prepare

Here's a quick Illustration Friday: studying is definitely necessary when preparing for a test. . or a project. . .or anything in life actually.  You must absorb knowledge before you can apply it :)

I apologize for the long hiatus and have really missed blogging!  I've been swamped trying to meet two different deadlines. 

One, I can talk about. . it's Attack of the Space Chickens in short comic form for Illopond's Space Anthology.  The above illustration was actually a sketch from the story that I ended up having to cut out.

As for the other project, I won't be able to show art from it until the book is published (hopefully by the end of this year).  Until then, I leave you with picture book tips from Eric Carle himself as he works on his latest book The Artist Who Painted a Horse:

sink

Let's continue with the holiday theme with this poor little penguin.  It's hard to sing well when you're sinking into snow :(

And oh, looky here, another coloring page for you guys:

It's in a weird size but that's part of the fun!

As for picture book tips, we had our last day in class and it was amazing seeing all of my classmate's final projects.  Along with two finalized illustrations, we submitted a manuscript, cover letter, and dummy for our picture books.

If you're wondering, a dummy is a very rough mockup of your entire picture book.  Yellapalooza has a great site that goes into detail about making a proper dummy book.  This is what mine ended up looking like:

I spent a little extra money to get it stapled and printed professionally, but some dummies can be as simple as black and white print outs taped back to back.  A dummy is basically there to help you get a sense of your book's overall pacing and rhythm (for both the words and the illustrations).  I found the process very helpful!

I probably won't be updating until next year, so I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season.  See you on the other side folks :)

separated

Cats are sneaky. . .I've always been on my guard around them. . and here's a reason why!  The poor snowman got separated from his own body :(

And here's another coloring holiday treat:

Feel free to share your masterpieces in the comments section!

As for picture books, here are a few very helpful resources:

--Picture This:  a blog created by a group of well known and respected illustrators in the industry.  It's always chock full of recent picture book news.

--Love Sketch Books:  this is a blog started by my talented classmate Sungyeon.  The blog showcases gorgeous picture books from all over the world. 

So tip of the day: peruse these blogs and get inspired!

brigade

This is the final scene from a story I'm working on for the picture book class.  Here, Captain Cluck's brigade of pigships brings back their farm animal captors and sets them loose on their own version of paradise.  Check out the corn river and mud fountains. . sweeeet.

During the past few weeks, this illustration went through several iterations:

I first roughly mapped out the composition in pencil.

Here was my color study.  This basically helped me figure out my palette and saturation levels for the piece.

This was my first painted draft.  With feedback, I ended up taking away the sun and moving the background scene lower because they were pulling focus away from the middle and foreground.  Also, the monitor screen and font were in an awkward position and style, so that was also changed.

I can't emphasize how important it was to have my classmates' feedback throughout this process.  They really helped me tighten up the composition.  My friends at the Illopond helped me many times as well.  I'm still not sure if it's quite finished, but I definitely think the illustration has come a long way.

So I guess that's my picture book tip for the week: revise revise revise. . and in between, get feedback from people you respect and trust!

round

I know. I know.  It's a little too soon to bring out the Christmas art, but this is the first thing that came to my mind for the word "round."  If I have some extra time, I might even do a version in blue.  And for all you parents out there, here's a black and white version that your kiddos can color:

I missed picture book class this week, but I definitely have a few more tidbits to share.  Remember how I mentioned Suzy Lee's book "Wave"?  Well apparently it's a part of a series.  They're all wordless books that are filled with gorgeous illustrations and creative concepts.  You can check out all her books here!

silent

I feel like silence definitely plays a huge role in a mime's performance. . it makes you focus more on his/her actions.  This is probably going to be a popular topic for Illustration Friday's "silent", but hey. . .I've always wanted to draw a mime :)

In other news, I've been working on my story "Attack of the Space Chickens" for the picture book class and have pretty much figured out the layout.  Through the process of planning out my pages, I learned so much about the design of a picture book.  Some of these lessons include:

--You can use the gutter (that's the fold in the center of the book) to your advantage by emphasizing the division of two groups.  Here's a great example from Wave by Suzy Lee

Notice how the girl and the waves are separated by the gutter, acting as a natural divide.

--Avoid having two full page illustrations side by side, because they end up competing for attention.  Instead, make one illustration the primary focus (i.e. the full page image) and break down the other into  "spot" illustrations (i.e. smaller drawings on white space).  See if you can spot where I use this principle in my "Attack of the Space Chickens" layout.

 

Next step: turn two spreads into full illustrations *gulp*  Wish me luck ;)

stripes

I couldn't help it. . .November always makes me hunger for pie.  Especially pies with stripes. . I think the traditional term is "lattice top."  I like "stripy pie" better :)

Being 2nd generation Taiwanese, my parents never went the traditional route with Thanksgiving.  Last year, we had Peking Duck.  This year, I think we'll have sushi.  Still, pie will always be part of the occasion. . even if it's me picking one up at the local Safeway.  With my newly discovered gluten allergy, we'll have to be a little more creative.  I'll let you know how it goes.

Art-wise, things have been crazy.  The picture book is progressing well and I'm taking a picture book class taught by an art director of Chronicle Books.  One lesson for all you illustrators out there. . .did you know that the end pages of a book can really screw with your page count!?  Click on the image below to learn more.

I highly recommend taking a look at the difference between "separate/colored" and "self-ended" pages before planning out your book. . lesson learned, lesson learned lol.