Illustration & Visual Narrative | Task 1: Vormator Challenge - Character Creation

23/9/24 - 11/10/24 (Week 1 - Week 3)

Kimberly Miaw Jya Nee | 0366836

Bachelor of Design (Honours) in Creative Media | Taylor's University

Illustration & Visual Narrative

Task 1: Vormator Challenge - Character Creation (20%)

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Week 1: Introduction

For our first task, we were required to create a character using a set of predefined shapes. While we had the creative freedom to design any character we wanted, we weren’t allowed to distort or alter the shapes in any way.

Fig 1. Vormator Elements

Week 2: Development

I started by tracing all the shapes in Illustrator, while referring to the recorded lectures from Week 2 and 3. I found these lectures extremely helpful, as they guided us in using the correct technique to trace the shapes.

Fig 2. Traced Vormator Shapes

Ideation

I had a few concepts in mind, but I decided to create a character based on my pet hamster, who reminds me of a clown. He’s always extremely active, constantly running on his wheel, which somehow reminds me of the playful nature of clowns. I’ve always been fascinated by clown characters, so I decided to combine these ideas. Additionally, the cozy character styles in my favourite game, Animal Crossing, inspired me to add a whimsical touch to the design.

Fig 3. Reference Pictures (Pietro and Merengue from Animal Crossing, 

Artwork by @_professional_simp on Instagram, Artwork by @donutdrawsthing on Tumblr)

[ Take a look at my Pinterest board! ]

Week 3: Process

Sketch

First, I did a rough sketch of my character in Procreate, while experimenting with unconventional colour palettes. Then, I drafted the character using the actual Vormator shapes. In the end, I decided to stick with a more traditional colour palette.

Fig 4. Character Sketch and Drafting in Procreate

Final Outcome

I was able to create a final character silhouette in Adobe Illustrator that closely resembles my initial sketch. I made some minor tweaks to details like the sleeves, cuffs, and the character’s legs. Since we’re limited to a maximum of three colours for the character silhouette, I chose a red, pink, and cream palette, which also reminds me of strawberry shortcake.

Fig 5. Final Character Silhouette

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[Reflection]

I'm pleased with the outcome of my Vormator character, but I believe there's room for improvement, particularly with the character's outfit design, which I kept fairly simple. 

Aside from that, this assignment has significantly improved my Illustrator skills. Although I’ve been using Illustrator for a few months, this project encouraged me to explore new techniques and shortcut keys that have made my workflow both faster and smoother.

I genuinely had fun completing this assignment; I believe it’s the first time I’ve properly created my own character. I was so immersed in the process that I completely lost track of time.

Thank You