Artwork

Here are some examples of artwork that were put into my design document. For some of the images, I have included the original drawing.

Rococo

In my game, I want my environments to be inspired by Rococo architecture and art, in order to expand on the feminine themes in the game. During the late 1600/1700s, a lavish, decorative and ornamental style of art, furniture, textiles and interior design became popular in Europe, originating in France. It did not last long and eventually lost its popularity because most people associated the style with aristocrats. I want to take common elements of this art style and apply it to my environments, platforms, items etc.

Here are some common characteristics of the style that I can use in my work:

• Pastel colours, gold
• Highly decorative, with lots of small details
• Ornaments/patterns shaped as shells, flowers, plants, clouds, and coral (inspired by nature)
• Light, elegant, graceful and feminine
• Asymmetrical Shapes

Notable artists: Robert de Cotte, Jacques Ange Gabriel, Francois Boucher

Junko Mizuno

Next, I will look at art styles that influence my game and idea. Unlike the art I looked at before, these artists don’t reference Alice in Wonderland.

Firstly, my project’s style is primarily influenced by Japanese artist Junko Mizuno. I first dismissed Mizuno’s art as another cute, but creepy style, but after looking into her work further, I found that her art uses some very interesting themes, such as pregnancy, maternity and sex. I also found that there were feminist messages in her comic books that she had written. For instance, the women in the comics were often poorly treated by the male characters. Mizuno says that “In Japan, today still, men use to judge very strictly women who are not pretty.” So maybe this is some kind of reaction to the treatment on women in Japan. Mizuno’s characters are also very strong-willed and independent, representing the kind of woman she aspires to be.

Her work also links in with my study on narrative as she likes to base her work on famous western fairy tales, but change certain aspects of them to make them her own. For example, in her comic “Cinderalla” the protagonist is a waitress and prince charming is a zombie pop star. Rather than leaving a glass slipper, she leaves an eyeball behind. She also wrote her own version of Hansel and Gretel and a little mermaid style story.

I really like the style and themes that Junko Mizuno uses and I would like my own game to take inspiration from it. Her overly feminine imagery would be perfect for my target audience.

I also came across some artwork of hers that would make interesting platform level aesthetics. One is from her “Mizuno Garden” website and the other is stationary: