From Poses to Personality
This workshop ties life drawing to character design in one fun, professionally meaningful, and artistically expansive afternoon.
Students will draw from a live costumed model as they emphasize and coordinate the expressive elements of the body to create active figures with narrative intent.
Instructor Adam Dix has been a character designer since 2015. He’s worked as the character design instructor at Art Center in Pasadena since 2017. He’s contributed to such productions as The Cuphead Show, Boss Baby, The Watchmen, Central Park, and Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
THE WORKSHOP WILL INCLUDE:
I. INTRODUCTION (~ 20 min.)
Adam will review his portfolio, career, and how characters fit within entertainment design and production.
II. Character Gesture Demo (~ 10 min)
Adam will draw from the costumed model, emphasizing the ways in which character can be distilled from figure drawing decisions.
III. Gesture Phase (~ 45 min.)
Students will draw from the model, developing their characters in response to the live figure. Adam will circulate through the class providing guidance and answering questions. He will do this for every phase of work.
IV. Break & Quick Review (~5 min.)
Adam will quickly review the gestures as the class gears up to refine their gestures into functional characters.
V. Character Refinement Demo (~10 min.)
Adam will demonstrate how to refine gestural characters through anatomical selection, emphasis of movement, and the incorporation of costume, tool, and or weapon attributes.
VI. Refinement & Costume (~45 min.)
Students will proceed to refine their gestural characters.
VII. Break & Review (~5 min.)
Adam will very quickly review the refinements as the class gears up for the fine-tuning phase.
VIII. Fine-Tuning (~40 min.)
Adam will circulate and advise as students bring their character designs to a finish. Adam will guide with the resolution of the various sketches to create character consistency and distinctiveness.
IX. Review (-20 min.)
The whole class will review the results and provide input for the last 25 minutes of work.
X. Final Decisions (~25 min.)
Students will work independently to finish their characters.
XI. Review (~15 min.)
The class will finish with a review of the resulting characters. Adam and the students will critique, provide input, and discuss the possible professional application of the varying images.
MATERIALS TO BRING:
Required: 18’’ x 24’’ Newsprint Sketchpad
Recommended: Pastel Pencil, other dry materials.
Sketchbook and/or iPad recommended
Specialty Materials Provided.
