Platforms and working methodology

Platforms that chose by illustrators can be used as an effective way to establish their own markets and find their stable clients. There are all kinds of platforms like publishing, advertising, branding, fashion, installation etc. For instance, the following picture shows the album art of he Rolling Stones “Love You Live” in 1977s, it is created by Andy Warhol, the famous avant-garde artist. The cover is a portrait of the lead singer biting at one’s hand. The illustrator used strong colours to stress the name of the album and the rock band, which makes the album more artistic and represent the free creation spirit of the band.

Moreover, this cover may attract more rock fans and as a successful marketing strategy, it would gain more benefits. Recently, a increasing number of illustrators tend to create their own-label products such as T-shirts, shoes and so on. Generally, young people are their clients. This trend indicates the diversification of the art market.

Creating our own design process is of great significance. I gather experience from every visual practice of mine and gradually make my own design process. I believe that a thorough and versatile process may contribute to my independent work. Meanwhile, I may gain more professional skills from researching the most appropriate way for me. A great design needs a combination of working medium or method. As the following picture shows, it’s my original script of a design. The basic idea or inspiration comes from the dragon and fish. I intend to show a Chinese style, so I drew the sketch at first step, then copied it and use my computer to revise its shape and fill it with strong color. After that I added some words and focused my eyes on the layout and typestyle. This process of mine is a combination of handwork and digital technology and I will try more method such as photography, 3D sculptures, model-making and so on because they are beneficial to my design.

 Reference:

1. Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. 2002.

2.Official website of the Rolling stone