How do Illustrators amplify the ‘meaning’ within a message?

Being an illustrator allows you to convey your message through medium, text and different types of media. A simple image can convey a hidden meaning. For example you can find out about technology used at the time, culture influences and what was happening in the world at that time. 

Looking at two types of media of the same subject can make my point clearer. For example Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was originally written in 1964, and since then has been adapted many times. It has been made into two films with and illustrated countless times. But the most famous Illustrations are by Quentin Blake. These illustrations were made in the 70’s and show a freeness and self-expression. The images are very loosely drawn and the characters are very animated and quirky. This gives it a more playful feel, so it appeals to its target audience of children more. He has painted the images using watercolours to give it a more handmade finish. This shows the use of media at that time.

In contrast the most recent Charlie and the Chocolate Factory film has a completely different look and feel to it. It is more vibrant, colourful and overtop; a typical Tim Burton style film. Also his signature dark gothic style is also their; with some of the characters and set. The film also shows the use of technology, with the use of props and CGI. But this film also caters to its target audience of children with the settings and staging, Children will wish they were at the Chocolate Factory.

Both versions are great examples of how illustrators can interpret their own meaning within in a message. 

What are the platforms that Illustrations are used to affect the communication?

Being an illustrator you no longer have to restrict yourself to pieces of paper in order to communicate. Your illustrations can be applied to a variety of mediums reaching more people and communicating the message more effectively and efficiently.

I have been looking at graphic designer/artist Keith Haring who died in 1990, and how his work is still living on in different forms. His signature bold lines and active figures have been applied to everything from trainers to art installations. All the time his art is still communicating to people, and delivering his message of ‘unity’ and ‘active life’. 

This shows how an illustrator can be adaptive and promote their self’s through other forms. Whilst he was still alive his pattern was applied to many things and used in different contexts. In 1989 it was used for the paintwork of a BMW. This was one of the most famous examples of his art taking on a different platform. This was a good way for him to promote himself, and get his art out into the wider audience.

 Most recently his art [background, costume] were used in the music video ‘Rude Boy’ for Rihanna. It created a stunning, simple visual experience and exposed and communicated his art to a whole new younger audience. Rihanna has also been pictured wearing a Jacket with Keith Haring's signature print.

Keith Haring’s art is still living on many years after his death; this is due to his self-promotion and his art taking on different platforms but most of all coming up with a timeless piece of art. 

Show how an example of how video information gives visual form to hard facts

As a graphic designer I should look at more interesting ways in which I can visual data. We shouldn’t restrict our self’s to pie charts and bar graphs in the way we show hard facts. We should think out of the box, and experiment with different types of media and look at the context in which the data is collected. We can also look at the audience for the gathered information, and how we can make the data more interesting so it can appeal to them even more. 

Whilst researching how hard facts can be given visual form, I came across a digital cartographer called Eric Fischer. He has used data from the latest US census to create visual maps of different States, which shows the racial divisions in the US. Each dot represents 25 people and each colour a different race. White people are represented by pink, Black people are represented by blue, Hispanic’s represented by orange and Asians by green. These maps are very visually striking and also very clear. There is a clear segregation between the colours, and this clearly represents the racial divisions in the US. By using the colour dots it makes the information more clear, and gives it more visual realisation. If the collected data was in a bar chart, it wouldn’t work as well and wouldn’t look as visually stunning as these images do. You also wouldn’t get a sense of what the information represents.

This data has inspired me to be more creative when I’m giving visual form to hard facts.  I should also think about the audience for the data and try and use different media.    

Identify a three act structure in a recent film

After learning about the three act structure which is used in most films, the first film which came to mind was Batman The Dark Knight. This film uses a three act structure well, with a clear beginning, middle and end.

 In the beginning of the film we establish the background and carry on from the previous film. Gotham is in a state of equilibrium; the ‘bad guys’ are off the streets and crime rates are going down. Batman is identified as the protagonist and has joined forces with Lieutenant James Gordon, and the new district attorney Harvey Dent. At that moment everything is going well and they seem unbeatable. Then the crisis in the middle begins; The Joker enters the frame with his psychopathic criminal state of mind and upsets the equilibrium. This then leads to series of events which form the main part of the film. The Joker is identified as the antagonist, and as a result has forced the protagonist to make a life changing decision. Batman has to either reveal his true identity or risk hundreds of people being killed. As a result this forces batman to act in ways, in which he has never done and the audience see him stray between the lines of good and bad. The film also features an inner story which is a love triangle between Batman (Bruce Wayne), Rachel Dawes and Harvey Dent. Rachel Dawes thinks that the only way she can be with Bruce Wayne is if he stops being Batman, and let the police take care of Gotham.  Bruce Wayne knows this can never happen, so decides that she would be better off with Harvey Dent. At the end of the film the crisis is resolved. The Joker is captured and Batman is seen as a criminal and is on the run. The crisis/antagonist has caused Batman’s life to change as he is now seen as a criminal. But order is also restored with Gotham back under control.

Utilise Your Creative Brain

Our brain is split into two distinctive half’s; which are the complete opposites of each. The right side of our brain is our most creative side. It is almost childlike in the way it likes to work, its innocent, imaginative, free, curious and playful. Well as the left side of the brain is more conscious on how it works and creates things. It has a more sensible approach and likes to be organised and know exactly what it’s creating. 

  

For example the image below of a child’s drawing is free and innocent; it also has been drawn unconsciously. When children are drawing they are doing it for fun. They aren’t aiming at a particular audience or thinking what the context of the image means. However they like to experiment with different types of media and see what the results are. This is evidence of our right side of the brain being used to full potential.

To create the best RVJ or illustration that you can; you have to have both sides of your brain working together. Your work has to be creative, experimental and imaginative. But you also have to have a concept of what you are creating, what the intention of it is and also ask why you are doing it.

Working By Hand

As a creative designer, it is essential for us to work by hand. This allows us to get our ideas out of our head, and straight onto paper.  It also allows us to utilise the right side of our brain, and be at our most creative and free. People don’t have to see theses sketches so we can be as experimental as we like and develop our ideas even further.

Take for example the illustrator Jeremy Dower. He is very creative with his mark making and you can the right side of his brain in action. These sketches are free and experimental, and show how the designer works. He has experimented with different types of media and shape and form. You can also clearly see his ideas/thoughts on paper through his sketches. There is also a clear connection between his hand, eyes and brain. This is evident in some of the characters being drawn again and being improved. But he has also used the sketches to help him design his final illustrations. He now has a target audience, a clear concept and final type of media chosen.  

This is a great example of how if we get the right connection between our hands, eyes and the right side of our brain; we can be more free and imaginative sketch some of our best ideas. This in turn will allow us to create our best illustrations.

Visual Hierarchy

Here is an example of a magazine cover which uses good visual hierarchy. The audience for this magazine automatically look at the facial expression of the man first, his eyes are clenched shut and look scared, and you then notice the gun below. The image is shocking and not something you would expect to see on the front cover of a magazine. So it instantly grabs your attention. The magazine uses the image as one of its many design devices but this is the main one. You then notice the main headline of the magazine “The Game. Suicide is not an option”, and realise that it relates to the main image. The text is written in a bold red type, so it contrasts the grey background and stands out against the image. The third thing you look at is the magazine title; which is placed behind the main image. It is also written in a bold red type. I would expect the magazine title to be the second thing that your eyes look at, as sometimes this is the main selling point and also you know what you’re reading/looking at.

Whether we look at poster, newspaper cover or magazine cover; our eyes are automatically gravitating towards things in different orders. This is visual hierarchy; it is done with the intention of us looking at the main part of the poster first, and it grabbing our attention. Once it’s caught our attention, we then look at the poster in greater detail, noticing things that we didn’t see at first glimpse. We can create visual hierarchy by varying colours, textures, shapes, images and text size. Many people don’t realise how visual hierarchy is used, but once you start to look at things in greater detail, you realise that it’s all around.

Researching the practise

Before a designer creates anything, they have to do their research and know about what their designing, and its main intention. They also have to be inspired by their research. I have come across a graphic designer called Jerod Gibs who has researched classic films and TV programmes, and been inspired to create designed new poster for them.

He has used iconic images from the films/TV programmes and filled it with memorable quotes from the films/TV programmes. I admire his style because it is very simple, but communicates with the audience easily. People will recognise the images instantly, because they are iconic to the film, this again show good research.  Not only has he researched images and text but also use of colour. For example the yellow background relates to the yellow colour of the Simpsons.  I think these film/TV poster are great examples of how researching the practise can help you to design better.

http://abduzeedo.com/illustration-typography-poster-series

By understanding the various ‘practices of illustration’ one is able to progress and advance one’s own practice

Artist, illustrators and designers get their inspiration from the world and surroundings all around them. Everyday objects can inspire an artist to create some of their best work. But it is not just their surroundings that inspire, but also politics and our media obsessed culture. This inspiration is very prevalent in the graffiti artist Banksy’s work.

Banksy use’s walls, bridges and poster as his blank canvas, this is with the intention of his political art being seen by all, and reaching all audiences. But it is mainly aimed at younger generation who don’t visit art galleries, and aren’t interested in the world around them. By having it open on the streets, people can’t help but look and have their own interpretation of what it means, and see if it’s relevant to them.  

Graffiti is usually seen as anti-social and an eyesore, but Banksy uses this media to his advantage. His work consists mainly of graffiti stencils, with a political message painted on urban landscapes. Banksy’s work consist mainly of subjects and topics familiar in the 21^st century, but with a dark twist and hidden messages. For example, the image below shows how the government/people are ‘sweeping things under the rug’.  They don’t want to get involved in topics/subjects that don’t involve them or they want certain things to be forgotten.  Banksy images speak to us subconsciously, we can either appreciate them as a piece of art, or delve deeper and look at their hidden political messages.

The notion of ‘inspiration’ derives from constant inquiry, based on research, observation, recording and experimentation.

Kanye West is seen as a modern pop icon, pushing the boundaries both visually and musically. But with each new project he creates, he gathers inspiration from looking back at past musicians and artist. Through his research of older songs, he has experimented with them and used samples of them on his own songs. By using older songs as his inspiration, Kanye can add his own twist to it and makes the song his own. But it will still have relevance to the older song. One of Kanye West most famous samples is in the song, ‘Diamonds from Sierra Leone’ which samples Shirley Bassey’s ‘Diamonds are forever’. Kanye has changed the context of the song, with the intention of his music having a different meaning to the original. It is now about conflict diamonds and how people are being hurt and treated unfairly. By using the sample, the song automatically reaches a wider audience. The older generation will already be familiar with it, but by adding his rap and drum beats, it can also appeal to a younger and cooler audience. Kanye not only uses past songs as inspiration but also by looking back at past cultural icons. This is evident in the music video, ‘Touch the sky’ where he pays homage to Evel Knievel, with his character being renamed Evel Kanyevel. Kanye West gathers his inspiration from things that were popular when he was younger and before. He then adds his modern spin to them so they are more relevant with now, and connect to a younger audience.

Knaye West-Touch The Sky

Kanye West-Diamonds from Sierra Leone

Notions of originality

Throughout time; original images have been remade, redesigned and taken on a different mediums. They have also had their original target audience change and the original intention of the image change.  But the new images still have notions of originality, from the original images which have inspired them to create their work.

An image or piece of work made in the 1500’s would have a different intention, target audience and use different materials, to a piece of work or an image made today. But using the main theme of the image it can be redesign to fit in with the times and reach a new target audience. An excellent example of this is the image Hokusai - The great Wave of Kanagawa, which has been remade to advertise and promote beer. This gives it a new message and meaning, bringing the image back up to date. The layout of the image is identical to the original image, but this time the wave is made out of bottle openers. This is in context of the image advertising beer. This is great example of using an original image for inspiration and making it more relevant for the times.

Théodore Géricault - The Raft of the Medusa was painted between 1818 and 1819. The painting has been remade countless times with different meanings, target audience and mediums. But all the new versions still have notions of the original image.  For example it was remade with the intention of advertising a high end women’s fashion label. The target audience for this advert is mainly women who would buy the clothes. There are signs in the advert that the women are lost at sea, this can be seen by their facial expressions and the way in which they are positioned. But it doesn’t really matter because they are glamorously dressed and advertising the fashion range. I think that this is a great example of using an original image for inspiration for something new. The context, audience and intention have completely changed compared to the original but it still has the same layout and elements of the original.

Recontextualised ideas and concepts in contemporary culture

An original image made a long time ago can still have relevance today in a more contemporary cultural. If the idea is recontextualised it can fit in with a more modern era, cater to a different target audience and also by using different mediums. But the new image/idea can still pay homage to the original.

A good example of this is the how the theme of fairies can be used for an image and be recontextualised for a TV ident.  The original fairies were first seen in the image Cottingley Fairies by the artist Elsie Wright, with a young girl in a woodland scene looking dreamily into the distance.  This idea of fairies was recently used in a TV ident for the BBC One in Ireland. The context of the landscape is a dreamy and an enchanting forest. The BBC is saying it wants to take you somewhere new, different and unexplored with their programmes/channel. The target audience for the TV ident is everyone. BBC one caters to all genders, races and ages; and everyone can relate to being young and imagining an enchanting landscape with fairies.