illustration - Morghan Harper

Commissioned Characters // 2021

These illustrations are a set created for a group of Dungeons & Dragons players who were wanting to visualise their characters.

Bringing these characters to life was a lot of fun and it was great to practice creating a cohesive cast of characters. I focused a lot of attention on illustrating the group to look like they belonged in the same world, without letting their features become too alike. I think this was successful, especially in the faces and the rendering of the final drawings.

The Change // 2019

The Change is a short visual novel, created as an exploration into the visualisation of emotion and how this may help readers to become more emotionally aware.

In this illustrated project, I draw on various techniques that I have encountered throughout research, tests and many post-it note sketches to convey the emotive side of the short story, originally written by Jonathan Rosenbaum.

First ideas of concertina folded book mocked up.

Experimenting with how I visualise emotions.

Collecting impressions from other students and lecturers.

First version of visualising the story, and experimenting with a vertical layout when reading.

Art style experiments from research

Art Style experiments from research.

Final images.

Final images.

Final images.

Final images.

Final images.

Final images.

Charlotte Badger (For Radio NZ) // 2019

Charlotte Badger is a lady of many faces, with each mention of her name painting a different story of her life. To many, she is believed to be a boisterous pirate who seduced men into mutiny. However, for my representation of her for this project, I wanted to reflect on the reality of who she would have been.

I have focused my illustration around her time aboard the Venus, which she cradles in her arms, the ship replacing her own child who is barely mentioned in many accounts. The scene is set in the Bay of Islands, where it is said that she settled after her journey.

Ruru and Kiwi's Midnight Adventure // 2018

This is a story about two birds who go for an adventure through the forest to find their friends and celebrate their time under the moon. Immediately I decided that I wanted to create something different from your average New Zealand children’s book. I felt as though the majority of New Zealand focused children’s books used the same formula, especially when based on native wildlife.

I wanted to challenge myself to move away from the usual earthy tones and realistic renderings. This led me to think about myth and legend, as many of these animals are not seen regularly by the public. With their interesting shapes and colours, they could almost be seen as magical.