#mi5014

In conclusion, I feel as though I completed the task I set out to do. I gave my characters a narrative. & designed them opposite each other, as well as the environment, to create a sense of disruption between the homeowner’s peace. I researched into the characters & environment I wanted to represent & developed the ideas into coherent designs. By taking part in workshops & looking at online tutorials I learned about techniques that allowed me to execute my design work in the models I created & to use that knowledge for further use.

After making the T-poses for my characters, I imported them into Maya to start modelling them. I used steps from the character modelling tutorial to help model from cube to a basic shape of the character. From there, tools such as edge loops, extrudes, target weld, etc. all played a part in the modelling process. I modelled my boy scout character with their clothes attached to his body so that I didn't need to model a cube into clothes & then combine it to the body. I used the tutorial for stylised hair (via CV curves, lattice deformers & curve warp) to attach strands of hair to the scout’s head & then modelled a hat to sit on top.I then modelled the sash & badges & then indivually applied UV textures to each badge. To do this I made sure that the UV was facing the right way via the checker map & adjusted it accordingly, then I applied the texture. I coloured the character in the same colour palette as my designs to follow through on my plans.

As for the bear, I modelled the bear from 1 cube by extruding & adding edge loops. I did, however, use spheres for the eyes & combined it to the mesh. I modelled the shape of the bear (particularly the bottom part) after penguins, pillows & the magic carpet from Aladdin. As they all seem to curve around the bottom area I followed it as a guide to make the bear. I textured it with fur that was filtered to look like a cinnamon bear’s coat.

To help me visualise my ideas I created potential styles I could try out when designing my characters. I used styles from some artist or a technique to see how my design looks.

The first route was texture based, specifically the artist Taryn Knight (TarynDraws). One notable thing about Taryn's work is her use of strokes in her work to show texture which is a key thing here. I do, however, feel that it's not the right style for my characters as my bear looks like a sloth instead.

This route is inspired by Aaron Stewart. Aaron Stuart mixes his media by combining photos with digital art. Although this style is a quick way to mock up ideas I also feel this style is not what I want the end design to look like.

With this piece I wanted to see how a texture would look on a bear so I used an eraser in Photoshop to digitally etch into the photo. I like how it turned out & will consider this style.

Each character has a specific kind of view that contrasts with each other. In this case, my characters are a cinnamon bear (a subcategory of black bear) & a boy scout which a depicting the story of the lodger & homeowner.

The scout represents greed & how society can be antisocial. His badges reflect all the bad deeds he has achieved & his sash is littered with them, showing how bad he has become. If he were to listen to a genre of music I would put him in the category of rap & particularly grime music. Artists that come to mind with this category are Stormzy, Skepta, Drake, etc.