Philosophers have been involved in the endless debates now for centuries on how to define ‘art.’ Art is a broad field that also covers illustrations. Illustration design includes a vast range of images with very distinct meanings, and some of them could be very different from the definition of art.

An illustrator design produces an artwork, but the work of an illustrator needs to be looked at differently.

What makes an illustrator irresistible?

The process of creating an illustration is more than just putting a doodle on paper. One also needs to understand the basics of drawing that starts with inspiration.

While many artists tend to decide on the style selection last. They see an excellent illustration and figure out what makes it look that good, and they start replicating it in their work.

This method of working provides an excellent way to jumpstart on an idea without scraping too much inside your brain for it.

Unfortunately for such illustrations, the problem is that the illustrator has started with pre-defined limitations in their brain.

So, they do an entire piece in water-color with yellow and orange just like their inspiration. They may add to it paper-cuts style with a bold background just like another inspiration.

And highlight the final thing in Photoshop like the one that won the competition. Which produces a ‘cool’ product that is also functional, but it is not ‘Art.’.

How an illustrator should work instead is just the opposite. They need to first think about the use of the illustration, what audience, where it shall be displayed, what its purpose is, etc. Then one needs to figure out the technique that shall make the illustration visually compelling.

This process will require a bit of experimentation with the mediums, colors, styles, etc. to get the most effective combination. But the most crucial part is to put ‘brains over-looks’ and not the other way around.

One need not be an acclaimed painter to pull this off every time. One only needs to ensure that the execution is not sloppy or inaccurate in the details, which will hurt the illustration.

If the idea behind the work is solid, then the artist will face fewer stumbling blocks. Artistic skills alone do not create a good illustrator.

The purpose of an illustration is more than being aesthetically pleasing. An illustration offers a visual component to the text; it tells a story or represents a concept. It has value beyond the simple visual expression of your heart.

Modern styles of illustrations

The advancements in the digital era have provided artists with the possibility to express themselves in a variety of forms much faster.

Most illustrators are proficient in the use of graphic tablets that are connected to the computer. They use the tablet to draw with a pen, and the image gets transferred to the computer screen immediately.

The software also allows them to use different types and shapes of traditional pens, brushes, effects, papers, and various drawing tools.

These illustrations can be divided into two large groups:

Freehand digital illustrations

These digital illustrations provide a smooth transition between light and shadow. It allows the illustration to become complex while providing finer details of the work.

Most of these illustrations are in a raster format that can be scaled up to be printed in any size without losing quality.

Vector graphics

These graphics or illustrations are also produced to allow them to be scaled up or down in size without quality loss. But as a rule, it is difficult to make a smooth transition although it is very popular for web illustrations. One can identify the vector easily by its clear shapes, definition, and outlines.

Styles in illustrations define the genre and can help identify the individual artist by their style of expression. Some of the genres are:

Concept art

These include fantasy illustrations that are used for animations, gaming, as well as for one-page fine illustrations.

This term probably came into use through Disney and was used in the automotive industry as well. The artist in concept illustrations creates several interpretations of a theme or concept.

The client then chooses from these concepts the different stages, development, and process to allow for the further creation of the illustration.

Children’s art

Illustrations for children vary enormously from realistic with details to simple drawings as well as naive child-like doodles. These illustrations always have something happening.

The choice of illustration in this case depends upon the story and its requirements, the target age group, and more such things. But all of these illustrations are colorful. They always narrate a part of the story while being mostly cute and friendly.

Graphic novels and comics

These illustrations express an idea with images and are combined with text to provide complete visual information. They generally take the form of juxtaposed panels of images in a sequence with speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia providing sound effects, narration, and more.

The arrangement of the panels provides a pace to the narrative. The most common illustrations in this field are cartoons or similar forms of images.

Books for Publications

This genre is the most versatile and the style of illustration used depends upon the vision of the author. At times this vision may come from the editor or through the subject of the book.

Some luxury books on natural history or geographical topics as well as some children’s books have printed illustrations that are colored by hand.

All of these books have eye-catching covers to advertise their content and compete with other books in a pile at the bookshop. The book cover needs to also provide a hint of what the book contains and many would say that the cover sells the book.

Advertising

These illustrations are diagrammatically opposite to the above category as they are meant to steal the show from the text. They provide a visual notion of the product or brand in a large and intuitive idea.

Most companies who employ illustrations rather than photography use it as a medium to provide a lasting impression of themselves or their products.

Packaging

Packaging provides a way to differentiate the product on the shelf and is a rapidly changing field that has unprecedented competition in the present age. This genre of illustrations provides a personalized touch, custom feel, and elegance to the product.

Logo and mascots

Logos have a very specific style that requires a certain set of skills that provide branding to the company. A logo usually occupies a small space but needs to be readable and recognizable.

The logo illustrator needs to carefully plan all the details of the logo while keeping it simple, memorable, and grabbing attention. Businesses also require mascots that usually are cartoon versions of their products through which they enhance brand recall and impression on the customer.

Mostly illustrators choose one or two of these genres and keep practicing their skills. Some of the more famous illustrator design works are recognized worldwide within their genres.

But irrespective of your choice of the style as an illustrator, one would need to learn to draw. One has to be proficient with technology in today’s world to produce a compelling Illustration design.

But being incredible at software like Illustrator should not mean that one skips the part where they hone their skills in drawing. Technology may change tomorrow but the foundation of any illustration is drawing, working hard, and being professional.

Sterco Learning has been providing high-end services on the web, new media, and e-learning now for over twenty years. It has a team of high-end illustrators who can spruce up the look of your materials easily. Contact us now.