{"id":25,"date":"2024-09-19T08:28:31","date_gmt":"2024-09-19T08:28:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/art111.tehinnahkitcher.dcreate.domains\/?page_id=25"},"modified":"2024-12-14T17:25:44","modified_gmt":"2024-12-14T17:25:44","slug":"illustrator","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/art111.tehinnahkitcher.dcreate.domains\/?page_id=25","title":{"rendered":"Illustrator"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Self Portrait as Pattern<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Tehinnah Kitcher “Stitched Together, Whole.” 2024. Digital Art made in Adobe Illustrator<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Overview<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

For my first project I was tasked with creating a self portrait incorporating pattern in Adobe Illustrator. I wanted this project to reflect my personal identity as someone who has strong ties to both Ghanaian and Ukrainian culture. My other artwork is very self referential and usually involves me drawing myself. I chose to divert from that path in order to challenge myself to explore new avenues of self expression in this project. I ended up creating a piece that is a reflection of my unique identity all while figuring out Adobe Illustrator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thumbnail Sketches<\/em> & Inspiration<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I created ten thumbnail sketches that drew upon my background. I played around with kente,<\/em> adinkra <\/em>symbols, and the traditional Ukrainian \u0440\u0443\u0448\u043d\u0438\u043a<\/em> (rushnyk) <\/em>style. Through this process I was able to determine that I was mainly interested in the gye nyame<\/em> and sankofa <\/em>symbols. Interestingly, the aspects of my cultures that I sought to unite in this project were both textile in nature. I decided to lean into that and to create my own kente-rushnyk fusion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Inspiration<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I was inspired by adinkra <\/em>symbols. These are Ghanaian symbols that represent ideas and proverbs. Gye Nyame<\/em> means only God or except God. It is one of the most famous of the adinkra symbols. The sankofa<\/em> represents learning from the past to build for the future. I was also inspired by Ukrainian rushnyk<\/em>, a traditional embroidered towel. It is used in many rituals and customs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Gye Nyame<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Sankofa<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Rushnyk<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Kente<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Previous Iterations<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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At first I only had two sankofa <\/em>because I was afraid of the piece looking overly crowded. I also did not want to use color for that same reason. I am glad that I took some time to process these concerns because adding the color and the kente<\/em> border not only made my art more lively but allowed me to get better acquainted with Illustrator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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At this stage I felt like there was something missing. I decided to chop up the rushnyk <\/em>pattern, transform the elements and then weave them into the preexisting border.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Final Project<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The kente <\/em>border is intertwined with a rushnyk <\/em>pattern with gye nyame <\/em>rooted soundly in the midst of it all. The symmetry of the four sankofas <\/em>and rushnyk <\/em>pattern serve to anchor the work and tie it all together. I wanted to avoid a cluttered or disharmonious appearance because that would contradict the purpose of this project. I am happy with how it came together and believe it represents me, someone who is made up of many cultures stitched together, whole.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Tehinnah Kitcher “Stitched Together, Whole.” 2024. Digital Art made in Adobe Illustrator<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Annotated Bibliography<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAsante Kente Cloth \u2013\u2013 Minneapolis Institute of Art.\u201d n.d. New.artsmia.org. https:\/\/new.artsmia.org\/programs\/teachers-and-students\/teaching-the-arts\/artwork-in-focus\/asante-kente-cloth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n