Task 3.3 - Specific Research

Mech Weapons Moodboard

For this moodboard, I tried to find examples of mech suits and robots with interesting or uniquely designed weapons or features, including guns, drills and wings. This research will help me to find ideas for robotic parts that could resemble or become a substitute for features of animals, allowing me to more fluidly incorporate animal features into a machine designed around different animals.

Some features that I particularly liked from this research were large, bulky limbs that were often wide and rectangular, allowing for movement whilst also having a dual function as a shield. This could help to give my design a more interesting shape and more defensive options whilst also allowing me to exaggerate the size of some features of my design to help them stand out. I could also use this to increase the size of some animal features, such as wings or horns, making the animal theming of my design more clear and visible.

Animal Features Moodboard

In this moodboard, I tried to collect lots of examples of animals with interesting or unique features that were either very recognisable or had a distinctive appearance or purpose. I also included the skeletons or skulls of some animals that I also thought could look interesting. This research will help my design to incorporate animalistic elements into my robot that make the design stand out more and have creative and original features.

One feature I found that I definitely want to incorporate into my design somehow is the tail and stinger of a scorpion. I think the shape and curvature of a scorpion's tail would be a very recognisable element to include in my design that would help to make the idea of a chimera-like creature more clear. Furthermore, many scorpions are native to Greece and as such scorpions were present in many Ancient Greek stories and drawings, further adding to my theme of ancient greek mythology.

Mechanical Animal Moodboard

In this moodboard, I found examples of robots and mechs that were based on animals or were animals with robotic additions implemented into their bodies. This will help with my project as I can take inspiration from these designs to see how they have turned different features of animals into robotic counterparts, which I can use to help me figure out various methods I can use to create robotic elements for my design.

One design I really like from these examples is the robotic hawk and how its wings are composed of multiple metal plates protruding from a metallic ring. I like this design because it takes the complex arrangement of hundreds of feathers and simplifies it down to a very basic and stylised interpretation. I can incorporate this into my design by taking features of animals and making them more solid and simplified to help emphasise the robotic and technological theme whilst still ensuring they remain recognisable to avoid obscuring the animal theme.

Ancient Greek Moodboard

In this moodboard I researched environments and objects relating to the theme of Ancient Greece. This will be helpful as it gives me lots of examples for structures, landscapes and symbols that are themed around Ancient Greece, which I can then incorporate into my project either through my presentation sheets, any environment art I produce around the designs, or any symbols or other design elements I can use in my character design, such as symbols engraved into metal.

One feature I found from this research that I want to include in my project is the usage of pillars and the various different designs they had. Pillars were very common in Ancient Greek architecture which could easily allow me to connect my project to the theme of Ancient Greece by incorporating some form of pillar into my design, potentially in the background of a presentation slide in the style of Greek tapestries, or on the design of the creature itself, such as placing grooves in its limbs to resemble a pillar. Furthermore, there were multiple styles of pillars present throughout Ancient Greece, giving me the opportunity to experiment with different designs to find which I think work well in my design.

Sci-Fi Moodboard

In this moodboard, I researched environments with sci-fi and cyberpunk themes. This will help me to find elements that make a design appear futuristic and robotic, which I can incorporate into my design to help display the themes as well as making my design more accurate to the style I am trying to achieve. This moodboard will also help when designing the presentation sheets as I can also use elements from this moodboard to create a stylised and unique display.

Something I found from this research which I definitely want to include in my design are glowing neon lights. These neon lights are especially abundant in cyberpunk art as well as appearing quite often in other sci-fi themed art, which will definitely help to communicate the theme I'm going for in my design. Furthermore, including lights in the design will allow me to experiment with different design ideas, such as their placement, potentially replacing eyes or joints helping to make the design feel robotic. The inclusion of lights will also allow me to get more creative and dynamic with shading and highlights, which will help to make my main drawing much more interesting and vivid.