Pictoplasma Magazine Review: #1 Face Value

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Some of my favourite artists within this edition include Jun Seo Hahm, Aman Khanna and Rilla Alexander.

Jun Seo Hahm: The illustrations presented for this artist were eye catching due to their 3D forms contrasting such simplistic expressions. I love these illustrations as they hold a strangely childish appearance due to the overly simplified expressions on each of the 4 characters. I find it interesting how the expressions of the characters within the ‘globule’ creatures are barely visible to ensure the main focus is the outer creature first before allowing the viewer to explore the rest of the design. I would love to be able to work in 3D however in the past I have struggled greatly trying to comprehend these software’s, and currently don’t have access to a device capable of downloading one since I have to work from home during the pandemic. However, 3D character design would definitely be something I would love to challenge myself with in the future as I feel the visual results can be so unique and eye-catching.

Aman Khanna: I found the medium used by this artist incredibly unusual yet satisfying, using clay they create simple character in style of vases and pottery. Being a medium I own I would be highly inspired to explore the development of my own clay characters at some point as it feels like a simple yet satisfying project. I really wanted to explore a medium I don’t typically associate within my field currently in order to build upon my interdisciplinary skills.

Rilla Alexander: My eyes were immediately drawn to the vibrant illustration by Alexander, and I was heavily inspired by their use of textured brushes and simple shading in order to create characters which still felt fully realised and interactive. I thought this would be considerably useful to the development of my skills within children’s illustration which shares a similarly simplistic design style.

This edition was inspired by their upcoming Berlin festival scheduled for 2020 however due to the Covid-19 pandemic it wasn’t able to go ahead. The event was planning on dedicating focus to the mask in contemporary visual culture and hoping to create an extended visual performance programme surrounding the art form. It also discusses current trends around the world of character design which I felt would be really useful to explore further considering my intended future specialism of children’s publishing and the necessity to be able to create interesting and attractive characters of my own.

Throughout this book there are contributions from a vast variety of communities including artists, academics, activists and curators. I love how there is such a broad range of topics covered within this edition and it was definitely an interesting read. It has shown the possibilities of social media and how artists around the globe can create an audience from this new online world!

The magazine is primarily aimed towards contemporary character design artists and highlights the power of interdisciplinary visual vocabulary; however it has become a platform which attracts artists from a broad spectrum of the creative industry.

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