Families Come in All Shapes and Sizes

I just woke up from my itis (aka my Thanksgiving coma) and I figured what better time to talk about this project that relates to family than the day after Thanksgiving?

....Maybe posting the day of Thanksgiving would've made more sense, but better late than never right?


My second project for my Character Design class was to make a family line up using two different shapes to make up each family member: The father, the mother, the son, the daughter and their pet.

Now going from this:

to this:

Was an assignment that I had no problem working on.
However, making thirty different sets of families as each family member has two different shapes for every single line up?

I admit, that part of my homework was pretty difficult for me.
My teacher stated that I had to use shapes, but wasn't specific on what kind of shapes, which is why some of the line ups are really weird.

These are critique sketches from my teacher on my family line up. He always wants us to redo our projects by the end of the quarter after he critiques our projects. Here are a few things that he expects me to focus on, according to the picture:

• Try to keep their hands out and at their sides.
• Have the hair overlap the head. Make it pop out.
• Make necessary contrast (ex. the shape of the son's head should contrast to the shape of his glasses, or vice versa)

Here we have some critique sketches from Alejandro Lee, who generously gave me some advice when I showed him my portfolio at CTN.  His notes say the following:

• Dominant Shape
•  Complementary Shapes
• Rounds w/ Rounds, Straight w/ Straight
• Opposite/Contrasting Shapes As Smaller/Less Obvious Shapes; Within The Silhouettes 

I have to admit, deciding when I should complement and when I should contrast a characters features is difficult. However I'm still learning, and I can't stop trying; if there is one thing that I've learned throughout my years of drawing is this:

Keep Going

 I hope all of you had a great Thanksgiving and if you're going out shopping today,  Please Be Safe!

Comments and critiques are greatly appreciated!  

Character Design Project 1: Simple Female and Male Character

If I met you at CTN Animation Expo, then chances are you had a look at my Character Design Portfolio. If not, then I would like to introduce to you my first projects from my Character Design class: The Simple Female and Male Character!

Simple Female Character: A hard worker who deals with the finances of the company (which can sometimes stress her out a bit). In her spare time, she works out to stay in shape, for a healthy body means a healthy lifestyle. She always dresses to impress, regardless of the occasion.

Simple Male Character: The recruiter with the perfect pitch! He makes sure that only the ones who are willing to work hard are hired to help the business grow. You are either with him or in his way, and you do not want to get in his way (seriously, he's a pretty intimidating guy). He dresses sharp, but only on the job.

Fun Fact: These characters are actually based off of my Mother and Stepfather. They work together in the same business (http://www.arspromise.com/) and they always look good doing it, hence why I put them in business attire. 

Now I do plan on making a few changes to their design. Thanks to the advice of James Lopez, Alejandro Lee, and many other artists that I met last weekend, I have an idea of how I can complement their shapes better, as well as how I can exaggerate their actions more; make their actions express their personalities better. I hope to have their new designs up before Christmas.

There are more drawings to come!

Comments and critiques are greatly appreciated!

I'm Back! Thank You For Your Patience!

YES!
Finally, FINALLY my Wi-fi is up and running again.

First and foremost I want to thank anyone who has been waiting since Sunday for me to post up my work. I was hoping that I would have the internet running by then but when I got home that night, it still wasn't working. Now a day later, I can start uploading my work. Better late than never right?

I also want to thank each and every one of you who accepted my business card at the CTN Animated Expo, and thank you for your words of wisdom. Never in my years did I think that I would meet such amazing artists! Everyone's advice inspired me to improve, to become a better 2D animator, or a Character Designer. Perhaps even a Storyboard Artist, a Comic Book Artist, an Illustrator! The possibilities are endless! I decided that not only will I show you 2D Animation and Character Design, but anything that I consider to be my best work.

Any comments and critiques are greatly appreciated! It will help me improve, and maybe someday I could work for you or along side you.

So if you have received a card that has this picture-

Then you have come to the right place.

Thank you again, and welcome!

Welcome to My Profolio!

Hello everyone!

My name is Tori Lauren Dockery and as of now I am attending the Art Institute of California to major in Media Arts and Animation. After I graduate in Spring 2016 my next step is to get me a career in either 2D Animation or Character Design. I hope that this portfolio will get me there.
 

Enjoy!

Tori