Exercise 5: Word processing

I had to try a few combinations of words before finding one that could work. In the end, I had two lists with some potential. One of the lists started with the word Pen and the other one with the word House. In the end, I chose the following one:

House, Dynasty, Family, Clan, Circle, Disk, Album, Book, Manuscript, Text, Schoolbook, Reader, Bookworm, Student, Apprentice, Intern, Jail, Dungeon, Chamber, Cavity, Crater, Basin, Bowl, Container, Casket, Safe.

I liked the fact that the list was varied and thought that it could produce interesting results.

I then illustrated the different words with a black fineliner. Initially I meant to use a pencil but I knew that I would not be spontaneous enough with a pencil.

I used some sources such as Google images and Unsplash.com to check some poses and get some inspiration but I did not copy any image in particular.

Below are the series of drawings I created:

I then wondered how I could combine all these drawings in a scene. I found it challenging at first as many of these sketches did not seem to belong to each other. I decided that the scene should happen indoors to use the drawing of a chamber. That was the starting point.

I used my sketchbook and Illustrator to see how I could combine everything.

I then used the iPad to create the scene. This is the work in progress.

Once I was happy with the illustration, I exported it to Photoshop and added a bit of shadow and contrast as I found it easier to do this on a bigger screen. This is the final version:

I took advantage of the fact that certain elements were not supposed to work together to add some humour to the scene. The jail and dungeon drawings became the headline of a newspaper on the floor, next to a man that looks like he has just escaped. That gave me the opportunity to draw a crater in the middle of the room. A separate scene is taking place in the street with people carrying a casket in front of a house (can be seen through the windows). I adapted some of the drawings. The apprentice and his mentor are now two members of the family, with one teaching some skills to the other.

I thought that this illustration could be part of a story where a man escaped jail and created a tunnel that was meant to land in the house opposite. At the same time, the two family portraits at the back could make us wonder if it is just a serene scene in a normal family.

In the end, I am glad that the elements were so varied. It meant that I really had to think how to put everything together and I started creating a story as a result.

I know that I tend to find drawing scenes challenging. I therefore focussed on setting up the stage before adding the characters. I found this very helpful even if some of the perspective is not entirely right. In some cases, this is due to the fact that I was working on a smaller scale on the iPad (some of the shelves are not quite right for instance). Also, the books and manuscript look a bit like they are floating.

Starting with fast drawings has enabled me to add spontaneity to the whole illustration.

I have enjoyed using this technique to find inspiration. Overcoming the difficulties I encountered to put everything together has shown me how it is worth persevering.