Character design

I create a character for various reasons. For a client's project, for a new product design, or just because I feel like it. At the end of 2014 I was a bit 'worried' that I didn't have any resolutions for the next year, so I thought hard and decided I would like to focus (part of) my attention to editorial illustration. It's been on my 'I want to do that' list for ages, but I've never actually done it. So that changed and hence the need for a new character. I felt my current work was to childish. Most of my illustrations are children/young people and that's just too limiting. So first of course I procrastinated, did other things, but one night (yesterday), I couldn't sleep, so I grabbed some pen and paper en started doodling.



My next step are the emotions, what does her face look like when she's happy, sad, annoyed, etc.



Than I play with the body type. Is she small, large, tall, short? The more I create, the more she comes to live. I imagine she's a mom, who works parttime so she can also be there for her kid(s).



This is normally where I stop and start creating what I had planned. For example, I took these same steps for Daily Anke. But I'm not only making a character, I'm trying to create a new style, so I continued and sketched situations (I'm really happy with the running one and the one with the baby! These were hard -for me- to do).



And last, but not least, I also wanted to draw different kind of people. Various ethnics, sexes and ages.

I'm really happy with how it turned out and can't wait to start creating illustrations!