Ann Saunders

The Magician and Eye 2009 Ann Saunders

When I first started the process of planning out my final project I had an incredible case of creativity block. My description of my plan lacked the insight and details that I felt it should have had. My main goal was to design a piece that not only demonstrated the techniques I learned in this course, but was also a piece I could include in my portfolio. I challenged myself to use Photoshop for this entire assignment as well as creating an asymmetrical design. My original plan was to create a floral design using organic and easily recognizable images that would elicit relaxation and contentment within in the viewer. This statement was very blasé, to say the least, and as I began to work on my design I realized that this just did not begin to cover what I wanted to convey in my design.

As I began to work on my thumbnails, my creative block continued. Looking back at the four designs I created I can see that they lack passion. I created two floral designs that made little sense and in all honesty were flat. My first design did create some visual interest as the focal point was an underwater flower while the other floral design did little to excite me visually. For my final two designs I explored previous assignments we had worked on. My abstract opera piece was slightly interesting, but needed to be more complex. My final design was well composed and explored further an underwater scene I had previously created. While this design may be something I will revisit at a later time, I decided that the underwater flower used in my first design was a better choice to explore.

Between the thumbnails and color studies, I completely reworked my design. Creativity returned in full force and I only wished it had happened sooner. I selected two images that deviated from reality and combined them to create a visually interesting background. In the foreground I placed my underwater flower. I then explored monochromatic (achromatic), analogous, cool, and triadic color schemes. My personal favorite was the cool color scheme. I felt that the colors added to the interest and magical feel of the design. I used this color study as the basis for my final design.

I did not change much of the design moving from the color studies to the final. I reduced the opacity of the flower and added some lightening. I used overlay of the lightening layer to blend it better into the background. I chose to use the cool colors for my background and the original colors of the underwater flower. I felt the cool background complimented the natural beauty of the underwater flower. By lowering the opacity of the flower further I was able to create a nice shadow effect to the flower and blend it in with the rest of the image better. Looking back on my steps through this process I can see the rough start I had and my gradual progression to what I feel is a successful final project. This piece is something that I will want to include in my portfolio although I may not want to include the entire process.

NOTE: A release form is available for this artwork.