Arts and Crafts

Yes boys and girls, it's about time for the part of our show where we pull out the finger paint and let loose on a blank canvas. I'm trying to design an icon/logo for FuzzMeasure. This is certainly an interesting endeavor, and a welcome one given the fact that I've always enjoyed the visual arts. Unfortunately, I've never felt that I was all that great at the visual arts. :) </p> <p> I think that my problem has always stemmed from the fact that I'm a little too formulaic in my "art". I am also a bit too much of a perfectionist for my own good. Furthermore, I hate when things don't really look real (which destroys most art forms as hobbies of mine). Unfortunately, my dislike of things that don't look real (or consistent, in the case of an OSX-flavoured icon), combined with my lack of mad drawing skills, makes for a tough challenge. </p> <p> My basic idea is a speaker and a microphone. It sounds easy enough, but getting a "lickable" version of this theme is quite tough. Most people lean towards a glassy look, while most of the objects I'm representing have a matte property about their materials. Furthermore, going towards a "cartoony" representation will detract too much from the professional nature of the application. </p> <p> My approach to the design will therefore encompass a middleground between photorealism and hand-drawn vector graphics (which tend to be less photorealistic, in general). I will start with a photo, and "trace" it with vectorized shapes. I will continually iterate over the item with vector representations of the actual visual elements with increasing detail until I have struck my desired balance. From there, I will have to combine the objects (a speaker, and a microphone) and get the lighting and shadows just right. </p> <p> Did I mention that I was formulaic in my art? </p>