More Illustrations

Okay, so I've been working on more of the illustration roughs. I've started adding the red and blue as "pop" colours. The red is working out really well, I think and I like the way the blue makes the queen look even colder. So here are some of the coloured versions of previous sketches I uploaded.

This is Snow White after eating the poisoned apple. The red lips really stand out against all the darker shades. I also really like the wild hair, makes her look crazy and kind of like a wild waif.

This is the queen after she goes mad and her beauty starts to deteriorate. I like how she starts looking anorexic here and the eyes and bony face are really creepy.

This is the queen leaving the scene after poisoning Snow White. Love how the apples pop in this image. I also like the smirk she has and the way the blue lips make her look really cold and adds a nice contrast to the brightness of the red.

Here is one of the Redcaps. Definitely looks demonic and the blood on his pike makes him creepier. I also like how the cap kind of resembles an organ.

 

 

So, that's all that I've got for the moment. Will keep working on it and upload any new progress.

Blueprint

What the book will be

So, as I've mentioned in earlier posts, I am planning on doing a book that will be a reinterpretation of a classic fairytale. In this case, I've chosen to do Snow White (partially because I like how it lends itself to being darker than most people think). I took some time to think about what I really wanted to do with this "darker" version of the story and finally settled on a version that would be a nod to the original Grimm tale but would be geared more towards an adult audience, something along the lines of how I imagine the stories might have been prior to the censorship. What I ended up doing was adapting the traditional narrative style in which the Grimm's fairytales are told but put a darker spin on the actual story, adding and changing elements to suit a darker storyline.

Interestingly, another thing that occurred to me during the process of researching the Grimm tales was how much they reference religious (Christian) themes yet rarely mention traditional fairy folklore (with a few exceptions when magic is mentioned, often in passing). There is ample reference to the devil in many of their stories but very little direct reference to fairies of Fair Folk of any kind. So in my version I decided it might be an interesting departure to, first of all give a nod to the religious themes of Grimm's tales, but also to actually include fairy folklore elements as well. So, with that all in mind, I completed writing the manuscript and I think it turned out pretty much as I had hoped with creepy undertones maintained through a traditional-sounding narrative style.

Overall, what I want this book to be is a nod to traditional fairytale books but to still be distinctly different in its approach. I'm thinking that the layout of the pages will have a similar feel to a storybook but at the same time will be geared towards a more mature readership. The illustrations will be done in a darker style so it is clear that the book is not meant for children and the general look to the book will probably make it clear that, although elements are evocative of a storybook, this really isn't going to be what you expect. I haven't quite decided on the specifics of how to achieve this yet but that is generally the direction I want to take it in.


What I have figured out so far

- the manuscript is fully written
- I have started some initial sketches for the illustrations (several are featured in earlier posts)
- I have done some rough sketches for page layouts and binding ideas (though more thought will need to be put into this before a decision is made)
- most likely the book will be a restrained colour pallet of black, white, and red with possibly one other accent colour and some grey tones. The reasoning behind this being that Snow White revolves heavily around the central idea of Snow White's unusually stark colouring as being what makes her striking (white skin, black hair, and red lips). So to play off of this I would reinforce the theme through the book itself. 

Here is a rough of what Snow White will look like and also of the contrast that will be used for the illustrations (with the exception that there isn't yet any red in this rough).

Inspiration

My inspiration for the book idea comes mainly from my own interest in storytelling and the way stories change over time. I also was inspired by the fact that there are so many reinterpretations of fairytales out there and yet, even of the darker ones, no one seems to have really done a retelling of the original Grimm story in the Grimm style with just a much darker slant to it.
As for the illustrations, I mentioned in several previous posts that I am drawing inspiration from some older illustration styles like Kay Nielson, but am also looking at other interpretations of Snow White done by other artists and a book design done by Jo Sculpher. I also recently discovered a photographic interpretation of Snow White by Eugenio Recuenco that I thought was interesting in that it's pretty creepy even though it has a certain elegance to it.

Still Undecided

The binding and the overall exterior of the book. I have a pretty clear idea of how I want the inside page spreads to look but I'm still undecided on the external elements of the book. I definitely like the idea of doing customized typography for the title and doing it red against pure white. I really want the book to be stark in some way but nothing is set in stone yet. One of my ideas for the book was possibly to have some kind of box or case for the book and play off the idea of the window (the one Snow White's mother is looking out when she compares the stark beauty of the white snow with the iron of the window frame against a drop of her own blood) hence the black, white, and red idea for the book.


Not yet accomplished

- finalized illustrations
- finalized page layouts
- finalized book design and binding
- materials needed for the book and binding


Ideas for possible binding

Right now I like the idea of making the book look a little worn and mangled (kind of like the warped nature of the story). I might like to do something with an exposed binding (possibly with red thread or ribbon etc) and a stark white or black cover.


Planning/Timeline

Oct. 27
- finalized style for illustrations and all roughs completed
-basic layout established
-external look and binding decided

Nov. 3
- type layouts completed
- work on illustration finals

Nov. 10
- final illustrations near complete

Nov. 17
- finalized version of book layout etc.
- illustrations completed

Nov. 24
- all elements ready for printing

Dec. 1
- binding etc.

Update on Book Progress

So I've finished the manuscript and have been doing some sketches for the illustration styles.  Still working on it and playing around with different ideas but here are a few of the roughs:

Possibly a sketch for the queen when she goes to give the apple to Snow White. I really like the high contrast of the shadows and the creepy vibe of the figure.

The queen giving (or receiving) the box containing Snow White's heart from the huntsman. My basic idea for this queen is that she's extremely eccentric so all her hairstyles and clothing will reflect that.

The queen asking the magic mirror who is fairest in the land. This is presumably before she gets the bad answer.

A concept sketch for one of the seven "dwarves". Going for a really creepy look to them (you do not want to bunk with these guys). And, yes, he's carrying a steel pike not a stick.

Another concept sketch for one of the dwarves. Might draw another one with a bloodier stake or munching on a thigh bone, or something.

Rough sketch for Snow White. Trying to give her that crazed waif look with the messy hair and dark shadows under her eyes.

Possible sketch for Snow White's death.

Progress

So I've started writing the manuscript for the book at last (almost finished it, actually). Definitely taking on a creepier angle on the story (Snow White). I've also started doing some rough sketches for the illustration styles and I'm thinking maybe pen and ink is the way to go to get that high contrast feel I'm looking for (also kind of fits in with the black, white, and red theme of Snow White). We'll see how they progress, though, it's a bit too early to judge exactly how the finished product will look.
Will keep at it.

Yet more images. I like the feel that the ink drawings give to the illustrations. I also really like the creepy atmosphere of the sketchy inky quality. Though I don't think my version would be quite this style, I might take that as a cue and push it farther in the dark direction.

This is still somewhat more typical of fairy tale illustrations from the last century but I like the simplicity of the line work and the dull colour scheme which adds a gloomy feel to the atmosphere.

Just some thoughts of possible visual directions to go in or an overall look and feel of the book. 

Some Interesting Interpretations

Okay, so I was talking last time about different interpretations of fairy tales and I've decided to include some of them in this blog. The following website belongs to a designer named Jo Sculpher who designed the Snow White book with the cut-out illustrations. Very interesting.
http://www.josculpher.co.uk/snowwhite.html

The following image is by a photographer named Eugenio Recuenco and is an interpretation of Snow White.

Here was another illustration that I found that was somewhat darker and more in the direction I want to go.

Book Ideas

Alright, so I've pretty much narrowed down my options into either doing a fairy tale that is written as a stage play (Shakespearean most likely) or just a dark version of a fairy tale. Both seem to have really interesting opportunities so it's really just a matter of which one I like better and which story to do.

As for that matter, I've been going back and forth between whether to do a story that is very familiar to people (Cinderella, Snow White, etc) or a fairy tale that is not as familiar to people (of which there are many....). If I choose to do a familiar story then it would become about playing up a very different take on it, taking something familiar and portraying it in an unexpected or interesting way. If I were to do an unfamiliar story then there is less emphasis on portraying it in an new or different way and can then be dealt with in whatever fashion befits it.

In researching other portrayals of fairy tales, I actually came across countless illustrations (a lot of them older, probably from the Victorian era or early 1900s) which were beautiful but fairly typical of a children's storybook. I also came across some different (and often bizarre) illustrations that are more contemporary. One such portrayal was done by a designer who made a book out of Snow White and did all the "illustrations" out of paper cut-outs. I'll see about finding those images again because they were quite interesting even though it's not really the direction I plan to go in.