Beauty and the Beast
Belle and the Beast Character Development
Below. Previous Images that helped influence my choices. Especially in terms of character and costume. I began with these images and re-worked them, taking elements of composition etc. to create something new.
STYLE: USING MY BUILD UP WORK TO DECIDE UPON AN APPROPRIATE STYLE FOR MY GRAPHIC NOVEL.
Below: The first sketch was experimental and quick but I like the composition, I wanted to make it edgier and more graphic so I played around with some new medias.
Above: The black and white version lost all of the excitement needed to complete the image. So, I used the lightbox to trace the original image for the third version. I chose three colours (the third colour was made from mixing the first two) and used only those colours plus black to create the last image. It is still not quite clean enough, so I need to find a way to rectify this. The last image was done in watercolour and ink, which is the medium I most most confident using, I should, perhaps, try something new because this could turn the project around.
CHARACTER INTERTWINED WITH SET AND SCENERY: USING COLOUR TO MAKE A CHARACTER STAND OUT. Below: I created Belle's room from the dark castle, inspired by the rooms I saw at Eastnor castle (I was not allowed to sketch or take photo's in there so it was drawn from memory). The first picture shows the image before I added the ink to darken it and add tone.
Above: Final image created using inks and watercolour's. I am pleased with the feel, it is overpowering and that is how the room is supposed to be.It is not a homely room, it is an uncomfortable one. I have added elements that show how she has tried to make her room her own, the books etc. Content was my main focus in this image.
AN OLD IMAGE OF MINE THAT I USED TO INSPIRE COMPOSITION.
It is too inky and not clean enough for a graphic novel, so I decided to try and use a new technique.
BELOW: GOUACHE EXPERIMENTS
THE PENCIL VERSION WITH BLOCKED IN GOUACHE. DETAILS STILL TO BE ADDED. THE COULOUR ALSO NEEDS TO BE MADE FLATTER.
GOUACHE WATERED DOWN INTO FLATTER COLOUR. IT MAKES IT SLIGHTLY CLEANER AND ALTHOUGH I WILL FINISH THE PIECE AND USE IT FOR COMPOSITION INSPIRATION LATER ON I DON'T THINK THE MEDIA IS RIGHT YET. BELOW: Final image, the composition is perfect, it tells the story, I will re-invent this image for the Beauty and the Beast title page.
BELOW: GRAPHIC MARKERS: THREE COLOURS. THIS IS THE STYLE I WILL WORK TOWARDS, THIS IS THE ROUGH FOR TITLE PAGE 1, BASED ON THE ABOVE BUILD UP WORK.I A FINALLY HAPPY WITH THE STYLE/COMPOSITION/COLOURS BECASUE IT'S DRAMATIC, SUGGESTIVE AND DANGEROUS--ALL OF THE THINGS THIS STORY SHOULD BE--!
BELLE CONT. COSTUME AND SETTING: BELOW SKETCHES IN WATERCOLOUR AND PEN SHOWING FACE/EXPRESSION/MOOD ETC.
CONCEPT ART: GOUACHE PIECE COMPLETED BEFORE I KNEW THAT I WOULD BE WORKING IN MARKER PENS. IT HELPS INFORM CONTENT HOWEVER, AND SUMS UP THE CHARACTER. I MAY USE THE CHAIR IN THE NOVEL AT SOME POINT AS AN INTERESTING FEATURE.