Deciding upon scenery...

Now I am happy with my characters, I want to make sure that the environment they live in frames and merges well, but doesn't take any of the impact away from the Nikahrat.
If anything, I think my environments should be drawn in a similar style to that of my human characters. In this way, it shows that the humans belong in this world but it has alienated the Nikahrat through ignorance.

CASE STUDY 1: Kozyndan

Illustrative duo Kozyndan are best known for their juxtaposing redesigns of famous Hokusai prints and creating intricate, large scale panoramic paintings depicting some of the duo's regular characters (like Bunnyfish) along with one off oddities.

The even though these surreal settings would never exist, I believe that the clever trick in blending these strange characters into believable surroundings is the use of line and colour.

Lighting seems to be important too. If the colour and lighting differ between the environment and the characters, then it looks as if they don't belong together. Even altering the shades of colour makes a big difference as that is a technique to enhance and bring a particular element to attention.

Using similar shades and tones will help blend elements together.




CASE STUDY 2: Roman Dirge/Lenore

In this case, Roman Dirge uses simple, almost generic backgrounds in which to position his characters in. Everything is drawn in a similar style to show that the world belongs to Lenore (the main character) and everything that revolves around her is as odd and disastrous as she is.

In the case of the comic extract above from Lenore's graphic novel "Swirlies", Lenore has been invited to a party of a local 'normal girl'. The girl, guests and house all seem to be in lighter colour or appear to have some de-saturation. This makes Lenore, Ragamuffin and Wicket stand out as all three characters are very stark black and white (with Wicket having a bright orange head).

The background only becomes interesting when it forms a vital part of the narrative or it is used to frame a specific character or object. This main cell is a good example as it is at a crucial part in Lenore's story and is about to dive into how she came into existence as a living dead girl.

The Character of Mortimer Fledge is framed by the near symmetrical trees on either side of him and all other background objects are shorter than him, elongating his figure. Again, the colours in the background seem desaturated. However, Fledge himself has a very 'deathly pale' complexion so what helps him stand out is the flashes of red in his eyesight and mechanical device. The brass/yellow colour of the rest of the device also helps.

CASE STUDY 3: Mr Gauky

This a pretty much what I would like to achieve!
I really like the static, black line backgrounds and buildings harbouring and making way for the four odd characters. Though it is called "Panic on the Streets of Porto", the four colourful characters draw so much attention to themselves and the particular objects they are interacting with, that the rest of the scenery and surroundings appears lifeless and dead.
This, however, does not mean that the background has less importance or should not have as much detail put into it.
The fact that everything is realistic and proportionate adds an extra charm to the environment and makes the characters look more settled.