Senior, Stamps School of Art & Design
Digital illustration
Abstract
As an Art and Design student with a minor in Environmental Science, the intersection between artistic expression and science education has always fascinated me. My illustration of the Yohkoh Satellite is portrayed in vibrant colors and a painterly style accompanied by a fun rhyme to engage children and spark a passion for exploration and scientific understanding. Now more than ever do we need young minds to be enthralled with these topics to address the complexities we will face in the future.
Y is for Yohkoh is a digitally painted page of an alphabet book designed to spark a passion for space exploration among young readers. Made using the app, Procreate, I started with a rough sketch of the satellite that I would later move to make room for the other elements. Once I was satisfied with the sketch, I moved on to outlining and creating a cohesive color palette. Without tracing or color-picking, I stuck decently close to my reference photo of Yohkoh while still injecting stylistic flare into the illustration. After that was finished, I worked on creating the sun by using different brushes and layer types to give it a glowing, fiery appearance. The last element to be included was the rhyme and title. I’ve never been much of a poet, but thinking of the keywords associated with Yohkoh’s mission made it easier to think of a fun yet factual rhyme for the satellite. The text is hand-drawn, giving a casual and friendly feel to the composition.