Digital Artist:  Mathieu Beaulieu  

Mathieu Beaulieu is a digital artist I found on a web site with pictures of top digital artists.  Outlaw, D. (2009).  One Hundred Artworks from the Top Digital Artists in the US & Canada. Tuts. Retrieved from  http://design.tutsplus.com/articles/100-artworks-from-the-top-digital-artists-in-the-usa-canada--psd-4445.  On his own web site, Beaulieu says that he has loved to draw since childhood, and he enjoys “drawing crazy characters set in various funny universes.”  He has a degree in 2D animation, and has worked in video games, animated series, and advertising.  He freelances now, and he is living in Montreal.  His clients include Coca-Cola, Subway, and Game Works.  Beaulieu, M. (2014).  Info. Retrieved from http://mathieubeaulieu.com/

I love the cartoony characters he draws. Mathieu Beaulieu.  Behance.  Retrieved from https://www.behance.net/mathieubeaulieu.   One of my favorites is his “King APE.”   Beaulieu, M. King APE.  Behance.  Retrieved from https://www.behance.net/gallery/92570/King-APE  The colorful and cartoony monkey is standing before a graffiti wall which reads “King of the Apes.”  He is “aping” a street hood, with his tough guy attitude, his bling (earrings and crown), his motorcycle jacket, and his belt buckle.  But the belt buckle has an ape skull with its cross bones, and his drug of choice appears to be bananas, because banana skins are scattered all around him.  Like all of Beaulieu’s work, I don’t think there is any “meaning” in the sense of a message—he just likes to create appealing characters in fantasy universes.  To someone who grew up on comic books, cartoons, and video games, his work has a lot of appeal.  Another favorite of his is “Johnny the Normal Guy.”  Beaulieu, M.  Johnny the Normal Guy.  Behance.  Retrieved from https://www.behance.net/gallery/276874/Johnny-the-Normal-Guy.  Well, Johnny is not normal.  His head is misshapen, his eye is misplaced, and his knuckles are scraping the ground.  He is a different kind of monster—more gentle, less threatening, and almost nostalgic.  He has the look of a simpler time—and the pictures themselves are simple too, without much detail and with soft colors.  None of Beaulieu’s monsters are really scary, but they are colorful and fun.   He takes you to a fantasy place that is like the cartoons of your childhood.  And his work is obviously very commercial. 

I know what you are thinking—this is not art.  But I say it is.   And it is the kind of art that many people see and appreciate.  I would love to put his art into a video game, maybe even a game for kids, because it is gentle, and not violent and scary. And it definitely has a look.  Obviously, advertisers like it.  I think gamers, especially younger gamers, would like it too.  

Digital Artist: Chris Parks

 

Chris Parks is another digital artist that I love.  He lives in Florida and runs a studio called Pale Horse.  Parks, C. (2013).  Palehorse.  Retrieved from http://palehorsedesign.com/ His goal is to make “planet earth a more interesting place to exist.”  He claims that he “is constantly traveling to other dimensions, where he explores and hangs out with tattooed aliens, super-natural luchadores, mythological deities, mystical creatures, shape-shifting samurais, shamans and magical wizards for inspiration,” and then returns to his tablet to “bring to life what he has witnessed.”  His plan is to “connect with as many like-minded people as possible through his work.”  In order to do that he produces posters, apparel (including T-shirts and even shoes), advertisements, and works “on an endless variety of materials including: layered acrylic glass, wood, canvas, stained glass, skateboards, products and wall murals.”   Parks, C. (2013).  About.  Retrieved from http://palehorsedesign.com/58524/about

 

What I love about Parks is his vivid style.   He works in very bright colors, but uses a lot of black too, as outlining or as part of the picture.  Many people have described it as resembling tattoo art, but I see it as more primitive.  In fact, when I first saw it I thought maybe he was a Mexican artist, because of the colors and because he also uses a lot of iconic imagery, like skulls, masks and animals.  It kind of looks like a black light poster.  His work incorporates a lot of detail as well, using a lot of black lines.  His art is very other worldly, and maybe suggests some kind of primitive religion.  So I guess he has accomplished his mission of bringing to life mythical deities, shamans and wizards.  “La Calavera Catrina” (which means the elegant skull) is a good example.  It shows a woman’s face, painted in black and white in a skull-like mask, with electric blue around her eyes and nose, and pink flowers in her hair.  It resembles “day of the dead” imagery, but it is more electric than dead, and more primitive than really religious.  Parks, C. (2013).  La Calaver Catrina.    

http://palehorsedesign.com/58523/173276/personal-artwork/la-calavera-catrina

 

I love the harshness and vividness of Park’s work, and that it seems almost mythological.   It also has a graffiti quality to it, too.  It is very “in your face.”  Surprisingly (or maybe not for a public that loves tattoos and graffiti art), he is very commercially successful.  This is street style art, and he makes posters, and T-shirts, as well as gallery pieces.  He has created artwork for companies like Hasbro, Nike, and DC Comics.  He also shows at a lot of gallery exhibitions.  Don’t hate him because he is rich.

Project Critique Form                   

Sam Utiger

AVT 180-008

Critique

What ideas did you incorporate into the piece?

I incorporated the concept of shapes into my work.  I represented the shadows and the different parts of my face as shapes.  Then I inserted the thumbnails into the shapes.  Since there were four different image of my fact, I used different gradients on each one.    

Do you think the piece is successful?  Why or why not?

I think this piece is successful because I think I really defined shapes and then filled in those shapes to make it look interesting, colorful, and vibrant.

Self-evaluation

What skills did you learn through working on this piece?  How did you employ these skills in your work?

While working on this piece, I learned a lot about the pen tool from Illustrator.  I also learned about gradients and thumbnails.

What challenges did you face?

Because my gradients were all different and colorful, I had trouble making sure you could see details.

Did you find a suitable resolution—if yes, what?  If no, what would you change?

I used the stroke in pen tool to solve this problem.  I made the strokes thicker. 

What revisions would you make if you were to do the work a second time?

I would do simpler gradients. 

Face scan for project

Project Critique Form                   

Sam Utiger

AVT 180-008

Critique

What ideas did you incorporate into the piece?

I incorporated my feelings about ivory into this piece. My idea was that while it would be easy to make laws that ban the sales of ivory, that might not solve the problem.  In fact, the laws could build up demand, by making seem more precious or rare, and make hunting elephants even more profitable.

Do you think the piece is successful?  Why or why not?

I think this piece is successful because I think it does show the horrors of ivory, but also shows what would happen if we were to ban the trade all together, i.e. that the hunters would get more profits and would have more incentive to hurt the animals.

Self-evaluation

What skills did you learn through working on this piece?  How did you employ these skills in your work?

While working on this piece I learned how to create moving pictures using photoshop.  I also learned how to use color overlay and dissolve.

What challenges did you face?

I had a hard time illustrating my point that banning the ivory trade itself would not work.

Did you find a suitable resolution—if yes, what?  If no, what would you change?

I think I did using words and images together. 

What revisions would you make if you were to do the work a second time?

I would add more moving pieces, because I mainly focused on color overlay and dissolve.