EVALUATION

MEETING THE PROJECT REQUIREMENTS

I'm quite happy with how my final designs and final front cover turned out-- I initially wanted to make a poster, but ended up making a comic cover instead! My objective to create character designs has been completed thoroughly, though.

I think my unique spin on Greek mythology as a whole and delving into such a topic made for a meaningful rendition of the theme 'Realms'. The depth of my narrative and symbolisms, regarding historical meaning and colour theory, for each design also helps enforce this idea.

I used several techniques, such as the art of colour theory, understanding values and using them when making a grayscale start and implementing colour through gradient maps and filters, and the use of moodboards and reference images for concept art.

STRENGTHS & SUCCESSES

I adore my character designs and their diversity. I was worried about making unique concepts and having them all blend together, but they all have a core shape language and colours. 

I think my characters were very fleshed out and had a lot of depth, especially the most significant ones to the narrative, such as Ares and Zeus.

Hermes, Phobos, and Deimos are fun characters that don't have ground-breaking backstories, but are nice to incorporate and makes the world feel fuller, especially with their relationships.

Aphrodite was my first design and helped me get a kickstart on designing and concept art. She helped me design all future characters as she was the first where I implemented a moodboard and reference images on the canvas.

Gaia is the centrepiece of the narrative, as her influence on Ouroboros changes the trajectory of the final act.

During the survey, many people liked the natural flow of my narrative and especially the uniqueness of my Greek mythology designs, considering they're very different from the standard image people usually imagine the deities as.

My work is for a late-teen audience, and I believe the maturity and depth within my narrative can be resonated with this demographic. Usually, at this stage of life, stories and literature are better received when there's more emotional turmoil and struggle in the plot, so I think people would enjoy it if it were a real media. I also think that Greek mythology will always be a well-liked topic, so taking it and making something brand new and unique could engage audiences and hook them in.

CHALLENGES & PROBLEM-SOLVING

I struggled with heavy procrastination and on the story. The narrative was the hardest part to think of and I had to change the plot several times to finally be happy with it. I often thrive under pressure, so in the last two or so weeks, I caved and did lots of work.  I also had little to no hopes for my final product, and didn't like it until I was done with about 70% of it.

I struggled with ibisPaint X's infuriating tendency to maul the quality of your art when you make it smaller or bigger. This made it difficult when I was on the stage of adjusting proportions and everything had a ragged edge from the pixels that were shifted.

If I were to restart the project, I'd like to do more concept work and alternative designs to pick from so I feel like I have covered every basis, rather than second-guessing myself. I'd also like to expand upon environmental storytelling and visual world-building.

INDUSTRY RELEVANCE & PROFESSIONALISM

My final outcome compares to professional work well as it's meant to resemble the front cover of a comic, already diving into the aesthetics of industry releases. My techniques that lead up to said cover are also comparable to professional techniques, such as moodboards, concept art, reference images, grayscale, and colour theory.

My composition is dynamic and striking, and my typography for the title's logo demonstrates my artistic and creative capability. I believe the swirling and bold nature of my artwork would draw audiences in and make them pick up the comic if it were a reality. Professionals also refine their work in the same way- making sure the base artwork is clean and polished, foreshadowing the upcoming story behind the cover through the front artwork, and constructing an eye-catching title that is both memorable and showcases the artist's skill.

As I've mentioned before, I've applied several professional techniques, such as the use of moodboards during the concept and brainstorming stage, making mind-maps, and creating colour palettes. I initially had a well-written schedule to follow during the twelve weeks, but that didn't go quite as planned, and I wish to improve upon this in the future.

I'm sure my project demonstrates the skills needed for a future career or a professional portfolio- there's a lot of love in these designs and the final piece, diversity between the characters (both personality and appearance-wise), and the narrative is solid with great key points and backstories for the main character, Ares.

I think I did well building up this world of deities and civilisations, as I took much care and effort to explain each and every planet with a lot of detail.

FINAL REFLECTION & FUTURE DEVELOPMENT

I've learned that getting feedback is essential as several different perspectives with fresh eyes helps notice errors or things that could be better that I may have not realised initially. I also will be using moodboards much more in the future to make designing environments and characters much easier for myself. To improve upon this, I'd like to move my abilities onto my tablet instead of my phone, and use an industry-grade program such as Photoshop or Medibang.

Using colour theory and moodboards for my designs for the project were helpful to make them striking and balanced in values. This is essential for future endeavours-- understanding colours and using them effectively in your work is a pivotal attribute for an artist to have. I have also witnessed what universities and industries may look for in work, such as concept art, several renditions of designs, environmental concepts, and annotating a lot.

My next steps in developing my skills and new projects will be to practise on industry-grade software and the things I'm weakest at- environmental shots, character turnarounds, extreme perspectives, etc. Working on these things will help me next year when the briefs will be much harder and complex than this year, and it's always great to come prepared.

These are the abundance of feedback I got for the final piece, which were so, so sweet and very positive! The only advice was the size of the logo and the lines being messy, which I completely understand and will strive for cleaner line art in future projects.