Introduction

During our Narrative unit, we focused on communicating our stories through creative writing, audio production, and narrative illustrations. We learned how to use Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, and Avid Protools to create and communicate. Using this equipment, we were able to create whatever our minds desired.

From this unit, I had a wonderful time creating and working off of the story I had created in English. In Digital Media, I furthered my knowledge of using Illustrator as well as creating music. In Design, I enjoyed challenging myself to create something I would have never thought of before. Overall, I had a wonderful time during the Narrative unit because although some parts I had struggled greatly with, I was able to overcome these challenges and in the end make a final product.

Story

We began this unit in English by reading George Orwell’s 1984. We spent a lot of time analyzing the metaphors, imagery, and dialogue throughout the novel and how they connected not only to the ending of the story but the aura it created, as well as how it connected to our world now. We also read many Flash Fictions, or short stories to prepare us to create our own. For my story, I was inspired by Halloween when we were beginning to write, it was right around that time, leading to my tale in a dark graveyard.

We also produced an audiobook version of our story using Protools. At first, this seemed very daunting, as there were so many layers as well as the challenge of recording my voice, but as I continued editing, it was quite exciting to hear my story through audio, and not just the words on paper.

One of my favorite things about this project was having everything interconnect with one another in the end to create the final product. It’s very satisfying to see all your work combined to create something that you can be proud of. It also made me realize how much work it takes to make what might seem simple, but in reality, takes more time and effort than you think.

Illustrations

In this unit, we also learned how to use Adobe Illustrator to produce multiple different things, from simple fun artwork you see on your screen, to things we could hold in our hands.

First, we had an exquisite corpse project. In this project, we were required to become a group of three and were given a single panel to draw on. We would not be allowed to see what the members around us were drawing, other than the parameters we had to follow so the illustrations would connect.

We also created an album art cover for our short story audio recording as well using the program Adobe Illustrator. Since my story was set in a forest, I wanted to make it dark and spooky. Then, since the necklace was the reason why my main character got caught, and so I wanted to include it as well.

The Junior Illustrator project allowed me to combine all the new knowledge we gained from Illustrator to create something of our choice. We had the option of choosing stickers, clothing art, mugs, puzzles, etc. For this project, I was inspired by my favorite character, Miffy, and decided to make a cute patch that I could put onto my clothes. Miffy is made out of simple shapes, but it took a little while to make Miffy look like the real one, as she has specific proportions.

Artist Statement: My inspiration for this project was my favorite character Miffy. She’s a cute little bunny and I remember watching her a lot when I was younger and recently got into her again. I grew with this project by refining my skills in Illustrator. One of the struggles I encountered was color, as I wasn’t sure how the color of the patch would look together. I overcame this by using Adobe Color and finding a good color scheme. I wouldn’t change anything about this project because I am very happy with the outcome. I know as a Design student, I will be using Illustrator more in the future, and so knowing that I am confident in the tools will help me in future projects. Overall, I heavily enjoyed this project!

Music Production

In Digital Media, another portion of this unit was dedicated to learning how to use ProTools which is an audio production program that we also used in the recording and editing of our short story above.

First, we had to create a parody song to test out and introduce ourselves to creating music. We used the song “Dancing With Our Hands Tied” by Taylor Swift. I did this project with Sylvia and Alex as we sang about how school work is hard and we lack the motivation to do it. Overall, I had a blast singing with my friends in the studio, and it was fun messing around with the lyrics.

I, I came back from summer

First sight, this year will be harder

Oh, I’m sixteen years old

Oh, homework overload

My, my brain had been frozen

Want a break, but they gave me more homework

Oh, and it stressed me out

Oh, testing is coming close

I used to spend my summer with fun dramas and road trips

Sitting on my bed with my headphone noise on canceled

My friends said let’s hangout and stay up until the sunrise

I had a bad feeling

I can’t keep on waking up with two hours of sleeping

Packing up my backpack with my notebooks and lunch box

Glancing all around to see all of the new freshmen

I had a bad feeling

But we should study 

Putting on our, headphones, headphones

Yeah, we were crying 

Praying we pass, exams, exams 

Yeah we were studying 

Studying with our phones off, phones off

Yeah, we were stressing

And I had a bad feeling

But we should study

I, I stay up in spite of

Deep fears that I might fail on the test

So, can we have a break

Oh, so I can stay sane

and say, say it’s just one  

I’m a mess, and the one might fail on test

Oh, cause it HOCO week

Oh, and the  S A T

I could’ve been studying but I stayed in bed watching

Movies on repeat, don’t even know whos on the big screen 

You said “the test was lightwork don’t need to study” 

I had a bad feeling

But we were crying

Starin we g at a, bad grade, bad grade

Yeah, we were stressing

overwhelmed with, aeries, aeries

Yeah, we were wishing

That we had just, studied, studied

Yeah, we were sobbing

(Ooh, we were studying)

And I had a bad feeling

But we were stressing

I walk in as the bell just rang

Praying to get a good score 

I’m stressed out as the teacher walks in 

If I can study it again

I’d pay a little more attention

Taking notes as I was told

I’d told myself to work a little more 

and I really did try my best

Praying we pass, exams, exams

Yeah we were stressing

overwhelmed with, aeries, aeries

Yeah we were studying 

Studying with our phones off, phones off

Yeah we were working 

And I had a bad feeling 

I can’t keep stressing

Stressing, stressing

As a dancer, I thought it wouldn’t be too hard to create music, but was proven very wrong the moment we began creating our music. After this project, I had a newfound respect for people who can create music as it was near impossible for me to make anything sound good.

I think one of the biggest challenges was using the piano. I learned a little bit of the piano, but I only knew one song and I was very challenged with what note I was hitting. All I knew was did this note sound bad or did it sound good? No idea what note it was though. I’m surprised I was even able to have a end product, as I was struggling through this entire project, but I’m glad I got to test it out and experiment with music.

Design

To practice using Illustrator, we began by creating a background of our bedroom. It isn’t a replica as we had to choose from a color scheme, and a few things are missing here and there, it replicated my room as well as helped us learn how to use linear perspective. We had to create the center point for where all ur lines came from and connect all our lines to that one center dot to create the 3D effect.

In Design, we used our short stories from English to create a hybrid creature using the character traits of our main characters. For sneaky, I did a lest weasel, for gloomy, I did a widow spider, for solitary, I did a veiled chameleon, for greedy, I did a blue crab, and finally, for observant I did a black vulture.

Narrative Creature Artist Statement:

My story revolves around a grave robber who steals jewelry to make money. Although he eventually gets caught, I chose to illustrate a scene where the creature steals jewelry from a shop
instead of a dark graveyard. Drawing the bustling jewelry store felt more dynamic and visually interesting than a somber graveyard scene.

Using Adobe Illustrator, I honed my skills in one-point perspective, experimented with color schemes, and mastered the live paint tool. For the creature’s design, I selected the least weasel for its sneakiness, a widow spider for its gloominess, a veiled chameleon for its solitary nature, a blue crab for its greediness, and a black vulture for its observant demeanor. Creating the intricate background posed challenges, particularly with layering and detail. Despite utilizing the copy tool, meticulously crafting each necklace, bracelet, and ring was time-consuming. I encountered difficulties with layering, resulting in overlapping elements where they shouldn’t be. However, through creative problem-solving, I resolved these issues. I’m particularly pleased with how the black vulture’s head turned out. Initially concerned about capturing its textured skin, it ultimately became one of my favorite parts of the piece.

Next in Design, we worked with lighting to take a mizonsen photo of our character. I decided to take a photo of when my character picked the shovel back at the very end, deciding the fate of his brother. We practiced using 3-point lighting and how the color of the lighting can affect the mood, as well as add depth to the image.

Narrative Portrait Artist Statement: Felix Herlin

In this portrait, we meet Felix Herlin, a young man employed as a grave-keeper. Despite his job, which provides minimal income, Felix finds himself drawn to a darker path: that of a grave- robber. He steals jewelry from the coffins of the deceased. However, during one such escapade, he is discovered by his older brother, who, in stark contrast, has found success as a businessman. Despite his brother’s attempts and the offer of redemption, Felix remains resolute, his mind already set from the moment he grasps his shovel.
While capturing photos, one of the primary challenges we encountered revolved around lighting. Balancing the dark, ominous aura with the need for clarity in the images proved to be quite a task. Additionally, we faced some hurdles due to rain on both days of the photoshoot. However, we managed to overcome this obstacle with the aid of numerous umbrellas. In post-processing using Photoshop, I focused on cropping the photo to achieve a better balance and eliminated distracting background elements that distracted from the moment. Looking ahead, I aim to refine my lighting techniques, as it was undoubtedly one of the most challenging aspects of this assignment. Determining the appropriate strength and placement of lights proved to be a learning curve. While I believe I handled this project well overall, I am eager to delve deeper into lighting experimentation in future as I become more accustomed to it.

Overall, I highly enjoyed this unit as it changed me to get out of my comfort zone by taking photos, something that hasn’t always been my favorite thing, as well as try drawing digitally. I enjoy using the life paint tool in Illustarot as it makes it easy to fill in colors instead of having to have specific shapes for every single space that I have. I’d like to thank Ms. P, our wonderful design teacher for helping us throughout the entire process from taking photos to supporting us as we created our creatures!