The projects I worked on in my last two years included editorial, packaging, advertising, and picture books, which were different but had the same purpose of conveying a message to the audience. One of the most important things I have learned in my four years of study is the ability to think for myself. The process of creating an illustration is an ever-evolving spiral of research and development. My tutors have always stressed the importance of the research and development process, just like writing a book, which requires a lot of research and the author's own thought process to support a complete and compelling story. I believe a good illustration is one that contains a story and makes people think, I hope that my work will contain this quality.
Jiayi Zhou
Project description
Picture book-A White Orange
This picture book entitled A White Orange is a story about self-awareness, especially when one goes to an unfamiliar environment. The book is aimed at older children and teenagers and hope to show them that even when they leave home and their parents, they should remain true to themselves and be proud of their uniqueness instead of losing their own minds by trying to fit in with others. The main character is a clove of an orange, originally inspired by images on the internet. Oranges and garlic may resemble each other, but they are different, each in their own beautiful way. The design of the character was inspired by the famous Japanese manga and the animated work Crayon Shin-chan and a project I did in second year.
Although the balance between commerciality and artistry is difficult to grasp, there is no contradiction between the two. Although there are many similar artistic styles in the illustration market, I have looked at the work of many excellent illustrators and artists who must have their own unique style and self-awareness. Commercial illustration can embody the culture of an era, and because of its unique value attributes, it can be economically profitable while injecting cultural and artistic connotations into the commercial sector. With the rapid development of modern communication media, the scope of its scope is becoming broader and broader. The mass consumption of visual culture products and the advancement of science and technology have expanded the display space of commercial illustration to an unprecedented extent, allowing the public to enjoy the pleasures of commercial illustration in a pleasant aesthetic mood.
The projects I worked on in my last two years included editorial, packaging, advertising, and picture books, which were different but had the same purpose of conveying a message to the audience.
Skills & Experience
- Software: Photoshop, Indesign, Illustrator, Clip Studio Paint, Procreate
- Photography, Photo editing, Video editing
- Work Experience1: Teaching assistant at Xiao Nuo's Studio, Hangzhou, 2017
- Work Experience2: Volunteered photographer at One Cherry, Edinburgh, 2018-2019
- Work Experience3: Volunteered teaching assistant at Summer Aixin School, Hangzhou, 2018
- Language: Mandarin, Japanese (basic)
Thank you to my mother and father, to all my tutors, to my dear friends and to you who read this.
Best best wishes,
Zoe
Jiayi Zhou
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