School of Visual Storytelling

Challenge:

Design an image with ONE strong focal point with at least one figure or animal that tells a visual story. Include 50 different recognizable objects in your illustration.

Size:

Your choice.

Rules:

1. You may not count items that are attached to the interior or exterior of a structure such as flooring, lighting, cabinets, signage, roofing, windows, shelving, fencing, trees, etc. If you need tools to take it out of a room, out of the ground, off of a building you can’t count it.
2. You may repeat objects like candy canes or heart boxes but only count one of them in your 50.
3. You may not count parts of an object, i.e. a cupcake has 3 parts: cup, cake, and icing but you may only count it as one object. A person is only one object - you can’t count each article of clothing they are wearing...however if they are carrying something in a pocket, on their shoulder, or in their arms you can count it.
4. In order to be counted your audience must be able to identify each of your 50 objects.

Learn how to design a complex image with one main focal point

Have you ever wanted to create a complex image but didn't know where to start? If you haven't you will probably be asked to create such images for books, magazines, adverts one day. One of the most difficult assignments is illustrating crowd scenes, interiors of bookstores, toy stores, party scenes, laboratories, and stadium shots filled with people, objects, vehicles, etc. Learning the tricks and process that other illustrators use to organize drawings like this is invaluable.

Will Terry has been teaching this assignment for his UVU classes in Utah for the past 6 years. He is launching this as an open challenge to anyone in the world! Can you draw 50 things in one illustration with one main focal point? Only you can answer this question!

Even though this class is presented in a digital format it is valid for any medium including: pencil, charcoal, pen, digital, etc.