Creative Illustration: from Text to Image

You will start getting to know Christian a little more, his training and his beginnings as an illustrator. You will discover what their references were; what disciplines, movements, authors and even music have influenced his career significantly.

You will learn that illustration is a trade whose purpose is to respond to different needs that a client may have: it can be for a book, an advertising campaign, a toy ... but in the end it is always a question of seeking an interpretation and transferring a concept to a image. You will see that the way to do it, is where an illustrator can shine providing an added value and a specific style.

You will work on the analysis and interpretation of texts, paying special attention to the relationship between text and image. Christian will ask you a series of questions that you should ask yourself about the story in question, to understand and get to internalize the text well to get simplified in concepts and forms.

Through examples, you will take a walk through the history of illustration, you will learn that it is a great source of inspiration and reflection in the creative process. Then, you will enter into the elaboration of a graphic concept, first from a more theoretical point of view and later moving on to the practical part.

You will make three final sketches that correspond to different parts of the same classic story. It is a purely experimental exercise. To do this, you will begin a research process to learn more about the work. You should take out the magnifying glass to find those little details that will enhance your creations. Once you have done the analysis, you must make decisions to get your graphic concept. The important thing is that you get to make that connection between text and image, to illustrate in an innovative way, a classic already known to all.

Afterwards, you will choose well what to sketch to pass your idea to paper. After closing the sketches corresponding to three instances of the story, you will reflect on the expressive possibilities of each one. Christian will finish in Adobe Photoshop, another one in Illustrator and will digitize the last illustration by passing it to black and white. The purpose is that you see the importance of choosing one technique or another.

You will finish your course knowing how to establish a relationship between text and image. Taking out a creative concept based on the text, which you will then sketch and raise to a higher level, illustrating it with the technique that allows you to get the most out of and express your work.