Observe, Explore and Consider- Reflect

I didn't enjoy this project that much,  I liked the drawing, but I felt so awkward sitting out in public drawing with people around watching me..

If I was to re-do this project, I'd probably approach it differently, and sketch quickly on location and then take photos and work into it more later at home. I think that would allow me to get more detail in and it would also mean I could use a lot more different media like paints because I didn't want to drag around paints with me to all the locations.

I also found that drawing on the coach and train was more of a challenge than I'd thought because I forgot to account for the bumps of the road and the lack of space to draw comfortably..

These are my two favourite drawings from the 15, I think they're the most successful. The on on the left was at the train station in the waiting room. I think I got the perspectives quite well in this one, but I would have liked to get more detail in. On the right is the gate to the Alice in Wonderland gardens at Guildford Castle. I like this drawing because I got a nice amount of detail into it, there's a sense of depth in the image and a focus point. 

Environmental Storytelling: Finished Drawings

My 15 final drawings the for environmental storytelling brief.

Train/ Bus journey.

Guildford Castle.

 Leeds.

If I were to do this project again, I'd try to take more materials with me to get a wider range of media. I'd also probably do it when the weather wasn't always raining as it meant I couldn't draw outside for long. 
I'm really happy with the way most of the Guildford castle drawings turned out, however I'm less pleased with the way the Leeds drawings turned out as I think they were too rushed as I was running out of time. I need to work on time management!
The Guildford castle drawings are the ones I used the most media on and this also, I think, makes them stand out from the others. I really enjoyed sitting in the castle grounds drawing as it was quiet and no one was watching me draw because no one was there.
The first set of drawings- on the coach and the train, could have turned out better, however it was quite hard to draw on the train/ coach. Because of this, the drawing at the station at the start of my trip turned out better than the others. I also like the one where I added colour as it makes it more interesting and draws your eye to that drawing. 

Environmental Storytelling: Up

The art directors at Disney outdid themselves in the movie 'Up'. The lighting and shadows in this movie are so realistic. This movie really shows the importance of observational on location drawing because, although the actual location of Paradise falls in the movie doesn't exist, a team of artists and photographers for Disney went to South America to draw and capture the surroundings and environment of jungles for their fictional world.

In these two images taken from Up, you can see the use of light and shadows and how realistically the shadows fall on the ground. This amount of realism could only be achieved through actual research of the table top mountains and jungles.

 They have also captured realistic rock textures and the texture of the jungle trees from a distance which makes this scene even more believable. 
I also like the way they have put detail into the distance, the way you can see other mountains faded into the horizon, blending into the sky. So much detail has gone into the backgrounds for this movie.


The lighting in this final picture shows paradise falls in the sunset and the shades of pink look natural in this light. 

Environmental Storytelling: The Regular Show

The Regular Show, on Cartoon Network uses relatively realistic backgrounds. They clearly use the rule of thirds for their composition. The lighting is very natural and realistic, you can see natural shadows from the trees and bushes in the background and the buildings, however the character's dont have shadows. The textures on the backgrounds are made visible by the different colours, as overall the animation uses very flat colours with little natural shading.

Environmental Storytelling: Cloudy 2

The backgrounds in Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 are beautifully done. The jungle and the water look quite realistic and natural, however the colours are brighter. The textures both in the jungle and in the city look natural and this comes from observation and drawing of those environments. 

Particularly this city scene, I think the lighting from the sunset is done perfectly across the buildings and the sky. It looks realistic, even with the stylised buildings.

Observe, Explore and Consider - Environmental Storytelling.

1) Where are you drawing?

Guildford Castle

Why have you chosen to draw there? 

It's a beautiful castle and I've heard the gardens are really interesting and Alice in Wonderland themed.

What are you expecting to see, what is of interest to you? 

A really old castle, lots of trees- not many flowers because it's winter.. Alice in Wonderland statues.

What do you think you are going to draw whilst there, (a vista that can be zoomed into with a camera, an interior scene, stairs, lifts???)

Maybe a view of the castle, a view from the top of the castle.. some drawings of the gardens and statues.

How are you going to draw? (Are you going to do a series of short observational drawings, make notes about the sights, sounds smells, conversations, actions, movements and interactions of people, take photographs and refer to them later?) 

Relatively quick sketches most of the time because it's outside and cold.. however I will take some pictures to work back into later. 

What media are you going to use?

Mostly pen and pencils as I don't want to drag loads of different paints etc to the castle.. also it's cold and I don't want to have to wait for paint to dry..

What about light, shadow, colour, texture, shape, composition, perspective.? How can these be used as storytelling devices. 

Shadow can be used to make a space seem more ominous.. 

Are there famous/infamous stories about the spaces that you already know? 

From the top of the castle, you can see the cathedral where part of the Omen was filmed...

2) Where are you drawing?

On the train/ coach between Leeds and London.

Why have you chosen to draw there? 

Because I'm going to be sat on the coach/ train for nearly 6 hours down to London and back again so I'll have plenty of time to draw.

What are you expecting to see, what is of interest to you? 

People, commuters...

What do you think you are going to draw whilst there, (a vista that can be zoomed into with a camera, an interior scene, stairs, lifts???)

Interior scene of the train and coach (and outdoors at the station). Maybe the view out of the window..

How are you going to draw? (Are you going to do a series of short observational drawings, make notes about the sights, sounds smells, conversations, actions, movements and interactions of people, take photographs and refer to them later?) 

Relatively lengthy observational drawings.. I have a lot of time to draw..

What media are you going to use?

Pen and pencil.

3) Where are you drawing?

Somewhere in Leeds. Just out in the city.

Why have you chosen to draw there? 

I don't know Leeds that well yet so it would be a good chance to explore. Also it's a very different environment to my other two as it's a city instead of in the countryside or travelling

What are you expecting to see, what is of interest to you? 

Buildings, busy city people, shoppers..

What do you think you are going to draw whilst there, (a vista that can be zoomed into with a camera, an interior scene, stairs, lifts???)

City life.. outdoor scenes. 

How are you going to draw? (Are you going to do a series of short observational drawings, make notes about the sights, sounds smells, conversations, actions, movements and interactions of people, take photographs and refer to them later?) 

Very short observational drawings- it's going to be busy so I don't want to get in the way of people.

What media are you going to use?

Pens and pencils, maybe paints.. watercolour maybe..

Are there famous/infamous stories about the spaces that you already know? 

Not yet..