Illustration Portfolio of Ning Wang by Ning Wang

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.1 Imaginative Illustration

02 Menu of the Weirdos 07 Four Votes 12 Journey to the West 16 Confession? 20 Random Doodles

PART.1 Imagination Illustration

PART.2 STORY illustration

PART.3 illustration design

illustration portfolio of

ning wang

PART.4 Commercial Graphic

PART.5 OTHER WORKS

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.1 Imaginative Illustration

PART.1 Menu of the Weirdos Culture Foods At some point few years ago, I fell in love with foods and even decided to become a chef for living. The beautiful imageries of foods could increase hunger and appetite, reminding people of happiness in life. As a result, one of the biggest objectives in my old works is portraying the beauty of food realistically with coloured pencils. I was soon tired of realism and became

more aware the context of food: It is not only something to be eaten, but also the symbol of a certain culture. Through food, one can easily tell the cultural origin of a person, even his/ her age and gender. The concept of a dish goes far beyond its physical property. I therefore decided to working on a project using dishes to reflect various stages of our life.

This Page: Research Drawings (2016) Mixed Media Various Sizes

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.1 Imaginative Illustration Dishes Reflecting Social Life In the beginning, I depicted many foods to be actually eaten, which I found to be as realistic as my old works. There must be a way to represent dishes without actually using food elements. Accidentally, I was inspired by kidsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; role-playing game: They can cook with clays and paper, pretending, or maybe believing, it is a dish. The form of a dish does not necessarily imply edible food contents. I therefore experimented with various inedible elements to represent the social lives of students, office workers and the old people.

This Page: Character Studies (2016) Mixed Media Various Sizes

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.1 Imaginative Illustration

Menus for Various People

Left: Final Menu 1 (2016) Mixed Media 420 Ă&#x2014; 300 mm

Students: Many kids and teenagers enjoy fast foods for the cheap cost and stylish dining environment. I therefore used chalkboard style to suggest their dietary habit with elements from their school lives. Office workers: The menu for the office workers is highly decorated. The office workers tend to be attracted by lust and fortune, which asks them to make money. There is no other option.

Middle & Right: Display Drawing (2016) Mixed Media 420 Ă&#x2014; 300 mm

The old people: Their menu is represented with refreshing watercolours. Their life is simple, peaceful and warm.

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.1 Imaginative Illustration

Left:

Middle & Right:

Final Menu 2 (2016) Mixed Media Various Sizes

Display Drawing (2016) Mixed Media 210 Ă&#x2014; 297 mm

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.1 Imaginative Illustration

Left:

Right:

Final Menu 3 (2016) Pencil & Watercolor Various Sizes

Display Drawing (2016) Paper Print 160 Ă&#x2014;160 mm

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.2 STORY illustration

PART.2 Four Votes Nostalgic Memories In my childhood in the 1980s, I lived with my grandparents. I miss the days when I listened to the radio for various news broadcasts and talk shows. However today, little people use radio unless in driving. As a result, when I decided to work on this story illustration project, I recollected my childhood memories and those retro radio dramas.

This Page: Research Drawings (2016) Mixed Media Various Sizes

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.2 STORY illustration

Characteristics of the Past After chairman Mao’s death in 1976, China in the 1980s started to develop its economy rapidly. The kind of story I wanted to illustrate lies right within this period. Inspired by a radio drama, the story is about the misunderstanding caused by a typical Chinese-style election. However, I have forgotten how things are like 30 years ago. Visual documents like photos back then were almost black and white. I therefore referenced many TV dramas in the 1990s for inspiration, such as the Blue Kite and Stories from the Editorial Board. After researches about the key scenes’ storyboarding, I had a deeper understanding of that period: People back then were dumb and numb, having no clear desires. They wore blue or green factory uniforms usually with white oversleeves. They lived in low rise buildings printed with propaganda imageries, within their office the walls were always painted in pale-green… These elements could help me depict the 1980s with believable details.

This Page: Research Drawings (2016) Mixed Media Various Sizes

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.2 STORY illustration The Final Work

This & Next Page:

I decided to use 16:9 image dimension for the final illustrations to leave a hint of old films. I also used gray and pale green as the key colour scheme, which is unusual among many of the children’s book illustrations today with vivid colours. There are two images with identical composition, each could represent a different era showing from the surrounding

environment. The wall with printed propaganda slogan “work hard for the four modernizations” in the beginning is later replaced with other modern buildings, leaving the protagonist still the same, trapped in his own world and unable to keep up with the times.

mēng mēng

liàng

寒冬，天刚蒙蒙亮，科长就来上班了。

wú

jì

míng

tóu

piào

今天上级派下任务，让大家无记名投票评选下一届科长。

zǒu

guò

chǎng

本是例行公事走过场，竟然有人没选自己！这让科长愤怒不已。

The Final (2016) Mixed Media 280 x 155 mm each

bèi

èr

一进门，屋里倍儿暖和，大家都请科长坐下一起烤火。

jiū

chū

盛怒下的科长，决定要揪出背叛者！

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.2 STORY illustration

huái

yí

yī

他怀疑每一个人，用尽手段将他们一一赶走，

jiù

ǒu

很多年过去了，科长依旧在同一条路上上班下班。

yù

一天，科长偶遇当年的同事小张。

屋子变得冷冷清清。

lào

多年不见，两人都十分想念过去，有唠不完的家常。

nà

小张问科长是否记得那次投票。就那么巧，他的钢笔写到一半没水了！

有些事，没办法重头来过。

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.2 STORY illustration

This Page: Illustration Printout (2016) Paperback 280 Ă&#x2014; 155 mm

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.3 illustration design

PART.3 Journey to the West Poor Rock Star Recently, a photograph of Wei Dou eating noodles started a debate in Chinese social networks. Wei Dou used to be the most well-known Chinese rock star whose ex-wife Faye Wong is now still one of the most popular singers in Asia. Unlike his ex-wife, Dou is now living a rather difficult life for his rock and roll ideal, becoming a typical loser in many peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s impression. However, is it fair to judge oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s personal achievement with social values? What should I teach my kid from this topic? I therefore decided to reflect my thinking on this issue in this project.

This Page: Research Drawings (2016) Mixed Media Various Sizes

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.3 illustration design

This Page: Research Drawings (2016) Mixed Media Various Sizes

The Poor Monkey King The lyrics of the song Nice Girl written by Douâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s friend Yong He has provided me huge inspiration, which rewrites the story of the four protagonists of the famous Chinese literature Journey to the West: Each character is no longer a god but an ordinary person after their pilgrimage, struggling with their lives. My final work is created based on this song. For example, the traditional monkey king is a symbol of rebellion and sheer power. However in my work, he is taken in a photograph fist fighting with others in airport and being smashed by a big blow. The final works are presented in four different forms respectively (gossip magazine, live broadcast, social network app and newspaper) to communicate the idea of collective violence.

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.3 illustration design Story Inside Match Boxes There should always be a presenting medium for an image. The medium I decided to use in this project is match box which symbolizes hope but is considered to be old-fashioned. I drew my final images on brown papers with red and blue pencils to make them more retrospective. The outside packaging presents the original Journey to the West story featuring Shifu and his three appetences, whereas we can find the illustrations of their ‘new lives’ inside the matchboxes.

Right & Next Page: Product Prototype (2016) Mixed Media 56 x 35 x 15 mm each

Below: Final Illustration (2016) Colour Pencil on Paper 210 × 297 mm

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.3 illustration design

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.4 Commercial Graphic

PART.4 Confession? From Youth and Danger In my school days I was a big fan of a gangster themed film called Youth and Danger. However, when I recalled this film many years after, I found it rather illogical: Why would they kill each other for a basketball court? How could they value brotherhood more than law? ... I was also surprised with my old taste in film. Youth and Danger has left a huge impact to my generation in China. Many fans of the film have thus become gangsters and ruined their life. For which reason, the leading characters have given their regrets to the public many times, confessing their mistake for our forgiveness. Meanwhile, these leading actors also organized their Youth and Danger live concert for money. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Confessing while committing no guiltâ&#x20AC;? becomes the theme of this project.

This Page: Research Drawings (2016) Mixed Media Various Sizes

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.4 Commercial Graphic

This Page:

Lower Right:

The Final (2016) Mixed Media Various Sizes

Display Drawing (2016) Mixed Media Various Sizes

A Confession-Sharing Campaign Are they double-standard and hypocritical? I do not think so. There are so many things being neither right nor wrong, causing worries and selfreflections for improvements. I therefore decided to organize a campaign, raising social awareness by sharing peopleâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s secrets and confessions, letting all participants find themselves from each other.

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.4 Commercial Graphic Campaign Details The overall campaign goes as follows: 1. People will see campaign posters offline; 2. Signing up online via campaign homepage or SNS tools; 3. Participating offline activities with direct-mailed tickets. To accompany the campaign, I created my designs in three areas: Poster, website and ticket. I used illustration to keep my design relaxing and absurd, helping event participants to share their secrets naturally. Besides event tickets there are also many things to be direct-mailed in one pack such as sunglasses and gauze masks. People can disguise their true identity if necessary.

This Page:

Display Drawing (2016) Mixed Media Various Sizes

Poster (2016) Mixed Media 297 x 420 mm

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.4 Commercial Graphic

illustration portfolio of ning wang

PART.5 OTHER WORKS

PART.5 Random Doodles I enjoy collecting sketchbooks and doodle on them. I seldom use pure white pages because they usually look boring. With various colours and rich textures, I could challenge myself to use different techniques and approaches.