Design Principles Task 3: Development & Design

04.03.2025 - 17.03.2025 | Week 5 - Week 7

Maisarah binti Mohd Sufian | 0358458

Design Principles | Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media

Task 3: Development & Design

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LECTURES

View all lectures here.

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EXERCISE 

Instructions 

For this task, we need to choose one of the three sketches we made in Task 2 and further develop it and apply our knowledge of design principles. Our final artwork should have a 200 word rationale.

Idea Development

I decided to go with my third sketch, as it has good potential to convey a strong message while still allowing me to test my limits in illustration.

Initially, I wanted to place most emphasis on the mouth, but instead I think placing emphasis on the eyes would be more impactful. 

Inspiration

I began to look at artworks with similar styles, to gain inspiration and make sure I get the right look and feel in my artwork. 

Black and white face Painting – Beatriz Mendonça De Castilho, 2017. Watercolor on Paper.

Leeftijd onbepaald – Marlene Dumas, 2003. Lithograph printed in colours.

Since I'd be using Procreate to illustrate, I tested out some colours and brushes, experimenting with how different brushes would interact with each other, and which ones would allow me to achieve my desired effect.

In terms of composition, I decided to start by keeping it true to my sketch making changes along the way. 

Illustration

I first started on drawing the base of my artwork which is nearly identical to the original piece so that I could establish my colours and textures I thought it would be best to follow my mood when it came to adding my personal touches

I used very light washes of green, red and blue for the background and added more colour compared to the original, as I wanted to highlight the facial features this time I made the lips red.

First Attempt

I then moved on to adding my changes, this was the rationale for my initial sketch:

Creating the shape of the head by blocking in the background (Principle of Closure), and emphasising the facial features, eyes and mouth. They are placed along a point on a 3x3 grid, applying the Rule of Thirds. The eyes and mouth are drawn out of proportion, adding further contrast and visual interest. The motive behind emphasizing the eyes and the mouth is that these are one of the most expressive parts on our face, you could tell the emotions of someone just by their eyes and their mouth allows them to speak, the strongest tool in conveying thoughts. In the artwork the eyes clearly express more than the mouth, as the mouth is being covered by something which is stopping her from truthfully speaking her mind. This is the message that I want to convey, women are commonly put in situations where they are not able to say what they want. Some people believe the words of a woman is inferior. This has led to most women having a silent way of communicating through their eyes, they are almost able to understand what each of them are feeling without needing to utter a single word. 

I kept it true to my original intention, and emphasised the eyes the most. I smudged the mouth so that it reflects my message of women not being able to truly say what they want, and the eyes serve as an indirect communication. The eyes have a very light wash of peach over it to add more life to them. I added some finishing touches such as the hair and eyelashes to add my own personal touch.

Final Attempt

After being given some feedback from Mr Martin, I tried a different way at emphasising the eyes.

Maisarah Sufian_The Unspoken_Task 3

Instead of placing the eyes in a frame, I got rid of the frame and made the eyes look dissonant from the rest of the face by adding colour, more detail and drawing them out of proportion. I think this touch did make artwork look more dramatic and haunting. I also got rid of the flowing hair, as to not take any attention away from the face.

Rationale

My artwork depicts a young woman's portrait. Her eyes are big and wide, and her lips are small and smudged. The artwork has a dramatic and almost gloomy mood. I made it this way to show my own internal feelings when I am placed in awkward positions. This goes for a lot of women, we have strong opinions but sometimes we are placed in situations where we are too afraid to speak them out due to societal pressure, the stereotype that women are less intelligent and fear of being dismissed and shut down. This leads to a lot of women developing some form of guarded communication, where their eyes could say something entirely different from their mouth. I illustrated this on a 3x3 grid, placing the facial features on points of the grid to apply the Rule of Thirds. The eyes are drawn out of proportion, and both the eyes and lips have contrast against the rest of the artwork to draw in the eye's visual interest. This combined give emphasis to these parts of the face. The smudged lips and flowing hair give a sense of movement. Overall, the artwork is done in harmony in the use of textures and colours.

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FEEDBACK

Week 6:

Specific feedback: The message aimed to be conveyed doesn't quite come across, the eyes still seem a bit flat despite being given emphasis and a different approach could be taken.

Week 7:

No feedback given.

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REFLECTION

Experience

The classes for this module were pretty chill, and the tasks were not too overbearing or overwhelming. I am grateful to have Mr Martin as my assigned lecturer because the feedback he gives is non-judgmental and helpful. I was able to apply the principles I have learnt into an illustration, which is quite a new experience to me as I am a graphic design student, and I am glad that I could try something new for once.

Observation

I learned that abstract art is actually a broad term that encompasses a lot of different styles, and that there is no formula to achieving it. This was my first try at illustrating something this abstract and I think that it turned out pretty good for my first try. I still have yet to fully understand the concept of breaking down shapes and colours to achieve a typical 'abstract' looking artwork. Nonetheless, I am happy with what I have made and it reflects my personal style a lot.

Findings

Overall, this experience showed me that abstract art is more intuitive and expressive, unlike graphic design, which follows set rules, abstract illustration gave me the freedom to experiment, which was eexciting and a bit challenging. I also realized that abstraction is deeply personal; there’s no right or wrong, just interpretation. It made me appreciate the art form in a new way. Stepping out of my comfort zone with illustration has broadened my perspective, and I’m excited to explore how I can bring this creative freedom into my future design work.