4 Week Project: An Introduction

For my 4 week project I am going to explore what is concept art and industry practices of creating concept art; I want to do this so I have a better understanding of the methodologies and processes of practitioners in the industry and apply them to myself.

My project outline will be a condensed version of a concept artist role in which I will write myself a fictitious brief given to me by a video game studio and from this brief I will develop a series of concepts. 

To do this I intend to gather research about concept art from books, websites, videos and possibly get into contact with different concept artists and studios as this will give me an idea on how to write my brief. 

I want to approach my project in this way so that I can challenge my current understanding of concept art and expand my knowledge of the practice as I believe this will refine my process of working to a brief and along the way inform my masters question.

Introduction

My name is Claudia Short, before starting my Masters I studied BA Game Art where I learnt and developed an interest in concept art and the fundamentals of developing concepts; my interest in concept art has led me to collect art books from various animated shows, films and video games. 

What I love about concept art is the process of creating a character from start to finish and building the world around them; as this acquires research be it through visual or literary means that can be used as reference or to develop your idea. Every decision in concept art can impact the final design; even something as simple as the colour palette as studying colour theory in order to pick the perfect colours for a pallet.

After graduating I spent some time reworking and refining my art style along with working as a freelance illustrator. At the start of my career as a freelance illustrator I created my own original series called 'My Deer Friend' based around two Deer's who develop a close friendship, the illustrations feature an autumn aesthetic set in a fictional Victorian woodland world. I am taking an independent route with my work by setting up my own shop in order to sell my illustrations along with selling prints at various conventions for artists and illustrators.

Character illustration 'My Deer Friend, School Girl and Boy'

I often try to reflect my interests in my art as these are the things that have inspired me; in both new and old media i have always been drawn to the aesthetics of an idyllic depiction of the 1800’s - 1900’s and i love when media has a charming dollhouse-esque design such as the toy series Sylvanian Families, the stories and illustrations of Beatrix Potter and old children's shows like Bagpuss.

Growing up near old moorlands and farms I always try to visit the countryside and small villages when given the chance as I love the look of small cottages and gardens; along with the aesthetics of old shops like bakeries, tea rooms, flower shops and tailors.

I feel like my interests play a big role in the type of video games i enjoy as i tend to choose games that have a personal element to them and allow the player to customise, explore and create things; much like the Story of Seasons Series (also known as the Harvest Moon series) i love games that allow you to farm, bake or run a business. 

What i intend to do on this course is not clear to me yet but i would like to understand what it is to be a concept artist and explore this further through my research and art.