Finally... all three projects from CBook2 are FINISHED!

I told you they would all be due today, didn't I?

Let's start with our folktale project, the story of Sigo the boy who lived with the bears...

Left side of the double-page spread...

Right side of the double-page spread!

Both pieces of art were wood-burned on (scrap) pine, scanned and then put into Photoshop to do the page layout.  I tried to make the words look like they were "burned in" too!

Here are the final double-page spreads for Mother Nature.  I've included the text, though it is copyrighted to the author, but this is for educational and learning purposes, and I hereby do not take any credit whatsoever for the text.  I find it an important part of the process, because the assignment was to work around the original text layout, versus coming up with one like we did with Mooin. (Should anyone find this to be problematic, contact me and I will remedy it immediately.)

In case you forgot, these were done in ink and watercolor on pre-stretched Arches 140lb hot press paper.

As for our collage project, my "Song of Spring" poem has yet to be actually merged with the art in proper layout form.  I still haven't had the time to re-learn how to do a text path.  Yeah, I know it's one of those silly easy things, but hey I've been busy!  Also, it needs to be re-scanned because I've got a seam in the middle, where the gutter usually is.  Here it is anyhow, so we can see the whole body of work together in one blog post.

Once again, this was done by painting old Chinese and English newspapers with non-toxic acrylics, cut and pasted with Matte Medium, with a few finishing touches done in either acrylic or colored pencil. I almost feel like it needs some little blossoms in the tree... but I'm going to wait and see what it looks like with the words before I do anything else to it.

All in all, a very satisfying semester! Four finished double-page spreads, a finished picture book manuscript, and a cover letter.  I don't think I could of asked for more, especially in a three month period!

Now... What's next???

More Talk on Style

Monday night was the last night before our last night of class. Which means next Monday is the night where everything we've worked on all semester must be complete, final, and perfect! Not only that, but we will also be looking for secret messages in our work that tell us each what our style looks like, and what it's all about.

I think I'm slowly starting to get a few clues to what my style is...what really drives me.  Cheryl said that anything that makes you insanely happy, (before, during, and after) is a good way to go, since picture books  have a lot of art in them, and we will be so very tired of the book by the time we finish drawing it.  Thinking back over the years at the projects that I loved doing the most, there are some things about them that are very similar.  Cheryl noticed during our crit that I have a tendency to draw a particular way, and it showed up in "Mother Nature" and "Mooin," and I realize now in a lot of other things I've done as well.

But I think I'm going to wait to reveal what that style actually is...mostly because I don't have all the photos I need to show you at my current location.  But I will.  (If you want a hint, though...when it finally came down to the implementation of my ideas for "Mooin," I really enjoyed the technique!)

Anyhow, we talked a lot about style in class, and looked at a bunch of amazing books from our Bookshare table.  There were two books in particular that showed a lot of different styles all within the same story!  The first one won a Caldecott Medal!

 

"Black and White" by David Macauley  

"Why Did the Chicken Cross the Road?" by an assortment of artists!

Both books were very useful to demonstrate different styles, looks and techniques that an illustrator may use when creating a picture book.  Also mentioned was the artist David Shannon, who has multiple styles in which he works. Some of my favorites: 

"The Ballad of the Pirate Queens," by Jane Yolen

"No, David!"

"How I Became A Pirate," by Melinda Long

"Duck on a Bike," by David Shannon

There will be many more talks on style, versatility and technique as time goes on.  That's the topic we talk most about in my classes, because it is the thing that makes you different from everyone else, the thing that makes you stand out... and the thing that could potentially get you a Caldecott Medal!

Did I ever tell you that was one of my life goals? Yep, I'm going to get a Caldecott Medal if it's the last thing I do!  It probably will be the last thing I do...I've got a LOT of improving to do.

From Start to Finish - Mooin, The Bear's Child, Part 3

(Note: I realized that I hadn't actually posted my last blog post when I created it, so it looks like I posted twice in a row...I swear I didn't mean to!)

Critiques are life savers.  Yes, they're a royal pain in the patootie, and man can they draaaaaag!  But without some of the crits of art-classes-past, and the one on Monday, many of my pieces would have turned out entirely differently.

For example, during the last crit, a very smart and insightful person brought up that most of my stuff is super colorful.  Like straight-from-the-tube colorful.  And I've been trying extremely hard to stay away from that, because I tend to yield better results when I do.  My problem is that I wasn't brought up to use neutral colors, or rather, no one seemed to point out that I didn't mix my own colors. That explains why I have such a problem deciding which colors to use in my art, because I don't use a limited palette.  If the whole wide world is available, why not just use them all?

So I am very thankful to my dear friend for bringing that point up, and reminding me that I'm an artist, and not a toddler with a 280-count box of Crayolas, (or whatever number they are up to now)! Those days were much simpler, though.

Well I'm done blathering about that.  Here's what I've been up to in the past few days...

New composition and style to my design!

My wood-burning friend, the tool I'm using for my line work.
(I wear a mask and turn on the kitchen hood fan for proper ventilation when burning the wood.)

Left side of my double-page spread.

Right side of my double-page spread.

New & Improved! color palette, using 3 primary colors, white, and one brown.

Not done yet... but I'm liking the results!  Thank goodness for the color changes!

This project, as well as "Mother Nature" and "Song of Spring," will be completely finished by Monday, and all three will be scanned and posted here on my blog most likely a day or two after that.  I'm so glad to have some nicer pieces to put into my portfolio! Can't wait to have it all done!!

From Start to Finish - Mooin, The Bear's Child, Part 2

It's color study time!


Although I'm still working on (and constantly thinking about) my final composition, a color study is still a helpful exercise to do.  (Plus, it's due this Monday in CBookII.)  After much deliberation, I have decided to go with my first idea of painting on pine wood, with burned-in accents. 


When I told him this, my husband asked me, "If one of your problems is that you haven't stuck to a certain style, why are you trying this new style on a new project?"  That is a valid point, but I told him what I'm going to tell you now:  If I don't experiment enough with different techniques, how will I know which I love the most?

Also, I have already done a project using this techniques, and I really enjoyed it.  This is a part of said project:

I did quite a bit of research and messing around to figure out the kind of look I was going for, and came up with this rainbow of colors:

(These are my happy acrylic paints.  I use the student grade stuff for now.)

And my color comp:

Let's see what teacher thinks in class!

From Start to Finish: Mooin, the Bear's Child

Project Number Three has commenced!

You may notice that I've still got a little bit of work to do on my two previous projects, however, as many of you students out there understand... What Teacher says, Student does!

Our third and final project for Children's Book Illustration II is a storyboard and a double-page spread of a folktale.  It must include a child, and it must be completed in acrylic paint!  It can be any size, theme or style we choose, as long as it matches well with the story.

I chose to do the Native American tale of "Mooin, the Bear's Child."  In this class, I have done a Japanese themed project in watercolor, a Chinese themed project with acrylic and cut paper collage, and I think it will be fun to try a Native American theme for the last project.  I love nature, and all things woodsy (my daddy does woodworking- love the smell of sawdust!) so I am entertaining the thought of painting this all on pine... but I guess we'll see how it goes.  Art tends to have it's own mind when it comes to things like this!

Our first job was to paginate the story, which means we need to break down the story's text and determine where it will go, and on what page, in a way that enhances the story.  I've learned in my writing class that this is also an essential part of writing a picture book - you need to make the story build itself up, create tension and excitement, and slowly bring it back down to a conclusion.  And you can do all that not only with the plot, but also how and where you place the text.

Here's what my story looks like paginated:

 

The next step is to do a storyboard, or a visual layout of text and page composition of the entire story.  This includes things like borders, square-ups, and page bleeds.

Mine read from left to right- across both pages. 
(The pages are numbered...follow those and you'll get the idea!)

Then we choose our favorite double-page spread that features a child, and we work on possible compositions:

(I didn't include the ugly ones...maybe one day I will when it won't be so incriminating!)

Then we need to work on the final sketch.  This part is much harder for me, because my story is about bears, and I've never actually drawn real bears before!  So I went surfing around the web and watched some nice bear videos, clips from Disney's Brother Bear movie, and browsed Google images.  I also reserched Native American iconolgy and symbols, because I might be using them for a border. 

 Here are some sketches I can now use for my composition:

That is all I've got right now, but there is still a lot of work that needs to be done!  I've got more wrestling bears, boys, and comps to draw, and some serious polishing up to do.  Though I've got an image in my head, I'm still excited to see how it all turns out!

In the meantime, Happy Drawing and Writing to you!  :)

From Start to Finish - Song of Spring, Part 2

It's Finished!!

Well, with the exception of the eye for the bird, (which I completely forgot), and I may or may not put a little shadow underneath the girl and wagon to ground them.  I've also been entertaining the thought of doing a dotted line/flight path for the butterfly, but I think I will wait until after the crit to decide on that one. Might fool around with it in Photoshop a bit first, too! Still would like to put in the words as well, but I've got to learn how to make a text path that curves in PS.

Here are a few photos of the transformation...

   

Whole piece, not yet digitally cropped.

...and if you missed the first half of the creation process, you can look here.

This project was a great experimentation process for me, because I learned that I get a little cranky when it comes to cutting things.  I have become to used to just BAM! laying it right down with paint or something, and there it is, all finished!  But with this process I had to trace my original image, then cut, then trace, then cut some more, then add a little paint here, and trace, and cut... you get the picture.  It's a bit more complicated doing it this way, but I am happy with the results.  I'm not saying I wouldn't ever do a collage like this again, I just am relieved that it's finished!

A bit of sweat and tears (and screaming while my husband laughs at my tantrums), and I can move on to the next project!  (I wouldn't say no to a job that required I use this method, though!)

Now I've just got to get crackin on that Mother Nature...

From Start to Finish - Song of Spring, Part 1

As I have already mentioned, we have started a new project in my children's book illustration class!  The assignment is to do a double page spread of a cut paper/collage illustration, and must integrate the text in an interesting way.  Although we could pick a poem from Cheryl's collection, I chose instead to use my own words so that I may submit my work to Ladybug Magazine when it is finished.  The poem is titled "Song of Spring."

We began in the usual way, by drawing thumbnails on parchment paper to get a feel for the composition.  I had an image in my mind that I felt was a strong one, so I stuck with that.  I'm terrible when it comes to thumbnails- once I get the idea in my head it won't go away, and I've pretty much decided what I want to do.  I know this is a no-no...but what can I say, that's how I work!

It should go without saying - All words and art in this post are Copyright Melanie Linden Chan 2010.

I did a bit of research and sketching on the critters and things that are in my piece before I settled on this:

Next I did a color comp to get a better idea of what I was getting myself into:

(yes...it is in crayon...I was stuck at work with limited supplies!)

Then I stepped outside for a bit to make my colors!  I used old newspaper, in both English and Chinese, and taped them to cardboard.  Then my acrylics and I went crazy!  I also added a touch of nature here and there- such as crumpled leaves and grassy textures, made with (can you guess?) grass:

...and here is part of my collection of paper:

I chose to use canvas for my base, because I want to have a nice final piece that I can either put into a show or sell one day.  Of course I couldn't purchase a canvas size that fit my project's dimensions perfectly, and I didn't have the time or materials to make my own, so I settled with a 16x20, which is actually turning out pretty well.  I messed around a bit before I came up with my background, using acrylic and layered tissue paper:

Of course I lost my crop marks in the process, so I put them on the side edges of the canvas and made myself a little composition frame:

A little bit of cutting and arranging...

The squint test wasn't working so well for me, but luckily my camera has a Black & White option so I can check my values.  They definitely need some re-working! (plus the lighting is bad here)

That's all I've done so far...but this week is Spring Break!  Too bad it isn't Spring Break in the working world as well, but I will take what I can get.  Both "Mother Nature" and "Song of Spring" are due on April 26th, so check back in a little bit and you'll soon see the finished pieces!

From Start to Finish...almost - Mother Nature

These past few weeks I've learned quite a few new tricks to the trade, which include actually finding a working process that WORKS! (for me, at least)  So I've decided to do a series called "From Start to Finish," that will show all the steps of creation on my current projects, and I will begin with my Mother Nature project!

In Children's Book Illustration 2, our first project was to illustrate two double-page spreads of either a poem or story, using watercolors.  Our teacher supplied the text, which was to be illustrated so that the text itself had a white background.  Our art was to be vignetted, but could not bleed into the text area.  We had to have a good reason for the art to "stop" around the text, using line and shape.  I chose the poem about Mother Nature, who changes her clothes based on the season.  I won't repeat the actual type here for copyright reasons.

We first began doing little thumbnail sketches on tracing paper.  I didn't think I would like doing this, but it was actually very useful, because: 

1) I used restaurant sized parchment paper, which is super inexpensive and is available to me at both my home and at work, so I always have paper no matter where I am, and 

2) Doing sketches on tracing paper allows one to print up a text layout sheet and not have to waste good paper or ink printing up new ones all the time.  Just trace them!  

Then we moved on to enlarging our sketches to fit the actual text page.  I chose the scan-and-print method:

 

  

From there we improved our drawings, and finalized them, with the help of the critiques we had done in class.  Then our final images were ready to be transferred to our watercolor paper!

But before we did so, Cheryl taught us a few tricks with watercolor.  We learned how to do a Flat wash, and Gradients, and how to use things like salt, liquid frisket, and other resists.  But the coolest thing was that she had us all stretch our watercolor paper!  I had heard of that method, but didn't have the guts to try it on my own.  We all got some thick cardboard, (I had got mine from work, cut it all into panels, layered three pieces together and alternated the corrugates to strengthen the board.  I then duct taped them like crazy in a lovely teal shade!), and a pan of water, and soaked our 140lb paper for 3 minutes.  After blotting the paper lightly, we then stapled our sheets down to the cardboard and let them dry completely.  The we taped off the edges and used the sample sheets to play in class, trying new methods.

So with Mother Nature, I measured the border and crop marks to the project's specs, then transfered my art to the paper with my handy dandy light box. Here's a tip, which I learned too late, when stretching your paper:

Be sure that your pencil lines are where they should be before you stretch your paper.  When the paper soaks, the fibers open up and trap some of the pencil marks so that once dry, the marks are extremely hard to erase! You can draw and erase all you want once the paper is dry, so if you haven't decided on something yet, then either save it for later, or don't soak your paper.

Here is one of my two spreads, all taped up and drawn... (here you can see how I stretched the paper)

...now both are inked and masked off...

(tried doing them side by side, but it doesn't want to go!!)

...now underpainted.  We learned to use Winsor Blue or another staining color (we could have used ink too) to underpaint the art, so that it gives the image both depth and it also helps the artist to pay attention to values (light and dark).  It is a good idea to watch your shapes, and make sure edges don't get lost- you can do this by putting dark edges next to light edges.

Our teacher also had us do color studies, and we critiqued them in class, which was helpful.  She advised us to always test our colors and color combinations before committing them to the final piece of art...something I tend to do for the most part with watercolors, but it was still a good reminder.  She also told us to do the "squint test," to check our values so that similar color intensities don't end up confusing the eye.  Smart trick!  

It's almost done!  Just a few more finishing touches on the first spread...

...and quite a bit left to do on the second spread....

...but you will see my final piece (when it's finished) here, in my Recent Art page.  As of Today, it still isn't done.  I wanted to try to finish this week, but duty calls at my full time job, and I'm stuck doing double shifts until next Thursday... but I'll let you know when it's done!