Line and Colour

So I have been asked to do some illustrations for a friends childrens book. I started doing some sketches in pen and added some colour with inks. It was looking ok, but not quite right. To help me along I researched some well known childrens illustrators, and came across a few new ones, all of whom use line and ink/ watercolour. With my images the line worked on its own, but if I took away the line, the colour would not make any form. After looking at these other artists I discovered that in the majority of their work, the line on its own does not make sense, but neither does the colour on its own. The artists have got the balance between them just right so that they work together to form the picture.

J R TOLKEIN'S CHRISTMAS LETTERS

EDWARD ARDIZZONE





BEATRIX POTTER

QUENTIN BLAKE

RAYMOND BRIGGS



CHARLOTTE VOAKE

CAROLYN GOWDY



Visual Metaphors within Editorial Illustration

At uni we have just started off a unit on editorial illustration. The whole point of editorial images is to convey whats written in the article in a unique and original way. If you just draw something really obvious it's a bit boring, so to help inspire me to make my work more interesting I looked at a couple of editorial illustrators who are known for using visual metaphors, irony and juxtaposition of opposing subjects within their work.

BRAD HOLLAND

RALPH STEADMAN

Arnulf Rainer

I came across Arnulf Rainer whilst researching artists that are associated with images of anger. I don't think that he particularly shows anger, but there is something about his work which reminds me of 'The Exorcism' or some horror film like that. Now this isn't the type of thing that I'm usually into, not like the charming and innocent work below. This is more sincere;shocking in an attention grabbing way. There's something about his work which I find incredibly intriguing and I love it! My dark side is starting to show itself ....

(Whilst doing this research I was listening to the end of a track called 'Devotion' by a band called 'Hurts' off of the album 'Happiness' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBfodxCO5t0 )