The Imaginarium

Roshahni Bowerman

Have you ever heard of an animal called the Homiariegris?
With antlers and tiger skin it stands on two feet!

Enter the world of the Imaginarium where the possibilities are endless and the creatures are brought to life.

The Imaginarium is a book filled with wonder and amazement. The book features six collaged creatures that you wouldn’t have seen anywhere else, placing them into the natural world and adding elements that are akin to animals in and around the world. Positioned sequentially in a 24 page ‘bestiary’, each fully illustrated page takes the reader on a journey through the six backstories, highlighting how they live, breathe and eat. Pointing out the differences and similarities of not only the animals which we already know about but also the ones that are hidden in plain sight.

(Click on images to view larger)

I became interested in beasts and animals when I read descriptions of H.P Lovecraft’s creations and began to explore how I would translate descriptions into fully fledged illustrations, enjoying drawing these beasts/animals and began to want to create my own. I was inspired by the work of Hannah Hoch and Lauren Child who use collage within their work to create narratives.

I began creating my own collage creatures by using imagery found within newspapers and magazines, then breathing them to life. I knew that collage was the perfect medium to represent the journey of the creation process because it was unexpected how the final piece would come out. I also wanted to exploit my own artistic ability and see where it would take me. By not only using collage, but also both traditional and digital mediums within my final book, I feel that it allowed me to fulfil the creation of the book with the sole purpose of entertaining the audience, and letting them imagine how the animals could live among them.

Frogs

For my Research Methodology project, I chose to study frogs. I found them intriguing in the sense that they were considered either cute pets or horrible creatures - there is no in-between. Aside from their reputation, they are very interesting animals and have so many variations. This post shows a sample of my project and my exploration of frogs.

In my research I investigated the things most commonly associated with frogs. I looked at their patterns, their movements and their noises in an attempt to understand them better to find a way to represent them. First, I looked at the distinctive markings of the common frog, the kind you're likely to find in your garden. I experimented with different mediums to find the best way to represent the texture and patterning of a frogs skin. I found watercolour to work particularly well as it had a softer effect that suited the subject.




I also experimented with etching to create the patterns of frog skin. I tried the standard form of etching and found that the pattern edges were too harsh and bold. In the example shown, I used diluted watercolour paint over the dried ink to add a green tint to the etch, adding a little colour. Despite this, the darker patches of the pattern still look harsh. My second etching attempt was much more successful and had a more natural-looking finish. For this plate, I removed the ground for the patterning with a pencil eraser which removed it unevenly and gave the faded outline to the marks. I then treated and inked up the plate as normal and found that the ink collected in the uneven patterns, then forming darker areas on the print which looked great. The print shown is my favourite of those taken from the second plate as it showcases the pattern brilliantly but still maintains as an overall image of a frog.

This next image is of my piece from the mechanical animals workshop. In this session, we were encouraged to create a representation of our chosen animal created out of mechanical elements. In my piece I really wanted to convey the frogs hopping movement in the springs under its feet and the powerful legs crammed with gears and other machinery. The springs might look comical, but they communicate my message well.

In the last image, you can see my piece from the workshop led by guest lecturer My Dog Sighs, inspired by his Free Art Friday initiative. The workshop encouraged students to find a piece of litter and to rework it as a piece of art. Students used cans, bottle caps and scraps of paper for their work. I found a seed from a sycamore tree and thought it looked a lot like a tadpole. I then used acrylic paints to paint the seed as a tadpole, with the markings and a little eye. I think this piece is very effective, and is a good representation of a tadpole.

Georgie Robjant - Magpie

For our research methodology project I chose to do the animal, Magpie, I chose this animal as I feel that it holds a reputation with it, I love a story behind anything and the magpie definitely delivers that, I love how such a small animal can hold so much meaning and can be seen as such a superstitious creature

                                      Here is some sketch book work of some artist research
                                                   that influenced my Magpie creations.

                                  Here is one of my final A3 pieces I created on book pages

Here is the second part of my final piece on book pages.

Here is some experimental work I did with A watercolour magpie

and a dream catcher.

Owl - Research Methodology.

The animal I chose to illustrate for the Research Methodology project was the owl. The reason I wanted to draw this animal is because of their ability to hunt silently and their incredible eyesight.

This piece was made during a cut and paste workshop where we were given scraps of paper with mechanical components printed on them. By using these scraps the animals we created became industrial robots with cogs and flywheels. This made the owl's anatomy and abilities appear superhuman.

This was just a little experiment with more cut and paste, at this point I was still focussing on the owl's eyesight.

These two were part of my final piece for the project. I researched various facts about the owl's anatomy and created collages to illustrate them. I'm pleased with the effect of the white pen on the cardboard and on the black and white image. However there could be improvement on the composition of the typography.

The Dragonfly

The theme that I have researched and illustrated was that of the dragonfly. It is such a complicated thing it amazes me on how it works. I have made many drawings to show the many different things that make up the creature and have found some things I did not even know about its habits and anatomy.

Galapagos Tortoise

A map of Galapagos Islands, home to the Galapagos tortoise.

Moths - Adam Mitchell

Cats - Sketchbook work - By Sam Gearing

This is my kind of brainstorming....I never do anything conventional (apparently) and I tend to do more visual than text -
It's easier for me to remember!
So here's my introduction page with a picture I sketched of my own cat , Tiggy. Who unfortunately passed away a few years ago.
The rest are my words associated with my chosen animal :)
PLEASE VISIT MY SPACE FOR MORE WORKS!!! :)
Works here include my own personal artworks, and previous commissions as well as work from my education.
(I hope to be adding more soon!)
http://moon-lilly-art.posterous.com/
until more is added , I have a deviant art : http://moon-lilly.deviantart.com if you'd like to visit!