Marvel released it's own version of Heavy Metal with Epic illustrated, the first issue had a cover date of March, 1980. The magazine format and lack of comic's code allowed for Marvel to release "mature content". The anthology series also allowed the artists and writers to have ownership and royalties to their work instead of the standard work for hire that dominated standard comics. The first run ran for 34 issues. The first issue lead to the creation of Dreadstar and also included stories set in the Elfquest universe and Silver Surfer from the mainstream Marvel Universe. ("The Answer", "Homespun", "Aware", "For the Next 60 Seconds", "Aknaton: Chapter One", "Lullabye of Bedlam", "Elfspire", "History of Human Absurdity Part 1", "The Victor", "Shakti", "Convert", "Heads", "Za! Chapter Two", "Juliet Chapter Three", "Detour", "Topaz", Epic Illustrated 1, Marvel/Epic Comic Event)

Mirko Ilic

For the thumbnails, I tried many different ideas, a person in balls and chains or a crippled man. I didn't want to make all the thumbnails to be a human, decided to think more naturally and stuff with animals. The thumbnail process really make me think of every possible idea. I choose the baby sea turtle going to the ocean as my final piece, because the turtle is crawling to the sea slowly like the quote, still small and has a long life ahead of it, but it will keep moving forward. I decide to collage it, because I thought that what would be easy for me, I am happy with my choice of images. I did use generative ai to fill the rest of bottom of the sand because my image I used didn't extend all the way, so I kind of feel bad of doing that. The text is simple white to match the white bordering and I perspective warp the text to match the angle of the ground and it would look plain if I just type the quote and left it be.

For the reading, I liked Bob McKinnon's answer to the question to "What should a designer do to make a viable project?" He says that don't be caught up on trying to make something that can change the world, just design and do what you do, simple things can change the world just as McKinnon said how Khan Academy started by Sal Khan tutoring his cousin, which is used by millions of students today. Also with Mirko Ilic transitions into several jobs and back so he has a different style each job and doesn't draw the same way every time. I think it is fun to have different styles so you don't get bored doing projects in the same style and also get to experiment with them.

This week I have been working on a poster that has to include a quote of some sort, and supporting imagery. It took a lot of sketching to land on imagery that was both abstract enough but also related to the quote in some way. I was unhappy with the end result at first but after adding a grain texture to the text and image, and also incorporating the beginning of the quote in a more meaningful way, I was much happier with the end result. I will definitely be using the grain effect in future projects. I'm also happy with how the subtle background details came out such as low opacity waves in the back and the sketch-like grid that I added. Overall I am super happy with how this project is coming along and have learned useful skills that I will continue to use.

As for the reading we had to complete, I enjoyed most reading all of the designer's stories of why they illustrate things the way they do, but one stood out to me in particular. Mirko Ilic talked a lot about his constant transitioning between different styles and subject matter throughout his career. While I may not have had as lengthy of a career as him, I definitely like working on something new in each project. Much like him, I like to switch up what I am working on so that it is always interesting, but I believe I also do it to accelerate my learning of different skills. If I'm always trying to do something new, I will always be learning new ways to do it.

mirko ilic

Blog Post 3

Project 3 Process:

When project 3 was first introduced I was a little overwhelmed with the number of quotes we had available to use. I had many different ideas for different quotes, but it was quite hard to come up with multiple different designs for only one or two quotes that I liked. Once I got started with the thumbnail sketches it became easier for me to come up with more ideas. I really liked my idea with the paint filled balloons and throwing darts but I knew that I wouldn’t have had enough time to capture my idea so I focused on my second favorite design. For the larger thumbnail design, I found it hard to accurately showcase layering of hands in a way that I liked so I figured that I could work that out through photoshop. After trying to create a poster with my first design of the hands I realized that I didn’t like how all of the hands were in the same position. It felt like there wasn’t enough variety and dimension in the poster so I redrew the design in a way that incorporated multiple hand positions. I really liked this design when I was making the poster so I didn’t edit it that much with photoshop. When figuring out where to put the text I struggled a little bit and I’m still not 100% sold on how that part looks. Overall I think the poster has a good starting point and I will probably make more edits after the critique.

Reading:

I really enjoyed reading chapter 6 the most as it provided interviews of artists that have worked on book designs and book jacket designs. Personally I absolutely love reading and I’ll be honest the cover of a book is one of the main things I look at when trying to find new reading material. If I’m not drawn in by the cover then I’m less likely to read the summary on the back of the book. I’ve always wanted to be able to design covers for books as it seems like something fun to do, although I’d honestly also want to write the content too. My favorite interview was the one by Paul Buckley as his style seemed to catch my eye the most. On page 131 of the textbook there is an image of three covers that he has done for different books. The styles of all the books are similar yet distinctly different and geared towards the contents of the book. I also really liked the typography that he used on the covers specifically the Secret Garden book jacket.

I personally didn’t really enjoy chapters 9 and 10 as the majority of the examples were major propaganda for politics and other controversial issues. The interviews I noticed this most from were Steve Brodner and Mirko Ilic. Steve Brodner specifically focuses the majority of his illustrations on current affairs such as political elections, the state of the economy, and climate change. Mirko Ilic on the other hand focuses the majority of his work on less covered areas such as TSA security ‘changes’, scandals with celebrities, and relations with other countries.

Zašto je ovo jedan od retkih intervjua koji je planetarno poznat illustrator i umetnički direktor Mirko Ilić i sam pročitao?

| Tijana Janković

https://lookerweekly.com/intervju/mirko-ilic-graficki-dizajner/

Blog #4 Chapter 10-11 

Working with project 4 on creating a logo connects  a lot with chapter 10. I love how Mirko Ilic adds how being an illustrator can play a lot more than a designer. From the colors to the forms of your design. Chapter 11 goes on with understanding change but understanding how your environment  changes your style or even over the years. I can see the changes in creating my logo. I did not want to change my idea but I knew in order to make my piece stronger was to make some changes. Véronique Marrier statement of how there is no limit in being a graphic designer. You can combine ways to create your work of are digtal. For the longest I have drawn by hand. I could not draw or even create a work of art digital. But to know I can use tools and create it digitally is one of the best changes made in this generation. 

Blog #4

My two images this week are sketches for my logo and a font choice I was looking at for my typography.

Chapters 10-11 Reflection: Chapter 10 is all about illustration design. The first artist focused on in chapter 10 is Michel Bouvet. Bouvet is a french poster designer and a former illustrator. He mainly works for theaters, museums, and festivals showing the wide range of how far graphic design can take you. He has worked on specific plays such as Hamlet and Othello. Mirko Ilic, another artist who focuses mainly on illustration, started with comics and later grew to creating his own firm. He also is a coauthor to many books which shows how you can integrate graphic design with other passions in your life. Chapter 11 focuses on Understanding Change. Richard Saul Wurman, an architect, uses change and turns it into his main goal of never being boring. He says he has no mission nor message, but only wants to stay creative. Every artist within chapter 11 focuses their art on the changing world around them. 

Blog #4

Chapter 10 in the book focuses on visuals and graphics for emphasis on the designer's message. Artists highlight their creativity in adapting to match their client's intended message. Mirko Ilic states "...the better known you are as an illustrator with a certain style, the harder it is to change directions. Big ships require much more time and energy to turn around." This represents the overall message of graphic design as there is no one single solution to good cover art or strong marketing tips. Having that clear idea in your head and interpreting it into something that stands out is the highlight of visual representation.

Chapter 11 differs in that the focus of the art piece moves more into its execution stage, subjecting the total success to a combination of its striking appearance AND verbal delivery. The TED talks come into play as an effective way for creators and influencers to market their ideas in 16 minute segments and emphasize those key points in a timely manner.

For my project, I am creating a logo that represents either an kitchen appliance company, A high end restaurant, a delivery service, or a solitary knife manufacturer. To accompany these ideas, I tried to think of the marketability of each of my designs and how they might be represented on the product. As a general appliance company, I imagined my logo being disjoint from the name. It would be molded into plastic coverings or on the corner of the box. A simple shape that reminds people of my two words (Chef + Dinosaur) is the footprint of a T-Rex. I tried to clean it up and make it sort of a uniform symbol. Next is a High end restaurant. This one is more of a logo print that hangs on signs or bumper stickers as a standalone product. I decided to showcase a velociraptor as the smug grimace that displays confidence in my restaurant's work. For the delivery service, I stuck with a Velociraptor but this time, turning it into a more symbolic logo, having the letters form the illustration. The bottom of the C creates the tail while the D makes a little arm. Lastly, I decided on a side profile so that it could easily be laser burned onto the wood handle or engraved on the knife surface. This is a weighted drawing that amplifies a T-Rex's powerful features.

Over the last couple of weeks we have completed project three, creating a poster to encourage people to code, and have now moved on to project four. For project four, we have been tasked with creating a logo using random words that were assigned to us. I was given “Party Octopus”. After several rough sketches, I have settled on two designs to use for my refined marks. I am still working on a viable concept for the third one. Our reading for this week covered the topic of Illustration Design. There were more interviews with reputable designers who specialize in this field, Mirko Ilic, Steve Brodner, and Niel Gower to name a few. However, I was particularly fond of the illustration work of Craig Frazier. I found the compositions and concepts of his illustrations to be very creative, my favorite being Late for the Sky. The latter half of the assigned reading began to discuss the topic of Traditional Design which talks about how design technology, as well as design style, has changed over time.

Reading Process 10/7/22

In this week's reading, I feel was more enjoyable compared to some of the other chapters. Chapter ten was about illustration design, a topic I find interesting. In Mirko Ilic's interview, he said graphic design is much more than just drawing. I love that statement because the different uses for graphic design are amazing. Designs could be used on prints, books, posters, business cards, and the list goes on. A little thing that I also noticed is that many graphic designers are from very big cities. First, it was New York and now it is Los Angeles.

Project 4 has been a somewhat complex process for me so far. Compared to the others, I have had to put in much more time and think about what I was doing (not to say that I was not before, haha). The exercise to place pictures into Photoshop did help me draw the snake shapes easier. My assigned animal and adjective were not something that I thought I could apply to many things. However, I have decided for my "fire snake" to represent a fireworks company and I am happy with where this is going.

Sketches:

Refined Sketches (Work in Progress):

Reading #4

Illustration can look like many different things depending on the artist, different forms, mediums, techniques, ideas, and messages. Graphic design and illustration have their similarities but as Mirko Ilic stated, being a designer can be much more restrictive. It may be a creative career but the limitations can make it difficult to fully express your personal ideas and taste. There are really no limitations when it comes to illustration. People can do and create whatever they want. Sometimes this freedom can be stumping. Personally, when I am hit with an empty piece of paper, my mind goes blank. I no longer can think of anything to make. When the possibilities are endless that can cause more difficultly. This is different for everyone. Some people may find that freedom exciting while others need some structure. Since graphic design is a versatile career and a variety of things can come of it, that allows people to experience related areas as well. For example, many graphic designers experiment with just illustration, writing, marketing, and much more. The skills that are developed as a designer can be used towards new areas. I think that it is very important to try new things. There is nothing wrong with sticking to one thing that you love but trying new techniques or putting your skill of design to use in other creative areas allows for countless opportunities.

100 Illustrators

Danh mục đầu tiên tập hợp 100 họa sĩ minh họa thành công và quan trọng nhất trên toàn cầu. Với các nghệ sĩ nổi bật bao gồm Istvan Banyai, Gary Baseman, Seymour Chwast, Paul Davis, Brad Holland, Mirko Ilic, Anita Kunz và Christoph Niemann, tổng quan quốc tế cung cấp một hồ sơ tiếp thêm sinh lực về sự năng động và đa dạng của cảnh minh họa. Drawn from TASCHEN’s Illustration Now! series, this go-to…

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