What is 3D and Unusual Media?
3D art is anything that isn’t flat. This includes traditional sculpture (like clay or stone), as well as diorama-style setups, knitting and sewing, and the use of found objects. Unusual media is a catch-all phrase for art that isn’t made with a regular medium. Someone might paint with mud or peanut butter, for example. For 3D art to be printed in a book, it must be photographed, or otherwise translated onto a 2D page. I am including photography under the 3D umbrella, because the image originated in the 3D world, even though the end result is two-dimensional.
Visual Characteristics
Recognizing 3D art is relatively easy. Photorealism can be expected, because the artist is actually taking photos. Even when printed on a 2D page, the 3D work will often have shadows and other indications of depth. Look for natural textures that would be hard to draw but easy to photograph.
“3D” only signifies the type of space the artwork occupies. There is so much variation in material that there is no set of visual clues to look out for. Some books are illustrated with complete staged photographs, like Stranger in the Woods. Others will hand craft all their characters, scenery, and props, as Salley Mavor did for My Bed. (It’s all hand-stitched!) Sometimes, as in 1 Big Salad, the photographed elements will be isolated and embellished digitally.
Beth Krommes is known for illustrating with scratchboard, an unusual 2D medium, as you can see in Swirl by Swirl. I had to do a bit of guesswork, but it seems that Don Freeman utilized a scratching method as well for the classic Corduroy. Andy Harkness used ordinary clay for Wolfboy, but the sequel, Wolfboy is Scared, is very unusual. Harkness sculpted the illustrations using a virtual reality headset! This 3D art originated digitally, and then he added real life clay textures to the VR sculpture. You can read more about it in “A Note on the Art” located with the fine print at the beginning of the book.
Frequent Pairings
Digital tools are commonly used with photographs. Sometimes, as with One Hot Summer Day, the illustrations are true digital collage. Other times, digital tools are used to remove backgrounds or make small adjustments. 3D elements can also be combined digitally with 2D illustrations. Papercraft often ventures into 3D form as well.
Read More
Pictured here:
The Museum of Everything, Perkins
Exactly the Opposite, Hoban
If you Find a Leaf, Sicuro
One Hot Summer Day, Crews
Catside Up, Catside Down, Hrachovec
Friendsgiving, Siscoe
Snack Attack!, Border
Winter Lights, Hines
How are You Peeling?, Freymann
Come On In, Michalak
Desert Jungle, Baker
Thankful, Vickers
Dogzilla, Pilkey
I Spy: a Book of Picture Riddles, Wick
Nothing Special, Cooper
Too Many Pigs and One Big Bad Wolf, Calì
