AS Graphics Exam Evaluation

My final outcomes have now been finished and I feel that it went well and I feel I was able to capture all the of the effects and techniques that I learned and had planned to put into them. I used the my research and development t the best of my ability and this should definitely have come across in the outcomes, my research of Chris Ede's style and techniques have definite had an impact on the way I went about making my outcomes even taking a lot of inspiration from two that I had analysed. I developed my previous idea that I discussed about using spray paint on the parts I did hand drawn previously in my attempts to make Chris Ede inspired pieces. Also my research into Danny Allison also paid off as analysed where i used chalk textures, I incorporated them into the tracing paper idea to create a speed effect which was inspired from my initial research and discovery of Danny Allison. From my experimentation with the spray paints I had a much better understanding of how they behaved and even to the next level combing matt with gloss and enamel spray paints to add more depth to my final pieces. using enamel spray paint did effect my tie though because of the extreme drying times and high possibility of it dripping and in turn destroying the whole piece but I used theses drying times to prepare other work using the time productively. My understanding of spray paint blending is definitely evident in my outcomes; i have blended two to four colours at a time to great effect. Overall i would say that this was a great success and compilation of ideas, research and developments leading up to a convergence of skills i have acquired along the way.

Experimentation in Photoshop

This is one of my experiments using photoshop inspired by Chris Ede who I analysed in a previous post, this experiment took a long time because I made a lot of changes from te way it looked original because of the extra research into spray paint that I did which led me to use spray paint as a texture for my background instead of the less interesting generic background. I feel this is an interesting twist on the amazing work of Chris Ede and adds another element of creativity to what was already very creative technique. I used Manchester's Metrolink tram as the centre piece because this is a key part of the transport of in my chosen city. Overall I enjoyed this experimentation because of the freedom it gave me to expand from the centre of the piece and make composition based on the image chosen to be the main focus of the piece and that is why I took my inspiration from the artist in the first place.

Experimentation in Photoshop

This is one of my experiments using photoshop inspired by Miles Donovan, this was an interesting experiment because I found it hard to find an image that I thought would look interesting and different when I applied the technique to it. I chose the an upshot of buildings because I felt that the shape of the buildings in conjunction and the windows would bring out this technique in the best way possible. I found that adding colour really distinguished the shapes in the piece in comparison to the simple black and white image so I made two different colour versions. Overall I felt this Miles Donovan technique experimentation was very successful and I enjoyed making this technique work with building in comparison to the pieces using people and figures that I have seen.

Black, White and Colour Effects Technique

This is my personal experimentation with this technique and will be part of my final outcome because i feel that the way it accentuates colour is a definite road that i would like to take my illustrations. I made it by making two layers, one of the picture and the other filled with grey; the blending mode for the layer is set to colour to give the black and white effect to the picture, the final step is to use the rubber tool to erase the parts of the image that you want to be color and you have an impressive black, white and colour image of high quality standard.

Danny Allison Analysis

This is my analysis of Danny Allison and his illustrations, such as the ones above which are just a few from his gallery that I particularly liked. I liked these ones as well as several others mostly because of the textural elements which differentiate them from other illustrations as well as each other. I feel that the spray and grainy quality of the pieces creates another dimension and depth to the images in them such as the train piece, the spray effect makes the train look like it is going at speed and this is an effect which works so well. I think that the use of chalk and charcoal textures is very powerful in the piece and adding power to whatever part of the picture that it illustrates. I have tried to embrace some of the techniques that I have seen in his illustrations and will incorporate them into my final piece and future illustrations.

Sydney Opera House Installation Analysis

Chris Ede Analysis

I will be analysing Chris Ede and in particular these examples of his work which I particularly liked from his very large portfolio of illustrations. Chris Ede is a freelance contemporary illustrator. He is known for his computer manipulated mix of hand drawn and photo elements with multi textural, conceptual and in some pieces humorous illustration styles. I really have taken a lot of inspiration from Chris Ede in my research and development of ideas and this should be very clear in my final outcomes. I find the way he uses colour and texture very interesting have definitely tried to adopt some of the techniques that I observed in his work. This type of illustration is probably made in Photoshop and includes scanning in photos or drawings and using them in conjunction with the tools in Adobe Photoshop to layer and blend the different pieces until it becomes what we are presented as the end product. To conclude I think that this type of illustration is very impressive aesthetically and excellent for showcasing your photography or drawing skills as well as how well you understand Adobe Photoshop and that is why Chris Ede is one of my favourite illustrators.

Lino Analysis

Characteristics:
Smooth
Durable
Bendy
Tough
Flat
Hard
Thin
Reinforced
You can cut/Carve it

Potentials:
Carve it
Print it
Emboss
Rubbings
Reduction printing
Sturdy
Can print onto different surfaces
Easy for simple or big designs

Limitations:
Mistakes are irreversible
It not a 3D surfaces
Most work hard to get texture
Hard to cut
Limited colour application
Rollers etc
Hard to clean,
Hard to get off hands
Barrier cream for hands
White spirit fumes are dangerous
Long time to dry
Not easy to pick up skill
Difficult to carve detail

First I traced a drawing that I had drawn previously and put it over my lino and held it in place using sellotape and went over the tracing on the lino to get at least a faint imprint of the tracing on the lino as a guideline. Then I used the lino handle to carve out over the guidelines and paying attention to the intricate details that are there

Development Photos

These are my development photographs that I took in London and Manchester to help broaden my understanding of buildings and landscapes in these parts of the UK and help me in my further developments and understandings of these places which I will use in my final outcome.

Spray Paint Experimentation

These are my spray paint first experiments that I have made, the first one was inspired by another spray paint artist that I had seen and attempted to replicate. The second piece is me experimenting with mixing colours and using objects to create a composition. The bottom example is a large experiment where I layered pieces of paper overlapping in different ways and sprayed them abstractedly to make an effect when the paper is moved which made interesting blending and shapes on the paper.

Exam Proposal

For my final outcome in exam I will be making 5 different posters around my chosen city which is Manchester. I chose Manchester because I feel it has a lot to offer in terms of interesting buildings to draw and manipulate in Photoshop such as renowned Manchester United Old Trafford stadium, Manchester Central Library and the Royal Northern College of Music just to name a few. Not to mention the city center in general which is full of interesting shapes and buildings which make a great composition when drawing or photographing. I think overall this was the right choice for the direction I would like to take my final outcome. I will be using spray paint to do most of my posters and also drawing and sketches that will be incorporated in my outcomes which will then be further edited and cleaned up.

Travel Related Tickets

I have collected 4 different travel related tickets as research into my chosen brief, this is based on travel and transport. These are all different types of travel card, the free travel oyster card for over 16s in education, he adult annual rail card, the adult oyster and the Gold Record Railway Card.

Paper Installation Group Activity

This is a paper installation made by my group completely inspired by Darcy Pendergrast's Sydney Opera House Art Installation which analysed previously. In similar style we tried to construct a civilisation including a large hotel like building complete with residents in coloured windows, we tried to have some fun with the project and add some humour to our installation as you can see from the sun complete with sunglasses and facial hair. this was a very fun and creative project and would love to try this type of art again but maybe with more materials to use because the limit of materials and time really did effect the overall presentation of the installation and i feel more materials and time would allow our group to make a much more detailed and vast civilisation closer to Darcy Pendergrast's level

Research of Possible cities for My Illustration

These are some of the cities that I have thought of using for my final outcome and basing my 5 outcomes on they include: Jamaica Kingston, England Manchester, Japan Tokyo, USA New York, Brazil Rio De Janeiro and Spain Barcelona. I chose these particular cities because I feel they are all very different and have a lot of different things to offer in terms of things to draw and interesting areas to pick out and develop ideas on.

Images: 1: Kingston, 2: Manchester, 3: Tokyo, 4: New York, 5: Rio De Janeiro , 6: Barcelona