Design Principles - Task 3 Design

6/3/2024 - 20/3/2024 (Week 5 - Week 7)
Katelyn Tan Kye Ling (0354148)
Bachelor Of Design In Creative Media (Design Principles)
Task 3 Design

INSTRUCTION

Task 3 brief recap:

In this task, students are required to design an artwork that is inspired/influenced by the one that was previously analysed in task. We are also asked to apply our knowledge of design principles. We have to include visual references, a few sketches, our final design and a 150-200 words rationale.

Visual references:

At first I wanted to go for something which showed the animals in the colder area and how they are suffering. I wanted to show how areas that should be cold are slowly started to break down and melt away. I also wanted to try to design something like the first and last picture of the mood board where the smoke reveals something, which is in my sketch 2.

Mood Board #1

I then found more visual references that has the earth as the main focus. This was my main idea for sketch #3.  I just wanted my artwork to be very earth related, meaning my artwork is very direct and just shows what the earth goes through because of climate change.

Mood Board #2

Sketch:

Sketch #1

This sketch was inspired by mood board #1. I tried to show the consequences animals have to face because of climate change. It shows the change in environment as well, like the hot burning sun, rubbish in the sea and also the melting iceberg. The design principles used in this sketch are: balance as the sketch has rule of thirds and golden ratio; emphasis on the polar bear and also unity as I plan to use mostly bold colours like the first picture in task 1.

Sketch #2

This sketch is also inspired by mood board #1. This sketch is of a car that is producing engine, and the engine reveals what the earth is like after after climate change. The picture of the part that reveals the bad environment is inspired by the picture in task 1. The design principles used in this sketch are: contrast as the background is light and the main subjects are bold in colour; emphasis showing the car and gestalt theory (figure ground) as the bad environment is shaped as the smoke.

Sketch #3

This sketch is inspired by mood board #2. This sketch is to show the healthy side and the bad climate change side of the earth. Causes and consequences of climate change will be shown on the right side and good factors will be shown on the left side. Bold colours will be used like the picture I chose in task 1. The design principle used in this is harmony as mostly same and bold colours will be used, emphasis and asymmetrical balance as well as the drawing is split in half.

Final Design:

Rationale:

This artwork is created to spread awareness of the UNSDG 13 - Climate Action. The concept of my artwork is to show the causes and consequences of climate change. The left side shows the healthier side of life where the earth is in good condition and the climate is stable and unpolluted. The right side shows the corrupted side of the earth after the earth has gone through climate change. The earth's colour has a gradient from blue to a yellowish-green as I wanted to show the earth turning bad. For the rest of the colours, I used mostly bold colours in this artwork as I was inspired by the artwork I chose in task 1. The design principle used in this artwork is emphasis as dominance and focus is created on the only subject which is the earth. There also is asymmetrical balance in this artwork as there is unequal visual weight on each side. There also is harmony as selection of elements that share a common trait gives the entire artwork a sense of oneness. Furthermore, there is unity as the repetition of particular elements and colours throughout the design pull the look together. (195 words)

WEEKLY FEEDBACK

Week 6:

- Sketch 1 too similar to the visual reference.
- The 3rd one is too plain, that can be the main and add sketch 1 and 2 into that. (Combine all 3 sketches)
- The earth on the right side can look more "ruined". Can add factory, car, smoke. Less greenery and water.
- Not necessarily need to manually draw, can use iPad.

Week 7:

- Write short meaning and design principle for each sketch.

- The trees in the artwork can be taller.

- Make the earth "leak" more.

- Make the background gradient glowing part into a circle.

REFLECTION

Experience

At first I really struggled to come up with sketches because I personally don't have good drawing skills. 

However, after a little practice I did better but not up to my expectations. I also later found out that my pen wasn't really working that well, which caused my drawings before these 3 sketches in this blog to look weird, so I borrowed my friends apple pencil. After doing my sketches, I was contemplating whether or not I should manually do my artwork with watercolour or just work with Adobe Illustrator. I ended up using AI as I was more familiar with that compared to watercolour and drawings. Overall, I enjoyed this task as it was very "open". There's no wrong and right and you're free to create anything.

Observation

I observed that when you're in this course, you have to have basic drawing skills which is something I lack. I definitely need to improve my drawing skills. I also observed that colours are very important. To elaborate on that, different objects have to have different shades of colour to bring out the shape and "feel" of that object more.

Findings

During this task, I find that having lots of visual references are needed to inspire how you want to do your artwork. It gives me a sense of direction and sparks ideas as well. Also I find that what our lecturer said is true. He said that your final idea doesn't just come to you, so having a few sketches is very important as you can combine them in the end. 

FURTHER READING

1. The use of visual reference:

"A visual reference is a picture of a person, place, or thing that an artist can refer to while drawing to ensure that they’re portraying something accurately. Often, a visual reference doesn’t represent everything in a given piece of artwork, but just one or two aspects of it."

"I often find that I struggle to describe something in words if I can’t see what it looks like first. Even if I’ve imagined it over and over again, sometimes the right words just won’t come. If you struggle with the same problem, using visual references can help you, too. They give you a picture to look at so that your brain can connect your mental image with the words to describe it."

2. Why sketching is important?:

I read one of the articles saying why sketching is important and a few of the points caught my attention. 

"I often sketch by putting multiple drawings on one sheet of paper. Sometimes you come up with new ideas because you put everything together on paper. This way you can come up with combinations that you would otherwise not link to each other. This gives you the chance to come up with new and original ideas."

"Because a sketch is made quickly, you can try different things in a short time. Sometimes ideas in your head look better than when you put them on paper. Not such a good idea? Next!" 

Reference List:

Laura. (2018, January 15). 7 reasons why sketching is more important then drawing. LauwPauw. https://www.lauwpauw.com/7-reasons-sketching-is-more-important-then-drawing/?lang=en

Simplyoriginalcharacters. (2017, July 7). Creating Visual References for Your Character. An Honest, Friendly OC Review Blog. 

https://simplyoriginalcharacters.tumblr.com/post/162723568643/creating-visual-references-for-your-character#:~:text=A%20visual%20reference%20is%20a,they're%20portraying%20something%20accurately.