Character Design
Here you can find a small sampling of characters I have designed, concept art, renders, and reference sheets, as well an explanation of my creative process utilized in creating a character.
In-Dept Character Concept: Esther Dabrowski
Esther Dabrowski is an 81-year-old Jewish lesbian who is an ex-roller derby athlete and women’s rights activist. She lives in Manhattan with her partner Lillian Thomas, and when they aren’t roller skating at the disco or going for long walks together with their dog Kochanie, they run a quiet underground organization that helps queer people dealing with AIDS.
First Concept- I didn’t like how frail she felt.
Second concept- She felt too posh.
This ended up being the concept I went with.
This is an in-depth video I created a few years back describing my character designing process for more minor characters.
De Donde + Pitched Sequel Character Designs
These are a few images depicting some character sketches from De Donde, my graphic novel, and the sequel I had planned to make before I settled on an illustrated cookbook for my final Thesis in college.
Additional Character Designs
Silas is a character of mine that has gone through several redesigns since his creation in 2014. His color palette has developed significantly over time, becoming more natural and earth-toned. This allows the bright orange kamquat fruits to pop amongst the earthy greens.
Argo is another character that I have had since 2014, though his redesign is much less drastic in comparison to silas’s. I remember being inspired by Moomin, care bears, and other loveable creatures when making this species. I called them Millos, a hybrid of the words marshmallow and pillow. Argo was designed specifically to serve as the friendly plush sidekick of my main character Estelle. The full turnaround of Argo allows the viewer to better understand how this creature exists in a 3D space.
My fondness for Ohio’s natural wildlife has grown over the past few years, and I felt moved to create a possum character with some sort of twist. Her theming is inspired by my eyes, which have a bright yellow peripupillary ring surrounded by a hazel green. She is also inspired by sunflowers, which tie back to the patterning on my eyes as well as the plant having a significance within my childhood.
