Tonight’s portrait drawing session with illustrators on my course. We each take turns to sit for each other. Ten minute sketches. I admire how still people can be!
Tag: Illustration
Signs and signifiers
Today we were looking at the meanings of illustrations and signs, whether they are iconic (cat mug) a symbol (swimming badge?) or another option that I can’t remember! I get a bit tied up with these ideas, I will get it, I know, but just trying to explain it makes my head hurt.
Anyway it’s surprising how much illustration there is around us. My favourite is the Ludford Ginger bottle. What had the train got to do with it?
Been neglecting my blog.
My mind is on my college course. We are at the end of another semester and I have to hand my work in today. Learning to write academically is hard. Referencing quotes, using citations. I guess someone who does it all the time will find it easy. It’s all part of the learning process. Anyway I should be a bit more ‘present’ over the next few weeks. Hope I don’t bore you.
Drawing to scale
Oh I wish I’d done technical drawing at school. I’d know how to draw perfect circles and how to indicate cross sections. Yes I can draw around things, like this watch, but the line is very wobbly, then I wanted to draw an inner circle, but again its approximately a circle….. I’m a bit disappointed to be honest. I must find out if there is a particular template I can buy. If I’m going to learn, I need the right equipment. Another thing I need to invest in, and maybe an illustrated guide to technical drawing?
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Upgrading Instagram
I’ve upgraded my Instagram account to try and understand the traffic there. I have been putting off doing it for a few years but as I’m trying to do more art and illustration I guess it’s necessary. I think having more insights will help me choose what to post and when. But like here I’m a bit of a scattergun. Anything I’m interested in gets written down and as I have eclectic tasted I have I like sharing those ideas here. What do you think?
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Nail varnish cat
Late last night I decided to colour in a drawing with nail varnish. I did a picture of ‘the cat sat on the mat’, then I coloured in the background with marker pens.
I had difficulty taking a photo I wanted to include the sheen of the varnish but could only get it with the page tipped up. When you look at it straight on the image is a lot flatter. It’s just a design based on the old cat sat on the mat idea. I can imagine it being used as a children’s book illustration.
What is an artefact?
The dictionary says:
‘ an artefact is an object made by a human being, typically one of cultural or historical interest.’
As ppart of our course we have to design an artefact that supports our professional practice as illustrators. Commissioners might be interested in something different. Something that is eye catching. We discussed what an artefact is and came to the conclusion that it could be anything. It might be the simplest thing but if it’s buried and then dug up by an archaeologist it could become significant.
The ideas for artefacts ranged from scarves, tee shirts, books, toys, cards, games, even old game boy consoles. Very interesting.
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Did I ever share my Boris Johnson cartoon here?
Hear no Art, See no Art, Speak no Art.
Cartoon created as part of a project on my college course. My copyright.
It was something I drew in July 2020 I think but it seems more valid now since the Arts are in such a perilous position and the question as to if something is a viable job seems to be a kick in the teeth to the creative industries.
This is Boris Johnson as a boy, based on an image of him as a teenager. I have then surrounded his face with hands and arms, which prevent him (apparently) from seeing, hearing or speaking about the plight of the arts in school, but also in wider society. Very clearly he can see what is happening but seeks to avoid giving the situation his full attention….. The fact that his own government, since 2010, have made cuts in spending totalling billions does not seem to matter to him. He talks about levelling up as if the damage done to society has nothing to do with him. As another yellow haired person on the other side of the ocean presides over crazy policies. I think it is the era of yellow maned fools!
Flowers from a friend
In exchange for some pears my friend gave me some flowers. I thought how kind, I wasn’t expecting anything back. The roses are a mellow red colour, and there are pale purple Fushias and white roses and some different white flowers.
Apparently the Victorians used to give different meanings to different plants. For instance Forget-me-nots. I think also Pansies and Lily of the Valley. I don’t know the meanings, but I know people used to press flowers within the pages of heavy books. Or even flower presses. The idea was to squash the flower so it became dried and flattened. If the person pressing it was artistic it could be used in artwork, some of them would be used for illustration purposes. I’m not sure how they would have coped with larger flowers like multi petal led or stemmed flowers. I guess they would have needed more steady pressure? Sorry, a lot of this is speculation. My mind wanders across different thoughts….
How do I sync my phone, tablet and PC?
I have had a thing from Microsoft saying I can sync my information ( My gallery on my PC, Tablet and phone are all different) or I could move stuff to the cloud? But I really don’t feel safe doing it. What if there was a solar flare that wiped everything? (It could happen) we think our digital information is safe, but who knows? The earths magnetic poles might flip, or I might drop the phone in the sea? so many worries. Last night I was wondering what would happen when I die? Will I be a digital ghost? A friend died last year and yet I had a reminder of her birthday last month. The grim reaper can be cheated digitally!
I’m in the middle of preparing for another 12 week semester on my college course. Life will be getting complicated again. I need to set up a website just for illustrations and artworks, probably a separate page here. Or perhaps on Redbubble or Square Space? any recommendations….
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Mallaband-Brown 