defining illustration into categories

10 questions i want to investigate

1. what makes a good concept artist?
i want to investigate this question as it is a career path that i have an interest in. is it all about digital art or traditional? i want to know what skills i need to invest in and what i can expect from a job like this. by finding the answer i hope to know whether this would be a career choice i would like to be in, or go down a different route.

2. how do i get myself out of using only 2 medias?
at the moment, i seem to find myself drawn to fineliner and watercolours. although these two medias are amazing and i love them dearly i want to discover other things that i can with illustration and different ways to solve problems using different medias. by finding the answer to this question i hope to be a better illustrator, or at least be able to choose some different medias to work with if i feel like it.

3. why do you suck at drawing poses?
as having an interest in character design, you would think that i am skilled in the art of posing characters. however, i am not. by finding the answer to this question i hope it helps me to realise why i do indeed suck at drawing poses and what i can do to fix this and hopefully get better.

4. how do i sell myself as an illustrator?
being quite a shy and introverted person, i find it quite hard to openly tell people everything that i'm good at without thinking that i sound like an asshat. i want to investigate ways to gain my confidence in myself and my work and be able to show off about what i'm good at and why they should hire me.

5. how do i get myself out of my comfort zone?
i seem to find comfort in drawing little characters and using A5 sketchbooks and just being neat and little and introverted in my drawings. i want to investigate how to get out of this, become big and open and draw more things and use more materials and be a better illustrator. in finding the answer i think that i will become a better person in myself and a better illustrator.

6. is having a visual signature bad?
after having a big head talk with Kyle T Webster and his advice of being open in your visual signature and not holding yourself down to one way of working, it made me question whether having this 'style' is good or bad? do you want to be easily recognisable or make a living? i hope that in finding the answer to this question i can figure out what i want my visual signature to be and make a statement.

7. how do i make illustrative connections?
illustration is a very connection driven job. so i want to investigate how to make good connections (hopefully no bad ones!!) so that the world of illustration as a job is easier for me to handle. finding the answer to this question would mean that i know how to be a proper illustrator and help get myself more commissions and work in the future.

8. how to develop my own visual signature?
whether or not having a visual signature turns out to be bad, i'd still like to investigate what it means to create a visual signature and how i can develop myself. right now i think my work has some sort of stamp of 'beth' on it, but i want more than that. by answering this question i hope to be recognisable as an illustrator.

9. how do i overcome creative block?
i sometimes get stuck with ideas and start to have a brain meltdown when it comes to ideas and developing myself. i want to investigate how i can get myself out of this rut. to do this i think i need to draw a lot, even when i have no ideas. by investigating this i think it will help me in the future if i am ever stuck on a project or commission.

10. am i good enough?
i want to investigate this question as quite a personal one, as i feel that often in class i feel like i'm constantly comparing myself to other people. i want to know if i have the ability to be an illustrator or concept artist or character designer or whatever profession i decide to do in the future. by answering this question i think it will help me define myself as a person and as an illustrator and perhaps be more confident with myself.

worries, why i'm here and what i want to learn

identify 5 things that you want to improve

figure drawing
although one of my strengths is character drawing, i want to improve on my poses and different body types. as i feel like i always go for safe poses and am not very good at perspective.

drawing males
i don't really practice drawing men that often which will be bad if i want to go into character design so i'd like to practice more at this.

being organised
i want to be more organised with my work this year and make sure that i keep up to date with things and don't just waste my year away drawing useless crap that doesn't have any context.

developing a brand 
developing myself as a brand is something i really want to do as i think selling yourself as an illustrator is important. i want to learn how to be professional and have my own practice.

drawing backgrounds
when i draw characters, i never seem to draw them in a proper setting. i want to improve on this so people can get a real feel for my characters and the world they live in, and the world that i envision in my head but can never seem to get down on paper.

identify 5 skills that you think are your strengths

it's difficult for someone to specify what they think their strengths are without feeling like they are being big-headed but i'll try! 

character drawing
i find real enjoyment in drawing girls and characters, although id like to work more on a diversity of characters i still think human figure and cartoon is a strength of mine.



hands!!!
although a lot of people moan about this i feel like i have really improved with hands recently and i'm really proud of my development! :-)

damn look at those hands

being neat

some people may see this as a bad thing but i think that being able to be neat with my art is something that i enjoy and enjoy looking at when i finish.

"sketches"

being motivated

i enjoy drawing so much that i always feel motivated and ready to get sketching which i think is a good strength to have when doing a competitive course like this one.

identify 5 reasons why you chose this programme

the relaxed and artistic atmosphere
it felt so good to be in a place where everyone was on the same page about art and no one said 'art isn't a real degree' 

its modern
even though the course being so new might scare some people, to me it was perfect as illustration itself is a contemporary kind of art so to be able to learn in a modern atmosphere was very appealing to me.

everyone was so friendly
from the tutors to the staff in the canteen everyone was so nice to me even though they'd never met me before, it made me feel right at home and like i could spend 3 years in this place.

they focus on developing yourself
in so many courses they didn't seem to care about you as an individual and the fact that everyone is a different artist and creator, and everyone likes to make different things. i liked the fact that the focus was on me and how i can grow as an illustrator.

it's exactly what i wanted
as an aspiring concept artist it was the only course that specified about character design/concept design. in the brochure under the 'jobs you could go into' section, when i saw character designer i just knew this is where i wanted to go. other courses i looked at just seemed to focus on independent illustrator practice and not the specifics.

identify 5 images that demonstrate your interest in illustration

jin kim is a huge concept artist inspiration of mine. i first found his work in a concept art book which i bought and i have fallen in love with his style and the way he easily translates human emotions onto paper.

eduardo recife is an amazing typographer and collager. his work really inspired some of my early graphic art days and i love his messy and seemingly uncoordinated but somehow put together pieces of work.

gabriel picolo is amazing at using colour, negative space and detailed fineliner drawings. he inspired me to pick up a pen instead of using pencil all the time and his dedication to his projects are inspirational to me, especially his 365 day project.

i also found laura brouwers' work on instagram and fell in love with the way she draws girls. her style, digital work and detail is beautiful.

mall licudine is a big inspiration of mine who's work i found on Instagram. [oh the power of technology!] and i have followed her work ever since. her detailed compositions contrasted with some of the darker work she does is refreshing and eye opening.

identify 5 reasons why you chose to study illustration

1. i love to draw, i always have and i always will. it started when my big sister was 'better' than me, so i wanted to get better than her (sibling rivalry haha) and when i found out as a kid that i could do drawing as a job and make money from it, it blew my mind. 

2. to explore my practice and learn new things. i feel like i got stuck in an art block of having a consistent stylised way of working and i want to open my options to new ways of making pictures.

3. to learn about being independent. i want to be taught about the world of illustrators and commissions and jobs, be able to know what to do and who to speak to.

4. from inspiration. some of my favourite illustrators and concept artists studied illustration at university. wanting to follow in their footsteps drove me to choosing illustration. 

5. to have fun. i wanted to learn more things about myself and get serious about illustration but i also want to have fun doing it. after half of my education life being forced to do maths and science whilst doodling in the margins of my notebooks and exam papers, finally being able to do what i love makes me sosososo happy.