Final Design

After many hours endured on photoshop the design is finally feeling finished. I am happy with the outcome yet I feel however it is still missing something, although I'm not quite sure what. I have learned a lot from the course and I hope to work on my photoshop skills and continue to better them in the future.

Step 6 - Burn and dodge effects

The burn and dodge tool come in handy when shading and highlighting areas. I used these tools to give the heart, skulls and the suffering banner a faded look.

Step 5 - Outlining

The purpose of the outline is to pull out the image from the page. It makes the design look much bolder and clearer for the viewer to see. Slowly by this stage I am adding even more detail, using white paint to highlight areas where the light hits the most. The eyes were given a blurred effect so that it would appear as if the child is tearing up.

Step 4 - Add Shading

In order to create a more realistic feel, shading needs to be added to areas of the body so that it gives off a more 3D effect. If only one colour were to be used throughout the piece it would make it appear too plain and lifeless.

Step 3 - Add Detail

Now that the basic colours have been added I can start going into the finer details of the piece. I wish to make the design as realistic as possible so that the person viewing the artwork can really feel the inner thoughts of a victim of child abuse.

Step 2 - Adding Colour

The next step was to add basic colours to the design before I went into more detail. In order to fill in certain areas with colour without going over other areas, different layers needed to be made so if any mistakes were to occur I could always go back to a specific layer and edit the image from there.

Step 1 - fill background

The whole idea of this piece is to give it a graffiti outlook whilst at the same time relating to child abuse and expressing the feeling that comes with it.

The back ground was intended to look rough as if it were a wall in a dark alley somewhere. Using the sponge filter twice created many blotches on the image. The next step was to make it thicker and darker and the sumi-e filter seemed to provide the feeling I was after.

MAMA!!

This is my take on surrealism. Where two abnormally large chickens have just delivered a human baby that hatched from an even bigger egg, the father naturally freaks and leaves the mother chicken with the baby. To me surrealism does not necessarily have to make sense so I just wanted to have fun with this post.

Using simple images from google I just resized and placed the images where I felt best. Using the polygonal lasso tool I was able to work around the edges of the images and erase the unwated areas from the picture. The background was adjusted by using the poster edges filter from the filter gallery.

References

1. GoPhoto.it. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.gophoto.it/view.php?i=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY-BR2bdbIWGVpgHu1XLCt_B2L7RGnEnbonzpPuODC432Nj0-maTzbjD3_ZRU-BibDAMKskaAwoNt7xHsC7Zzyh5N2gTS17llcnh9UFuzpCD2XCmd-umN8R3chG0Gx7f-AZIdaGdMxHZFZ/s1600/cracked-egg-640.jpg
2. GoPhoto.it. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.gophoto.it/view.php?i=http://earlessgeek.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/06farm.jpg#.ULX1SYaaUmQ
3. GoPhoto.it. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.gophoto.it/view.php?i=http://imgs.mi9.com/uploads/kids/4703/baby-cute-wallpaper_2560x1600_84399.jpg#.ULX7O4aaUmQ
4. GoPhoto.it. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.gophoto.it/view.php?i=http://www.decallage.com.au/shop/product_images/x/617/Speech_Bubble_Outline__35845_zoom.jpg#.ULX-nIaaUmQ
5. GoPhoto.it. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.gophoto.it/view.php?i=https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-FaOSYLrOQN7W1y6KHNfrU0QbceuAqZLDW7TIdRR83Jd96w3aDi9dVjE8qSP9ra9rHIm14eb-08LwxRAjJ8wHgfg_E45mkJF8S6SVTvNZ82CkCgsKJ88lLQFqOOwaZJcsWVcKV6s2UbM/s320/flychicken2_blog.jpg
6. Retrieved from www.gophoto.it/view.php?i=https://recruitment.qbis.lt/new/uploads/public/agencies/vacancies/b749623e22dd64970c93baf511f19a83.jpg#.ULX5qIaaUmQ

Central Markets KL

The Central Markets is a haven for local art and craftsmanship and what seems to be a popular tourist location for shopping. There is an abundance of stores just waiting to be explored. Two levels of shops selling jewellery, antiques, fashion accessories, traditional clothing, souvenirs and many other artistic items.

Deep within there also lies the Annexe Gallery which provides spaces for contemporary arts and displays many works of local artists.

Overall a very interesting experience. I would recommend a visit to the Central Markets if you haven't been there already.

References

1.        Google Image Result for http://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/01/23/82/32/cm-main-jpg.jpg. (n.d.). Google. Retrieved from http://www.google.com.my/imgres?um=1&hl=en&newwindow=1&client=firefox-a&sa=N&tbo=d&rls=org.mozilla:en-GB:official&tbm=isch&tbnid=I7HaqSKFTYKXHM:&imgrefurl=http://www.tripadvisor.com.my/Travel-g298570-d450992/Kuala-Lumpur:Malaysia:Central.Market.html&docid=_YGPDZTDOefeqM&imgurl=http://media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-s/01/23/82/32/cm-main-jpg.jpg&w=550&h=364&ei=qn2zUJOCA8LorQf-o4DABw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=200&vpy=288&dur=236&hovh=183&hovw=276&tx=130&ty=51&sig=117999111366128000869&page=1&tbnh=143&tbnw=219&start=0&ndsp=32&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0,i:87&biw=1600&bih=728

Dont mess with my head

After weeks of racking my brain over how the final design would look like I have come up with this. The thoughts and feelings of a child when someone messes with their head. Finally the design is starting to feel complete. From here I can begin editing everything solely from CS6.

Back to the original influence being MTO, the idea for this concept came from the realisation that many artworks on child abuse leave it up to the people to decipher the meaning behind the works. I want to express what the victim is thinking so people are able to visualise immediately the suffering they go through. In the image above is the initial stages of the design. This time using both pen and pencil so go into finer detail, I will be portraying the abused child having their hands on their head with personal thoughts and images pouring out. I hope to make the artwork bold enough so that it stands out yet still filled with emotions everyone can relate to.

Cross stencil and pop art design.

   

 

I wanted to try something different for this design to see how it would turn out. The idea was to cross stencil art with pop art. Although the woman looks like the victim of abuse, the image itself is too simple and the colours much too vibrant. There is no emotion built up within the design therefore I have decided to go back to my initial influence which is from the street artist MTO.

MTO influenced design by Sulz

 

Like with many of my drawings I tend to use pens as my favourite choice of medium. Trying to recreate a picture in the MTO style was very difficult. Although I am happy with the concept drawing, it tends to look more animated rather than the realistic approach I wanted to go for. 

The use of the pen for me creates a bolder effect which I am more accustomed to using and I made the shading intentionally scratchy to give the drawing a more harsher feel, as if the subject of the piece was in a rough environment. 

In terms of emotion I feel like I captured the girls pain, as her body language shows as if she is cowering and frightened.

The tag 'SULZ' is used as it has stuck throughout the years of my drawings.

Graffiti MTO influence

One of the artists that I'm choosing to influence my piece is a street artist that goes by the alias 'MTO,' who is French born but based in Berlin. Many of his artworks can be found throughout Europe and are usually renditions of actors or musicians.

The reason why I'm choosing MTO as an influence is because many of his works are highly detailed and realistic making his artwork almost lifelike. The use of monochromatic colours to me adds a certain element which gives the piece a darker feel. The bold red used around the body of character helps bring out the piece making it more striking and a visual focus point.

In my artwork I want to show a detailed rendition of an abused child with the bold red outline accentuating the figure so that people are drawn into the image.

References

The Very Best Of Street Graffiti Artist MTO | Shock Mansion. (n.d.). Shock Mansion . Retrieved from

http://www.shockmansion.com/2012/10/03/the-very-best-of-street-graffiti-artist-mto-30-photos/

'The Scream' by Edvard Munch

'The Scream' I chose as it feels like it relates to the topic of child abuse within our class. Immediately it creates emotions within me that churn a certain sickness within my stomach. At first look the setting is very eery and I am left with an uneasyness that puts me out of my comfort zone. I feel as if I want to understand why the figures expression looks so disturbed. It appears as if the distortion of the environment has a direct relation to the character of oneself. In connection with the theme of the assignment I feel that the environment or upbringing of a child can directly influence the way their character will turn out as they grow up.

references

Google Image Result for http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/archive/f/f4/20100829163553!The_Scream.jpg. (n.d.). Google . Retrieved from http://www.google.com.my/imgres?um=1&hl=en&safe=active&client=firefox-a&sa=X&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&biw=986&bih=560&tbs=isz:l&tbm=isch&tbnid=u0Hcux9JlY7sPM:&imgrefurl=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Scream.jpg&docid=FPvV0qo5lYz_nM&imgurl=http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/archive/f/f4/20100829163553!The_Scream.jpg&w=813&h=1036&ei=Vnp_UOOzCsbRrQep34CQBQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=223&vpy=155&dur=2435&hovh=253&hovw=199&tx=53&ty=200&sig=116850944892446281966&page=1&tbnh=137&tbnw=114&start=0&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:1,s:0,i:72

RED and what it means to me

To me red stands for many things. It's most obvious is the boldness that it creates when added to anypiece. The colour red can add certain expressions or feelings towards something.  Red can always be used to stand out and become the focus point of an artwork.

Trip to Petronas Art Gallery

Tucked away on the 3rd floor of KLCC shopping centre is the PETRONAS Art Gallery. For me it is always and experience observing different artist's pieces.I'm always amazed to discover how creative people can be when using different mediums when crafting their masterpiece.

One thing I have a habit of doing is looking at a piece from two different positions. At first from a distance to try to understand the artwork then secondly up close to really take in how much effort and detail went into crafting each stroke.

Oddly enough I really enjoyed the children's exhibit as not only is it good to see that so many children in Malaysia are having an interest in art but our group that went to visit the gallery were able to contribute on a wall provided. One thing they need to do however is restock the marker pens they had available as the majority were empty.

Overall an average experience for me in comparison with other art galleries I have visited.

CS6 photo edit

Before and after portrait - Use of spot healing tools, liquify and paintbrush with adjustments to opacity.

Image retrieved from -

. (n.d.). dPhotoexpert . Retrieved from http://www.dphotoexpert.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/07/istock_000005450596medium.jpg

Articles of child abuse in Malaysia

Articles of child abuse issues within Malaysia References Child abuse case suspect remanded - Nation | The Star Online. (n.d.). The Star Online | Malaysia, Business, Sports, Lifestyle and Video News . Retrieved from http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/5/18/nation/11315567&sec=nation Most child abusers are parents - Nation | The Star Online. (n.d.). The Star Online | Malaysia, Business, Sports, Lifestyle and Video News . Retrieved from http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/6/9/nation/20120609170528&sec=nation Child abuse is rising in Malaysia | Mariam Mokhtar - Yahoo! News Malaysia. (n.d.). Yahoo! Malaysia News - Latest Malaysia News & International News Headlines . Retrieved from http://my.news.yahoo.com/blogs/yahoo-malaysia-newsroom/child-abuse-rising-malaysia-033327740.html