re: Too similar to someone elses work?
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Hey guys. Would love your thoughts if you can spare a moment.
I'm designing some greeting cards to sell on a fruit farm. In one of the cards I want to show a woman eating scones surrounded by the jars of jam she has just made.
I want to ask if my sketch is too similar to this work from an illustrator I admire. Obviously not my intention to copy, although concerned it may look too similar. I filmed my sitting at a table to try and figure out a pose that look aesthetically appealing and this is what I ended up with.
Any thoughts?
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@mollylgm I've seen TONS of similar compositions. Is your style similar to this illustrator's? Would the color palette be so similar that it looks like a ripoff? Otherwise, I personally wouldn't see these two compositions and thought you copied. But that's just my opinion.
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Looks good so far. It’s funny, they both remind me of this print by Mary Cassatt. She was very influenced by Japanese woodblock prints (and didn’t try to hide it!)
I think if you are concerned about resembling one specific artist, try to find a broader range of inspiration. Then you can have references that everyone’s seen before, but you will be connecting dots that no one has connected before.
ps who is the illustrator you admire because I really like the style too
Mary Cassatt, The Letter, 1890 -
@mollylgm for me, I think there's little to no resemblance at all. the characters look different, composition is different, concept is different, even the camera angle is different. I think you're safe.
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@Melissa-Bailey-0 Thanks for sharing your opinion. I only work digitally - although aiming for a more painterly style, and the artist (Becca Stadlander) only works traditionally. Wouldn't do a very different colour palette.
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@LouD thanks for introducing me to Mary Cassatt and for your advice. Her name is Becca Stadlander
Yeah I defiantly worry about it as I like both her style and the subjects matter she draws.
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@Nyrryl-Cadiz Thanks. Yeah I thought i might be thinking too much about it
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@mollylgm I saw the original painting and knew it was Becca's right away...I worked for years with her. She's a great artist. I think the subject matter is common because the action of sitting at a table drinking is common. I wouldn't worry about copying at all. I saw you mentioned you work digital so I'm sure it will have a different vibe anyways. Would love to see your finished piece, please share!
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This isn’t the feedback you asked for lol but thought I might share my experience. I have had a few times when the ‘influence’ of another artist or designer is too strong in my mind, and so I unfollow them and stop looking at their work.
Once this artist friend of mine and I were making similarish paintings... and it seemed like our styles and feels were moving closer and closer together. So I altered what I was doing to avoid it, and I’ll tell ya, I think that really threw me off for a while. I wish I’d just stopped looking at her work instead and carried on my own way.
Another time, I really loved the work by an artist but it didn’t fit the direction I wanted to go at all. But it kept popping up in the peripheries of my mind, trying to sneak it’s way in. So I unfollowed her too lol!If you’re having that concern early on in your sketches, it might be a sign that the influence is too strong and you need a break from seeing her work so you can follow yours
. It’s a weird caveat to looking at your influences/role models, I think. Just something to think about! -
@KaraDaniel aha her work is gorgeous. How did you work her? I agree with your comment on your action....i mean there are only so many ways to drink a cup of tea or eat a scone while sitting at a table in a natural and aesthetic looking way. Thanks for your words of encouragement
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@KayPotter No thank you for sharing! I totally agree with everything you've said and going to give it a go. Sometimes I feel myself falling into the trap of too much comparison with certain artists/illustrators and it gets kind of unhealthy as I end up feeling simultaneously that nothing I make is good enough because it doesn't look like X, Y or Zs work, but at the same time I don't want it to either!
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@mollylgm we both worked as botanical artists at a company that created garden railways across the US and Canada. She left to become a full time illustrator and is very talented!
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@mollylgm
Well said! -
@KaraDaniel oh wow! That sounds awesome
