DESIGN PRINCIPLES - PROJECT 01: SELF PORTRAIT
Rifath Ali (0335738)
Design Principles
LECTURE NOTES
Self-portraits a re a representation of the
artists in a form of a drawing, painting, sculpture, design. Simply put, a visual
depiction of the self. This can be achieved through various narratives:
- My experiences
- My interests
- My thoughts
- How others see me (Physical traits and
personality)
- How I see myself (Physical traits and personality)
Project 01: Self-Portrait
For our project 01, we were tasked with creating a self-portrait in A4 size which any medium of our choice. We had to apply the design principles from previous lectures and explore different ideas. At the end of the project, we were asked to write a 150 to 200-word rationale for our final idea.
As per instructions, I started off by creating a mood board for our designs. I had 2 main concepts for my design: Botanical, or Head in the clouds.
Out of the two concepts I had, I felt that I
have overused the plant theme. So, I decided to go with my 2nd idea,
Head in the clouds.
Out of the two concepts I had, I felt that I
have overused the plant theme. So, I decided to go with my 2nd idea,
Head in the clouds. What I mainly wanted to portray in the design is how I see myself
as an independent adult and a nod to my experience and interests.
I started off with tracing my torso. I used one
of my images and a reference image for the body. I used mainly gradients to
fill in the design, which was also used to create a bit of form and depth.
I cut out a par of the chest in the shape of a heart to show my love of plants. But once I put the plant in there, it was not clear that its shaped like the heart. So, I elevated the part that was cut out from the chest to make it look like its floating.
I added a few clouds to the design with a blue
gradient in the background. Then I used circles to create the swirl which
brings in movement to the design.
I consulted with Miss Anis to get her feedback
on my progress so far. I explained to her why I decided to stick with my second
concept. She said everything was so far so good. She also asked to cover up the
lover part of the torso instead of having a dismantled torso floating in the sky.
While thinking of ways to improve the design, I
felt that the plants I used were too flat and bland. So, I decided to sketch
one my favorite flower and trace over it. I used gradients to fill in the
flowers.
Next, I needed a seaplane aircraft to link the
design to my experience as a flight attendant. I found an image I liked and
traced over it. I used the original colors and design of the seaplanes I used
to fly in.
After placing the aircraft on the artboard, I angled
the swirls a bit and changed the color to white. I also used Gaussian blur to
make it look like a trail of condensed water left by the aircraft.
I added the clouds, some to the background and
some to the foreground. I did this to give more depth to the design. As per the
feedback I got from Miss Anis, I covered the cut-off point of the torso with a
streak of clouds.
Next, I wanted to give more form to the
subject. However, I don’t have much experience in creating form in my designs. I
tried to mark the muscles and areas where the light would be different. After
marking them, I mainly used gradient fill and Gaussian blur to blend it into
the rest of the body.
Applying the shadows was the only remaining
task. I started off with creating the shadows of the flowers on the chest and
on the other petals as well. Lastly, I added the shadow of the swirl casting on
the body.
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