thecreativemindofjess

[thecreativemindofjess]

Texture

Both of these images are from an artist by the name of Qing Han. She passed away early this year and her art always made me feel as if I was standing right in the middle of it. This is why these pieces are a great representation of texture. She used tactile textures to make it seem like the viewer can feel the oceans blanket right on top of them. Although these are 2D illustrations, the great use of texture mapping helps us be pulled into these worlds simultaneously. Finally, she used a lot of visual texture on the characters and surrounding scenery to give the impression of texture to the viewer.

Glossary

Texture of something is the way that it feels when you touch it, how smooth or rough it is. The texture of an object depends on the unique structure of its molecules. Fur may feel soft or coarse, metal may be oiled and shiney or rusted and rough.

Tactile textures are physical, touchable textures that you can actually feel on your skin in the real world, like when you pet a cat or dog.

Texture mapping is a process in which a two-dimensional surface, a texture map, is wrapped around a three-dimensional object. When wrapped, the 3-D object acquires a visual surface texture. Texture maps create high frequency detail, surface texture, or color information on a computer-generated graphic or 3D model.

Visual texture is an illusion of texture. Pixels or traditional drawing and painting media can be manipulated to give the impression of texture, while the surface actually remains smooth and flat. The texture on an ancient wall, a vehicle, or a creature's scaly or slimy skin increases the immersiveness of a game. Texture artist is a career path. Texture artists are close observers as they collect, organize, and use textures to create believable surfaces.

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Pattern

Although a kids cartoon, Chowder always seemed to have the best representation of pattern. This can be seen in their clothes or skin that often moves along with them. Collage is often used in clothing and other things like Truffles for example, her hair, dress, and hat are three entirely different kinds of patterns coming together as a whole. Progressive patterns are used when the characters move. The patterns seems to stay fluid while they move which acts as if they were on paper.

Glossary

Pattern -is an arrangement, configuration, array, formation, guide, matrix of repeated forms. Patterns create rhythm and can be used to predict and organize design elements such as using a grid. In Software development patterns are conventions for describing and documenting recurring design decisions within a given context.

Alternating pattern means to occur in succession, such as day alternating with night. To pass back and forth from one state, action, or place to another such as alternate between happiness

Chiaroscuro is a technique of painting or drawing using a predictable sequence of light and shade to achieve a three-dimensional quality. Chiaroscuro has been digitized to give depth and dimension in every 3-D video game or animation object.

Collage is a technique of an art production, primarily used in the visual arts, where the artwork is made from an assemblage of different forms, thus creating a new whole. Collage is a prototyping process used to assemble colors, textures, silhouettes and other assets to test ideas, colors, size relationships.

Gradient -is continuous change, darkening, lightening, increasing or decreasing color saturation. A gradient is created when two or more different colors are layered to paint one element while gradually fading between the hues or values.

Grid means a rectangular system of coordinates used in locating the principal elements of a plan.and depression.

Progressive patterns create active change, momentum by shifting in a direction, increasing, escalating, or accelerating.

Radial balanced patterns are based on a circle with its design extending from its center. A few examples of radial balance are; a star, the iris in one's eyes, and a wheel with spokes.

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Scale & Proportion

One of the games that best represents scale and proportions is Nier Automata. This game is filled with characters and objects of various sizes and shapes. Hierarchy, for instance, is used a lot in the enemies. In pictures 1-3 you can see the different sizes of these enemies and how it works is that the bigger the enemy is in size, the harder is it to defeat. The game also uses human scale to tell the story. We follow our characters which are human like androids humanoid proportions that help us see the story through the size of a human. Geometry is often used in the scenery or inanimate objects happening around the characters. It helps built the scene of a runes down sixty filled with debris.

Glossary

Scale ​is the size of one object in relation to other objects in a design.

— a certain relative or proportionate size or extent (A human is 7.5 heads tall.)

— a standard of measurement or estimation (The UFO was as big as a football field.)

— point of reference by which to gauge or rate (My puppy is twice as big as your chihuahua.)

Aspect Ratio​ refers to the proportions of the height and width of an image. It defines its overall shape, and it is usually shown as W:H (W is the width and H is the height).

Geometry​- spheres, cubes, cylinders can be used to build more complex objects

Hierarchy​- Arranged according to importance or power. What’s bigger or taller is often more important or harder to kill.

Human scale​ - sets the stage for the story happening to human-sized characters

Proportions​- The size of the parts compared to the whole. Relativity.

Ratio​- a ratio tells us what proportions mean to each other. Measuring one thing in terms of another. That monster is twice the size of the human. Their ratio is 2 to 1.

[thecreativemindofjess]

Contrast

Pokémon cards always seem to have the most eye popping designs on any other card collectibles and they do this through contrast. The cards use high contrast with the black letters on these heavily saturated cards. There’s also a great ton of low contrast because although these are very eye piercing they’re either all brightly colored, or some how some of them are all dimly lit. There is a symmetrical aspect to these cards that almost always pleasing to the eye. Symmetrical in a way where the title and attacks are always in the same spot and the Pokémon are most of the time situated in the box on top.

Glossary

Contrast​ refers to the arrangement of opposite elements (light vs. dark colors, rough vs. smooth textures, large vs. small shapes, etc.) in a composition so as to create visual interest,excitement and drama. Contrast​ creates variety within a unit, draws the eye to a focal point, creates a sense of adventure or mystery. ​Contrast​is a unifier​.​Value contrast is when a character or object has a strong darks and lights compared to the scene around it. Size contrast is a gigantic space cruiser compared to much smaller fighters.

Asymmetrical​ balance is a dynamic compositional strategy in which each side of the axis are distinctly different yet belong to the same story.

High Contrast​ is strong dissimilarity such as black letters on a white background. The high contrast setting is an accessibility feature built into interfaces to assist people with vision impairment. In visual perception of the real world, contrast is determined by the difference in the color and brightness of the object and other objects within the same field of view. Because the human visual system is more sensitive to contrast than absolute luminance, we can perceive the world similarly regardless of the huge changes in illumination over the day or from place to place.

Low Contrast​ means a minimum of contrast between light and dark, so that the image is either predominantly dark or predominantly light. The sun sets, dusk sets in and in the gloom there is low contrast in the landscape.

Symmetrical ​is a form of balance in which both sides of the axis are the same, a mirror image of each other, creating stability and formality.

In visual storytelling the symmetrical formal balance is often contrasted with the dynamic action of asymmetrical configurations. For example, the formal balance and discipline on the Death Star in Star Wars is contrasted with the diversity of the different rebel cells and militias from across the galaxy. The dynamic contrasting rhythms and visuals of the dark side contrasted with the Jedi and rebel alliance has kept the franchise going for decades.

Contrasting camera angles-​  Part of your story is how you show as well as how you tell.  The camera is your audience’s view of your story and should be well planned to reveal the story in the most effective way possible.

[thecreativemindofjess]

Rhythm

Here we have a short film from the very popular game, Overwatch. At the start of the film there is a very clear distinction of audio rhythm in points where the character shoots his bow and another yawns. There are polyrhythmic patterns when the brothers are in the midst of their fight scene. Both grunt and attack in various ways that clash with each other. The rhythm between both characters is also very visual. You can clearly see the different fighting styles of each character  that seems almost live a very aggressive tango.

Glossary

Rhythm​ is caused by patterns in movement. What are those footsteps in the dark room? Are they slow or fast? Running or sneaking up on you? Rhythm controls the pace of action in your story. Rhythm can be repeated character types, weapons, or color strategies. We see and hear rhythm throughout nature as well as in our digital environment. Rhythm organizes units into patterns. Rhythm is created through repetition, alternation, and progression.

Alternating​ - Alternating rhythm is a form of repetition and is predictable. We switch back and forth from one thing to another like a tennis match. Alternating rhythm can create tension, such as switching close up head shots of one character arguing with another.

Audio​​ Rhythm​ - sounds that create patterns such breathing or shooting rounds of ammo.

Conceptual ​​Rhythm​- Intensifies, moves along, or calms the story. Conceptual rhythm coordinates visual and audio rhythm with the pace of your story.

Contrasting Rhythms​ are two or more sounds or motions at obviously different  tempos.Legato​means music in a smooth flowing manner, without breaks between notes or a smooth flowing motion.

Polyrhythmic patterns​ - use of simultaneous contrasting rhythms. A battle scene has many(poly) rhythms such as big guns, small guns, shouts, rumbles, footsteps, and explosions.Progressive​ rhythm is a pattern that changes over time to more or less intensity.

Progressive rhythm makes us feel that. something is in an evolving state of change. We can tell when the battle is heating up by the rhythm of the sounds and the actions of the characters running toward or away from the fighting

Repeating-​ The same thing again and again gives us a feeling of predictability.

Rhythm and motion​ - When a motion repeats, speeds up, slows down it creates a rhythm. The rhythm of tai chi is slow. The rhythm of Kung Fu is fast.

Staccato ​derives from the Italian verb staccare, meaning "to detach," and can now describe anything - not just sounds - made, done, or happening in an abrupt or disjointed way.

Visual​ Rhythm - When motifs such as lines or shapes repeat visual rhythm forms.

[thecreativemindofjess]

Unity

When I think of Unity, all I can really picture is portal 2. I basically grew up playing this game and always admired how uniform it really was. There’s lots of contrast when it comes to scenery. Although it is bombarded with shades of grey and white, we see hints of color every now and then that stands out from the rest of the picture to tell us it has importance. I also see a lot of repetition in various colors to show great distinctions from characters or different sides of the portal(blue and Orange). We also see a lot of alignment especially with the portal gun. It helps the player know where to point and shoot the gun.

Glossary

Unity​ - is an entity that is a systematic whole. A fusion or union of parts in harmony to create a oneness. A game is a unity based on a fusion of levels.

Alignment​ – a common axis creates relationship, the line up creates meaning. Alignment in games can help you find your way on the map or aim true with your weapon. Alignment of troops or vessels indicates organizational strength. Maps are visually aligned with the edge of the frame. Your stats are aligned in a table.

Beat Boards​ are used to illustrate major story points before the rest of the storyboard is completed. Beat boards are a series of single drawings that depict key focal points in a scene.Beat Boards can be compared to a children's book illustration because an individual picture shows a complex story. Beat boards can serve in art direction to indicate how the shot is staged and show color strategies, using shapes and colors, but are not detailed sketches.

Composition ​- is the arrangement of visual elements within a shot. The three basic shot compositions in film making are long-shot, medium-shot, and close-up.Conceptual unity​ – a palm tree, an ocean beach, and a beer unify around the concept of 'vacation'

Contrast​ – creates variety within a unit, draws the eye to a focal point, creates drama. ​Contrast is a unifier​. ​Contrast is when a character or object has a strong darks and lights compared to the scene around it. Size contrast is a gigantic space cruiser compared to much smaller fighters.

Proximity​– closer distances connect elements and far apart elements create separation and sometimes magnetism

Repetition​ – things that look alike relate to each other. Shapes or colors that recur in the image create rhythm and recognizable situations.

Unifying Strategies​ -- Designers manipulate contrast, repetition, alignment and proximity to create visual unity and to pull a story along.

Visual unity​ – is a group of repeating or similar elements that create balance or form a structure

[thecreativemindofjess]

Emphasis

In this case example, I’d like to showcase a game that is very dear to my heart. Persona 5 has always been very good at eye popping effects. This is especially shown in their fight scenes. In this gif it shows lots of emphasis on when the character critically hits the enemy with saturated red and white colors. These colors contrast with the rest of the scene to make it the first thing your eyes land on. Another clever thing they use is placement. They use the placement of the characters eyes in the center of the screen to show the seriousness of the character and the heat of the fight. This causes us to pay attention to their eyes automatically and catch the aura of the attack.

Glossary

Emphasis​- Pow! Something in a scene dominates. In other words, the designer gives visual priority to part of a scene in order to draw the eye there first.

Contrast​ in size, color, texture can make one thing stand out from the many things around it.

Focal Point​ - The focal point demands attention, it is accentuated, contrasted -- the star or the most prominent component of a scene.

Isolation-​Feature a single element alone, away from other elements to create emphasis.

One Element​ - Eliminate everything else in the composition and the thing that’s left will grab the attention such as a bold title or symbol.

Placement​- Position your most important design component in a place to grab attention, such as the center of a poster.

Subordination​ -The focal point has the visual power while other elements of the scene are subordinate.

Whole over Parts​ - Sometimes we don’t want the eye to go somewhere specifically such as in an establishing shot at the beginning of a story. We want to show an overview of the environment before we jump into the story. We might look at a map with lots of details. The whole map is the important thing. When we select a place on the map to visit, then that spot becomes the focal point and the Emphasis shifts from the whole to the specific. Another example is that the whole game is more important than its levels.

[thecreativemindofjess]

Motion

This fight scene from Samurai Champloo is a perfect example of motion. The animators used the 180-degree rule to show the activity of the fight and how both characters correlate with each other in perfect harmony. As you can see there is a lot of usage of line of action in their weapons, bodies, and even their clothing. These lines show the very swift motions to mimic real fast moving objects when breaking the wind. This gif also uses motion blur to its advantage to show something moving so fast, our eyes cannot focus on it quickly enough. This is shown though the character in the straw hat that is moving swiftly.

Glossary

Motion is action, reaction, energy, what’s happening, gestures, dynamics, mobility,exertion, labor, and progress through space. Motion varies with your story. Motion indicators In storyboards are arrows, blurred lines, smears, zooms in and out. Your character is dramatized and embodied as a personality through gestural actions.

180-Degree Rule In film making, the 180-degree rule is a basic guideline regarding the on-screen spatial relationship between a character and another character or object within a scene. By keeping the camera on one side of an imaginary axis between two characters, the first character is always framed right of the second character. Moving the camera over the axis is called jumping the line or crossing the line; breaking the 180-degree rule by shooting on all sides is known as shooting in the round.

Anticipated Action A dramatic action frozen in time, the tension mounts, we feel anticipation. We expect the sword to swing or the finger to pull the trigger or the couple to kiss.

Kinesthetic Empathy A player’s actual movement when responding to action in a game. Leaning into a curve in a driving game is kinesthetic empathy.

Line of Action is an artistic concept, an invisible line that captures the thrust and vitality of the movement. The line of action can be drawn by artists as the first element to capture or exaggerate the pose. Tip: Create the line of action as layer 1 so that you don’t downplay the pose. When you have the full energy of the drawing delete the action line layer.

Motion Blur When your eyes or objects are in motion, the image will suffer from motion blur,resulting in an inability to resolve details. To cope with this, humans generally alternate between saccades (quick eye movements) and fixation (focusing on a single point). How is this biological situation useful in storyboard drawing? How do storyboard artists use motion blur? How does a smear function in animated motion?

Optical movement is an optical illusion. Although the image is not moving, it appears to move. To see examples search “Op Art”.

Stillness is calm, quiet, inaction, and peace. Stillness is the opposite of motion. It can be used to contrast with motion.

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Space/Depth

Breath of the Wild is the perfect example for space/depth as it heavily relies on an open world scenario. Atmospheric perspective plays a big role in this game. As you can see in the photo, the farther away something is, the lower the opacity gets. This photo uses the aspects of foreground, middle ground, & background for the grass and rocks in front, the main character and others in the middle, and the impending mountain and hills in the back. This is also a great example of size relationship because although the rock places at the very front looks bigger than the character on the horse, it’s actually the other way around. This is all caused through distance and perspective.

Glossary

Space is an area, expanse, territory, distance or range. Variable spaces expand or contract as our stories unfold. A closeup has a short range. A wide shot covers a lot of territory.

Atmospheric Perspective Value contrast and color saturation decrease with distance. Brightness increases as objects fade further into the background. In addition, objects such as mountains may appear more blue.

Diagonal shapes pull the eye in a direction to create the illusion of depth. If the diagonal is going back like a railroad track or fence-line the eye will follow it into the perceived distance.

Elliptical Perspective An ellipse is an oval shape. Elliptical perspective provides visual clues to the location of curved surfaces in space. Look straight down on a glass of water. The rim of the glass is a circle. Move the glass to the side, the rim now appears as an ellipse. Line up the rim at your exact eye level, the ellipse now appears as a straight line.

Foreground, Middle ground, & Background The 3 treatments of objects in space support design to achieve depth. This template for placing and sizing objects in the picture plane shows variations on the foreground,middle ground, background configurations.

Foreshortening is when an object's dimensions appear shorter when angled toward the viewer. At the same time the part coming toward the viewer is enlarged.

Linear Perspective is a system used by artists in which the relative size, shape, and position of objects are determined by drawn or imagined lines converging at a point on the horizon.

Overlapping is when part of one object is obscured by another object. The obscuring object appears to be in front.

S-Curve or Winding Path In an image of a landscape, S-curve or winding path will draw the eye of the viewer into a perceived distance.

Size relationships Objects appear smaller as their distance from the observer increases.

Transparency or Opacity is when we feel like we can see objects through a glassy,gauzy, smoky, or dusty layer. The transparent/opacity adjustment affects the saturation and color of objects to give a feel of depth.

Vertical Position places objects higher up in the composition to appear further away.

Volume is the amount, expanse, extent, magnitude, size, aggregate, bulk, dimensions,or mass of an object. The volume variable indicates the amount of territory needed for each object in a scene.

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Color

When it comes to color, Osomatsu-San takes the cake. This anime uses color to its advantage and creates eye popping scenery to enjoy. The animators use symbolism in color to portray the different brothers. Their signature colors represent their personalities and constant moods throughout the show. The overall hue in the properties of color used in the show is very unnatural and gives you that child like feel. The pallets used by the animator are never very neutral and always leap out of the comfort zone of the ordinary.

Glossary

Visible light spectrum ​is the segment of the electromagnetic spectrum that the human eye can view. This range of wavelengths is called visible light. Typically, the human eye can detect wavelengths from 380 to 700 nano-meters. 

Color psychology is the study of the effect that colors have on emotions, behavior and feelings of people.

Color systems classify color and analyze their effects.

●The additive color system is used for colors of light such as light emitted from computers, phone screens, and projectors. Red, green, and blue are the primary colors

●The subtractive color system is used for pigments such as ink, dye, and paint.Cyan, magenta, and yellow are the primary colors.

Color to Show Depth Change in Color is to use color to separate the foreground, mid ground, and background planes to create the illusion of depth and is commonly used in animation.

The color wheel, or color circle, arranges a pattern of hues around a circle. There are several ​versions of the color wheel​ or color circle.  The circle connects relationships between hues to illustrate color strategies. (see 12 Chromatic Strategies) ​Color wheel history​ goes way back.

Local color is the natural color of an object unmodified by adding unrealistic light and shadow or any other distortion. The color that the eye observes is altered by lighting2conditions such as time of day or the surrounding environment. The local color of a lemon is yellow.

The definition of a palette is the range of colors used in a particular composition or by any person who uses color such as an artist, house painter or interior decorator. An example of a palette is Vincent Van Gogh’s limited palette of hues in his Starry Night painting. ​Starry Night’s palette ​is a variety of blues, greens and yellows. Close up video of ​Starry Night​ lets you come closer than you could at the Museum of Modern Art.

Properties of color are hue, saturation, and brightness.The H, S, and B in the Photoshop Color Panel​ stand for hue, saturation, and brightness.

●Hue is the named color around the color circle such as red, orange, green,yellow, violet, and blue.

●Saturation ​is the intensity or purity of a hue. Fire engine red is more highly saturated than brick red or the color of red wine.

●Brightness​ is the perceived intensity of light coming from a source such as a screen. On a color screen, brightness is the average of the red, green and blue pixels on the screen. Brightness is important to both color perception and battery life on mobile devices. Brightness of a screen can be adjusted.

Symbolism of color in art and anthropology refers to the use of color as a symbol in various cultures. There is great diversity in the use of colors and their associations.Diversity in color symbolism occurs because color meanings and symbolism occur on an individual, cultural and universal basis. Color symbolism is also context-dependent and changes over time.

12 ​Color Strategies

1.Monochromatic ​means variations of a single hue such as a light blue and a dark blue or a greenish aqua blue and a lavender blue.

2.Achromatic ​color strategy integrates variations of black, white, gray, and a full range of neutrals.

3.Full Spectrum Strategy​ represents the full circle of spectral colors by incorporating at least five of the base hues.

4.In the ​Achromatic/Chromatic Mix​ strategy Achromatic colors dominate the composition with a chromatic hue accent.

5.Warm/Cool:​ Contrasting ‘temperatures’ of warm & cool. Cool colors appear on the green/blue/violet side of the color wheel. The colors on the red/orange/yellow side of the color wheel are called warm. Emphasis is on the contrast between warm and cool achromatics: brown - gold (warm), grays - silver (cool)

6.Saturation Similarities/Saturation Contrast●Saturation Similarities​: Hues may vary in this strategy, but all colors must have the same or very similar saturations.●Saturation Contrast​: Hues may vary but all colors must have significant contrast of saturation.

7.Value Similarities/Value Contrast●Value Similarities: ​Hues may vary in this strategy, but all colors have the same or very close values.●Value Contrast​: Black (or dark desaturated hues) contrast with white (or very desaturated tints of hues). The Value Contrast strategy demonstrates strong distinction of value with the strongest example being between black and white.

8.Complementary Dy ad​ creates a strong hue contrast. Complementary hues are located directly opposite each other on the color circle.

9.Split Complementary​ strategies are based on two complements. To create a split complementary color strategy select one hue and contrast it with the hues on either side of its complement, such as Red & Yellow Green/Blue Green.

10.A ​Te-trad ​strategy uses four equilateral hues from the color circle, such as Red,Orange, Green, Blue.

11.A ​Triad ​strategy uses three equilateral balanced hues from the color circle,such as primary, secondary, or tertiary.

12.Analogous ​strategies collect 2 or 3 neighboring hues on the color circle.

[thecreativemindofjess]

Value

These pieces by kuvshinov_ilya on Instagram perfectly depicts how value really brings an art piece to life! He uses chiaroscuro to his advantage in the first picture to highlight her mysterious eyes. As it is very obviously presented, the artist uses value and space to his advantage to give these pieces life. It is almost as if one can reach out and touch the features, sit on the bike, or even walk up the stairs. Although some of these pieces aren’t in black and white, they hold a lot of value in them. Light and dark is used in the colors of each photo. The stairs and motorcycle are 2D but the lights and darks in the colors give it greater dimension.

Artist: @kuvshinov-ilya​

Glossary

Value in design is lightness or darkness on a scale of white to black (with white being the highest value and black being the lowest value). Value is widely considered to be one of the most important variables to the success of a design.Chiaroscuro (English: kee-AR-ə-SKOOR-oh, -​SKEWR-, Italian:; Italian for "light-dark"), is the use of strong contrasts between light and dark with bold contrasts affecting a whole composition.

Chiaroscuro is a technical term for the use of contrasts of light to achieve a sense of volume in modelling three-dimensional objects and figures.

Light and dark-Every element in your design has a value from 1% black (almost white) to 100% black. Value is relative to everything in the composition. Every color has an underlying value somewhere between white and black.

Value as emphasis happens when a strong contrast in value draws attention to itself such as on this ancient Greek vase illustrating value contrast in the service of visual storytelling.

Value and space-Designers use dark and light values to create the illusion of light as it falls on objects.  Value is used to create the illusion of highlights and shadows.  Highlights and shadows combine to create the illusion of a light source. The pattern of light and dark can create dimension, volume, and mass.

Value patterns appear regularly in the world, in human-made design, and even in abstract ideas such as stories. The elements of a pattern repeat in a predictable manner. Night and day is a value pattern common in stories.

[thecreativemindofjess]

Shape

Shapes are used in many different ways, but the most fascinating ways is that of early cartoons. They used many distortions and curvilinear shapes to show movement. They delude the realism and use shape to show the feeling.

Glossary

Shape is the external form or appearance characteristic of someone or something; the outline of an area or figure. As a verb, to shape is to give a particular form. As artists,we shape our characters outward appearance by using shapes.

Abstract Shapes and Abstraction (see Non-objective Shapes)Abstract means no recognizable objects. Abstraction is a sliding scale from realism to completely non representational. Abstract shapes can be used in backgrounds and textures. The background pattern in this Minecraft image is abstract. The character is still recognizable as a human, but the doctor’s human form is abstracted in the game of Minecraft to conform to the blocks of the game world

Biomorphic Biomorphic is a free-form pattern or design with a shape suggestive of a living organism, especially an amoeba or protozoan.

Curvilinear Shapes Curvilinear shapes are s-curves. Curvilinear shapes inform Jessica Rabbit’s character design and can represent a winding river vanishing into the distance.

Distortion Distortion is exaggeration, contortion, reform, slant, twist, or warp in ways that depart from reality. Look at the Minecraft Human body example.  The figure of the Minecraft doctor is distorted by the shape of the blocks.

Idealism Idealism asserts that the physical world is less important than the mind or the spirit which shapes and animates it. Idealists choose the soul, the mind, or the psyche over the body, the material, and the historical. When ideals (of appearance, or proportion for example) regulate the way an artist represents the world, her work can be described as Idealistic. The leading artists of the High Renaissance - Leonardo, Raphael and Michelangelo - are all associated with varying forms of Idealism, as were ancient Greek sculptors. How do you think idealism affects avatar customization?

Non-objective Shapes (see Abstract Shapes)Non-objective shapes have no object as a reference and no recognizable subject matter. Non-objective shapes are often used to simplify design shapes. Geometric shapes such as a triangle, square, and circle are abstract until you put them together to represent a house or a smiley face. One Minecraft block, away from the game, is anon-objective shape.  Inside the game that same block, depending on it’s color and texture could represent a part of a landscape, sheep, or sword. The block as part of a character or environment inside the game would no longer be abstract.

Positive and Negative Shapes Positive space is the subject, focal point, or areas of high interest in any composition.Negative space is the area around the areas of interest. All compositions balance positive and negative space. Yes, stuff in the negative space can point to the focal point to make it most obvious. Positive and negative create a whole. Every composition is a combination of positive and negative space. Wield the positive and negative spaces with control and story-telling magic to become a design master.

Realism or Naturalism Realism, or naturalism, attempts to represent subject matter truthfully, without artificiality or exotic or supernatural elements. In the visual arts, illusionistic realism strives for the accurate depiction of lifeforms, perspective, and the details of light and colour.

Rectilinear Shapes Rectilinear is a boxy shape made with straight lines. For example, the screen you are looking at is a rectilinear shape filled with little square pixels, and pixels are also rectilinear. A storyboard is a series of  drawings in a linear set of rectilinear frames.

Representational Representational means objects that players can name. The object represents something from the real world, or something that has the verisimilitude of realism. A cartoon bunny can represent a rabbit without being realistic. Representational is a sliding scale from realism to almost abstract. 2 dots and a curve can be arranged into an abstract pattern or they can be arranged into an emoji that represents a smiley face.

Silhouette Silhouette is a profile or shape that is easy to identify.

Squash and Stretch Squash and stretch are shapes profiles that emphasize motion. The stretched position shows the form in an extended condition. When you do a sit up your belly squashes and your back stretches.

[thecreativemindofjess]

Line

When it comes to the contents of line, on of my favorite examples is the line work used in the Demon slayer anime/manga. The line weight seems to change every now and then which gives it a calligraphy effect that really ads to what the artist is trying to portray. The setting takes place in imperial japan and they did their best to make the art look very historical that compares to to old Japanese paintings. The contour and explicit lines they used in these images really gives the rough feeling of how life was back then and I just think it’s really fascinating.

Glossary

Lines have both a direction and a length. Line means a mark, streak, stroke, slash,path, stripe, border, contour, striation, course, route, and track. Curved, bent, thick,wide, broken, vertical, horizontal, burred, or freehand, lines delineate shapes, forms,and spaces, volumes, edges, movement and patterns. Not only that -- lines create both2D and 3D objects and figures. Lines are awesome and powerful. 

Contour Lines Contour lines indicate the edge around an object or the changes in volume within an object. Contour lines dramatize changes of plane within the form. The curve of a belt around the waist is a contour line.

Diagonal Lines Diagonal Lines are useful to draw the eye into a composition such as toward the vanishing points.  Three common types of diagonals are 1) actual diagonal lines 2)objects placed diagonally in a scene 3) a diagonal line created by the viewpoint such as the Dutch tilt.

Dutch Tilt Dutch Tilt (known as a dutch angle, canted angle, or oblique angle) is a type of camera shot that  has a noticeable tilt on the camera’s “x-axis.” The Dutch tilt camera technique was introduced by German Expressionists in the 1920s — so it's not actually Dutch.Directors often use a Dutch angle to signal to the viewer that something is wrong,disorienting, or unsettling

Explicit Lines Explicit means clear, direct, and obvious.  If a drawing is easy to read it may be that the lines are explicit, clean, with efficient use of variety. There are explicit lines around the frame of the Dutch Tilt illustration.

Gesture Lines Gesture Lines capture motion, such as in an action pose when gesture drawings are used in storyboards. The figures at the head of the Rembrandt Elephant drawing show the quickly sketched human gestures responding to the elephant.

Implied Lines Implied lines in 3-D scenes a line in a scene that is not physically there but is suggested by points in the art.Implied lines suggest the edges of an object or planes within an object. The line may be broken such as a dotted line, it may be defined by value, color,or texture, or it may not be visible at all. With implied lines, our brain interprets that a line exists.

Line as Value Line As Value has a long history. Artists have used line drawings to create value, or shading, and to achieve the impression of volume. In this quick sketch of a live elephant Rembrandt used outline contour lines around the edges of the elephant and curved contour lines around the big legs and belly. Most of the lines are at the lower part of the elephant to show that the light source was from above.

Line of Action (​Also see​ motion)Line of action is an imaginary line that extends through the main action of the figure.When you draw an action figure you can capture the line of action on one layer then draw the figure drawing on another layer.

Line Quality Line quality is the espressive essence of lines. Varying the line quality makes objects appear more 3-dimensional and exciting. Range in line quality heightens descriptive and3suggestive potential. A single line can change in darkness and width, can vanish all together to mentally reconnect later on an edge.

Line Weight Line weight refers to the thickness or thinness of a line.

Lost and Found Lines We don’t really need a strong contour line around every part of an object because our brain will fill in the blank where the edge disappears. When a line fades out and then restarts further along the edge it is called a lost and found line. There is a lost and found line at the top of Rembrandt’s elephant behind the head. There is a strong contour line of the skull of the elephant and a strong bulge of the back, but between the 2 curved shapes the line fades out, yet we still know that the elephant shape continues.

Psychic Lines Psychic lines are invisible. Psychic lines form between characters or between a gun and a target, or a hand pointing in a direction. There is no real line yet we feel a line. Eyes looking in a direction, especially characters looking at each other create a psychic line.

[thecreativemindofjess]

Welcome!

This is my first post on my new blog about the creative world! Expect detailed posts and insight into art and everything revolving around it!