Weekly Update 9 19/03/2016 - 25/03/2016

Weekly Update 9 19/03/2016 - 25/03/2016

Because of difficulties with unreal engine porting sprites and images I have abandoned the pixel art idea as it became a huge thorn in my side, I have continues designing logos and expanding on the original page of initial ideas.


This week I made progress with my Logo designs and eventually came to create a finished version,

The logo is mainly the head and face area the background is there to make it fit in profile picture boxes, but if it would appear on Books and Boxes the head would be the only thing visible, with no background. 

I was also able to make a start on the Digital skills module and I created two landscapes as a kind of starter, the colours change by use on different computers though for some strange reason so neither of them look the same, but I feel as if the tones and colours work well anyway.

Idea 1 Rocky City

Idea 2 Crystal Cave

I use a limited colour pallet on these two designs to challenge myself, I use only two colours but I use different tones in them to indicate distance and form

I have also created a Toolkit of colours tones and a spectrum wheel to help me in the future when creating work.

For the Journey Work based learning I am doing for Art Station I have created a prop for the environment using references and a selective colour scheme, it is a huge bag with lots of traveling supplies.

It is supposed to look very large on the person, comically so and just equip the bag with useful Journey necessities such as fishing poles, frying pans, and berry bags.

Weekly Update 8 12/03/2016 - 18/03/2016

Weekly Update 8 12/03/2016 - 18/03/2016

This week I received the Digital Skills module, I was very happy about this because it is very open to any outcome, but I have having difficulty deciding what I should do for it, Tony introduced us to a pixel art approach to modular design which I quite enjoyed but I also would like to simply create a good illustration that could also go into my Art book for another module.

I have created some pixel-art backgrounds for use in the unreal engine but am currently having some difficulty importing them as I have some weird transparency layer, I suspect it has something to do with the alpha channel but I am unsure.

Pixel Art:

This week I also spent time researching and practicing Techniques and tools within Adobe Illustrator to create my logo.

At this point I have just been making interesting shapes with the programs vectors I have had a lot of fun with this.

Logo Designs:

S.W.O.T

Strengths:
I have discovered a new love for pixel art and have enjoyed creating them using Photoshop, even though I have some problems when importing it.

Weakness:
No progress was done on the competition Work Based learning module this week, I must quickly pick up the pace and keep up with the timetable I created for myself instead of getting distracted with other modules

Opportunities:
A new discovered love for pixel art has allowed me to research new and exiting artists that work with pixels, A lot of good new references have spawned from my endeavors this week.

Threats:
I need to prioritize my work more effectively if I am to hit popper deadlines.


For Next Week:
Make progress on my Work Based Learning Competition , I will also continue work on my Digital skills, deciding whether or not to continue with Pixel Art ot just do an Illustration.

Art of the Week:
Unexpected Visitors
I wasn't really doing anything with this one other then practicing distance drawing, Trying to make a small village look far away.

I really like the colours of this piece but the composition is lacking in my opinion

Weekly Update 7 05/02/2016 - 11/03/2016

Weekly Update 7 05/02/2016 - 11/03/2016

This week I spent the time reading over some of the reading list that I obtained from Atomhawk, but mostly I had a week off, I took part in gym sessions and watched lots of Bob Ross's traditional art YouTube channel, his calm attitude calms the nerves and is it also very informative and interesting how he creates his brilliant paintings.

I have also attempted Adobe illustrator to start creating some cool logo ideas, first time I've ever used illustrator and it went well,but I can't wait to learn more from Tony and Murray next week.

I have also continued to draw daily sketches to help with my artistic progression, but I really just started a gym membership so most of the week has involved me researching diets and planning exercises.

S.W.O.T

Strengths.
Bob Ross helped me calm down and relax after the gym and also taught me many new things that traditionalists do to create art, it inspired me to perhaps try my own hand at the craft.

Weaknesses/
I could have spent more time doing work for the  3x3 competition, but I have planed what I am going to do for it and I think I will enjoy it.

Opportunities.
A new start at illustrator is great and could possibly open my hand to graphic design, perhaps it is something I could enjoy after some practice?

Threats.
Starting a Gym membership could perhaps eat into my work time, so I must use good time management to make sure that doesn't happen.

Art of the Week:

This was a competition entry to design or illustrate a new character for the game: League of Legends, It was created using a compilation of different images found across the internet, and using colour balance I was able to get the green tinge.

Five Logo Designs

So as part of my future career as a concept artist I feel like it would good a good idea to have my own logo that I can use to advertise my services, so before I start to create my own I am going to look at 5 other famous ones to see what those company and franchises have done with their logos.

Mortal Kombat

I really enjoy the use of a simple shape and colour scheme with a more complicated but recognisable and unique shape in the centre, the franchise loo could have been anything, as the fighting game could have had a fist, an eye anything, but thinking outside the box allowed the company to come up with this great design.

the gradation effect does a great job at hiding in multiple colours and giving the effect of fire and danger, showing that these games are not for kids.

Pepsi

The Pspsi logo is one of the most simple ones I have seen for something so popular, so because of this I now understand that the logo is not supposed to be the wow factor, it is supposed to remind people of the wow factor that the company/francise/product has, so a good logo design must match that particular subject.

The Logo itself is very basic simply using a circle and two other shapes in a distinctive way, you could easily remove the word pepsi and still know what the logo is for.

 Rockstar Games

 The Rockstar Games uses only 3 colours as is a trend so far with the logos I have seen, 4 or less seems to be appropriate, but the Rockstar Games logo also uses a single initial and a star, this gives viewers a reminder of the name R for rock and the Star shape for Star, Rockstar Games, the colour in the background I have also seen change based on the game it appears in, as the recognisable part is the shape not the colour.

Snapchat

The snapchat logo is very interesting, I still have no idea what it is supposed to be, a ghost? not sure but regardless the reason it is a good logo is because when I was searching for logos to talk about, I still knew what it was for, this explains that the shape is extremely unique,

Once again the logo only uses 3 colours, I have noticed that alot of white and black is used for high contrast so the artists can direct the viewers eyes and attract attention to a particular part of the logo.

Starbucks

The Starbucks logo in my opinion is interesting, but I don't like it, and the reason is there is just too much stuff going on, I cant even understand what is happening in the logo, but I do like how the shapes bend a curve to give the impression of a secondary shape, I see a star in there which reminds the viewer of the name of the organisation.

The use of two colours is fairly boring to me, the shapes are attempting to carry the design, I feel like the symmetry is supposed to make it look more like a crest then a logo, 

Design bullet-points

• 1-4 Colours
• Basic Shapes
• Possible Symmetry
• Simple not Basic
• Multi media transferable

Weekly Update 6 27/02/2016 - 04/03/2016

Weekly Update 6 27/02/2016 - 04/03/2016

This week has been mainly a finishing up of all the module work for my Alternative Techniques and Contextual Studies, A large amount of theory work has been finished this week in order to hit my deadline today (Friday the 4th), My technical file, moodboard, initial ideas, a how to guide and an essay were all written up this week, so not much art to show you this week.

I have been in contact with Atomhawk talking about a possible internship, they unfortunately are not hiring at the moment but they were nice enough to provide me with some amazing information advice and references, I am extremely appreciative, and this experience has inspired me to continue working hard towards my goal

Here is a list of the advice / great references Jill Clow from Atomhawk sent me:

• Becoming any type of artist is a long journey. It's one of those roads that if you're dedicated to, you'll be doing most of if not all of your life. This means we're all always learning and in a way, always students

because that's how we improve. Reading books like Robertson's and Hogarths are great for educating yourself on the fundamentals of drawing and design.

• Seek out online art communities (forums, art gallery platforms, social media) befriend other artists, get critiques, identify your weaknesses, and do community challenges and projects

• Keep reading - Look into the old art masters; visit a gallery and see which ones you like and why.

• Practice often and pay attention to the errors you may make- try not to get frustrated with them as every error drawn offers an opportunity to learn and improve

• Be patient. It can at times be a struggle to stick to your goals so always remember why you want to be a concept artist

• Research! If you're in Uni, ask tutors and teachers if they can give you a career path direction- read up online what it involves to be a concept artist, what the day-to day tasks involve and what skills are required.

• Reading list:

Light and Colour- James Gurney,

How to Render - Scott Robertson

‘The Skilful Huntsman - Felix Yoon, Khang Le, and Mike Yamada ’

‘Art Fundamentals – collection of artists’

‘Framed Ink - Marcos Mateu-Mestre and Jeffrey Katzenberg ’

‘Anatomy for the artist – Sarah Simblet’

I will be sure to invest some of my bursary I am obtaining next week for some of these books.

S.W.O.T

Strengths

Of course this week has been very productive, in a academic viewpoint I have finished two whole modules for my Uni work, Also the amazing email made my week, even though they declined my internship I am just happy they replied to me with such a positive and informative way.

Weaknesses

I have not created any artwork this week other than practice sketches, this is obviously because of the intense amount of theory work I had to finish for the hand in date.

Opportunities

The Atomhawk Email I feel not only gave me a foot in the door but I also obtained references that are industry standard, a great opportunity that I am glad happened.

Threats

A lack of illustrative work stunts my growth as an artist, It does not help me progress if I do not practice

For next week:

I am going to learn how to use adobe illustrator, and create some initial ideas for my own personal logo

I am also going to research some current logos and give my opinion on them and use them as reference when creating my own.

Art of the week:

Black Swamp, this is a re design of an piece of artwork I really admired, using the blur and stretch tool and changing the shapes of the forms to create a unique piece of artwork, I also very much enjoy the lighting on this particular illustration, this is also one of the first pieces of art I every created when walking down the path of a concept artist.