Creating a Fictional Character

8th Grade Texture Assignment in Ink

By Angel M. Ramos

Begin by researching a variety of animals (mammals, insects, fish, reptiles, etc.) for different elements of your beast. You may also use man-made objects like armor, cars, planes, etc. Use a chart like this to help guide your research. Try to have at least three choices for every component.

Head _________________,__________________,________________

Body_________________, __________________, ________________

Arms ________________,__________________,_________________

Hands _______________,__________________,_________________

Legs _________________,__________________,_________________

Feet _________________,___________________,________________

Wings ________________,___________________,________________

Tail __________________,___________________,________________

Texture (scales, hair, armor, etc) _______________________________

Details (teeth, finger nails, claws, etc)___________________________

Setting_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Experiment putting the pieces together and changing the poses. Start with the body and then add the limbs and details. You may change the size of any components to create a better fit. Try to make the pieces look like they belong together—make it believable.

Do this in pencil.

Once you have decided what your character will look like, rough sketch it into a background—a setting.

Work lightly in pencil. Draw see-through at first.

Try to create an interesting composition.

Clean up the rough draft and add the details.

Remember to work lightly. These lines will guide your inking. They will be erased at the end.

Switch to a ball point pen and begin adding texture and value.

Remember: texture is created by adding values and patterns.

Use the pencil lines as your guide, but do not outline in pen.

Be patient. Work from light to dark, you can always darken an area that is too light.

Work one area at a time; create contrast to separate the shapes.

Continue this process until the drawing is complete.

Adjust any values to improve contrast.

Erase all pencil lines except the border.

This a 100 point project

Texture studies and animal research 25 points

Quality of the design: unification of individual components to create a believable creature. 25 points

Use of ball point pen to create Textures, through the use of lines, value, pattern, and contrast. 25 points

Workmanship: overall quality of the project. 25 points

Project and research materials are due on: