School of Architecture and Design / Associate Degree in Graphic DesignAdvanced Illustration Techniques GRAP 2530In this course you will be assessed on the follow-ing learning outcomes:• Analyse and respond to an industry style brief, selecting and applying appropriate and creative illustrative outcomes.• Investigate and interpret source material to develop effective illustrations and images• Apply your skills in digital imaging and image capture to produce, edit and correct artwork• Develop creative digital design outcomes using industry software appropriately and effectivelyProject 1b. Garden fence mural Assigned week 3, due week 10 Our environment is full of hard surfaces. Bitumen, concrete, masonry, steel, and glass are materials whose appearance architects and landscape designers often try to soften. Metal fencing panels are a common sight whose harsh appearance could be be improved with a softening mural treatment.The clientThe Essendon Community Garden Cooperative* in Brisbane Street, Ascot Vale (not far from our campus) has a length of unattractive metal fencing. The requirement is to design part of a mural to be painted on this fence to improve its appearance and make it blend harmoniously with its surrounding vegetable gardens. This would be achieved by colouring and configuring the mural for a softer, more organic appearance.Because the client for this design is a diverse group of gardeners of all ages, a ‘well-mannered’ approach is required. It should not be too visually domineering. Avoid imagery at a giant overwhelming scale. It should not look like retail graphics, advertising billboards, or graffiti, so avoid large areas of saturated flat colour, and harsh high-contrast colour schemes. It could more suitably resemble a woven tapestry.Avoid obvious repeat patterns (as in wallpaper or floral printed fabric). If you repeat certain motifs consider different treatments, such as different scaling.The design is intended to be painted in acrylic paint onto the metal directly. You are to design the mural for at least one 2.2 m wide unit of the fence, as pictured below, incorporating motifs related to vegetables or herbs. As the steel fencing panels are not flat, the design needs to acknowledge the ridged surface to some extent. Use the gridded Photoshop or Illustrator templates (links to templates in Assignments > Assignment 1b).ResearchThe project will be broken down to the following steps which will require interim in-class presentations to the teacher.1) Subject matterYour design should include images of vegetables or herbs, (including shapes and line drawings in different weights). These may be quite stylized and geometric. You may adapt drawings or shapes produced in the first assignment, bearing in mind it will be designed to be painted with a brush in acrylic paint on a large metal panel. It is recommended that you stylise the vegetable drawings, ie make them simple, or more geometric. You might increase the line weight. 2) Colour paletteThe mural would be painted from a set of pre-mixed exterior acrylic paint colours. You should create a set of harmonious colours as a starting point. You may vary the color combinations as the piece develops. Each colour used must be on a separate layer in your design. Tuition on Colour theory will be given in class, covering the various colour harmonies. It is recommended that you work around a simple analogous colour harmony as a starting point. *See Essendon Community Garden on Instagram.)The fence at Essendon Community Gardens School of Architecture and Design / Associate Degree in Graphic DesignAdvanced Illustration Techniques GRAP 2530As part of the research for developing your colour palette you should make a colour inventory from an existing photo or illustration. Look for interesting colours in Nature, Art and Design such as in autumn leaves or fallen gum leaves. As the intention is to soften the hard metallic surface of the fence and to create a more organic effect, avoid large areas of highly saturated colour and large areas of white or black, tending towards mid-tones.3) Create a coloured background of shapes registering with the grid templateStudy the designs by previous students on p3, built on the grid derived from the redged surface of the metal fence. To break up layers of background colours into separate shapes in Photoshop, you could use layer masks on a layers of solid colour. You could configure this using the polygon lasso tool in Photoshop, or hand-draw different arrangements of shapes on layers of tracing paper over the grid (then scan them). Outlined shapes can be filled-in in Photoshop using the magic wand tool to select the fill area. Ask for teacher’s help if unsure about these techniques.Production specificationsCreate your design using the Photoshop or Illustrator template provided in Canvas Assignment 1b. It includes layers showing the vertical grid, and an optional horizontal grid, plus a couple of layers that might be helpful in breaking up the background shapes.As this design is a guide for painting and not intended for print or reproduction, issues like image resolution and extreme precision are less important than they would be with finished art. (For instance, the Photoshop template is almost A3, but only 150ppi, to keep file size down.) As the design is intended to be hand painted with brushes and acrylic paint, the design should consist of lines and shapes created from flat colours (each colour in a separate layer). Minimise the need for painting complicated tonal effects. Flat colour may be softened and broken up using a range of suitable techniques – by layering different configurations of analogous colours, and overlays of fine patterns (which will be demonstrated in class). DO NOT USE BLENDING MODES, OR ADJUSTMENT LAYERS. KEEP EACH COLOUR TO ITS OWN LAYER. DO NOT FLATTEN THE IMAGE. Interim deadlines• Research on colour schemes and your colour inventory should be presented in class in week 6. • Your work-in-progress including a collection of your original drawings should be presented to teacher in class in week 6.Final submission due week 10 The submission to Canvas should be a flattened jpeg (if you used Photoshop) or unflattened llustrator file (both built on the grids supplied). If you used Photoshop an unflattened Photoshop file should be submitted to the teacher’s USB in by week 11.Assessment criteria:• Colour. Development of colour palette as follows: Harmonious colour combination Use of colour to create overall muted effect • Figurative content. Subject matter / motifs to relate to vegetable gardening, and appeal to gardeners of all ages. Avoid aggressive looking imagery. • Illustration style and resolution. Outcome should meet client requirements for visual enhancement of the site as specified in the brief. Evidence of experimentation with drawing and illustration media, and with drawing/illustration treatments required. • Meeting technical specifications (Design for painting in flat colours onto uneven metal surface) The design should acknowledge the ridged surface of the fence panels as represented in the grid provided. The design should suit application by hand at the specified scale in acrylic house paint.It should not include detail that would be unreasonably difficult or time-consuming to apply on site.Don’t make a feature of domineering giant sized imageryAcknowledge the grid of the surface profile to some extent These horizontal guides coinciding with the vertical divisions may be usefulxMural Designs by previous class in which the background shapes register with the grid provided.Design by Magenta KwanDesign by Georgia ShelleyDesign by India Coghlan
