This editorial is written in four hands by me (Fabiano Speziari) and Miwa. We want to tell how was born the idea of the Clod 555.
Edition 1 of 1
The star maker is my new collaboration with the Japanese artist Miwa. An unusual clod inhabited by friendly characters busy creating stars. Now you know how the stars are born!
https://superrare.com/artwork-v2/clod-555:-the-star-maker-11790
Normally the creative process is thought to be the thing that makes you come up with great ideas, easily and as numerous as candy. It is not thought that sometimes it is not easy to create something new. In some cases you spend hours, sometimes days, looking for the right idea, the one you like and makes you want to work as hard as possible to see it finished. Clod 555 is one such case.
Miwa and I started with the idea of creating a spatial subject. After a few days of working on the first idea, it didn’t convince me. We decided to brainstorm to help us find a different idea and that both of us liked.
So we decided to make a gingerbread house in space. I liked the job very much and I started making it. Working on the drawing, we realized that there was no general sense and we wanted to find a motive for this house on a strange clod-spacecraft.
It is from here, that talking and thinking, we decided to make everything a little more playful and dreamlike, and we invented the star maker. The star maker is a particular figure. He is the one who turns the space creating and shooting in the void the new stars that shine in the sky.
From this point we started to realize definitively what has become the Clod 555: the star maker.
I really enjoyed making this clod. I wanted to make it as sugary as possible. I have studied various gingerbread houses online. In the end I decided to use a lot of icing and colored smarties. I put several giant sweets on the lawn, a bit like in certain fairy tales. The work had to be dreamlike. I then inserted the star shooting cannon and the sugar tank to give a factory-like appearance to the scene. I needed to give a minimum of credibility to the scene and somehow tie it to the real world. I always like, in my clods, to make them as playful as possible, but always leaving details that remind us that everything originates from reality.
The creative process behind Clod 555
Background and clod process
Miwa and I have a similar approach to the drawing process and it is also the one used for the Clod 555. I start from the sketch by hand, more or less defined. Sometimes, if I have to define particular shapes, but which must be precise, I first create the 3D model. For the 555 I made the model of the spaceship, the house and other parts and used it as a base, to avoid creating objects with a wrong visual perception.
Then I digitize it and start making black borders. Once I have defined the lines of the most important blocks, I put the first colors. After this part of the “structures”, I start with the details.
I finish everything and animate the parts that compete with me. Afterwards, I send everything to Miwa who works on my images and create the characters.
Characters processes: Miwa
Step 1, making character’s images
Try hand drawing first to make sure costume is suitable and make sense.
When I started the rabbit carries the stars in a basket, but baking pan makes much more sense because stars are baked at factory. Also, it is easier to show people what it is and what is going on next, so I changed the idea for it in the drawing.
Practice a little bit until I’m happy with the way everything looks.
Very first, our idea was only one character brings stars and launches them, however I felt it is too small space I use in Fabiano’s artwork. I wanted to use more widely and more fun to look at. Then, we add cat to deliver sugar. Rabbit and cat are usually team in our past artworks, so it was a good fit.
Step 2, making sure how many frames I need to create in KRITA.
For example, when cat opens the lid of the sugar tank, I need to make at least four frames for different angles of arm even though face or other parts are same. I always want to make images in the right sequence at once as much as possible because it helps me keep it consistent in KRITA. This step of hand drawing helps for next KRITA step.
BIO
Miwa was born and grew up in Japan. Japanese animation and comics influenced her in early life. Miwa uses a variety of methods to create her artwork including 2D digital painting, digital photography, pixel and voxel. Miwa’s characters are cute, round, and fluffy with soft colours and aim to make people feel happiness.
You can find Miwa on twitter @Miwa79530603 , Instagram @miwa_WV
BIO Fabiano Speziari
Half industrial designer half artist, i like use different media. Pop art, colors and minimalism are the guides of my work. I live somewhere on a clod.
Find me here: https://linktr.ee/fabianospeziari
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