Preparatory work: Still life photographs

Poetry Research: The Spider and the Fly

Illustration by Tony DiTerlizzi, which is an adaptation of Mary Howitt's classic poem "The Spider and the Fly"

The Spider and the Fly is a poem written by Mary Howitt in 1829. It remains one of the most memorable piece of literature to this date, and was recently re-made by Tony DiTerlizzi in 2003. The poem goes:

Will you walk into my parlour?" said the Spider to the Fly, 'Tis the prettiest little parlour that ever you did spy;
The way into my parlour is up a winding stair,
And I've a many curious things to shew when you are there."
Oh no, no," said the little Fly, "to ask me is in vain,
For who goes up your winding stair can ne'er come down again." "I'm sure you must be weary, dear, with soaring up so high;

Will you rest upon my little bed?" said the Spider to the Fly.
"There are pretty curtains drawn around; the sheets are fine and thin,
And if you like to rest awhile, I'll snugly tuck you in!"
Oh no, no," said the little Fly, "for I've often heard it said,
They never, never wake again, who sleep upon your bed!"

Said the cunning Spider to the Fly, " Dear friend what can I do,
To prove the warm affection I've always felt for you?
I have within my pantry, good store of all that's nice;
I'm sure you're very welcome -- will you please to take a slice?"
"Oh no, no," said the little Fly, "kind Sir, that cannot be,
I've heard what's in your pantry, and I do not wish to see!"


"Sweet creature!" said the Spider, "you're witty and you're wise,
How handsome are your gauzy wings, how brilliant are your eyes!
I've a little looking-glass upon my parlour shelf,
If you'll step in one moment, dear, you shall behold yourself."
"I thank you, gentle sir," she said, "for what you're pleased to say,
And bidding you good morning now, I'll call another day."


 The Spider turned him round about, and went into his den,
For well he knew the silly Fly would soon come back again:
So he wove a subtle web, in a little corner sly,
And set his table ready, to dine upon the Fly.
Then he came out to his door again, and merrily did sing,
"Come hither, hither, pretty Fly, with the pearl and silver wing;
Your robes are green and purple -- there's a crest upon your head;
Your eyes are like the diamond bright, but mine are dull as lead!"


 Alas, alas! how very soon this silly little Fly,
Hearing his wily, flattering words, came slowly flitting by;
With buzzing wings she hung aloft, then near and nearer drew,
Thinking only of her brilliant eyes, and green and purple hue --
Thinking only of her crested head -- poor foolish thing! At last,
Up jumped the cunning Spider, and fiercely held her fast.
He dragged her up his winding stair, into his dismal den,
Within his little parlour -- but she ne'er came out again!

And now dear little children, who may this story read,
To idle, silly flattering words, I pray you ne'er give heed:
Unto an evil counsellor, close heart and ear and eye,
And take a lesson from this tale, of the Spider and the Fly.

~*~

DiTerlizzi's drawing of the Spider leading towards the dollhouse

As with many children's poems, The Spider and the Fly hides a valuable lesson. It is a warning to maidens, young and old (such as the Fly), to take heed and beware the dark motives of an untrustworthy being (as portrayed in the Spider) that lurk beneath crafty, flowery compliments.

The issues of life and death is carefully explained through the use of a spider catching a fly, however a much deeper and sinister meaning hides behind subtle visual clues, highlighting the importance for parents to discuss issues such as trust and safety with their children.

Pencil sketches: Study of limbs

We recognize things from memory, however when it comes to portraying the image from our head onto paper can be challenging if we cannot remember the exact position of where things should be. (I always find it very difficult to draw a whole figure from the top of my head without any reference)

Doing simple observational sketches from time to time allows me to familiarize and memorize the forms of things we see everyday that are usually taken for granted.

The following are examples of my drawings. (Click the thumbnails to full-view image)

 

Rough pencil sketches of my own hand

I noticed the level of the thumb is halfway across the palm; not alongside the other four fingers or  near the bottom edge of the wrist.

 

Ink sketches of legs, paying particular attention to feet (in shoes)

 

Practice ink sketches using my less-dominant hand (left hand)

  

Rough ink sketches of figures

The walking figure: I notice that the position/level of the ankles differ with each stride. The ankle of the "pushing" foot is much higher than the other due to the upwards tip-toe position of the overall foot. If the level is the same, the stride motion would appear less convincing.

However if both feet are on a standstill, the base is flat and therefore the levels should be the same.

More of my sketches can be found in my sketchbook.

Project brief

Project brief outline 1
Client
Book publisher: Simon and Schuster.
Subject matter
Illustrations of people in places and possibly animals/make-believe creatures.

Approach

Storyboard or a series of drawings.

Aims
To recollect the imagery from a book and portray them in my drawings. 

Primary sources

Observational drawings, photographs, ink doodles.
Secondary sources
Websites; of authors and blogs of chosen artists
Books; favourite childrens’s books garnished with drawings from chosen artists (books by Terry Pratchett illustrated by Jonny Duddle, and Holly Black illustrated by Tony DiTerlizzi etc)
Techniques and processes

• Drawing inks
• Gouache
• Watercolour and colour pencils
• Oil pastels
• Experiments with various materials to see which ones work well, either on their own or with other materials, and using illustrations of chosen artists as a guide.

Outcomes
Probably a storyboard or comic book format, but what I have in mind at the moment is a series of illustrations to accompany short snippets from a story, presented in a large scale (probably A2 or A1). If it is possible, I would like to see if I could create a Flash comic by scanning my drawings onto Photoshop and work over it.

How will you review work (Planning, timescale, changes and modifications)
I will be recording my progress as I go along, and taking pictures of my experiments to analyze them. I will continue to develop my own style.
How will you present outcome
My storyboards could be presented on mount board or in a handmade book cover to bind the drawings together. The scale would be slightly larger than the drawings, which would act almost like a large folder with pockets. If I were to create a Flash comic, it could be presented in a DVD format.


Project brief outline 2
Client
Book publisher: Faber and Faber, The Whitsun Weddings by Philip Larkin
Subject matter
Illustrations of objects described in the poem
Approach
A series of drawings to accompany snippets of Larkin's poems
Aims
To recollect the imagery from a book and portray them in my drawings
Primary sources
Observational drawings, photographs, ink doodles, experiments
Secondary sources
Websites; of authors and blogs of chosen artists
Books; research a series of classic poetry/short stories (books by Oscar Wilde and Sylvia Plath) and also stemming from my initial research, I will look into DiTerlizzi's version of The Spider and the Fly which was based on Mary Howitt's 1829 poem.
Techniques and processes
Drawing inks
Watercolour and colour pencils
Oil pastels
Start to carry out ideas, techniques and a style that I have developed and working towards a final outcome.

Outcomes
A series of illustrations to accompany short snippets from poems, presented in a large scale (probably A2 or A1)

How will you review work (Planning, timescale, changes and modifications)
I will continue to improve my original style. I will be recording my progress as I go along, and taking pictures of my experiments to analyze them.
How will you present outcome
My drawings will be presented on mount board or in a handmade book cover to bind the drawings together. Alternatively, they could be presented in my portfolio.

Artist research: Jonny Duddle

Jonny Duddle illustrated for Terry Pratchett's latest book; Nation, which happened to be my discovery of another modern day illustrator.

What intrigued me was his digital coloration. His finished pieces are usually coloured works, mainly for the main cover whereas his accompanying ink sketches remain in their black and white outlines. 


Duddle's drawings first consists of pencil sketches, and are then coloured over using Painter and Photoshop. His style is very broad; they can appear to be quite cartoon-like, whereas some can appear quite sinister.

An example of a more cartoonised version of his style. It gives a very happy and up-beat appearance...

... contrasting with an example of his more dark and sinister drawings. 


The link to Duddle's website can be found at the bottom of this blog.

Final piece progression

Photographs of my final pieces in their progression state.

Some of the background accents were not added at this point, so it gives a more simplistic appearance which makes it clear to determine how the final outcome should look like.