Non-commercial Art

This is an illustration by Chris Kim. It was not intended for any commercial purposes. However, there were many things that attracted me to this illustration. Firstly, the spirals at the bottom of the tree grabbed my attention, which led to me to the person sitting at the foot of the tree and to the spirals of the trunk. The consistency in the shapes and the legato rhythm gives it a lot of visual interest. The bottom spiral is also emphasized due to its white color since everything else is a monochromatic red. The person breaking the spirals causes contrast in shape as well, which creates another emphasis. Along with the small visual emphases, there is a lot of unity within the design as well. There is unity in color, continuation, and repetition of elements. 

Kim, Chris . "Worship." Society of Illustrators 54th Annual of American Illustration an-March 2012: 380. Uncommissioned.

Symbolic Colors

I thought was a great design example by Takahisa Hasimoto that does not use a lot of symbolic colors to convey the meaning of the design. There are other cultural cues incorporated that allow the viewers to understand the concept. Since this is an ad for green tea, this color never changes and is emphasized in the center. The green also pops out against the duller contrasting colors. There are only subtle differences to identify that there is a seasonal change. The first image depicts a shirtless man drinking from a straw from a clear glass with ice in his green tea. From these visual cues, the viewer can understand that the weather may be hot and the man is trying to cool off. The second image shows a man in a turtle-neck sweater with steam coming from a mug. This implies that it may be cold and the man is wanting to warm up. Without needing to use many symbolic colors or words, the message is clear through these cultural cues to tell the viewers that this tea can be for the summer and winter time.

Hashimoto, Takahisa. "A Mustached Man Changes His Wardrobe." Society of Illustrators 54th Annual of American Illustration an-March 2012: 195. Advertising.

Color Theory

This is design by Tomer Hanuka deliberately ignores color theory to create a visual message. The message shows how overusing a color with little to no incorporation of contrasting colors is a poor choice and unnecessary. Hanuka also uses a great illustrative example to emphasize his point by having an axe cut a piece of pie, when a simple butter knife could be used. The extreme use of monochromatic colors of red/magenta in this design can grab the attention of the viewer but definitely makes certain elements difficult to visualize. The word 'overkill' at the bottom blends into the background. Since there is little contrast between colors, there is a slight vibration that makes the design harsh on the eyes as well. However, I believe this is still a great design because it gets the point across of how significant color theory is to a design.

Hanuka. Tomer . "Overkill." Society of Illustrators 54th Annual of American Illustration an-March 2012: 317. Book.

Creative Concept

I thought this poster design by Brian Stauffer had a very creative concept by how it incorporated many elements of the show into the design. It is very imaginative in how the fence is created by the anatomy of people. It almost looks like they're dancing, which is very appropriate since there are so many dance numbers in the show. I think Brian Stauffer also did a great job in creating a grayscale, which looks like a gradient between the people to make them look more like a fence. The way the knife is center and weaved between the fence of people creates a good emphasis to bring the viewer to the title and into the design as well.

Stauffer, Brian. "Vancouver Opera Poster/West Side Story." Society of Illustrators 54th Annual of American Illustration an-March 2012: 226. Advertising.

Color Harmonies

This illustration has various color harmonies. The triangles within the sunglasses shows a triadic harmony between the primary colors: red, blue and yellow. These colors are evenly spaced on the color wheel. Though there is high contrast, there is still a balance between the vibrant colors. There is also a complementary harmony between the bright red within the person's hair and the dark green of the plants. These colors are across each other on the color wheel. The brightness of the red hair is definitely balanced by the green because it does not cause too much tension to the eyes.  

Chin, Marcos. "Style (Shades)." Society of Illustrators 54th Annual of American Illustration Jan-March 2012: 176. Advertising.

Color Schemes

I thought this illustration by Marcos Chin had a very interesting color scheme because of the usage of so many primary and secondary colors. It creates a very bright and loud design, which definitely captures your attention. The skin tone of the woman being red is the brightest, and makes her stand out, especially against the black background. The colors around her neck alternate between warm and cool colors, but they do not pop out as much as the red. The cool colors definitely recede more than the pops of yellow in the design. However, the small lines of bright yellow helps separate the colors at the neck. Though there are so many different colors, there is still color harmony seen through the placement of complementary and analogous colors.

Chin, Marcos. "Textile." Society of Illustrators 54th Annual of American Illustration Jan-March 2012: 159. Institutional.

Positive/Negative

Both of these designs are good examples of making positive and negative space visually appealing. In this design, the red circle creates emphasis and asymmetrical balance with the elephant, which grabs the initial attention of the viewer. As you follow where the elephant is looking, the viewer is then led to the presence of the mouse created by the negative space under the elephant. The way the shape of the mouse completes the shape of the elephant gives the design a sense of unity through proximity.








Similarly, the second design has images created in both the positive and negative space. However, I think it is a bit harder to differentiate which is the foreground and which is the background. Though there is emphasis on the girl due to the contrasting brighter color that surrounds her, but when you look from afar, I actually notice the blue man first. Since it is hard to tell which is positive and negative space, it proves that both positive and negative space has been effectively created. Additionally, there is a lot of unity present with the repetition of elements and colors. 

Durado, Adonis. "Capitalists Who Fear the Free Market." Society of Illustrators 54th Annual of American Illustration Jan-March 2012: 79. Editorial.

Steininger, Otto. "Insomnia." Society of Illustrators 54th Annual of American Illustration Jan-March 2012: 135. Editorial.

Depth

This design gives a great illusion of space and depth due to the varying textures, sizes, shadows and colors. The more saturated colors appear to be closer in proximity to the astronauts while the diluted colors create distance. Additionally, the amorphous shape is overlapping the black background, giving it dimension and an atmospheric perspective. The astronauts are also significantly smaller in size than the textured area, which generates an illusion of depth. Furthermore, the single focal point is also the source of light, which not only allows into the viewer into the design, but also casts different shadows to intensify the depth of space.




Eggenschwiler, Byron. "Christian Hansen & the Autistics CD Cover." Society of Illustrators 53rd Annual of American Illustration Jan-March 2011: 239. Print.

Lines + Rhythm

I really enjoy the usage of lines in this design by Marcos Chin. The directions of the lines in the soccer balls give it a playful, yarn-like texture. It also gives a sense of potential change since most of the lines are vertical. The usage of the bright background against the black and white makes the soccer balls more prominent as well. Since the background is plain, the lines of the soccer balls do not cause too much clutter or confusion. Therefore the background balances the composition to gives the viewer unity and clarity of the soccer balls and person.

Chin, Marcos. "Soccer is SIlly." Society of Illustrators 53rd Annual of American Illustration Jan-March 2011: 87. Print.





This piece by Jacob Thomas displays a lot of rhythm with the curvature and colors of the smoke. The vibrant colors give the composition a lot of energy. How the lines go off the edge also gives a sense of movement. Though there isn't much repetition of the same kind of curve, there is repetition of curves being used to create a sense of rhythm. They are also continuous curves, which generate a legato type rhythm in this particular design. 

Thomas, Jacob. "Baked." Society of Illustrators 53rd Annual of American Illustration Jan-March 2011: 189. Print.

Balance

Both of these illustrations are an example of radial symmetry. However, there is variety and subtle asymmetry in the designs that make it more interesting. The illustration of the 3 bears and goldilocks are symmetrical in shape but the inversion of colors makes it more dynamic. It is also interesting to have two different perspectives from symmetrical design. 

Similarly, the illustration of the two birds differ in color but the two colors converge at the center, which creates a sense of unity. Additionally, the two birds are mostly symmetrical in shape except for the tails and the top of the heads. Both examples are very balanced and easy to conceptualize. There is strong symmetry but enough variation to make the designs more intriguing. 

Masse, Josée. "Bears in the News." Society of Illustrators 53rd Annual of American Illustration Jan-March 2011: 413. Print.
Loba, André Da. "Two Lovers." Society of Illustrators 53rd Annual of American Illustration Jan-March 2011: 389. Print.

Unity

"Falling Off the Workout Wagon"

This illustration by Marcos Chin is a great example of unity. The repetition of circles, aligned angles, and consistency in color and position connects all the subjects together. However, the bubblegum girl is an anomaly. She still shares similarities with the other elements but her color and circular scale creates a great emphasis. 

"Day at the Beach"

Similarly, this painting by Mark Riedy have the same examples of unity in shape, angle and color. The distinct contrast in background as well as proximity also gives more unity to this painting. Additionally, I believe the unity strengthens the focal point here. The emphasis of the red umbrella really grabs your attention. It guides you into the picture to show you the activity of the people on the beach. 

Chin, Marcos. "Falling Off the Workout Wagon." Society of Illustrators 48th Annual of American Illustration Feb-May 2006: 59. Print. 

Stewart, Mary. "Mark Riedy, Day at the Beach, 1988" Launching the Imagination 2014: 66. Acrylic Airbrush. 

Variety

This illustration shows a lot of variety in shapes, layers, and texture. However, there is some control in the chaos with the various containments that help distinguish the fish, man and boat. This also give emphasis to the man on the boat, which guides you there first and then allows you to see how the rest of the image is composed. 


Apfelbaum, Sue. "Victo Ngai." Communication Arts Interactive Annual 20 March/April 2014: 76-83. Print.