Life Drawing Classes

At the beginning of the com-tech project I took up Life drawing again as it couldn't be stressed enough by my Tutor Matt that drawing is the basis of all ideas and that "The more you draw the more things will make sense", I have really enjoyed dedicating my friday afternoons to drawing non-stop however I have to admit that I haven't really pushed myself to learn different materials in the sessions but just focusing on developing my drawing skills. I have been learning the processes of looking and measuring in order to make my drawings more accurate which I haven't really done before. Before these sessions I would never measure I would only draw what I saw which isn't always accurate.

Acrylic & Watercolour

I have always enjoyed painting and would like to continue to improve this skill however I know that in order to keep up with other illustrators I need to try out and learn different technologies. I would like to continue with using vibrant colours and explore the processes of print making. In the past I felt afraid to go to the print room as I have never been their to do my own work, knowing that I will need to ask for help. I feel that I should put my paint brush aside in order to push myself to learn other skills.

Illustrator: Attempt

I have very basic skills when it comes to using the pen tool. The image above is one of my illustrations I have traced using the pen tool however my tutor told me at my tutorial that there is a quicker way to do this by creating the image using shapes and joining it together. The image I create also does not look completely accurate, I am not happy with the shape of the wings. By learning the way my tutor told me to work when using the pen tool should solve this problem. I am currently struggling to understand the online tutorials. So I really either need to find someone to help me or find a book that I can follow step by step.

Emily Forgot

I have always been a huge fan of Forgot's work and would like to explore the Com-Tech project through learning the processes used to create this piece. I only know the very basics of photoshop and illustrator and would like to expand these skills. I love the gradients in Forgot's work and want to learn how to do this. I am determined that I am going to brake the barrier of learning these skill and not stop as soon as I get stuck but ask for help or try the technique of learning through studying a book.

Photoshop: Learning

This is one of my first attempts of developing my own illustrations using photoshop. I learned how to adjust the levels and how to multiply and create new layers to use brush tool to add colour. I like the effect of the colour that shows outside the line however I would like to learn how to use colour so that it fits neatly inside the image. I have tried looking at tutorial online but I am finding them had to understand. I also took the advice that was given in my tutorial to ask other people in the class for help but I find it difficult as many of the people I ask don't know or aren't in college very often doing their work at home.

Katie Daisy: Animal

These illustrations are an example of how animals can be drawn as if morphed into something else. I would like to create a successful image of Maya Angelou half human, half bird with the aim to communicate Maya's relation to her poem: 'I know why the cadged bird sings'. The theme of combining the body of human and animal is a theme that is currently being explored by successful artists today such as 'Gemma Latimer and Katie Daisy'. As well as a theme being use to advertise the clothes fashion industry for shops such as Topshop. I realise to be successful in future I need to study the fashion of illustration in order to meet the client market if selling my work. This is something I need to continue to do in future.

Maya Anjelou

As part of the illustration group we have been asked to fulfil a brief which involves choosing a person that changed the world and develop them into illustrations which summarise their life or some aspect of it. We have been asked to develop our own ideas and images using different technologies. For this brief I have chosen poet and activist Maya Angelou. I intend to combine her words of poetry exploring her achievements.

Kate Forrester: Hand drawn Typography

Love this paper-cut by London artist Kate Forrester however I feel that sometimes like my work it looks too similar to the work of Rob Ryan. It would be interesting to experiment with text with images rather than images with text to see if I can communicate an ideas more successfully this way.

Book: Hand drawn typography book

Today I got this typography book from the library in order to look at the different styles and how they use text to communicate. I have used computer based typography before but when it comes to hand drawn I don't really know where to start. I am hoping this book will give me some ideas.

Letter From Client

The clients was extremely happy with the end result however I feel that the image is too similar to those of Paper-cut artist Rob Ryan and I would like to develop my own style in future.

I have worked with clients before but I always find it a difficult process creating a design that they are happy with yet I might think they should have something different. I also find it hard when it comes to deciding a price for my work. This couple were extremely generous however I know that other clients may not be if I leave them to decide. I alway feel uncomfortable taking money off people because I am only a student however I know this is something I need to overcome in order to make a living in the future. I need to seek advice with someone about this.

In Design: RSVP Card

These are designs for the RSVP cards to go in with the wedding invitations. By using Indesign this has allowed me to learn how to flip and play with images, change the thickness of lines and create a design to have accurate measurements. The client suggested that the 'Didot' was used for the typeface however I cannot help but think that a hand drawn font would be more effective. Hand drawn fonts are something I am really interested in and would like to experiment with in future. I have used In-design before but this was a while ago. It feels good to have restored my knowledge of it and I feel confident to use it again.

Laser Cutter

This was now my 5th session on the laser cutter and the 60 invitations are finally complete. I had trouble saving the image to be cut so this meant that I had to redirect the machine every time I came to use it. I had to keep asking the technician to show me how to do this until I could finally do it on my own.

When setting the machine to cut out all of the cards at the beginning I struggled to get it to be cut out in the same place each time. This meant that some were wonky and others were further to one side. I have to do those invites again. To solve the problem I used tape to outline the shape of the invite on the bed so that each card was placed in exactly the same place each time.

I want to use the laser cutter in future. I now understand how to use the cut-through, Kiss-cut and engrave settings however I have only use cut-through so far. I would like to try using the laser on other materials like wood for example. In order to remember the skills I have learned I need to continue to use the laser-cutter often. I am worried if I don't I will forget what I have learned.

Laser Cutting: Invitations

I scanned in the Illustration into illustrator learning how to export the image correctly without affecting the resolution. I traced round the image with using pen tool, This seemed to be a lengthy and tedious processes especially because I have only used it once before. At the end of my first year I had induction on the laser cutter but until now I have never used it. By creating the these invites on illustrator; I learned how to prepare an image to be cut, How to change the settings to suit different materials, How to change the size to fit the material and how to change the intensity of the laser so that the paper/card did not burn and how to direct the machine. Because the card has different thicknesses I had to test out what intensity the laser should be to suit the card before I cut it all out. I had to set the machine to cut-through the appropriate material and make sure the invites didn’t have burn marks but so it would still cut through the card. I wanted to cut a series invitations outs of different colours of card for the client in order for her to see what the invites would look like before she made a decision of which card she would like.

Save the date cards - Previous work

Example of a previous piece of work made in May this year. Developed from a hand drawn illustration this image was the cut out by hand then scanned into the computer. I realise now this was not the best way it could have been created and by using technology such as Illustrator or Print making the process could have been a lot quicker and would have produced a more refined result. I have been asked by the same client to create their wedding invitations using the same illustration. I intend to use technology I have never used before or have little knowledge of in order to expand my skills to create an end result which is both appropriate with time and has a successful outcome.

Time Table: Com-Tech

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
20th-26th	Plan	Plan	Plan	Research	Research
27th-3rd	Draw	Laser Cut	Draw	Draw	Draw
4th-10th	Draw	Laser Cut	Draw	Draw	Draw
11th-17th	Ceramics	Draw	Ceramics	In Design	Laser Cut
18th-24th	Screen	Screen	Screen	Etching	Etching
25th-31st	Intaglio	Intaglio	Lino	Lino	Lino
1st-7th	Photoshop	Photoshop	Photoshop	Illustrator	Illustrator
8th-14th	Illustrator	Illustrator	Illustrator	Illustrator	Illustrator
15th-21st			Final Crit

This time table is to help me organise my time throughout the com-tech module. Covering how I will go about learning new technology, time for each self directed project, time to experiment with different media, equipment, materials and processes; time for research and exploring ideas and meeting deadlines.

What I want to Learn & why:

Below is a list of processes I want to learn in this project relating to the methods successful artists use today and what I think are essential skills to learn for the future.

Laser Cutter - I am always making paper-cuts however I understand that this is a lengthy process. For the future if I was running a business I would need to know how to use a laser cutter to create the same design on a mass scale.

Illustrator - Is essential in developing my own illustrations. Many of the most successful illustrators today use this programme and it is set that in future it will be even more prevalent.

Photoshop - From talking to my tutor it seems that photoshop is a useful way of adapting illustrations to experiment with colour and detail. I would like to scan my own illustrations onto photoshop to discover what creations I can come up with and learn how to use different tools.

In Design - Is a useful programme to use to arrange work. I have used In Design in the past however I need to refresh my skills.

Print making – I have always wanted to learn and develop a range of print making skills to develop my illustrations by focusing on mark making techniques that are present in my hand drawn illustrations. To be honest I have always avoided the print room and used processes I am more comfortable with. I now need to overcome my apprehensiveness and just get stuck in.

Collage - I am always drawn to artists who use this process and would like to have a go to see what I can come up with. In future this could be a useful skill to learn in order to develop digital art in illustrator.

Hand Drawn Typography - I have always been scared of incorporating text within my work; however it is believed that text can make images communicate more successfully and support images to convey a deeper meaning.

Time Management – Is the base for anyone to be successful and crucial for me to excel with my work. It is something I have always struggled with and without being organised this leads other areas to fall apart. In this project I want to learn ways to support me in the future.

Brief: Communication Technology

Research & Development (20 credits)

Aim - To research my relationship with Communication-Technology, the ideas behind it, how it is developing and what equipment/software/technology I need to learn about that will benefit me in a career as a Visual Artist.

What I need to do:

- Document my relationship with Com-Tech

- Work out what technology I am likely to use as a practitioner

- Identify how I am going to go about learning to use it

- Do hands-on self-directed projects

- Learn new ways of experimenting

- Try out new equipment, materials, processes

- Explore ideas + content through research (Artists' work, Technology, Developments)

- Consider how developments in technology will effect my future as a visual Artist and society as a whole (ie. environment, lack of materials/Technology, Trends)

- Where vis-Com is heading and how will I prepare for it.

How to learn:

- Through self directed research

- Independent learning skills/managing projects

Marks:

- Research, ideas, development, technology context, critical evaluation (25%)

- Understanding of concept, How good you are at using com-tech to effectively communicate (25%)

- Analysis, use of materials, processes, environments, technique range (25%)

- Independent study, Identity of personal strengths, needs, setting goals, managing workload, meeting deadlines. (25%)

Deadline: November 26th