Syllabus Projects Class Schedule
Digital Illustration Art 441M, Class Schedule
Week 1
Tuesday, January 16
- Introductions.
- What is illustration and digital illustration?
- Review schedule, web site & syllabus.
- EVERYONE NEEDS A TABLET
- Review hardware (About This Mac) and software (Adobe Creative Cloud, ProCreate, Sketchbook).
- Set up naming convention (lastName1stInitialProject), folder system and online backup.
- Introduce semester-long project: Character design.
- Explain proposals, timesheets, character profiles
- Introduce Theater Poster project.
- Self portraits
- Upload written proposal and initial sketches for poster to shared Google Drive by 6 p.m. on Tuesday, 1/23. Name files: lastName1stInitialPosterProposal, lastName1stInitialPosterSketches
Thursday, January 18
- Review vector vs. bitmap, image size, resolution, color modes and file formats.
- Demo Photoshop, Sketchbook: image size, custom brushes, layers.
- Draw faces: happy, sad, mad, scared, surprised (take pictures with phones or computers for reference)
- Try different color/lighting schemes on drawings to enhance emotions.
- Work on posters. Proposal and sketches due on Tuesday.
- Post Project Proposal and Character Profiles to shared Google Drive folder by 6 p.m. on Tuesday, 1/30. Name files: lastName1stInitialProposal, lastName1stInitialCharacterProfiles
Week 2
Tuesday, January 23
- Review Poster Proposals, sketches.
- Demo Magic Poser
- Create a scene using Magic Poser with at least two characters and two props. Save it in three different points of view and lighting conditions.
- Upload character sketches to shared Google Drive by Thursday, 2/1, 6 p.m. Name files: lastName1stInitialCharacterName
- Work on posters
Thursday, January 25
- Watch this digital illustration process video: John Frye (it’s long, but it’s a good introduction to Sketchbook)
- Illustrator type: scaling, warping, effects, outline, mask.
- Demo screen-resolution and multi-page PDFs.
- Work on posters, character designs.
- Have written project and character profiles for next Tuesday’s class.
- Posters and character sketches due next Thursday.
Week 3
Tuesday, January 30
- Review Christoph Niemann’s online portfolio.
- Review story proposals and character profiles.
- Illustrator blob brush/eraser, art/texture brushes.
- Work on posters
- Upload final Posters to shared Google Drive by 6 p.m. on Thursday, 2/1. Name files: lastName1stInitialPosterFinal
- Upload initial character sketches to shared Google Drive by 6 p.m. on Thursday, 2/1. Name files: lastName1stCharacterSketches
- SuperheroFigures
Thursday, February 1
- Critique Posters
- Watch this digital illustration process video: Bobby Chiu1
- Review character sketches.
- Work on characters. Upload finished characters to shared Google Drive by Tuesday, 2/20, 6 p.m. Name file: lastName1stInitialCharacterFinal
Week 4
Tuesday, February 6
- Review Chase Stone’s online portfolio.
- Demo atmospheric perspective techniques
- Intro Website project. Pick a platform by next Tuesday.
- Work on characters, due Tuesday, 2/20.
- Share Instagram story
Thursday, February 8
- Watch this digital illustration process video: Bobby Chiu2
- Demo atmospheric perspective techniques
- Work on characters, due Tuesday, 2/20.
Week 5
Tuesday, February 13
- Review Environment proposals and sketches.
- Review website choices
- Review Zina Saunders’ online portfolio.
- Demo linear perspective techniques (Sketchbook)
- Work on characters, due Tuesday, 2/20.
Thursday, February 15
- Watch illustrator Nimit Malvia’s process video
- Demo combining shapes and gradients, perspective in Illustrator.
- Demo 3D models in Magic Poser
- Work on characters. Upload finished characters to shared Google Drive by Tuesday, 2/20, 6 p.m. Name file: lastName1stInitialCharacterFinal
Week 6
Tuesday, February 20
- Character design critiques.
- Introduce Environment project. Upload initial written proposal and initial sketches to shared Google Drive by 6 p.m. on Tuesday, 2/27. Name files: lastName1stInitialEnvProposal, lastName1stInitialEnvSketches
- Demo filters, effects, masks to fade effects
- Post character designs to website
- Review Jason Seiler’s online portfolio.
Thursday, February 22
- Watch illustrator Nithin Rao Kumblekar’s process video
- Work on environments.
Week 7
Tuesday, February 27
- Review David Cowles’ online portfolio.
- Review environment sketches
- Work on environments
Thursday, February 29
- Watch illustrator Eisuke Ogura’s process video
- Demo 3D and type distortion in AI
- Work on environments
Week 8
Tuesday, March 5
- Review Tony Rodriguez’s online portfolio.
- Work on environments. Upload finished environments to shared Google Drive by 6 p.m. on Thursday, 3/7. Name file: lastName1stInitialEnvironmentFinal
Thursday, March 7
- Critique Environment project
- Post environments to website
- Introduce Title Art project.
- Upload initial written proposal and initial sketches to shared Google Drive by 9 p.m. on Tuesday, 3/19. Name files: lastName1stInitialTitleProposal, lastName1stInitialTitleSketches
SPRING BREAK, NO CLASSES MARCH 11-15
Week 9
Tuesday, March 19
- Review title ideas
- Review Viktor Koen’s online portfolio.
- Work on titles. Initial sketches due Thursday, 3/21, by 9 p.m.
Thursday, March 21
- Watch this short digital illustration process video: Daily Grafix
- Review Nithin Kumbleker‘s online portfolio.
- Work on titles.
- Upload finished project to shared Google Drive by 6 p.m., Tuesday, 3/26. Name file: lastName1stInitialTitleFinal
Week 10
Tuesday, March 26
- Critique Title project
- Introduce Poster, Cover, etc. project.
- Upload initial sketches to shared Google Drive by 6 p.m. on Tuesday, 4/2. Name files: lastName1stInitialCoverSketches
- Post title designs to website
Thursday, March 28: NO CLASS HOLY THURSDAY
Week 11
Tuesday, April 2
- Review Mirko Ilic’s online portfolio.
- Review poster/cover ideas
- Work on project. Due on Thursday, April 11.
Thursday, April 4
- Watch this short digital illustration process video: Daily Grafix
- Review Nithin Kumbleker‘s online portfolio.
- Work on titles.
Week 12
Tuesday, April 9
- Review Bill Mayer’s online portfolio.
- Work on posters. Post finished project to Google Drive by 6 p.m. Tuesday, 4/16. Name file: lastName1stInitialCoverFinal
Thursday, April 11
- Critique Poster/Cover/Etc. project.
- Introduce Storyboard/Animation project.
- Post poster/cover designs to website
Week 13
Tuesday, April 16
- Review David Newton’s online portfolio.
- Work on storyboards.
- Upload initial sketches to shared Google Drive 6 p.m. on Thursday, 4/18. Name files: lastName1stInitialStoryboardSketches
Thursday, April 18
- Review storyboard ideas
- Work on storyboards. Upload finished project to shared Google Drive by 6 p.m. Tuesday, 4/23. Name file: lastName1stInitialStoryboardFinal
- Watch this short and interesting painting critique of The Horse Fair
- Learn more about Rosa Bonheur, the impressive, ahead-of-her-time artist who painted The Horse Fair
Week 14
Tuesday, April 23
- Critique storyboards
- Post storyboards to website
- Introduce Animation project. Due Thursday, May 9.
- Review Michael Dziekan’s online portfolio.
- Animation demo
Thursday, April 25
- Animation demo
- Work on animation
Week 15
Tuesday, April 30
- Review Daniel Hertzberg’s online portfolio.
- Animation demo
- Work on animation
Thursday, May 2
- Work on animation
Week 16
Tuesday, May 7
- Work on animation. Due Thursday. Upload to shared Google drive. Name file: lastName1stInitialAnimationFinal
Thursday, May 9 LAST CLASS
- Animation critique
- Website critique