Carmelite prize

I have been working on the Carmelite prize brief for a few weeks now. I started out focussing on character design, the book features animals as the main characters that I have not drawn before. I have been testing out a number of different methods to try and capture both the characters and appearance of these animals. The character tests range from simple cartoon like illustrations to much more realistic detailed images. The most successful to far combine block shapes drawn using pro create bushes that give the appearance of rough edged markers and pencils. The rough edges and gritty textures to the shapes add detail and depth to the environment.

I have mainly been working in black and white recently. I have really enjoyed working in values rather than colour and I am happy with the results. In the brief the notes from the author specifically mention wanting to see colourful landscapes. This gives me the motivation and opportunity to break the pattern and process I have become used to recently. I want to use this brief not only to work towards a professional end product in the specific are of illustration I am focussed on but to also push my practice further. I want to approach this project with freedom and not get caught up with feeling pressured to create a "looks good" because whenever I think that simply I fall back into habitual practices and don't learn anything new.