Assignment 1: Abstraction

 

Assignment 1: Abstraction Blog

For Assignment 1, I initially wanted to work on a lift for my abstraction as I thought that it would be simpler given that it has less details. However, after sketching a rough draft on it, I realised that having minimal details ironically makes it difficult for me to abstract it across 5 stages. After much contemplation, I decided to work on my trophy instead.




Figure 1: Initial Sketch of the Lift

I based my abstraction assignment off the original image as shown below (Figure 2).



Figure 2: Original Picture of Trophy


As the trophy had more details, I had more to work on and it was easier for the abstraction to be done. I started by sketching my first stage, and looking for an inspiration for my last stage, before filling in the in-between stages.

Stage 1:

In the first stage, I tried my very best to sketch out all the details in the trophy. Since the trophy is largely symmetrical in shape, I used the reflect tool (Figure 3) to create symmetrical details, and then adjusted it accordingly.

 

Figure 3

 

Stage 2:

After completing my sketch, I tried to cut down on the details that I felt were unnecessary and excessive - such as the logo, words, and tiny details in the leaves. The final stage 2 had originally been my initial stage 3. However, as I had many changes to make till my final stage 5, I did not want the changes to be too abrupt towards the end.

Stage 3:

In abstract 3, I had consulted my tutor Ms Zicheng, who had given me advises to change irregular shapes to regular shapes as well as to change the perspective of my trophy. Hence, I changed my trophy from a 3D structure to a 2D flat structure, showing the front view of the trophy. I also made my irregular shapes look more regular (such as my handle). To simplify the complexity of the leaves design, I changed my leaves into a 2D format to mimic an icon I found on the internet (Figure 4).  I made use of ellipses and round rectangles to create regular shapes so that the trophy would look symmetrical and proportionate as a 2D shape. By this stage, I had already removed most of the details inside of the trophy, leaving only the outline of my trophy. I had also removed the ribbon as I felt that it was redundant to deliver the message of a trophy as it was only a decoration. Therefore, I simplified it leaving only the salient characteristics that I felt made up a trophy. 

                                                                                

Figure 4:


Stage 4:

In my initial draft for stage 4 and 5 (figure 5), I tried to remove all the elements that felt redundant to me. I removed the circular portion of the trophy to shrink it just enough for me to convert it into an icon. However, I chosen not to remove more segments of the trophy as this would eliminate a salient characteristic of the original image – its height. I wanted the trophy to retain its grand and supreme demeanor emphasized through the height of the trophy.

However, after editing, my first draft looked weird to me.  I felt that the image was too flat – perhaps because it comprises of just an outline, and it did not feel like a trophy to me. Upon evaluating, I decided that simply adding colours to the leaves is not enough as trophies are usually golden colour as a whole. I also felt that reducing the leaves in the final abstract made the trophy look less like a trophy. (It felt like a stick man to me instead) Removing the inner circle of the trophy caused it to loose the essence of a trophy head, making it look less majestic than the original trophy. 

Figure 5


With my evaluation in mind, I made further edits to the abstract. I played around with the different tints of yellow, so that the trophy would look more realistic. I added a darker shade of yellow for the shadow effect, and a lighter shade of yellow for the glossy effect. I was finally satisfied with my trophy – it looked tall, and grandeur – retaining the characteristics of its original image, while being way more simplified.

   

Figure 6

 

 

Abstract 5:

While moving on to stage 5, I removed the triangular shape at the neck of the trophy as I felt that it is redundant to showcase the message. I further reduced the size of the circle within the leaves to emphasise the body of the trophy, akin to the original image where the body took up a 3-1 ratio. With that, I submitted my final draft for a critique session.

 

Critique:

The critique response that I received was quite positive. Most of the things to be edited had already been changed through my rounds of consultation and self-evaluation. My classmate did not have any comments for me to improve on, but Ms Zicheng told me that I must use black as it is a compulsory colour.

Therefore, in my final work, I changed the base of the trophy to black as advised, and changed the outline of my drawing into black. However, the black outline looked strange on my trophy as seen in Figure 5, so I decided to remove it as it looked more aesthetically pleasing that way.

Figure 7



Figure 8: Final Product

 

 

 

 


















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