(Work in process): First ideas for the Degree show

(Stuff for the degree show)
At the same time that I'm working in the final illustrations, I'm thinking about how I'm going to present my work, do my presentation and prepare the degree show. The Degree show is the final assesment and presentation of each final project of every student of Final Major Project from the BA Ilustration course in the Southampton Solent University.
I had ideas since I was in a tutory with one of my teachers, Peter Lloyd, who explained us different ways to expose our work: with frames, without frames, cheaper stuff, something more expensive,...
I think that for me is better expose my work without frames, because I can't bring them later to my country, I thing that put each illustration with tweezers and nails in the wall is the best way to do it.
Other idea is put each ilustration in the wall, and later make a reduced impresion of the final book, with the cover like a folder to put each illustration in A4 size inside. For expose the final book, I bought a box to decorate it with some adhesive paper (with the design of the inside part of the cover), that I will put in the wall too.
Later, I bought some boxes too, where put business cards and free post cards. I think that is a good way to promocionate myself in the degree show.

(Detail of the stuff for the degree show)

(Work in process): Second page

(Own work: fourth page of Daydream land)
I just have finished the second illustration, the fourth page. Here I explain the character of Fear, who is a fiction creature, who scares Jerric in Daydream land, to try to get away him from the right way. Fear is a representation of bully, the bad guy of Jerric's class.
Now, with this simple illustration, you can associate Bully to Fear, because Fear is his own shadow, who scares to Jerric.
Doing this kind of illustrations, I'm telling the same that with the comic-book style, but with one only image and with a more interesting composition. I like the shadow, because is very dirty, and looks like something creepy.
After the first serie of illustrations, I can say that the decission of change the style of the graphic novel was the best choice I never made. I'm very happy with the result and with the process.

(Own work: first serie of final illustrations)

(Work in process): Tutory with spanish teacher

(Own work: daydream land front cover. Left: 1st version. Right: 2nd version)
Taking advantage of my visit to Valencia (that finished yesterday, when I came back to Southampton), I went to see my spanish teacher, who is the tutor of my final project there. He's Guillermo Ramos and is a famous painter and illustrator in Spain (but he's from Colombia). Like a obligation of my exchange student agreement, I need to send my final project to my teacher, who will decide if I pass or not the lecture in Spain, and I finish my studies. Like I changed my project a little bit, I wanted to know his opinion and view of my project and the changes.

(Own work: daydream land front cover final version)
He was talking to me about all my work, my sketches, my website and my final project. He gave me good advices for change a little bit my work. One of them was change one details of my logo that I made for my portfolio. But one of the most importants, was about the cover of my project. He didn't like the typography I made for my name and he told me that is better if I do another cover without it, and later I'll put it with photoshop. Other thing, was that he prefer the title that I made in my sketche-book with watercolour, because you can understand it better.

(Own work: daydream land back cover)
So, I change it at this is the final result. I think that is better. And I'm very happy, because Guillermo told me that he's very happy with my work and he gave me a lot of avertises for the future. I hope he'll be right and I'll work like illustrator very soon.

(Own work: daydream land front and back cover)

(Work in process): Easter holidays

In the break of holidays, I'm enjoying the oportunity of go to my country, Spain, and visit my family in Valencia. I was thinking to stay all holidays in Southampton, but finally my father convinced me. And I'm very happy, because was a very good choice.
After a lot of changes, work and stress, a break in my parents house is perfect to recharge battery and energies for the final of the academic year. I'm going to enjoy this time to relax, see my friends, talk with them and receive their comments about my final project, see my spanish teacher and reciver his comments too, and forget all the stress.
The first thing I did was go to give a very big hug to my mom. I was feeling like Jerric, after win all my fears about my project and the final changes. Now, is time to work and recollect new ideas to finish it soon.

(Work in process): Cover and first page

(Own work: detail of the title of the Daydream land cover)
I just finished the two first final illustrations with the new style, and I'm very happy with the result. I think that is like the teachers told me and I made a good graphic work. I was doing it for send it to Louise, one of my teachers, to put them in the catalogue. The catalogue will have a description of each work of each student of Final Major Project, and a shor biography of each student.

(Own work: cover of the project "Daydream land")
In the first example, the cover, I was working to create my own typography, something that is very hard to me. But I'm happy with the result, because is like I wanted. Is a representation of a brain and a maze at the same time. This is because is the main idea of the story and the final title: DAYDREAM LAND. Daydream land, is a maze of dreams where Jerric is walking, and is the center of the story, so is perfect to describe the project.

(Own work: page two of Daydream land)
The second page is the first illustration I finished, because was the page that I had decided first how to do it. Is a close-up of Jerric, where you can see his brain, that is a maze. In this way, I explain that Daydream land is a fiction world in the Jerric's mind, a creation of his imagination. So, I'm happy because doing this kind of illustration, I'm explaining the same that in two or one comic-book pages, but only in one image, so is more interesting and less repetitive.

(Work in process): Project changes

(Own work: evolution process)
After one of the work in progress tutorials, with two of my teachers, Louise Weir and Johnny Hanna, I decided to change my project. The advised me about my work, which needed differents compositions, graphic shots and be more interesting with the drawing and the painting.

(Own work: comic-book page)
So, I change the basic comic-book style, like the reference of “Little Nemo in Slumberland” or “Calvin&Hobbes”, to a kind of illustration more dinamic and different.

(Own work: watercolour sketches)
I was doing some sketches, until I found a style that I think that is better and makes my work more interesting. Doing drawings like my teachers told me, more similar to my sketches, I worked with watercolours, to make one page illustration, leaving the comic-book style, but keeping my own style.

(Own work: final illustration, page 2)
The first final page is like I was looking for. In paper A3, is bigger, so have more details, a more difficult work and taking more the attention of the viewer.

(Own work: up part of the painting)
For try new experiences, I painted two of my creatures in the wall of the illustration studio, to see how my work can look in other places, outside of the paper. I like the work, but I prefer the paper to do the final project.

(Own work: down part of the painting)

(Final designs): Backgrounds

(Own work: final design card: Jerric's home)
We can appreciate two kinds of worlds, so two kinds of different backgrounds: the real and the fiction one.

(Own work: final design card: Jerric's room)
The real one is the world where Jerric lives and suffers: home, school and the street.

(Own work: final design card: Jerric's school)
The fiction world is where Jerric understand himself, meet his own dreams, fears and doubts, and fights againts or with his own feelings. Is like a underground maze, like a catacombs, with rocks and small lamps everywhere.

(Own work: final design card: Jerric's class)
And later, whe can find two importants places inside of the maze: the Loneliness throne, hidden in the center of the maze; and the Paradise, the exit of the maze, that represents the axis of his world, the dream that is the center of his acts and feelings: be a writter.

(Own work: final design card: Underground maze)
Finally, I did seven differents places, that I think that are enough to have a basic knowledge about the Jerric's worlds and how are going to be the differents final backgrounds of the illustrations.

(Own work: final design card: Loneliness throne)

(Own work: final design card: Paradise, axis of the maze)

(Final designs): Fiction characters

(Own work: final design card: Loneliness)
For the fiction creature, a created a different style, more different and creative. Loneliness for example is a very different creature than the real ones. Is the main idea that I have, and I think that is ideal for the character.

(Own work: final design card: Fear)
Fear is other kind of creature. Like a orc, is a horrible, strong and stupid monster, the perfect servant of Loneliness.

(Own work: final design card: Love)
Love, the queen of the Jerric's love, is the only fiction character that need to be similar than a real one: the girl. Because is the fiction representation of her, and the viewer needs to understand that Girl and Love, are the same creature, the same feeling of Jerric.

(Own work: final design card: Sloth)
Sloth had before the name of Laziness, but I changed it because Derek, one of my teachers, told me that is more funny and maybe more ideal for a lovely creature who is always sleeping (the same name that one of the characters of Ice Age, a animated movie).

(Own work: final design card: doubts)
The doubts have two versions: the first one, smaller and more weak, and the other one, when they evolve in a stronger creature. Each one have a symbole with a relation with the think that they represent: the doubt “Mederi” is a worm with a cross, a symbol of the medecin; the doubt “Politïa” has a star, a symbol of the police in some countries.

(Own work: final design card: Monsters)
6 monsters, against 6 doubts. Differents styles, because each one represents a fear, and each fear is very different than other. One is like a demon, other like a skeleton, other is a kind of wolfman,...

(Final designs): Real characters

(Own work: final design card: Jerric)
Here, the final designs of the real characters of “Daydreamland”. I explained all of them: Jerric, the bully, the teacher, his mom, his bestfriend and his first love. One of them, the bestfriend, was discarded and deleted of the final story, because I thought that I don't need it for explain the story and is more a obstacle than a help.

(Own work: final design card: Bully)
Jerric is one of the most importants, and maybe can change of size, depends of the kind of shot or illustration. Later, Bully need to be always bigger than Jerric, and a little bit more than the girl. The teacher is the tallest, and the mother the second.

(Own work: final design card: Girl)
The relationship between the fiction creatures is than always, fiction creatures are bigger. The girl and the bully have a fiction representation: Faerie's queen and Fear, respectively.

(Own work: final design card: Mother)
All the real characters have some similar skills, to make a own style for the book. For example, mother and son, Jerric, have a similar noise and face. Generally, everybody has something very similar to the other illustration characters.

(Own work: final design card: Teacher)