Week 1.1

This was a poster done for an illustration class last year. The instructions were to create a poster advertising a "modern" product, but to use a vintage illustration style.

I remember having a pretty hard time just coming up with an idea. I couldn't think of what product I should use - I just knew I didn't want to use a computer or a phone. The problem was, every time I tried to think about it, those were the two products my mind kept bringing me back to, no matter how much I tried to stray away from it.

So I stopped thinking about it for a while. Not completely, of course; it was still in the back of my mind. I simply refused to concentrate on it while I tried to work on other things. That's what ended up saving me on this project, I think.

When the idea finally hit me, I was sketching. It wasn't meant to be for any project in any class; I was just taking a break to to draw whatever came to mind. Before I knew it, I had the base sketch of the lady in the poster. She gained some headphones, and I briefly considered having those as the product, but they felt too out of focus with her being cut off on the right side. That look didn't do much for the headphones in the way of a spotlight. So I took it a little bit further, and drew what might be connected to them: an MP3 player. It got easier after that. I didn't do much in the way of revising anything from the sketch to the next step, even though I probably should have. All I had to do was just get everything laid out and put in the final touches. I didn't realize it until some time after it was finished, but I'd made a poster I could be proud of.

It's hard not to stress about a project when you're on a tight schedule. I have a big problem with that sometimes. But I think that sort of stress makes it a lot better when you actually get a chance to relax and put the cause of it out of mind for a minute or two. I know my concepts tend to turn out better when I'm not concentrating on and putting all my energy into it. This "Mozart MP3" poster simply brought that to my attention, and I'm still thankful for it.