IllustrationClass.com

Some call it ‘Collage Illustration’ but I prefer the description a friend of mine coined ‘Compost Modernism’. Simply put it’s taking found historical images and compositing them with a garden variety library of assorted elements into a visually stunning motif. Granted this isn’t a new style, it’s been around a long time, but it is a fun way to create strong illustrative designs.

This download will walk you through a project using ‘Compost Modernism’. Also included in this download are several source files so you can de-construct the process of creating the art further.

(Tutorial Includes Notes in both ‘English’ and ‘Español’.)

Keywords: Skull, Antler, Crown, Revolver, Compost, Modernism

File Size: 28.7 MB

1. Juampablo wrote: April 20, 2007 at 8:04 am

   Sir, I’m really thankful for these tutorials, I found them really generous, and most of all useful. Highly recommendable.

2. admin wrote: April 20, 2007 at 10:39 am

   Thank you. I try to make them as useful as possible yet fun to read.

3. markm wrote: August 14, 2007 at 5:31 pm

   I love this site! The tutorials are nicely done and informative. One question I had on this particular tutorial was did you ‘size up’ any of the original images that you used (like the guns you grabbed from an ebay auction) and if so, did you just use the standard Photoshop Bicubic or something else? Initially I thought you might have sized up after converting to the dithered tiffs but realized you most likely would not have had the level of detail that you ended up with. Just wondering because sometimes hi-res photos are hard to come up with for projects like these!

   I would like to offer a heart-felt thanks for sharing your knowledge with this website.

4. admin wrote: August 14, 2007 at 8:30 pm

   The image for the guns were a large enough image that all I did was increase the resolution a bit before converting it to a dithered bitmap tiff.

   When you create a dither it’s pretty forgiving even if you have a somewhat lossy image to start with but that said the better the detail the better the final product.

   Normally however I tend to build at 100% so it makes the whole process easier. And if I really want to make sure I get what I need I usually go to the library and source out a photo that I can then scan in myself.

5. Compost Modernism | glitschka studios | illustrative designer wrote: August 20, 2009 at 9:22 pm

   [...] For the full back story on this design and to walk through the entire creative process visit IllustrationClass.com. This artwork is available for licensing. Compost Modernism Collage Illustration   [...]

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