Dear Kathryn,
 
I do not do the digital work myself – I use a good local business to create digital files to send to my clients - but I am careful to create my original artwork to be able to withstand enlargement. I suppose if you are able and willing to go and rework the art digitally after having your scan made, my approach might not be so important.
But here it is, if of interest to you.
 
I usually work in watercolor and ink line, so I use very black India ink to make thin lines and then I layer my watercolors. I check the art by making enlarged copies of a small portion as I work. This is to make sure it holds up to whatever % enlargement I am aiming for. Since figuring this simple process out many years ago, my work has held up very well when produced as a mural. I think it looks much better as the mural it is designed to be ... rather than as the original artwork I painted.
 
It requires a slightly different “mindset” to work this way, but it garners good results for me.
 
Best,
Anne
www.annerunyon.com
 
From: [log in to unmask] href="mailto:[log in to unmask]">Kathryn Killackey
Sent: Wednesday, February 02, 2011 12:39 PM
To: [log in to unmask] href="mailto:[log in to unmask]">[log in to unmask]
Subject: [SCIART] Increasing the size of artwork for display?
 
Dear all,
 
  I have a process question that I hope some more experienced illustrators might be able to answer.  I am at the very beginning of a project creating three historic scenes that will eventually be reproduced for display, each on a panel aprroximately 6ft by 2ft. I've been taught and it has been my preference to create original artwork that is at least slightly larger than its final format, scaling things down always tightens things up nicely.  But in this case it seems a waste of time, not to mention daunting.  Is it alright to blow up an image, say, 200%?  If I painted a 3 x 1 ft scene and did a high resolution scan, would it look alright enlarged?  I would probably be working in watercolor and graphite, though I could go digital as well.  I'd really appreciate any advice you have to give.
 
Thanks,
 
Kathryn    

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