Here, I talk about the process that I go through in order to start, and complete, each and every project.
Project 1 - Sweets Calendar
Lists, lists, and more lists.This is the first part of my process. Brainstorming. This is where I get all the "first to come to mind" ideas out. You know, the ones that EVERYONE thinks of, before getting to the "not so easily thought of" ideas.
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Even more lists...Now, I am starting to get into the area where the ideas aren't coming as easily, this is usually when you may find your idea, or have one to start forming. This is a good time to get with a friend or design professor, and discuss your idea.
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Sketch, sketch, sketch...
Okay, now that I've gone through a bunch of thumbnails, it's time to get out to the actual sketching of the thumbnails. For me, these sketches are really general, and not at all decorative. They are more so helpful in figuring out placement of the objects.
Transfer and Carve!
Once the final sketches have been drawn to scale, it's time to transfer to the linoleum blocks. This project called for only two colors, so only two blocks were needed (one for each color). The carving process for both took an entire week, and to say the least, was quite dangerous. Thankfully, I only got myself once with the carving tool. Beware of small details, very tough, but so worth it in the end.
Into the Press We Go!!
This is the fun part of the process of this project. Here, we are starting with the first color printing. We used a vintage proofing press, loaned to the class by the wonderful Professor Kathleen O'Connell. Then, with the help of the coolest Professor Meena Khalili, I was able to pull 15 print of this bright yellow color with the first block. This provided a bulk of the frosting and some sprinkles of the cupcakes of my illustration. Next up: RED!
Time for the Second Run
Now, it was time for the second color run. The color that gets on and stains every single thing in the world...Red. This was basically the same process as the first run, only with this one it was touch and go, because I had to try and get the registration set up well enough. While it looks like the registration were off in some places, that was actually planned to happen. For instance the white lines within the bigger cupcake's frosting? That was intentional so that it didn't all just feel like one big blob of color on top.
Project 2 - "Think Small"
Making Box Frames
For this project, both illustrations were meant to be RTH (ready to hang) by the final deadline. Making these a nice and quick possible project that could even be sold if we so wished, as the artist. Also, it gives it an adorable look, as well as being something that can also be considered in the final pricing, if one were to sell the piece, as the framing/ hanging process has already been taken care into consideration.
Sketches
To start with I went through and made a number of sketches, trying to figure out what this project should be about, more so than how to do it. I already knew that I wanted to use watercolor, for my medium, but subject a whole different story.
Choose Colors, and Paint
For this project, the message behind the final sketches, was that "you have to take the bad, with the good." So I employed simple, iconic objects that everyone in the world can associate with either being good (flowers) or bad (knives), and even vice versa, if that is your own personal interpretation.
Clear Coat, Apply to Box, and Pour Resin
The final step was to coat the images in a clear coat or UV Archival Fixative, then when the clear coat was finished drying, I then covered it in resin specifically. This is however, not until after the pieces were put onto the box frames. Then the resin was applied and left to dry.
Project 3 - "The Art of Drinking Absinthe"
Sketch, sketch, sketch
Before I ever got to this step, I had to decide on my story. I went through the website, NPR.ORG, and found three different articles, which I did thumbnails for, before doing 3+ refined sketches. In the end, I decided on an article entitled, The Art of Drinking Absinthe.
Baby Illustration
Once I've done my sketches and decided on one to be my basis, I made a baby illustration, which was half the size that the final would need to be. So the baby illustration was 4x5". While it wasn't as organized as that final would turn out to be, it was a good way to figure out how to place them, as well as how my medium, watercolor, would react to the illustration board that was used. Also, it was a good way to get notes and ideas for the final.
Transfer for Final and PAINT!!
This is the part where I move to the big illustration now, sketching the final onto the board and making sure that the frame is dynamic and fully wraps around the main object which is the glass. Also using the baby illustration as a guide and helpful look at where it started. Once it was fully transferred, I immediately went into painting it. This process took me quite a bit of time, and restraint, as I kept wanting to add more and more color on top of color, even though in the end, I would be outlining everything.
Project 4 - "JOY" Christmas Cards
Sketching Time
Because it was in the last leg of the semester, this project had to basically get off of the ground very quickly. To begin with, I knew from the get-go that I wanted to do Christmas as my holiday. However, when I began doing a word map, I began to have memories of things that I did and saw while growing up. This made me think of a sweatshirt that my mother had when I was little, with the word "noel" being flanked by decoration to make it look interesting, so I thought, what if I did something like this? In speaking with my professor, the word was changed to 'JOY' as I had a limited amount of time to get them done.
My Favorite Part
This is my favorite part of the process, painting. I really wanted to take great care with this project, in order to make it look as nice as possible. In fact, I added as much dimension to certain areas within the pieces as possible, like with the yellow light and green ornament bulb, or the large red bow, and all the sweets. I wanted it to be a bit more than just straight color layers. However, I will say this: once I was finished and trying to scan in the images, I became quite annoyed with the school scanners. (They hate me!)