Responsive RSI Apparel

So one of my favorite clothing companies has put out a new competition looking for new talent to join their collective of amazing illustrators/artist. This has got me very excited as i feel i will be able to explore my dark side and try my hand at the kind of art i love most.

So i can only submit one design for the final design but im going to try come up with at least 5 designs to choses from and to make this my substance brief.

The brief they have put out is completely open in terms of designs and content.

Here is the page that I will become part of if by some miracle I win,

http://rsiapparel.co.uk/artist/

TONY GRAYSTONE

http://www.sneakystudios.com/

Ideas and Development 

I feel that this is my chance to go skull crazy and draw lots of different versions of the skulls i draw, also going to try out some more ideas with adding other elements to in and around them. 

Isograph Pen in sketchbook, then just changed the levels in photoshop to get the white whiter and the blacks blacker.

So I have finished a design that i am happ y to submit for the competition, I had to play around with a t shirt template and but my design on it. I just downloaded ne from google and pasted my design on the top of it. 

Here is another design i dad as always its a black print on a white t shirt. 

Here i have used the same design but used it on the back of the shirt in large oversized print style, I have added some colour to this to see how it would look. I really like how by adding some red to the text it makes it stand out a lot more but its not over powering. The skull been done in gray which would be nice, but it would have to done using waterbased printing inks for me as i really don't like how Plastisol inks look and make you sweat loads under the printed area.  Also over time plastisol inks crack and contract on the t shirt whereas water based inks just live happily with the fabric and just fade a little over time. 

Process

 Work with photshop and hand drawn image

Drawn on different paper then the layers stacked in photoshop to create finished image. 

Dip pen and ink with different nips to get the style of lettering for the band logo.

Had to change file size and format to get design to submit, too large file size.

DPI was set at 400 turned back to 300 DPI,

Canvas size was massive so halfed it too made file size a lot smaller for submission. 

SOme feed back i got from the guy at RSI 

Hey Sam,

How are you? Yeh of course, as we said, we can only give our own feedback, which always remember is 1 persons opinion. I think the piece is well on the way, your using dot work well and it seems your beginning to use it in the right amount - some people can over do it stipple everything. I think the crossbones are the bit that need a bit more resolving but that is something that more drawing will solve in no time. Like you say, the winner nailed it, but i can’t believe that with practice you won’t be killing it in the near future.

Hope that helps

Not here to put anyone down only give you constructive criticism - always and i stress this….YOU ENTERED. I struggle with people that don’t try but expect to be great, all the artists you and i admire have worked thousands of hours to get where they are. It isn’t just boom I’m great

Speak soon

Rob