Purah Sketches

These images are development sketches of my second character Purah, the clothing wings and possible hairstyles i have been thinking about. 

Kimi

This is a quick turnaround  for the character Kimi showing the clothing concept i have chosen to go with. This outfit allows me to add detail to the clothing to help aid in the theme of her being a Native American.

Kimi Clothing Concepts

These are a few more drawings of possible outfits for Kimi. 

Kimi Sketches

Rough sketches of possible hair for my character and outfit which keep with the theme of her being a Native American.

Research- Clay Work in Industry

Clay work in industry is a great way to help aid concepts within an artist team. Building a maquette from clay can be used  for  artists designing characters to see what works and what doesn't but can be used as reference material for digital modelling.

For example Jerome Ranft is a sculptor who works for the company Pixar. His job role is to create a sculpt of the designs which he has received or currently working on for the latest film.
Pixar are not the only company who uses clay models these are a few examples

•  Aardman Animations
• Will Vinton
• Laika House
• BMW 

http://www.technologystudent.com/prddes1/mod1.html

http://www.pixar.com/behind_the_scenes/Sculpting#

Research- Native American Symbols, Colours and Meaning

Native Americans over time have a set style that uses nature and land to create everything from clothing, weapons and houses. Looking closely at clothing and the decoration they create made me want to find out more. What were these designs or symbols? Are they used for a reason?
With these questions in mind i have done a little research into the symbols the meaning when used.



Symbols and Meaning

Native Americans have and use many different symbols to convey messages to one another. Most symbols are pictograms which were based on the sun, moon and stars, thunderstorms or animals. These would be used to help document important events that had occurred , warning signs or even just to provide directions.  Native American Warriors also used the symbols not only on themselves but their horses as war paint. Symbols also have a spiritual reassurance for members of the community that guardian spirits are near and watching over them.

War Symbols and Colour meaning

Many Native American tribes painted symbols on their bodies, faces and horses for events such as battle or rituals.Every mark used anywhere on their bodies had a meaning. Designs that were used were believed to have magical powers for protection or to reflect on their achievements. Such as the wavy line (see image below) was believed to hold the power of giving the warrior added power and speed.

Using colour for war paint also plays a huge part in the meaning of the symbol with each colour representing something different. The image below explains each meaning.

Clothing

Symbols are also used on clothing that they wear for decoration or to show occupation. For example a doctor would usually have a garment with a certain pattern on to show this. Also some patters symbolize elements such as fire or water (see image below).

Bibliography 

https://anthropologylover.wordpress.com/2013/02/09/native-american-face-paint-customs-colors-designs/

http://lewisandclarktrail.com/section2/colorsanddesigns.htm

http://www.semtribe.com/Culture/SeminoleClothing.aspx

http://www.support-native-american-art.com/Native-American-Symbols.html

http://tattoosymbolism.blogspot.co.uk/

http://www.warpaths2peacepipes.com/native-american-culture/power-animals.htm

http://www.warpaths2peacepipes.com/native-american-culture/war-paint.htm

http://www.warpaths2peacepipes.com/native-american-symbols/symbols-and-meanings.htm

http://www.whats-your-sign.com/native-american-symbols.html

Research- Female Armor

Given the nature of the game  League of Legends the characters are built and designed for combat . Whilst designing the clothing for one of my characters Purah I have looked into different types of armor  which would fit the character type and what would correctly be used in an actual battle and not impractical.

After researching into the areas below I have found that leather or chain mail armor would be great to build on and incorporate into my designs for not just my character Purah but also Kimi. These both can be used as they are flexible (which is needed for warrior characters) , strong and the materials used can relate to both characters.

Researched Areas

• Leather Armor- Decorative, flexible 
• Chain Mail Armor - Type of metal used/ look/ style- Easy to repair 
• Plated Armor- Tough/ strong
• Clothing used under
• Shoes

Leather Armor

Chain Mail Armor

 Medieval / Fantasy Armor

                                                                          (Illyriad , 2013)

The depictions of armor worn by females back in this period of time tend to  be fiction and only really heard about in stories written. Images drawn seem to have been altered to show women looking quite feminine and not holding swards as such but an object symbolizing feminism. Could this be because for armor to work correctly whoever it is wearing it male or female have to be able to move swiftly during combat and without the metal , leather or chain stopping movement or sticking into them.

Fantasy armor on the other hand can be quite the opposite to being practical for its intended use. Taking a look at the bust area of clothing for example most designs show a lot of flesh and can be quite open to attack if an enemy were to strike them more than likely causing them to be killed. But this is where the level of creativity comes into play, being able to use elements from real armor anything can be possible.







Bibliography

http://armor.com/

http://io9.com/what-kind-of-armor-did-medieval-women-really-wear-1502779338

http://www.leatherlore.com/armor-w.htm

http://www.medievalarmour.com/

http://metalsmithing.wonderhowto.com/how-to/make-chain-mail-armor-from-start-finish-0118499/

http://www.medieval-life-and-times.info/medieval-swords-and-armor/chain-mail.htm

http://womenfighters.tumblr.com/

Clay Practice

Working on building my characters in clay I have struggled to get the hair to look correctly so I have taken this week to practice modelling different hairstyles  that I designed.

These are a few photos of a model I have been practicing hair, wings and clothing on.

Research_Clay Models

Clay Modelling

As creating a fully detailed clay model of my characters is part of my final product for this project I have spent a great amount of time researching into the area. Having a little previous experience has helped me greatly in practicing little bits and pieces but there has been many techniques I could not remember.

Within industry clay figures or maquette's are quite popular to make, not only for fans of game characters but also for 3D representations of character concepts. These  provide a real visual to help aid the design process allowing the artists to  see what is working or maybe what they would change.

Research 

These are a few areas I have recently been looking into to help me improve with my clay skills.

• Materials- air drying clay, wet clay, Sculpey?
• Tuitorials
• Sculpting Tuitorials
• Industry work
• Pixar

Bibliography 

http://www.conceptart.org/forums/forumdisplay.php/10-3D-ART-SCULPTURE-ART-amp-TOY-ART

http://forums.cgsociety.org/archive/index.php/t-474502.html

http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2012-12-11-fat-pebble-zynga-creative-control-claymation

http://www.pixar.com/behind_the_scenes/Sculpting#

https://www.stanwinstonschool.com/tutorials/sculpture-techniques-sculpting-humanoid-maquettes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8YFxaI_Db4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1jvo1ZfREM

Research_Character 2

Character 2 Kimi

Native American

For my second character I have decided to use Native Americans as a theme to build on. As I only know  little on this subject I have been researching into their lives, tribes, patterns and clothing.  

Looking at different tribes has been very interesting when it comes to clothing as each tribe used different materials depending on where in the country they lived. This has given me great information in designing the clothing for my character.

Tribes

Inuit

• The Inuit tribe came from Alaska, Canada, Siberia or Greenland. 
• Everything is based around the cold climate in which they lived
• They used animal skins and furs
• Thy used caribou and seal skin to make shirts, pants,hats, boots and jakets
• Polar bears, rabbits and foxes would be used to line their clothing to help keep warm
• They would wear soft boots known as kamik or mukluks
• Spirits play a big part in their culture
• Female Inuits would wear little masks on their fingers when dancing to attract the attention of spirits

Cherokee

• Cherokee Indians were one of the largest of the five Native American tribes
• Settled in the south east
• Highly religious and spiritual
• Warmer climate 
• The woman would wear wrap around skirts
• Poncho
• Poncho style blouses
• Clothing would be made from woven fiber or deer skin
• Bow and arrow used for hunting

These are the two tribes I have chosen to base my character around, using the clothing and materials to help aid my concept. After doing a little more research into the other tribes i found that other tribes such as Navajo and Apache learnt how to make clothing from weaving plants. This could also come in handy whilst creating the designs for the clothing.

Character

Looking at this research this is what i have come up with to use during my concept designs.

• Fur
• Feathers
• Patterns
• Spirits
• Wrap around clothing
• Bow and arrow ( Characters weapon ability)

Bibliography

http://www.bigorrin.org/cherokee_kids.htm

http://www.ducksters.com/history/native_american_clothing.php

http://www.ducksters.com/history/native_americans/inuit_peoples.php

https://jtwilliedesigns.com/The_Beadwork.php

http://nativeamericans.mrdonn.org/arctic/inuit.html

http://www.native-languages.org/rugs.htm

http://www.native-languages.org/weapons.htm

http://www.nmai.si.edu/searchcollections/home.aspx