Compose two styles
Rather than blending two styles into a middle, this assigns them roles: one carries the structure, the other appears as an accent. Where the two fight, it says so before you start.
How to divide the work
- Composition
- Follow Kawaii: One large face centered, space kept clear all around it
- Type
- Set in Kawaii's manner (Rounded gothic, wide letterforms, even stroke weight), and let Shōjo Manga's lettering (Let hand lettering and monologue run into the white space outside the panels.) appear only where you want the eye to catch.
- Material
- Ground in Kawaii's material (Desaturated pastel and white, matte rather than glossy); bring in exactly one thing from Shōjo Manga (Make light by layering screentone and cutting out white.).
- Colour
- Build on #e9e6dd, #67635d, #171615 and admit one accent from #e9e6dd, #67635d, #171615.
Where they fight
These two are already listed as related, so the join should come easily.
Caution
- Kawaii Assuming that bigger eyes and paler color make something cute loses the tension in the contour and leaves only a slack face.
- Shōjo Manga Borrowing the eyes and the flowers ends in mere signs. The structure of the panels is what carries the emotion.
Image prompt
An original image that takes its structure from Kawaii (Aesthetic, 1970s–) and its accent from Shōjo Manga (Style, 1950s–). Structural cues: Faces of circles and empty space; Big eyes, elided mouths; Pastel softness; Looseness and defenselessness. Accent cues, used sparingly: Figures and panels that cross the frame; Flowers and light streaming through the background; Eyes drawn large and worked in detail; Monologue spilling into the margins. Composition: One large face centered, space kept clear all around it. Type and lettering: Rounded gothic, wide letterforms, even stroke weight. Let one material quality come from the second style: Make light by layering screentone and cutting out white.. Mood: Intimacy, Play, Nostalgia, Exhilaration. Color: build on #e9e6dd, #67635d, #171615 with a single accent drawn from #e9e6dd, #67635d, #171615. Constraints: do not imitate, reference or name any specific artist, studio, brand, character or copyrighted work. Produce an original composition in the general period languages described above.
Related entries
- Kawaii 1970s– / Aesthetic / Pop
Japan's aesthetic of round contours, big eyes, pastel and looseness that summons the urge to protect. From girls' handwriting and fancy goods it softened the surface of an entire society, from public signage to corporate mascots.
- Shōjo Manga 1950s– / Style / Illustration Styles
A field that built its own grammar for translating psychology into space. Panels are broken open, flowers and stars scatter across the background, and the inner voice runs out into the margins. The large eyes and the overlaid panels are devices for drawing the flow of feeling rather than the flow of time.
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