Project Proposal

Picture Book title or theme:
Dealing with ideas of growing up and how people grow up, but places stay the same.

Idea: What is your picture book about?
I'm not sure about what my actual title will be as of yet, but the theme of my picture book will be centered around ideas of the permanence of nature and the impermanence of human life, and how we grow up and change in environments that remain largely the same throughout our lives.


Intent: What are you trying to achieve with the tone and atmosphere of the work?
I want to make a book that is quite playful in terms of colour and character but perhaps gets darker, tonally and visually as it goes on, to express the message of impermanence that I'm investigating in this project.

Structure: How might this book function in terms of format, layout and sequence?
I definitely want to make a concertina book as it's a process I am unfamiliar with and want to learn, and I think a consistent visual journey of a landscape altering over time would be best expressed as a single long image with different aspects on each page to signify the passage of time, such as character changes, colour alterations etc.

These ideas are based on my research into:
My ideas are influenced by my own experiences growing up around Temple Newsam woods and having a constant connection to nature and woodland areas due to where I live, and how that relationship has altered and changed over the years as I have developed. I went to Temple Newsam for my field trip research and it was interesting contrasting how I remember a certain place contrasted with how it looks to me now. I also think the fact that it's winter is influential, as a lot of my memories are centered around summer, so it's a different experience seeing how winter affects the same places.

In order to develop these ideas, my research over Christmas will be:
Developing more detailed observational drawings to get a better idea of the tone I want my book to have, and going back on another trip to get more reference photos. I also want to start experimenting with character designs to include in some roughs.

What have you discovered about research over the last two weeks?
I have learnt that research can be a much more visually engaging and interactive tool than I thought, as my definition of research before this project probably would have been based around reading books and finding webpages related to whatever I was investigating. But the research I have conducted for this project has been much more personal as I have been researching an element of my own life rather than an unfamiliar subject. I also enjoyed being able to go out into the real world and observe real objects and areas rather than relying on secondary sources like articles or photos. I think that secondary research like that is good for finding facts, but the more real world research I've started to do is much better for gauging tones and feelings to convey in my work.

Which approaches to research did you struggle with? and why?
At first I would say that photography isn't mt strong suit as I prefer to do observational drawings, but this project has helped show me the value of good reference photos and how they can capture things that you may not have time to capture when drawing.

Which approaches to the research did you find beneficial? and why?
I feel that in the end my photographs are the best part of my research as they're the most extensive aspect, and I can use them to improve my drawings.

What could you have done differently during your research period?
I think that because the focus of my book is primarily dealing with personal themes like the growing up and development of me and some of my friends, I didn't really consider interviewing others on their personal views or experiences concerning Temple Newsam. This could have added some extra depth and outside viewpoints to my research, so I hope to utilise that method in the future.

What kind of media, skills, tools and processes are you going to explore?
I want to use this project as an opportunity to develop my ability illustrating backgrounds and creating tone through colour and composition rather than relying so heavily on character as I have in some other briefs. To do this I'll have to explore more wet media that I'm unfamiliar with such as gouache and paints.I'd also like to try screen printing again and try to apply that effect to some of my designs.