Process Reflection Reflection Reflection Reflection Reflection Reflection
Claire Warhover
Process Reflection Reflection Reflection Reflection Reflection Reflection
Claire Warhover
Contents 02-03 06-07 10-11 20-21 22-23 24-25 26-27 30-31
Interview Responses
My Life Through Images
Project 1: Musical Memoir
My First Time
My Ideal Design Future
Time Capsule
Illustrator I Admire: Sonia Lazo
On Trend
32-33 34-35 36-37 42-43 44-45 46-47 48-49
Stuck with Me Forever
I Can’t Stop Thinking About...
Project 2: Leak the Conversation
Design is Always Changing
What’s the Point?
I Wish Design was More...
Project 3: The Future of Design Will Be..
I waste time overthinking overthinking overthinking overthinking overthinking overthinking overthinking
I am in my element when I am outside. I solve problems through communication. My empathy and my stubbornness define me.
02-03
I’m obsessed with maintaining an aesthetic. I wish I knew more about my purpose here on earth. I am very critical of small minded people. My sketchbook is full of color. I connect to people who have struggled.
I often wonder, what does the future hold? 04-05
My Life Through Images The following is a collection of images that I feel define me as a person. The images range from media that I love to consume, to beliefs that I hold dear, to elements of my past that still define me today. Hanging them all up on our posterboard, I was able to make some observations about myself. After compiling this imagery, I was able to see trends in my thoughts and identify subjects that I connect with. Some notable points include: I define myself by the music I listen to, I am passionate about helping others, and I am fascinated by magic and mysticism. I also noticed that in general, I tend to explore the intersection between beauty and pain. I like being able to create beautiful imagery that tells the story of something deeper and more meaningful.
06-07
I am fascinated by the intersection between beauty and pain. Beauty is used to mask pain. Pain inspires beautiful creation. “The pain passes, but the beauty remains.� ~Renoir
08-09
Musical Memoir We were tasked with creating a set of cards that defined us. While thinking through what collections of things define me most as a person, I discovered that the music that I listen to reveals who I am and what I’ve been through. I chose a diverse list of songs that represent the breadth of music that I listen to, or have listened to in the past. Each song represents a part of me, either a distinct event, an aspect of my identity, or an overarching theme in my life. Each song is represented by a card shaped like a tiny record in a sleeve. The front of the sleeve has the name and artist of the song, while the back features a lyric that i felt summed up the meaning behind the song. Peeking out from inside of the black sleeve is the brightly colored record. When you pull the record out of its sleeve, an illustration is revealed, representative of the meaning behind the song to my life in particular. There is also a QR code on the back of the record so that the viewer can listen to the song themselves. The records are stored inside a small crate, which can be displayed vertically or horizontally. My hope is that people really spend time with each record and enjoy.
10-11
Track List Teacher’s Pet .......................................... Melanie Martinez If it Means a Lot to You ..................... A Day to Remember Wish ............................................................... Trippie Redd Orange Juice .......................................... Melanie Martinez Pain ...................................................... Hollywood Undead Falling Down ................................ XXXTentacion, Lil Peep Strawberry Shortcake ............................ Melanie Martinez SAD! ............................................................ XXXTentacion Circles ............................................................ Post Malone Runaway ................................................................ Lil Peep Hope ..................................................... The Chainsmokers Welcome to the Black Parade ........ My Chemical Romance Polarize ................................................. Twenty One Pilots World Away .................................................... Tonight Alive Hide ................................................... Juice WRLD, Seezyn Smoke Break ........................................ Chance the Rapper
is last
Some Card Fronts...
circles Post Malone
If it means A lot to you
r past
A Day to Remember
Pain Hollywood Undead
...And Backs
circles Seasons change, and our love went cold Feed the flame, ‘cause we can’t let go
circles
Run away, but we’re running in circles Run away, run away, run away Post Malone
If you can wait till I get home, then I swear to you, that we can make this last If you can wait till I get home then I swear, come tomorrow, this will all be in our past
Post Malone
If it means A lot to you
Well it might be for the best A Day to Remember
But if you care, then they drug you And no one’s there when they numb you
Pain
Fill you with terror and crush you Pretend they care as they shove you
Hollywood Undead
Some things are too difficult to express in words, so instead, I let songs express them for me.
The Final Packaging
16-17
Each song represents a piece of me. When the pieces come together, they form a playlist of who I am and what I’ve been through.
18-19
My First Time I first knew that I was interested in making images as a job in my high school art classes. I had always thought that I wanted to be an engineer, but after taking a few art classes, I realized that this was something that I was interested in. At the time I didn’t really know the different fields that you could go into, I just knew I was interested in making images. The idea of illustration was first introduced to me when my drawing teacher told me that a lot of the drawings I made for her class were more like illustrations. I enjoyed being able to create things from my imagination instead of focusing on drawing things realistically from life. I have reaffirmed that illustration is something I want to do over and over again throughout my time at WashU. It’s amazing to be able to look at my progress and see how I’ve gotten closer to making the types of images I want to be making for my career.
My Drawing I Final Project (one of my first illustrations)
20-21
In my Ideal Design Future I am Happy
In my ideal design future, I am writing and illustrating my own books. I would love to be able to write short stories and create illustrations to accompany them. In this future, I am combining the two things I am most passionate about to create something to touch and entertain others. I am currently writing a lot of microfiction, and this is a form that has been resonating with me a lot. At the moment, I can clearly see myself writing a collection of microfiction and creating illustrations to accompany the stories to publish as a book. This is just a dream, but I know the more I say it the more real it will be. In the meantime however, I would love to be a freelance editorial illustrator. In this future, I am able to take a concept that someone else has created and synthesize it into an illustration that will become the face of the article. I would love to be able to work from home in a dedicated studio space that I have filled with all of the things that inspire me to keep working. I want the space to feel like another world when you enter. Above all, my ideal design future is one where I’m creating things that I love and feel proud of. I’m able to make a living off of doing something I love and I’ve been able to work with clients or art directors that I admire.
22-23
Time Capsule I really enjoyed creating my contribution to the time capsule. Writing the letter, I was able to visualize where I would be in 5 years, and it helped me to put my current worries and troubles into perspective. I decided to include my earbuds as my object, because I am always listening to something, whether it be music, podcasts, TV, or movies, almost all the time. I also included some polaroid photos of my bedroom from freshman year and my bedroom from senior year, so that I would remember what everything looked like.
24-25
Sonia Lazo
Sonia Lazo is an illustrator from El Salvador who self identifies as queer. She works from home in a room that functions as her studio. In addition to being an illustrator she is also a tattoo apprentice learning to become a tattoo artist. She usually represents strong female characters, and also non binary/queer people. Usually they also posses some magical quality and they’re very emotional and strong, sad or angry but always willing to fight for themselves if needed. About her characters, she says “These are characters that are exactly who they want to be, unapologetic but also care about others, their community and just want to change society for the better.” I love that a lot of her illustrations talk about feelings and emotions, especially her comics that illustrate complex feelings. She says “I’m a very sensitive person and I do a lot of introspection when something happens to me, so I pretty much channel those feelings and use art as some sort of therapy or relief.” She says that she takes these emotions and then mixes them with things like witchcraft, mythology, demonology, and other things that she’s interested in to create her illustrations. I really enjoy that, because it allows her to talk about negative experiences while still keeping a positive spin on it through the style of the illustration. She doesn’t shy away from bright colors which I also love, These are just two small comics that she’s done, each one based around an emotional experience.
26-27
On Trend Just like design, illustration has trends too. In general, I think that illustration is tending towards digital, flat, shape-based vector images. However, I do think that some of the most successful illustrators (and the illustrators I enjoy most) are ones who don’t follow trends and instead lean into their style. I try to do the same in my work, because it’s much easier to do what comes naturally to me (and what I enjoy making and looking at) than to try to do what others are doing. I am more focused on finding my personal voice and style than concerning myself with what others are doing. Although, I do think it is good to be aware of the trends so that you can evaluate if you are doing something for yourself or just because you have seen other people doing it a lot. Instead of listing trends that I think are the most popular, I’m instead going to list a few smaller trends that I’ve noticed in what I’m enjoying looking at and making recently.
Posca Pens
Bright Colors
Whimsical Environments
Female and Non-Binary Figures
Hand-Lettering
30-31
Stuck With Me Forever Edward’s talk about developing personal style has stuck with me, and I hope to refer back to it when I feel stuck or lost. It stuck with me because it really made me think about why I do illustration and what I truly enjoy about the process. The suggestions he had were tangible and doable and I hope that I do them moving forward.
It’s Personal: Every artist is different. You are your own person, with your own ideas. This is about you and no one else. Stop comparing yourself to others and focus on you. Who are YOU? What do YOU want? Journal: Dig deep to find out who you truly are as an artist. Write about everything… what you figured out with your work that day, your struggles, your hopes and dreams, future plans, etc. Play: Play with all different types of materials, especially those that you don’t have as much control over. Ask yourself, “How can I make this more fun?” Don’t forget down the road how much you love to draw and create art. If you aren’t enjoying the process… you’re doing it wrong. Art: What art do you gravitate towards the most? Who are your favorite artists? Not just the instant gratification sugary sweet ones, but the real stuff…the art that touches your soul. The art that has a soul. Look at that work. Surround yourself with that work… The art and artists who really speak to you. This type of work goes beyond the surface. It’s there that you’ll find your true self as an artist…below the tricks and gimmicks, beyond “style.” Why: Most likely you’re going down this path because art making makes you happy and it gives you fulfillment or a sense of purpose. So you’re choosing this profession to be happy… so finding your voice and the materials you like is important. The best case scenario is that you’ll be doing this every day for the rest of your life, so you might as well be you… and enjoy the process.
32-33
I can’t stop thinking about... menstrual equity, sex trafficking, mental health, eating disorders, climate change, sexual violence, homelessness, drug addiction, sexual violence, police brutality, racism, child mortality, abortion, toxic masculinity, homelessness, hunger, government corruption, student loans, police brutality, water scarcity, mass shootings, the wage gap, poverty, wildfires, malnutrition, habitat destruction, abuse, unemployment, refugees, islamaphobia, gentrification, rape, the gender spectrum, gun control, transphobia, american psychiatry, immigration, gender inequality, xenophobia, hate crimes, ableism.
34-35
Leaking Period Talk Picking something that I can’t stop thinking about was difficult to do, not because there isn’t a lot, but because there’s so much. I decided to focus on menstrual equity because I feel that it is something people can tangibly do something about in the immediate short-term. I knew that I didn’t want my project to simply be abut awareness, and wanted to make sure that people who walked away from it had an action plan. Most of my inspiration for the project came from Jennifer Weiss-Wolf ’s book Periods Gone Public. In the book, she talks about all of the different groups of people in America who struggle to get access to period products. She makes it clear that this is something that would not be difficult to fix if the government would simply listen to the people and give them what they need. In the meantime though, there are lots of things that one can do to improve someone’s situation.
36-37
The Installation I wanted to create an installation that confronted girls in the bathroom. I wrapped the dispenser with the name of the project and instructions for use. People were encouraged to take a card from the dispenser to take the conversation outside of the bathroom. I decided to completely cover the front of the dispenser so that the card would be the only thing you were able to take. The project was about lack of access, so I wanted to reiterate this lack of access on the dispenser itself.
38-39
The Cards The cards that were dispensed were made to look like menstrual pads, and were sealed shut with a white piece of tape. Each of the cards had a statistic about period poverty on the outside, and a tangible way to help on the inside. Each card also came with a cute sticker so the conversation can be long-lasting! I also decided to use a red, bubbly typeface to resemble drops of blood, since most period products tend to avoid the use of red. I wanted each part of the project to reflect visibility and empowerment.
40-41
Design is Changing I think that we are moving away from
tradition tradition tradition tradition in terms of media, content, and values.
Always and that we are moving towards
individuality individuality individuality individuality where each illustrator has a distinct voice.
42-43
What's the Point? For me, illustration intends to communicate something to someone in a way that they would not have been able to fully grasp the concept before. Through illustration, I can force viewers into someone else's shoes, allowing them to empathize with people they may not identify with. It is a way to bring information to people in a more accessible. It is also a way to enhance the value of the written material it accompanies. When someone looks at my illustrations, I want it to take them somewhere. Either to a place, or just into the mind of someone else, I want to show them something new that they haven't seen before. Illustration is important to society at large because it is a more universal language than words, and it can serve so many functions to improve the lives of others.
A good illustration seeks to educate, inform, expose, demonstrate, communicate, simplify, reflect, touch, advance, change, improve, expand, explore, empathize, and visualize.
44-45
I wish design was more
inclusive
I wish design was more
inclusive
46-47
Design of the future will be... I struggled to imagine a world in which our planet is not destroyed, so instead, I leaned into my dystopian vision. To me, design of the future will be a digital escape from reality. People will enjoy interacting through virtual reality more than they will in real life, and designers will be the ones creating these spaces. I think that everyone will become a designer in the future because they will be the designers of their virtual persona. People will be able to go anywhere they want any time they want looking any way they want in order to escape the desolate real world.
48-49
50-51
...an escape The future of design is an escape from the world we know. Destroyed and desolate, Earth has become uninhabitable, and those still residing here escape into virtual worlds beyond imagination. Go virtually anywhere.
52-53
The Poster Installation
Claire Warhover Process Reflection Visual Voice Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts Typefaces Used: Lazybones EF ITC Tiffany