Analysis of Stories

I have read each of the stories through thoroughly and have highlighted/annotated several sections that contain key descriptions and important points. See sketch book.

By created a summary of each story I know what will be important to illustrate in my images, as I want to stay as close as I can to the original descriptions.

Hansel and Gretel - (http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm015.html)

• Woods - children lead into --begin on a path
• Leave trail of silver stones and bread -- bread is more iconic, but stones may be easier to stand out on pathway
• Deep into woods
• Birds eating the breadcrumbs -- typical forest birds
• "Little Snow-White Bird" on branch lures children to house -- significant?
• House: "made entirely from bread", roof = cake, windows = clear sugar

Rapunzel - (http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm012.html)

• Tower in a forest -- different to what I had in mind (an open field)
• "Neither a door nor a stairway" and a tiny little window at the top
• Long hair, "fine as spun gold", braids
• Ties hair to "window hook", falls 20 yards to grounds -- consider perspective/height of tower

The Three Billy Goats Gruff - (http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/type0122e.html)

• Bridge over stream -- may be difficult to illustrate in allocated space/scale
• "Great ugly troll" - "eyes as big as saucers"; "nose as long as a poker"

Door Sizes and Scales

As I am going to create scenes that will be viewed through an open door and door frame, I need to look at standard door sizes. This will allow me to create designs that are the right scale for a normal door, which will therefore be more believable to my audience.

According to http://www.thediyworld.co.uk/internal_doors.html , a standard interior door is usually 1981mm x 762mm (6ft 6in x 2ft 6in). Therefore I will use this scale as a base to create my designs, final compositions and images. They will then be scaled back up when the images are being printed. I am unsure how I will acquire a number of doors and frames when I am putting up my exhibition; I may end up building them myself to save on costs.

I may also have to consider the extra height and width added to the size of the door by the door frame, as I will need the door to move smoothly but also for the image to fill the available space. When it comes to designing and making the actual doors, I will need to consider the type of handle and the depth of the doors.

However, for now this is all the information I need.

Initial Research

I have begun to think about the research I will need to conduct in order to complete this project to a high standard.


General Research Topics:

• Perspective
• Pathways
• Door sizes/scales
• Breakdown of Fairy Tales
• Scene description and details
• Film sets
• Fairy Tales in films
• Artists' Interpretations
• Matte painting/techniques

Each scene will have its own topics that I will need observational research to create a realistic likeness.


Rapunzel:

• Open field
• Pathway
• Castle tower
• Clouds/sky
• Plaits

Hansel and Gretel:

• Forest
• Path through forrest
• Breadcrumbs
• Possibly - house; gingerbread, sweets, icing etc

The Three Billy Goats Gruff:

• Open Bridge - wood/stone

These are not final lists of things; I need to study the narratives properly in order to pick out all the details that are integral to the scenes.

Initial Intentions

My interest in modern films, such as Alice in Wonderland, has drawn me to digital scenery. I am fascinated by the scene's ability to draw in an audience into believing in a world that is completely unreal, and so I want to create a similar effect with my images for this final project.


I intend to create a series of large scale digital images that illustrate a scene based on a well-known story. I have chosen a selection of fairy tales to illustrate, as these are well known stories that each have iconic features that my audience will connect with.


The stories I have chosen with descriptions of the scene I will illustrate:
Rapunzel - open field; castle tower with window; long plait of hair falling through the window reaching to the floor; blue sky; pathway leading to the castle.
Hansel and Gretel - pathway leading through a forest; breadcrumbs trail on path; possible glimpse of gingerbread house through the thick trees.
The Three Billy Goats Gruff - wooden bridge stretching ahead; glimpse of the troll's horns from under the bridge.
One of these scenes may change as I move through my project.


In my exhibition I intend to present these scenes behind doors that the audience will open and feel like they are walking into the scene. The pathways in each scene will lead from the door and into the scene, hopefully increasing the sensation of walking into another world.