Literal Illustration

2/21/2021

Brief

One illustration is a full-page, full bleed image which should be presented as follows: CMYK - image size 160mm wide X 226mm high at a resolution of 300 dpi. Note: this dimension includes a 3mm bleed around all four sides.

The second image is a black and white chapter heading that is aligned to the body of the justified text. As such it must occupy an area of 105mm wide X 50mm high. Note: there is no requirement that it has to have a crisp, rectangular edge so you may treat it as a vignette.The final artwork should be presented as a 300 dpi, grayscale image.

My Story- Canon Alberic's Scrap-book (M R JAMES)

This for me was a key scene and one that contained the most imagery for me to work with. I thought that the idea of this demon's hand reaching over Dennistoun's head would make an interesting piece.

Looking at some inspiration:

Thumbnails

Stock photos are hilarious. I looked at a few of a man sitting in a chair as I wanted to draw the main character sat by his desk. I work much better using reference images as opposed to working purely from memory. I flipped the image in Procreate as I found that facing to the right worked better.

I started off with quick thumbnails. Again, I found that the demon reaching over Dennistoun's head really stood out for me, so I tried different compositions, where I focused mainly on the demon and the main character. I also looked into perhaps drawing the cathedral...but I preferred the other option as it made for a more dynamic piece.

I must admit I struggled with the vignettes, I found it difficult to think of what I could draw that'd fit the story appropriately. Here are some quick initial ideas below:

Developing the pieces further

I wanted a dark colour palette in order to create an atmospheric piece. I took inspiration from pieces I saw on Pinterest during my research that also used this type of colour palette. I think the colours help with making it a bit more spooky. I found the process of using procreate enjoyable . Here are some developed pieces that I thought would work well.

After some feedback with Tony, I decided to re-look at the composition of the piece. I liked the idea of haveing Dennistoun. sat by his desk and the demon's hand but I found that the above did not capture the scene appropriately, therefore below I thumbnailed some quick alternative compositions, adding in a desk and a book in order to fit the piece better.

Furthermore, with the vignettes, we discussed that drawing the cathedral in which the story begins in would be an appropriate fit for the piece as it kind of sets the whole story. below are quick thumbnails I produced.