifs from science fiction. These are created in his usual clunky, playful and jovial style which makes them instantly recognisable as his own work yet he also retains/includes certain details or motifs of the given characters so that it is still immediately obvious who they are.


Jon Boam

After a long think i decided to create my fan poster based on Frank Herbert's series of books known as the Dune Saga( NOT the film of which I've only scene, and not enjoyed, segments of ). Although it gave me a certain sense of freedom, I also set myself quite a hard task by choosing I subject that involved visually interpreting my own minds interpretation of a story rather than simply imagery that already exists. I think this resulted in imagery that wasn't as immediately recognisable and effective as the work of other's within the group.

Given the purpose of the task was to tackle depth I decided to create a since depicting Paul Attreides sat within a royal throne room surrounded by clerics. This was because I felt it was much more dramatic visually than the roughs depicting desert scenes. Furthermore I thought conceptually it was a bit more subtle in that it draws focus to the keys themes of religion and power rather than simply the obvious visual theme of sand dunes (although maybe, in terms of making it recognisable I shouldn't have underestimated the power of the obvious).

Compositionally I wanted to create something symmetrical, shape heavy with minimal use of 'traditional' line drawing', which followed a set of clear rules so as to mirror the formality of the depicted scene. I then used overlapping and varying in size of the clerics at the side of the image as well as clearly pushing Paul to the back of the image so as to create a sense of depth within the image. I could perhaps have chosen a more interesting view point rather than simply front on. However I think the symmetry present within the image creates enough interest and tension.

So as to make it ready for screen print I then split it into two individual negatives. One for the darker elements of the image that I wanted to make the centre of interest such as the clerics and Paul and then one for the lighter elements that I wanted to push into the background such as the pillars, stairs and throne.

I was relatively divided on the outcome of my final image. I really like the process of screen printing particularly due to the accidental textures that are often left by mistake within the images which add a real visceral quality to them. Furthermore I do like the dramatic use of symmetry and shape to create a sense of depth. However I think a clearer sense of mid and back ground as well as perhaps I more interesting could have been used to further this. Finally I don't particularly like how the colours have interacted. I tried staying safe by not including an overlap but still I don't think the colours have quite worked. Although the dark maroon acts really well the shapes left in the negative white space I thing the mid, lilac like colour is perhaps too luminous causing I unwanted tension between the elements comprised of it and the rest of the image.

Depth 

Within a flat 2-D image such as a drawing depth refers to the illusion of distance or a third dimension within it. This can be achieve by employing a variety of different techniques such as overlapping the elements within, varying the their size as well as including a fore, mid, and background. The depth within your image can be further exaggerated by using a considered viewpoint. This is the angle at which elements within your image are being viewed (ie top down, bottom up) and can be used to create more interesting or harmonious compositions visually as well as reinforce ideas and motifs resent within (ie for a picture of David vs Goliath you would choose to have a bottom up view point from David towards Goliath so as to further exaggerate the size disparity of the two figures.

Finally when tackling depth(as well a composition in general) you also have to consider line of sight. This is the way in which the main lines of the elements within your image are arranged/interact with each other so as to direct your eyes unconsciously to the centre of interest. As it controls how your eyes move through an image, line of sight can naturally be used to create a sense of physical movement of the elements within your image. Depending on the intentions of the image maker and subject matter this can be used to create something rhythmic and harmonious or conversely something abrupt, jarring and full of tension.


Miroslav Sasek

Here overlapping of the figures, as well as varying their size is used to create a sense of depth and space of visual elements that would other wise be very flat. This is something that seems highly relevant to my own practice as I often draw in a very flat and graphic images and thus this could be used within my own work to better describe depth/space within my compositions.
As well as this several key lines of site are used to draw your eye your eye in a flowing and uniform manner(which mirrors that of the train tracks being depicted) to a vanishing point in the back. This coupled with the use of over lapping elements as well as the rule of thirds creates a very effective sense of depth within the image as well as an over all sense of harmony.


Moebius (Jean Giraud)

One of my all time favourites and a real master at composition and,in particular, creating a vary realistic sense of space and depth in otherwise highly surreal images. 
In this image this is achieved in a variety of different ways. Firstly there is a very clear fore (the foremost rock face), mid (bird,central set of rocks and waterfall) and background (furthest set of rock faces.
On top of this overarching of elements and varying of size is also used. To a lesser extent this is evident in the cliff faces and boats but is used much more clearly in the repetition of the mist clouds in the water fall that gradually get smaller and smaller.
Finally a carefully considered use of line of sight is used simultaneously to create a greater sense of depth and harmony, buy moving your eye from bottom left to top right, as well as draw focus to and make the man riding the bird the centre of interst by placing it in this line of sight.

Frame and Arrangement

Frame or picture area refers to the specific flat surface area within the borders of your picture. Ie an area within a set of given dimensions. Within this you can place importance on the different elements within your image by varying the scale, positioning and relative size of each individual element.
You can better organize and give a sense of harmony to the different and often varied elements with in your composition by overlapping them. This technique can be used to better communicate an idea by drawing attention to a particular element.
The frame is of particular importance as it can be used to crop certain aspects of the elements within your image so as to create more interesting composition with a greater sense of depth, atmosphere and tension.


Hokusai

This image by Hokusai shows just how ambitious you can be with composition within a set frame. Here there are variety of different, almost opposing view points ie that of the top down river but front on water fall. However the way the shape of the cliffs has been arranged within the frame (one side seems to neatly lock into or flow along the contours of the other) gives a strong sense of harmony and unity between the various elements that would otherwise be at odds with each other. This liquid sense of flow within the image complements visually the elements within.



Marc Aspinall

Here Marc Aspinall uses the frame to push the most important elements of the image to the very edge of the image. This combined with the slanting elements of the cliff and police tape creates an uneasy sense of tension and vertigo within the image. This is exaggerated further by the fact the bottom of the cliff is cropped off giving a sense of great height on what is assumed to be the coast due to the fact a tie is scene to be blowing violently in a strong wind (it is fully horizontal to the vertical lines of sight pointing down the cliff).


Brian Saunders

This last image is particularly interesting due to the fact that, rather than draw in the piano, it is simply left as negative space. This creates a frame within a frame allowing bold dramatic shapes to dissect what would be an other wise bland image. Furthermore the fact that elements of the image a drawn in both in front of (ie music sheets) and behind (the figures and window) the negative space creates a really effective sense of depth within the image.

Me, an Elephant and a Butterfly

Given the task of arranging myself, a butterfly and an elephant within a frame so as to create a sense of depth I thought it would be best to approach it by depicting the elements in reverse order of size. This is biggest intuitively a viewer knows that a butterfly is smaller than a man which is smaller than an elephant which by therefore, by arranging them in such an order, helps create a more dramatic sense of depth through a clearer use of fore, mid and background.

My firth set of roughs did help me begin to flesh out this compositional idea, however given the speed at which I was working and the softness of my pencil were far to messy to transition into a final images as the clarity of the different elements wasn't particularly clear. Therefore I decided to switch to creating a series of inked roughs on which I slowed my drawing process down which resulted in much better roughs with more readable compositions.

In the end I went with the roughs where the viewpoint is taken from within the undergrowth. This is because I felt it created a much more effective sense of space by clearly distinguishing between the environment of the elements of the front and mid ground and that of the background. Furthermore in my mind it seemed to add a certain element of tension to the image as it appears I am carefully and quietly moving towards the elephant (ie due to moving within the undergrowth with out scaring away the butterfly).
In addition to these considerations I also tried to vary tone, ie darkest for foreground and lightest from back ground so as to further separate the the different elements and levels of depth within the image. However I don't think I have employed this technique as effectively s I could have done as, although there is a clear difference between the elephant and butterfly, the contrast of tone between me and the butterfly isn't great enough leading to the two elements becoming some what merged which takes away from the illusion of depth.