Artist Research

I'll be using this blog to show the artists that have influenced me throughout the second stage of this module.


I wanted to create black and white images with a high level of detail in this project, concentrating on creating a good sense of light and dark with intricate line work.
One of the first artists of thought of who used this also was


Tom Gauld

Tom Gauld is a cartoonist and Illustrator. I first came across his work when a classmate was looking at his work.
He creates a great sense of depth and definition by just using one colour and a variety of marks.
His characters and creature are sometimes quite simple, but the intricate technique gives the work a nice complexity.
As well as his style I looked at Tom Gauld for his comic book work. One of the options on the brief  was a double page sequential narrative, and although I decided on the 5 illustration option it was good to have a back up to look up if my idea for my final piece changes.


Donn Kenn

I stumbled across this artist and was blown away by his light effects using line work much like Tom Gauld. He also uses the same blank staring eyes as featured on some of Gauls creatures. These pieces are drawn on post it notes and I think this gives the images a certain aged feel due to the colour.
Kenn uses a great range of textures, and creates great narratives, with the monsters looking as if they are scared of the children rather than vice versa.
With the large amount of marks being used, it gives the white spaces much more intensity, something I would like to experiment with.


Edward Gorey

The artists all have a similar theme with their monsters and using humour in their work. 
He is most often referred to as an illustrator but his work has also been celebrated as works of surrealist art. 
Kenn has been accused of stealing the style of Gorey, although I feel it is more a homage than outright stealing. Having said this I need to be careful to show that I have been influenced rather than copying their works.


Tim Burton

Tim Burtons drawings also just use black ink, but feel a little less refined than the above artists work due to the more scratchy pen work. these help convey the threadbare feel of his macabre creations. I would like to experiment with both the refine and scratchy methods, and see which is best for my story.


I feel my story has quite dark humour in it much like the other artists, and so feel their styles and and style would work with it.