Friday, July 20, 2012

Character Development

Taking a break from the story board to have another go at refining the characters. Decided to make the lady more troll like. Don't mind the compositional inaccuracies, it wasn't supposed to be a composition but I just kept drawing.




I also took a very quick trip to the packed natural history museum to remind myself of what sparrows look like, luckily they are general bird shaped! Very rough stuff to start.

Thursday, July 19, 2012

The Sparrow with the Slit Tongue

I have started to put together what I intend to make into a mock up of a children's book, as a personal art zine project for myself, and to be adapted for my illustration portfolio as a show piece eventually. With this project I want to be able to go through every step of the process as it happens, so effectively you get to see the whole thing from rubbish ideas to polished final pages. It will be my online sketchbook.


The story I am illustrating is an old Japanese folk tale. The version that I have been working from so far is the version below, from the Andrew Lang edited 'Pink Fairy Book' from 1879, which is available free on Project Gutenberg here Pink Fairy Book


I plan to look into other versions and incorporate elements as the story requires.


Here is the text:


THE SPARROW WITH THE SLIT TONGUE 

    A long long time ago, an old couple dwelt in the very heart of a high mountain. They lived together in peace and harmony, although they were very different in character, the man being good-natured and honest, and the wife being greedy and quarrelsome when anyone came her way that she could possibly quarrel with.