Week 5

Assignment:  Digital Illustration of whatever we'd like.

Craft:  I wanted to use something with Hollywood and the lights, camera, action aspect of it.  Though, I did not know how to illustrate this.  As I was working, I started with an image of the mountains and the landmark words of "Hollywood"  this was a great place to start, because from there I worked around the illustration.  I illustrated palm trees, by using different colored brush strokes to get that visual effect.  I also wanted to put much attention on the sky.  Therefore, I used different stars and colors to get that effect.  I improved the illustration, by making it look realistic but at the same time like a dream world.  So I used colors that are bold.  I spent a lot of time on the soldier and how I wanted that image to turn out.  I wanted to make him look as if he were dreaming and Hollywood was his dream world.  

Composition:  I used these colors, because they are bold and dreamlike.  They make Hollywood look like a fantasy world, which was the visualization I wanted to give.  I arranged the background off to the side, as the little soldier is in the corner.  I wanted it to look like a dream for him.  Though, I need to change the arrangement of the picture by next week.  

Concept:  Going into this project, I didn't know what message I wanted to get across in my illustration.  So I was playing around with different effects and cam up with something that may not tell the story I want.  By next week, I want to change the illustration and mold the background of Hollywood and an army base in Iraq together, to give that visual instead of using a lot of words to tell the story.  

Week 4

Assignment:  Final Version of the Digital Illustration of Abraham Lincoln  Craft:  For this process, I changed it up a little bit.  With this assignment, I did not know what direction I was going to go.  I knew that I had to stick Abraham in a background that has a connection to who truly is.  I decided on the view of the city of Chicago, because Abraham Lincoln is a very important person in Chicago.  He is from Illinois, so Chicago is perfect for him and his tallness to me shows a connection between him and a skyscraper.  I wanted to use an illustration I had already done of Lincoln, so I did that but just changed minor details on the coloring.  Also, I googled an image of the skyline and from there I went to work with illustrating the buildings.  I wanted it to look realistic, so I added important buildings that are symbolic for Chicago like the bean and and skyscraper.

Composition: I chose this photo of lincoln, because it was a side profile of him and shows his lengthyness. I used the colors of Abraham, because they are grey toned- which shows how the presidency made him look aged. I wanted the background to look realistic, but not boring. So I chose to use a different color for each building to catch the eye. You never see a colorful city, so this is what I was trying to achieve. Also, I believe that Abraham made Chicago how it is today. A very diverse city that is very colorful and bold with different colors.

Concept: This is the final version of Abraham and it is exactly how I wanted it to look with the bolds colors and skyscrapers. I wanted to use a very landmark location, so Chicago is perfect!

Week 3

Assignment: Three illustrations of Abraham Lincoln 

Craft:  For these three illustrations I used Adobe illustrator in order to illustrate each of the different versions of Abe.  I wanted to promote red, white, and blue since Abraham Lincoln was a very patriotic president.  As you can see, each of my versions has those colors to signify who Abraham Lincoln really was.  He was into patriotism and wanted the country united as one, so these colors are perfect.  I improved each picture by spending more time to detail on his face.  I zoomed in in illustrator, in order to illustrate the wrinkles on his face, the color of his eyes, and his aged look.  This is very important, because Abe became very aged throughout his presidency, so it is crucial to show that.  I used different brush strokes to get a realistic view.

Composition:  I chose these photos, because I thought it would be easier to illustrate them because they are close ups of Abe's face.  I liked them, because I can only focus on his facial expressions, instead of his entire body.  I wanted to mix it up a little, so I used a Hawaiian  shirt on him to show his fun side.  Of course I never knew Abe, but I think later down the road if he had lived after his presidency he would want to hang out on the beach.  

Concept:  My concept by next week is to illustrate a Lincoln and use a background that is familiar to all.  I want my Lincoln to be towering over all the skyscrapers in Chicago.