Illustration & Visual Narrative / Project 3

31/05/2023 - 30/06/2023 / Week 9 - Week 13
Iman binti Kamarudin / 0364014
Illustration and Visual Narrative  / Bachelors of Design (Hons) in Creative Media

Project 3: Digital Triptych

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TASK

After being briefed on the assignment, I went on to research which story by Edgar Allen Poe I wanted to illustrate. It was a lengthy process but in the end I chose to illustrate 'The Black Cat'. Afterwards, I went on to breakdown the story into three main events and then simplified it into a three-act structure using the given template.

Figure 1.1 - Story Breakdown

Figure 1.2 - Story 3 Act Structure

After breaking down the story, I went on to sketch out ideas for each act in the story. I came out with 3 different sketches for the first two acts. 

Figure 1.3 - Sketch Variation #1

Figure 1.4 - Sketch Variation #2

Figure 1.5 - Sketch Variation #3

Once I sketched out some ideas for each act, I went and wrote down some personal notes on what to add to each of them. Afterwards, I received feedback from Ms. Anis and revised my sketch. She mentioned using colour to indicate the drastic change in the second act and I thought I should also do better at using colour to hint at things. 

Figure 1.6 - Sketch Personal Notes

Figure 1.7 - Sketch Feedback Notes

After feedback, I went on to creating a comprehensive sketch and, learning my lesson from my previous assignment, a colour palette. I challenged myself a bit by using a limited selection of colours. I also wanted to create a very sharp contrast by using a pure black and dark backgrounds.

Figure 1.8 - Comprehensive Sketch & Colour Palette

Once I finished my comprehensive sketch, I moved onto digitising the triptych in Adobe Illustrator.

Figure 1.9 - Act 1 Progress

Figure 1.10 - Act 1 Progress

Figure 1.11 - Act 1 Progress

Figure 1.12 - Act 2 Progress

Figure 1.13 - Act 2 Progress

Figure 1.14 - Act 3 Progress

FINAL

Figure 2.1 - Final Triptych JPEG

Figure 2.2 - Final Triptych Outline

Figure 2.3 - Final Triptych Act 1

Figure 2.4 - Final Triptych Act 2

Figure 2.5 - Final Triptych Act 3

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REFLECTION

Experience

My experience with this project was significantly more positive than the previous assignment. I found it more enjoyable and easier to work on in Adobe Illustrator. I believe that doing a more comprehensive sketch and working on the colour palette before diving straight into Illustrator made it less difficult. I also really enjoyed trying to summarise the major plot points within an illustration for each act, I liked thinking of how to relate each act to eachother and how to signify a change in the story.

Observations

An observation I've made while working on this project is using Adobe Illustrator to illustrate a triptych was both fun and difficult. The variety of the tools allowed me to easily work with several design aspects. This project did occasionally cause me to go through a creative block, which I adapted to by taking breaks and searching up inspiration on Pinterest. 

Findings

I've found that if you start planning ahead during the ideation and sketching phase about how well each element would translate onto Adobe Illustrator, it really helps out in the future. Keeping a clear workflow was made easier on Adobe Illustrator by preparing the composition, lighting and colour ahead of time. I've also found that while it was enjoyable to think of summarising the story in 3 illustrated acts, it was incredibly difficult as there was so much detail I wanted to keep. Additionally, the narrow canvas for each act made it challenging as to not distract the viewer too much but also not leaving too much space as to make it visually uninteresting.