Assignment 5

For this assignment we were asked to create a summation of all we have learnt and our goals that have been realised from working in our visual journals in Part 5. After identifying my own personal goals and looking at the main themes of my work overall I wanted to take those into account and move forward to continue to develop them.

My main themes are nature, landscapes, florals and objects with my goals being to improve in;

• Technical - Composition, perspective & view points.
• Play - Enjoy the process.
• Colour - Use more of my favourite colours (pastels) and plat with using limited colour palettes and pretty.
• Technique - Form, less lines, taking my time, detail without becoming perfectionist.
• Emotion - Using ambience, essence, lighting, shadows to convey a mood or scene.
• Narrative - Bringing meaning and story to take it from just a picture to something more moving for the viewer.

I spent a while researching storyboarding and narrative before knowing where I wanted to take this assignment. I found I was over thinking it to start with but once I had an understanding of the end outcome and the purpose of my sketchbook I began to narrow things down.

After completing these spider diagrams I realised I wanted to do something with the theme of the garden. I thought about all the things associated with the garden and also considering my favourite themes, I began thinking about trees and the seasons.

I  love Spring and blossom trees and I have completed a narrative sketch like this for Part 4, Exercise 4.4 - Using Basic Narrative Structure, where I described the season changes by the War Memorial statue we have in our town. I really liked the essence of that sketch and I enjoy drawing the different seasons. So I then thought about the trees we have in our garden and which ones go through the most changes.

I narrowed it down to our Crab apple tree, which has the most beautiful blossom and then produces these lovely Crab apples which the Black birds love to eat. This lead me to look into them further and I found some really good information on the Woodland Trust website which helped me understand how these trees benefit other forms of nature.

Trust, W., 2020. [online] Woodland Trust. Available at: <https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/british-trees/a-z-of-british-trees/crab-apple/> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Realising that this tree not only changed through the seasons, they also provide food for animals, birds, insects and humans (crab apple jam) I decided this would be a good subject to use for my sequences as it has lots of scope to collect information and build to a final storyboard which could be used to educate children on a short tv show and contains a good and interesting narrative that is in line with my strengths and interests.

Nature:

References;

Eyed Hawk Moth (and caterpillar)Butterfly-conservation.org. 2020. Eyed Hawk-Moth. [online] Available at: <https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/eyed-hawk-moth> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Green Pug Moth (and caterpillar)Ukmoths.org.uk. 2020. Green Pug Pasiphila Rectangulata - Ukmoths. [online] Available at: <https://ukmoths.org.uk/species/pasiphila-rectangulata/adult-2/> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Chinese Character Moth (and caterpillar)Butterfly-conservation.org. 2020. Chinese Character. [online] Available at: <https://butterfly-conservation.org/moths/chinese-character> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Types of Bees in the UKTrust, W., 2020. Types Of Bee In The UK. [online] Woodland Trust. Available at: <https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/blog/2019/05/types-of-bee-in-the-uk/> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Tawny Mining BeeCommons.wikimedia.org. 2020. File:Tawny Mining Bee. Andrena Fulva. Female - Flickr - Gailhampshire (1).Jpg - Wikimedia Commons. [online] Available at: <https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tawny_Mining_Bee._Andrena_fulva._Female_-_Flickr_-_gailhampshire_(1).jpg> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Red Mason BeeWildlifetrusts.org. 2020. Red Mason Bee | The Wildlife Trusts. [online] Available at: <https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/wildlife-explorer/invertebrates/bees-and-wasps/red-mason-bee> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Honey BeeThe Secret Book Company. 2020. Honey Bee. [online] Available at: <https://www.thesecretbookcompany.co.uk/products/honey-bee-life-cycles> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

BlackbirdThe RSPB. 2020. Blackbirds | Facts About Male & Female Blackbirds - The RSPB. [online] Available at: <https://www.rspb.org.uk/birds-and-wildlife/wildlife-guides/bird-a-z/blackbird/> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Love The Garden. 2020. 19 Common British Birds You Can Find In Your Garden. [online] Available at: <https://www.lovethegarden.com/uk-en/article/19-common-british-birds-you-can-find-your-garden> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Song ThrushThames Basin Heaths. 2020. Birding Beginnings: Don’T Rush The Thrush - Thames Basin Heaths. [online] Available at: <https://www.tbhpartnership.org.uk/news/birding-beginnings-dont-rush-thrush/> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

(Route I didn't decided to take)
Mice, Voles, Fox, Badger

Crab Apple TreesGardens Illustrated. 2020. The Best Crab Apple Trees For Colour And Form. [online] Available at: <https://www.gardensillustrated.com/plants/trees/the-best-crab-apple-trees-for-colour-and-form/> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Love The Garden. 2020. Crab Apples (Malus). [online] Available at: <https://www.lovethegarden.com/uk-en/article/crab-apples-malus> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Pink BlossomOrnamental-trees.co.uk. 2020. Malus 'Coralburst' Tree. [online] Available at: <https://www.ornamental-trees.co.uk/malus-coralburst-p1043> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Through the seasons video: You Tube. 2020. [online] Available at: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=33&v=1xRuM45YaOM&feature=emb_title> [Accessed 29 May 2020].

Summer Crab apples:
Freeirishphotos.com. 2020. [online] Available at: <http://www.freeirishphotos.com/images/large/fruit_veg/crab_apples/crab_apples_on_tree_close_up.jpg> [Accessed 29 May 2020].

Winter Crab applesAshridgetrees.co.uk. 2020. Evereste Crabapple Trees For Sale - Order Online | Ashridge Nurseries. [online] Available at: <https://www.ashridgetrees.co.uk/malus-evereste-crabapple> [Accessed 23 May 2020].

Four Season Foraging. 2020. Crabapples: The Winter Sweet-Tart — Four Season Foraging. [online] Available at: <https://www.fourseasonforaging.com/blog/2018/2/19/crabapples-the-winter-sweet-tart> [Accessed 27 May 2020].

Books: Bang, M. and Bang, M., n.d. Picture This. New York: Chronicle Books LLC.


Videos & Classes:

You Tube. 2020. The MOST Important Rule Of LANDSCAPE PAINTING. [online] Available at: <https://youtu.be/YI2l-Mn88JU> [Accessed 29 May 2020].

You Tube. 2020. How I Learned To Tell Stories With Illustrations. [online] Available at: <https://youtu.be/LV-6E7K9GuY> [Accessed 29 May 2020].

Skillshare.com. 2020. [online] Available at: <https://www.skillshare.com/classes/Basics-of-Storyboarding-Telling-Your-Story-In-A-Visual-Way/1887314996/projects?via=watch-history> [Accessed 29 May 2020].

All Sketchbook Work for Assignment 5:

https://youtu.be/tvB7xAVFfYo

Quick Flip Through No Voice:

https://youtu.be/njboQqhnIWs

Final Backgrounds and Sequence Images:

Spring

Summer

Autumn

Winter

Spring Blossom (Version 1 Day)

Spring Blossom (Version 2 Night)

Spring Bee Getting Nectar (Version 1)

Spring Bee Getting Nectar (Version 2 Faded Background)

Summer - Green Apples Just Beginning to Grow

Summer - Caterpillar Feeding on the Leaves

Autumn - Song Thrush Feeding off the Ripened Fruit

Winter - The Over Ripened Fruits Falling into the Snow

Reflective Statement for Illustration Sketchbooks: 

This course has been such a valuable one for me, I’ve learnt so much about my own process, my strengths and weaknesses as an artist and have begun to develop areas I may not have considered before.

Areas I thought wouldn’t be too hard, were in fact incredibly hard for me. Specifically the ‘people sketching’ exercises. Drawing in public in general was a very stressful experience for me and drawing people in public was even scarier. Knowing how to draw people quickly and having a likeness was also hard for me and this is an area that needs some work in the future.

An area I have really enjoyed is sketching landscapes and nature using various mediums and this has become a strong theme throughout my work during the course and something I want to continue to develop.

Perfectionism came up a lot for me and it often got in the way of me enjoying the process of sketching but when I practised timed sketches or the blind and semi-blind contour drawings I found this helped me to loosen up and I actually had fun doing them. I used these exercises as warm up’s for my final assignment in part 5, which really helped give me a starting point without feeling overwhelmed.

I learnt that narrative was something I really enjoyed and had fun adding imagined thoughts and speech to my people sketches. I wasn’t quite sure how narrative would fit into my work but after doing research I realised the importance of narrative and how it can turn a simple illustration into something far more meaningful for the viewer. Creating a connection rather than just being a simple sketch. This is something I definitely want to do more of to add more depth and meaning to my work.

Through the course I discovered I enjoy using many different mediums and each have their own benefits. I like that I am not restricted to one medium and can intertwine them within different illustrations.

Through the last assignment my understanding of planning and development really came together and helped me to create more sketches as starting points that could then be developed further to create final pieces. Some of my initial sketches came out really well and I really like how they look together on the page. This touches on my interest in being a ‘Sketchbook artist’, which is inspired by Leigh Ellexson. Creating a series of sketches on one sheet of paper looks really effective and is something I want to continue to experiment with.

I had quite a few goals for the final assignment, some of which were technical such as perspective and composition. I actually had a lot of fun playing with the key frames and seeing how placement of elements and adding blur can create a feeling of distance and focal points. I learnt how to draw the viewer’s eye into the scene using directions within my images and the overall effects came out quite well. This assignment definitely helped my learning on these subjects and will be useful reference points for my future work.

My understanding of themes has also grown, in that I have realised what seems like a simple theme can be taken in so many ways and that is why brainstorming using mind maps can be really useful to break it down and find a path you will enjoy working on.

Taking part in the sketchbook circle was something I started towards the end of the course but I really enjoyed the illustrations I completed. It was fun to think outside the box with the prompts given and create something for fun in whatever mediums I wanted. Through this I learnt more about myself as an artist, how much I enjoyed just taking my time to work on a piece and soak in the process as well as enjoying the end result. This was a really valuable realisation for me.

This course has been a real rollercoaster of emotions, testing my limits as an artist but also helping me grow and flourish in areas I already enjoyed. I’ve learnt ways to use my sketchbooks and I’ve learnt to make my own sketchbooks, which was a lot of fun and I will definitely make more in the future.

My confidence in my abilities has grown so much because of this course. I’ve proved to myself that even the hardest projects are not impossible for me and if I take them a step at a time, get support from fellow students and give myself the proper time to explore and research, I can then work through it and even enjoy it. This is a huge milestone for me and has really set me up for moving forward in my work and the degree units to come.

I will miss this unit as it has been so valuable for my journey as an artist and I can finally say I am proud of what I have achieved and will go on to enjoy and use my sketchbooks far more in the future.

Additions:

I decided to re-visit the sketch planning phase of this assignment because recently I have been learning more about composition. This along with viewpoints and perspective are my weaker areas and I wanted to start improving in these. I made a start by watching some videos on YouTube which I have referenced in my additions in exercise 3.3 which I also re-visited to improve in this area.

My original thumbnails weren't thought out well enough for assignment 5, I jumped into the frames too soon which is a habit I often fall into. I therefore wanted to re-visit two of those to see what improvements I could make this time with the knowledge I learnt from the composition videos.

I chose the bee and the Winter fallen fruit frames to practice on since these were frames that weren't as successful as the others. Upon playing around with the compositions I did find that I came up with some interesting alternatives but a friend pointed out to me my viewpoints were still the same. This is an area I need to work on much more and so I am now going to study this subject and practice in my personal sketchbooks to improve. I'm glad I re-visited this exercise as it has shown me where I need to grow.