Digital Skills Acquisition - Brief & Artist Inspiration

With the recent completion of my 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th project briefs whilst studying my foundation degree in animation and illustration I have now received my 6^th brief titled ‘Digital Skills Acquisition’. This project is designed to teach me new skills and techniques in digital software that I may not have come across previously. This project compliments my targets as stated in my previous blog post to explore new approaches in animation creation by using current and upcoming software. As a catalyst for this projects progression I have been challenged with the creation of a character design model turn around sheet of my own choosing and creation.

The software that I shall be studying during this project creative process is titled ‘Adobe Illustrator’ which is a vector-based illustration software. Aside from its primary use in illustration it can also be used to create assets for animation production as well. I have had previous experience using this software for project briefs before, but I am confident that I will have the opportunity to improve my level of knowledge within the software enabling me to create content of a higher technical standard.

Using character design as a catalyst for the development of my digital skills comes with a welcome side effect in that creating a model turn around sheet is not only relevant for my aspirations as an animator but also crucial for the success of my goals in the future regarding the creation of an animated short. Therefore, during this creation of this project, I will equally be taking consideration into the depth that my investigations have as well as the scale of my notes taken so that I can align with my desired personal goals.

Inspiring character designs

To begin my project it is necessary for me investigate the techniques and processes that are relevant to an objectively ‘good’ character design. Character design is something I have attempted in the past but not necessarily studied. Therefore Before I begin exploring the creation process of my own character I am keen to study and deconstruct the character creations of artists I feel understand character design to a professional industry standard due to be informed by their experiences as artists.

Trudi Castle

As previously stated on this blog I find the creative works of Trudi to impact and inspire me greatly due to the clever design principles that she applies to her work. This stands true in the characters she designs daily which never fail to have a lasting impact on me. During the production of this project I am keen to analyse and deconstruct several of Trudi’s character designs to investigate and decipher why her designs appeal to me more than others of similar visual impression.

Estampita

Delfina Perez Adan is an illustrator that self identifies as ‘Estampita’. They are responsible for creating a plethora of characters for narrative based purposes such as comic book story’s. I find the semi realistic shapes and forms that are depicted within their work to be appealing and engaging. I am interested in performing a deconstruction of a few of Estampitas characters through silhouette and shape analysis to discuss and investigate the construction of the impact I feel when viewing such designs.

Fabian Mense

Fabian is one of three members committed to the popular works of the ‘Catfish Deluxe’ Art collective. Primarily hired for his engaging character designs I feel compelled by his creations to pursue more visual development in my spare time due to his inspirational works. His characters always convey a sense of fun which I believe is the source of impact regarding his success. I am keen to unearth the formula which Fabian uses in his characters shape and form when generating compelling character designs. Therefore I shall also be deconstructing his character designs moving forward.

Having outlined, discussed, and identified the first steps in my production process I shall follow up this blog post with my findings of my deconstruction process. I hope that by discussing artists that I find compelling about character design I was able to convey my inner thinking’s as well as inspire you the reader. Thank you for reading!