2/19/15 2D Design

Today's Class- Tonight we wrapped up the basic drawing portion of the semester with an exercise in value drawing.  I started by showing a few dozen slides of historical art (Egypt through 20th Century), pointing out how value can be used in two dimensional art to imply form and build distance, to show texture, to focus attention, to provide a time of day, among other things.  Then I set up a still life of all white colored objects so that the class could get a little hands on practice.  After we cleaned up, I spent a few minutes talking about next week's book illustration project.  The line drawing projects from last week were returned graded.

How to make this up- You will need to set up a still life on a table of all white or very light colored objects.  Shine a direct light on it to create distinct patterns of light and shadow.  Draw the set up on a full sheet of your 18" x 24" paper, paying attention to objects shapes, space between them, and the value of both individual objects and relative to all else in your view.  Use either charcoal or black conte crayon, and whatever method your prefer to blend the material.  Above is a student example from a previous semester.  Additional examples and the detailed instructions can be found here.

This is a portfolio exercise that must be made up by the end of the semester to receive full credit.

Homework-  Nothing new, but if you still owe me one of the first two projects, get it done and bring it in as soon as possible to receive partial credit.

For next class 2/26/15- We will start the more design oriented part of the semester with a project involving woodcut printmaking and composing in black and white.  The subject will be a book illustration from a source of your choosing.  It can be fiction or nonfiction, novel, short story, or poem, but must be something aimed at an adult level, so no fairy tales or nursery rhymes, nothing already illustrated (no comics), and nothing recently adapted for a Hollywood film.  Your illustration can be a single scene from your book, or something that would sum up the whole work, as might be found on the cover.  It must be representational, but not necessarily realistic- we're looking for good design combined with narrative.  Below are some student examples from previous semesters to give you an idea of the range of graphic design approaches.

You don't need to bring finished illustration ideas to class next week, but you should at least have a choice for your literary source and some possible ideas so you don't use the whole class to come up with an idea.  Bring paper (a sketchbook will do fine, big paper not needed next week), pencil and eraser, black markers, and your x-acto knife.  I'll provide the wood.