Experimental and Expanded Forms

In the morning, we were given a presentation on how an illustrator can bring narrative into life ( i.e films, window displays, costumes ) and how illustrators of the past have pushed the boundaries of narrative.

We were then shown a series of work produced by well-known illustrators that showed us the different techniques explored by other artists and illustrators in order to convey narrative.

A work that particularly stood out to me was Joanna H..'s work where she has chosen to use embroidery ( a form of soft illustration) to convey narrative. At the centre of the instalment, lies a girl who appears to be asleep, curled up, surrounded by pillows and embroidered animals that looked very inviting hence making viewers want to interact with the work. Suggesting that the narrative being addressed is very calm and light. This is then furthermore highlighted with the absence of colour and how the piece only contained very organic materials.

Another piece of work that really stood out to me was William Kentridge's 'Refusal of Time' where Kentridge decided to use film and sound in order to narrate and show the duration of time.

I really liked how Kentridge has chosen to stick mostly to earth tones and monochromatic elements allowing us to choose which part of the whole composition to focus on without any distractions of colour and is very gentle on the eyes.

I also really liked how apart from the film playing, there was also a metronome ticking in the background that provided us with how fast or slow Kentridge's film was going and created a representation of time that he has based his work on.