If you hit a medium he won't be happy

And so it continues.....


Rock solution, first find a rock, this is a good one from High Rocks. Then cut various shapes from it. Looking at the Contour lines. Some small, others large, mix em up.

Then duplicate loads of the images, and start building, making note of keeping contour lines parell to what ever angle you started at, also look at shadows and add if necessary.

All my rocks came from this one pic

Done some more little perspective sketches for the Doc. Slowly getting better, but never satisfied, and yet i see 30 sec doodles by my class mates and love the looseness. Anyway, still a bit lolly pop and not entirely accurate but each one took app 15mins

The hill up Mount pleasant, with my new bridge inc tree's!

The walk across said bridge, seating, planting and a glass lift.

Lunch time snack cafe in top park serving only the freshest food

(apart from road kill)

The Restaurant with movable seating outside, and viewing tower to look at the distant views of the Ashdown Forest.

BED!!!!

Why do i feel 'Miffed'

Well crit over/marking. Not really sure what to make of it all. yeah, yeah, fancy rendering, but i agree with Paula (Romania) the previous one has more life as did the the very first sketch. This one is to dull, to refined. I prefer something with some more soul.

Its about being expressive for me and although there is a place for straight informative drawings, it just doesn't get the feeling across. And thus the feeling of disappointment.

Perspective Ahhh need to do sketch up model for depth of field, over all a bit miffed. I think on the marking front i got away with it and it was generous. As the seduction of rendering helped the lack of skill on the perspectives, another day another attempt.

I think earlier in the Degree i felt more confidant about taking risks, as i get nearer the finally i find myself getting more conservative, its a case of letting go of the reins and then thinking too much about the consequences. Really quite annoyed.

What to do?

Well its a case of not trying to 'please the panel', but to concentrate on the design.
The difference of designing for a client, either they get it and love it or they don't the story ends, whereas this situation its the added chasing marks regime which we all do as they are there as a standard, and there has to be bench mark. So i am going to try and stop thinking will they or won't they and go for what feels right as that is the point otherwise we would all be Jamie/Julia/Paula clones and bad ones at that.

The presented drawing had cross section annotation, forgot to put the update on my stick and thus lost is when shutting down Uni computer.

Like this one, but the extension to repetive. trees have not been thought through, rather what i could find. Though there is some atmosphere.

Again trees's 

Tree's etc

etc

Just don't and have never liked these, just can't get excited.

So the remedy, bring back the excitement/noise of experimenting and taking risks. Lesson over, now the document.

Tree's blobs and lollypop's

Well like just about everybody spent a lot of time trying to create tree impressions for the plan as well as the perspectives.

Plan


As usual stumbled on this idea and developed it I think the result is quite effective and can be played around with further
1) Pro marker on Trace, shade to create depth, (the ink stays wet so mixing is possible). Let it dry. The ink one side with .3-.5 pen.

Then put in photoshop, Filter gallery>watercolour>ok and then again but this time poster edges. Adjust to suit. Cut out, play with colours etc  

                  

Cut out and duplicate loads of times for tree's.When done, each tree will be on a single layer. Select all, duplicate. Then all the duplicates merge into one file. Turn to black via images>Hue andBalance>lightness bar to the left, so black.

And now the ta da bit, that layer put underneath all the tree layers, then  shift to one side and by magic you have perfect shadows in the shape of the trees all moving at the same angle.

Perspective.

Well spent ages with pencils, pro markers and to be honest still have not got it, but a start, pro markers on trace

Generally work needs to be done on perspectives.

Watercolour pencil + sharpie

Watercolour Pencil +.3 pen

Watercolour pencil+Bad Temper

Rendering! what is it good for?...Absolutely nothing, sing it again.

Well final Materplan, not proof read yet. But I think i have covered everything, though i doubt it. Made it a bit garish to show up on the wall at a distance. So less of the trendy colours more of the primary, well almost.

Anyway done for the mo, tea and bed.

Then sequence sketches....

Back from the edge.

So much work, so little time sums up my (and i suspect the rest of the class of 10/11) Christmas.

Pin up on Monday was a strange affair as everybody looked so pale and bloodshot, alas not from a night on the town. I think the 'Blitz Spirit' is alive and well in our group as we all can empathise with others long dark nights of the soul, when that blank sheet of paper mocks your every stroke of the pen.

So what i pinned up for the first crit, of the year. We have a week to update and final marked crit on the 24th of January. As usual the crit normally states what is at the back of your mind or what you were trying 'wing'. Plus some surprises.

(click on pics to enlarge)


                                                     Park Life


The Masterplan

My Aim: I was trying to convey the topography of the site with shades of green. Tried loads of new ideas and techniques. Overall pleased with the strong but tonally dark colour scheme. Not so happy about the water, general cramped feel, paving colour, outside buildings. The name feels right as it conveys (in my opinion) that people are the park, as in the Blur song ,park life. Simple, catchy and with an element of humour, which adds up to a memorable title, i hope.

Crit : Too much writing, smaller more descriptive to the point annotation  and thus more of them. Trees too small, line weights generally to heavy, little or no hierarchy in the line weight, Loads more definative shadow, Outside buildings greyed out, buildings defined, generally more obvious and less suble communication.

Cross Sections

1:100

Aim: Trying to get atmosphere in the area. The calm feel of the grasses along with the enclosure of the planters. Depth of field.

Crit: Line weight of the ground level too thick. Shorter and more concise annotation, more of it. Use the whole with of the page, otherwise wasted opportunity.

Aim: To show the vallies and different shrub/tree planting on bank. to get depth to the other side of the park.

Crit: As Above

1:50

Aim: Depth and water and sitting possiabiltys on the granite cubes. Not so pleased with this as it lacks fun and atmoshere, which is the point

Crit: As above

Aim: To show a small crowd enjoying an event. Stones being used. Depth of field. Really hard to get people sitting on the ground looking at you of the net.

Crit : As above.

Sequential Sketches on the main circular route.

Aim: Really rushed, all 6 in 6 hours. Some of the perspective are way out as they were all out of my head. The tree's in the for ground are naff, though in the distance are ok. Though the drawings are average at best there is some atmosphere.

Crit: Line weight! way to heavy, lolly pop tree's and people. no variation or possible id of different tree species. Colour, shadows the list goes on!! 

Conclusion, Need to sharpen self crit skills to see what is actually in front of me.More sketching less photoshop filters. I think i need to just nail some issues such as grass and mass area's for colour and feel. Atomsphere rather than to much technique.

                                        Think Atmoshere