TASK 5

Commission work is a big part of getting you recognized as a graphic designer, and one of the most often requests is a blog banner. Not only do blog banners require your graphic skills, but also test your ability to execute themes, fonts and layouts.

For this task, each of you needs to design a blog banner for my legendary blog Haus of X - but that's not all! The banner must include two models; Sary.Babyface and tolady and it must also be black and white.

(Current banner for TGV, also a previous Haus of X banner)

Here are some guidelines for this task

• Banner must a landscape image.
• You must only use both the two models provided. (To clarify, they are Sary.Babyface and tolady)
• The graphic must be black and white/greyscale.
• You must remove any Stardesign Hair from the models, this includes any face shading/makeup/add-ons created in Stardesign Hair. 
•  

Everything else is entirely up to you! The banner can be headshots, midshots, or bodyshots and you can decide on whatever outfits/makeup/hair you wish, but make sure you take into consideration the minimalistic and edgy style of Haus of X.

The winner of this task will have their banner displayed on the Haus of X blog for 24 hours during the release of X Magazine: XIV - so the heat is on.


Your deadline for this task is Monday 6th October 2014. As ever, if you require an extension, please contact me ASAP.

Good luck!

TASK 4 RESULTS

A huge part of becoming a successful graphic designer is having a recognizable technique. This week you were all challenged to refine your technique and show us what you're made of. All of the contestants were given this very same reference image which they simply had to recreate in their own style;

What you didn't know is that the winner of this task will get their graphic featured in the monumentally anticipated upcoming issue of X Magazine!

So let's see how you all did...

TASK 4

When I first started graphics, it took me a while to define my own style and figure out what worked for me. After a lot of experimentation, I found my niche in runway illustrations. An important part of being a successful graphic designer is having a unique style, so this weeks task is going to put yours to the test!

Inspired by my love of drawing runway looks, your challenge is to simply create a graphic of this stunning look from Givenchy FW/11

 

I've set a couple of guidelines for this task

• You must use the image above as your reference image, recreating the whole image. (Click here for an example)
• Whether you want to use a Stardoll face or draw the real face of the model is completely up to you, the key of this task is to play to your strengths.
• You do not have to use the background, you can use your own background or not even a background at all.
• You must include the whole body and all of the garments.

 I chose this reference image because of the different textures and and materials, I want to see how well you can all convey them. Having original, creative ideas is a great attribute but won't mean anything if you can't have a clean delivery. The point of this task is to see who has the basic technique skills to succeed in this industry.


The deadline for this task is 22nd September 2014 - if you require an extension, please contact me ASAP.

Good luck!

TASK 3 RESULTS

For our third task, the contestants were split into two teams and each team was assigned a celebrity - the challenge was to capture the essence and style of the given celebrity in a striking graphic!

*Prior to Task 3, Virginia (Rei1981) had to resign from the competition, but proceedings will go as normal

**Key parts of your feedback are in bold


TOP PHOTO: Filip

Jack: Flicking through all the entries, this is the one that stood out the most to me. Although it's not your best work technique wise, the essence of this piece is quite incredible - and that's what I was looking for. I think you captured Lana's dark and eery vibe exceptionally well. I'm impressed with the detail on the hand and parts of the face, but I would have liked to have seen a cleaner finish around the mouth and eyes. Overall you did an amazing job this week, you were also the only one not to depict Lana in white!

Kirsten: Personally I don't feel like this is the strongest graphic of the bunch this week, but it stands out in the crowd with its heavy feel. It is also a marked improvement on the entry sent last week. You have clearly spent time with the face, however there are some smaller details which could have been captured or worked on more carefully. Having said that, there are some aspects which do seem very much unfinished when I look at the graphic - for example the eyes seem especially flat and lifeless with almost no work on them when you look at the full sized image, and also the hair.

IMPORTANT

It has come to my attention that contestants have been posting their work on Facebook pages etc. prior to the day of results. I would like to request that you do not share your work anywhere until after the results of the task have been posted. This is to protect not only your work but also the foundation of The Graphics Project. Any contestants found posting their work before the results will receive a warning.

Thank you for understanding.

TASK 3

Celebrity culture is one of the dominating aspects of media, especially more so with this generation. A famous persons image, attitude, and overall vibe is what makes them admirable.

For this week's task, you will be split into two teams - each team will be assigned to a celebrity. Your challenge is to create a graphic inspired by the style and personality of that celebrity.

Your teams and assigned celebrities are as follows:

Team 1: Rihanna

Giselle
Virginia
Beth
Gabriel

Team 2: Lana Del Rey

Helen
Filip
Pablo
Rozalia








Study your celebrity and really try to capture their essence. It is not necessary to include your celebrities face in the graphic, so long as you are channeling them as best you can.

The deadline for this task is Friday 5th September 2014. If you require an extension please contact me.

Good luck!

Info

This is just a short post to tell you that, due to other priorities, the third task will not be posted until August 28th at the latest. Take this time to reflect on your critique and polish up on anything you may think needs improvement.

Thank you for your co-operation.