FINAL MAJOR PROJECT: PROPOSAL



“If you want your children to be intelligent, read them fairy tales. If you want them to be more intelligent, read them more fairy tales.”[1]


Albert Einstein made this comment in the early 20th century, a time when Fairy-Tales and were given a new lease of life. They were being re-told in Technicolour by Walt Disney with modern, empathetic characters (Princesses with cropped hair who were pro-active). They were re-written and newly illustrated by the most modern Illustrators of the time such as Arthur Rackham, John Bauer and Edmund Dulac, who gave them a Gothic twist. There was no television or computer-games; children used their imaginations and read picture-books for escapism. Fairy Tales were sought after; making money for Publisher’s, Production Companies, Writers and Illustrators. No longer simply cautionary tales to scare children before bedtime, their target audience changed and with it so did the boundaries of children’s book Illustration. This idea and Einstein’s theory are the two driving forces of my Final Major Project.




What are my Objectives?


I draw for escapism; a visual aid to the imagination that transports me straight into the world of a narrative. My objective is to always to tell a story, this allows me to share with the world how I visualise things. For that reason, I aim to unearth forgotten stories with cautionary and fantastical themes so that my final outcome is fresh and original. I aim to remind people of the escapism and adventure to be gained by simply reading a picture book and getting immersed in its illustrations. It is important to be constantly re-inventing so that this type of illustration remains accessible and current. The illustrative ‘world’ I place these stories in will be a mixture of the archaic and the current. The ‘archaic’ should be homage to historical accuracy; relevant research into the appropriate costume, decor and setting to suit mood and narrative requirements. The right amount of real and surreal will be achieved with figurative ‘reality’ and a scheme for set and costume that is developed but 'unspecific’. My objective is to embrace the sinister and adult themes of stories in a way that is acceptable for children but still cautionary. This proposal and my research will help me learn how I can achieve these objectives:

Here is a list of what I wish to communicate. In order to achieve them I must build up a visual dictionary using my research project to explore life-drawing, observation and story-boarding which will help to inform this:

  1.  ESCAPISM 
  2. SURREALISM
  3.  FANTASY 
  4. CAUTION
  5. ACCURACY 
  6. GOTHIC 
  7. HISTORY

Visual Languages needed to achieve this:

  1. SYMBLOSIM
  2. REALISM
  3. BACKGROUND AND COMPOSITION
  4. NARRATIVE
  5. STORYTELLING
  6. COSTUME
  7. DECOR 
  8. LAYOUT  

My target audience is, predominantly, children but like Rackham and Dulac I should work for all ages; the person reading the bedtime story and the child too young to read who is learning from the pictures.




Why?
Influences: how did they achieve their objectives?


Fairy tales were the highlight of my childhood. My Dad used to make up bedtime stories for me; describing exciting fantasy worlds. He was always careful, however, that his stories should occasionally boast sad and ambiguous endings and when I protested he would say:



‘I’m sorry but that’s real-life and real-life happens even in Fairy-Tales.’ 


It was a lesson I had to learn and the thing that drives me most as an Illustrator. Producer's and creator's, ‘Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz' do not only share my motives but their work has helped influenced and shape my style. I have learnt from them that the brilliance of Fairy Tales stems from the ability to balance out fantasy and reality to make something empathetic and believable. They achieved this first as the creators of ‘Lost’ (2004-2010), a series which followed the lives of plane crash survivors stranded on a mysterious desert island. 



('Lost Promotional Poster' 2004-2010)[2]


The line between the ‘real’ and the ‘surreal,’ was the drive of the story and the clip below demonstrates how they achieved this.  Creatures out of habitat do not only pose fear and danger but it mixes up worlds, which immediately creates mystery and a feeling for fantasy. In later episodes we see period flashbacks, sinister antagonists who are never wholly human and time shifts which continually move on the narrative, constantly taking it somewhere new and interesting. This is how they achieved a sense of fantasy and escapism, combining contrasting elements to create something fresh and unpredictable. 


('A polar bear in the jungle' clip 2008)[3]



I argue that they have mastered this in their new series ‘Once Upon a Time' (2011-2013). It takes the theory that 'real-life happens even in Fairy Tales' to the next level; following the lives of ‘real’ people who are cursed and cannot remember that they are really Fairy Tale characters. 'Real Life' takes the fantasy and happy endings from them and we as 'real people' are given the ultimate from of escapism by watching our favourite characters in empathetic situations. Kitsis and Horowitz say they achieve their  objectives by ‘approaching everything as fans, what would we want to see? /something unique that’s never really been done before.’ [4] In the same 2011 Comic-Con interview they discuss their motives saying, ‘we were not interested in telling you the Fairy Tales, we were interested in telling you the bits you didn't know.’ [5] This is how they have made their work commercial and successful, by telling new stories that we can identify with due to modern day connotations. Kitsis explains why they created the show:





‘Snow White came out in 1937, which was the depression and this is a show about hope, so when you look around in the economy today and the mood of the world I feel like Fairy Tales are great , they’re abut hope and change.’[6]





('Mirror Mirror, Fantasy versus Reality')[7]




Fairy tales are and have always been about ‘hope’ and teaching simple lessons to encourage 'change.' Once's' communication objectives are evident in their official posters. The image above shows dual personalities and how their 'real life' persona's dominate their mirror image. This subtly draws in a wider audience, implying fantasy but also the exploration of 'real life' issues; hence they connect with an adult audience. Film montage is used in the trailer (below) to further communicate the merging of worlds, by creating parallels but enhancing physical disparity. Thus, Kitsis and Horowitz through their filmic visual language have not only influenced my motives but have shown me how I can achieve them.

 


('Once Upon a Time' Official Trailer 2011)[8]



How?


Style, content, concept


Fairy Tale themes are and have always been prevalent in fashion, design, illustration, sculpture, film and more and there is definitely a commercial market for my work in terms of style and genre. I must learn from others who are successful and have similar motives to my own to fully understand what skills I need to communicate them. 



Su Blackwell: Sculpture and sourcing materials



Su Blackwell is a book sculptor who, in a 2011 described achieving of her goals as a ‘really long journey.’[9] She studied Textiles at the ‘Royal College of Art' in 2003 but it took a trip to Asia for her to understand how express herself. Now her goals are similar to mine; she describes how she begins a project:



I start by reading the stories and then creating the works from the stories themselves. I veer towards books with illustrations that I liked reading as a child...I keep going back to Fairy Tales – especially Hans Christian Andersen. I find the multi-faceted aspect of fairy tales quite interesting.'[10]


Blackwell's success is partly due to her skill but also her ability to source materials. She plans her work and finds books to suit the style and genre; thinking about the quality and print of the paper and how it suits the atmosphere and message she wants to communicate. 





(Su Blackwell's 'Cinderella') [11]


The image above shows how Blackwell achieves atmosphere by carefully considering background. In this case, she juxtaposes the greying book with a stark black background, which hints to the Gothic and mystery's of the forest and also frames the image, making it clean and it's message easily communicative.  In terms of style, Blackwell achieves a sense of subtle Gothic in the image below; the pastel colours more ghostly than pretty and the tatters implying age and decay. 



 (Su Blackwell's 'Cinderella' 2) [12]




Mary Wills: Media, History and Costume Design



Character and costume design will take up a large amount of my research project. Mary Wills designed in the 1950’s for period films like ‘The Virgin Queen’1955 and communicated an ability to work accurately (and to brief) whilst never loosing sight of her own style and agenda. Whether designing for Richard Burton or Bette Davis, she concentrated largely on character and this informed her designs. She understood that character was largely suggested by costume and so she used her signature inks to express colourful marks that not implied fabric and texture but personality. 


       [13]/[14]  

(1955 'Mary Will's-Costume Design')           


The images above show how costume can define a character; harsh, fiery strokes for Davis and soft, subdued tones for Burton, this process gives her work validity and makes it accessible. This would, subsequently be a good starting point for my research project, using the correct media to create designs that will inform my final outcome but also help me to develop character.





I am inspired by the gaudy, flamboyant costumes of the 1940’s and 50’s; there is a generic visual language there that I want to use to inform my Final Major Project. This can be seen most hyperbolically in the Gainsborough movies of the 1930’s/40’s who demonstrate a truly Gothic style that I want to emulate in my final outcomes.





Gainsborough Pictures: Style and Setting


‘Gainsborough’ was a well-known British Production Company active between 1924 and 1951. Over-done, gaudy, lavish costume melodramas about adult issues that were censor appropriate. Stylistically, they will inform my work.


 ('The Wicked Lady-Margaret Lockwood' 1944) [15]

Gainsborough movies understood escapism and transportation. Using Mise-en-scene (lavish sets, daring costume, sinister music) they took influence from history and dark Fairy Tale's creating a generic world real enough to believe but fantastical enough to escape into. The clip above shows how Gainsborough communicated the dark undertones of life; never shying from implying murder, adultery, passion. Their hyperbolic atmospheric choices were key to their appeal. 


John Bryan (below) was a Gainsborough concept artists. He used pastels for an easy, fluid almost surreal imagery that communicated atmosphere as opposed to a design. From this I can derive a need to story-board, look into setting, layout and lighting; all of the things Bryan considered for a successful, readable image. 






                    


('John Bryan-Blanche Fury)  [16]



What? 
What will I produce to achieve my objectives?


I aim to create an illustrated book, or collection of Fairy Tale illustrations. They should adhere in ways to the Golden Age of illustration (gift books). For example; bordered text, classic font, half-page or full-page illustration, decor should make up a small amount of illustrative content. Using skills and techniques learnt from my research I will make old stories current and accessible. 





(‘Fairy Tales from many lands’ 1976 edition) [17]


Above is an example of my copy of Arthur Rackham’s ‘Fairy Tales from Many Lands;’ a reprint of the 1916 edition. It demonstrates beautifully decorative pages in a pared-down Art Nouveau style with nine full-page, colour illustrations. Below each full page image is quote that best fits the illustration, serving as the Illustrators brief; something I wish to emulate in my final outcome. I can subsequently achieve my objective of creating something lavish to be appreciated by a wider audience.  ‘Tales from Many Lands’ has a low picture to text ratio but is made up of thirteen stories; my book will be made up of five to seven stories because I want to be able to explore every story thoroughly so my outcome is rich and exciting.

  
According to Author Laura Backes, ‘picture books for children up to age eight average 1000 words’ whereas chapter books are typically ‘10,000-12,000 words.’[19] As my book will effectively be a compilation children’s picture book, each story should not exceed 1000 words as it must be readable for age eight upwards. Every page should be illustrated in some form, (borders, half-page, full-page) however, every story should have at least three, full-page illustrations, this will total 15-21 images. ‘Princess Stories’ (below) illustrated by Lizzie Sanders targets a similar audience to my own and its text and layout reflects this; with nine short stories from around the globe and each page brimming with images, it shows how text and image can work together to enhance the pictures and complement the narrative. 



(Lizzie Sanders 'Princess Stories 1998') [18]


The stories I choose should be fairy-tales and it is vital to my objectives that they are not too well-known. Style, genre, historical content will explored in my research project and I will be taking my stories from my own collections. In relation to my objectives the stories must have underlying cautionary motives; I have already chosen ‘Ricky of the Tuft’ and ‘Jorinda and Joringel’ from Hamlyn’s ‘The Giant, call colour book of Fairy Tales. 

 
 

Footnotes:

  1. (Einstein, Albert quoted by 'Goodreads', 2011)                            
  2. (http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/lost/images/10787797/title/lost-hq-wallpaper-wallpaper, 2006, viewed 21/05/13)
  3. (Horsely, Brandon, 'Lost polar bear scene full,' 2008)
  4. (the seat42F 'Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz Comic-Con interview 2011)
  5. ( the seat42F 'Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz Comic-Con interview2011)
  6. ( the seat42F 'Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz Comic-Con interview 2011)
  7. (http://darthmaz314.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/once-upon-time-watch-it-and-live.html viewed 21/05/13)
  8. (The MediaDB, 'Once Upon a Time New T.V Series Trailer' 2011)
  9. (Stokes, Ruth, 2011 ‘Su Blackwell interview’)
  10. (Stokes, Ruth, 2011 ‘Su Blackwell interview’)
  11. (Blackwell, Su, blogspot http://www.sublackwell.co.uk/, viewed 19/05/13)
  12. (Blackwell, Su, blogspot http://www.sublackwell.co.uk/, viewed 19/05/13)  
  13. (Desmond, Norma http://www.silverscreenmodiste.com/2010/08/costume-sketches-of-mary-wills.html, viewed 21/05/13)
  14. (Desmond, Norma http://www.silverscreenmodiste.com/2010/08/costume-sketches-of-mary-wills.html, viewed 21/05/13)
  15. (Littleshoemaker, 'The Wicked Lady 1945 Trailer ', viewed 20/05/13)
  16. (Art and design in the British Filmhttp://www.articlesandtexticles.co.uk/2007/06/28/art-design-in-the-british-film%C2%9D-7-john-bryan/ viewed 19/05/13)
  17. (Backes, Laura ‘Children’s Books insider,’ 2007)
  18. (McCaugrean, Geraldine 'Princess stories' 2008)



BIBLIOGRAPHY


Images
  1. Rackham, Arthur, ‘The Allies’ from ‘Guleesh,’ ‘Fairy Tales from Many Lands,’ 1916 (the Book Club Associates, London), pg. 43 

 Books 

  1. Andersen, Hans Chrsitian 'Andersen's Popular Tales', 1900 (Ward Lock and Co. Limited, London, Melbourne and Toronto.)
  2. Carruth, Jane, 'The Giant All Colour Book of Fairy Tales', 1981 (Hamlyn, London)
  3. McCaugrean, Geraldine 'Princess stories' 2008 (Transworld Publishers Limited) pg 1-96
  4. Goose, Edmund ‘Fairy Tales from Many Lands,’ 1976 (London, Great Britain, the Book Club Associates), pg. 34-52

Journals/Articles 

  1. Backes, Laura ‘Children’s Books insider,’ Writing World, 2007, viewed 19/05/13
  2. CRUISE, C 2008, 'THE AGE OF ENCHANTMENT: BEARDSLEY, DULAC AND THEIR CONTEMPORARIES BY RODNEY ENGEN AND FACING THE LATE VICTORIANS: PORTRAITS OF WRITERS AND ARTISTS FROM THE MARK SAMUELS LASNER COLLECTION BY MARGARET D STETZ', Art Book, 15, 3, pp. 16-17, Art & Architecture Complete, EBSCOhost, viewed 18/05/13
  3. Hensher, P. 2007, ‘ART A FAIRYTLE THAT’S TOO GOOD FOR CHILDREN,’ Mail on Sunday, December, Regional Buisness News , EBSCO host, viewed 18/05/13
Websites 


  1. Blackwell, Su, blogspot http://www.sublackwell.co.uk/, viewed 19/05/13
  2. (http://darthmaz314.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/once-upon-time-watch-it-and-live.html viewed 21/05/13)
  3. Desmond, Norma http://www.silverscreenmodiste.com/2010/08/costume-sketches-of-mary-wills.html, viewed 21/05/13)
  4. Dorment, Richard, 2007, 'The Age of Enchantment: Dark Delight' http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/donotmigrate/3669550/The-Age-of-Enchantment-dark-delights.html  viewed 18/05/13.
  5. K, Laurie http://www.fanpop.com/clubs/lost/images/10787797/title/lost-hq-wallpaper-wallpaper, 2006, viewed 21/05/13
  6. Littleshoemaker, 'The Wicked Lady 1945 Trailer ', viewed 20/05/13
  7. Stokes, Ruth, 2011 ‘Su Blackwell interview’, Ideas magazinehttp://www.ideastap.com/IdeasMag/The-Knowledge/su-blackwell-interview viewed 21/05/13
Film/Media 
  1. Horsely, Brandon, 'Lost polar bear scene full,' 2008, YouTube, viewed 20/05/13
  2. The MediaDB, 'Once Upon a Time New T.V Series Trailer' 2011, viewed 20/05/13
  3. the seat42F 'Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz Comic-Con interview 2011, Youtube, viewed 18/05/13
 
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)