Robot Character Upgrade 3.0

After years of loyal service, it was time to retire my old mascot character and replace her with a new and improved design. Whilst I liked her overall look, in practice I found the proportions and details too rigid to work with in a dynamic way.

This redesign addresses those issues by using bolder and more expressive lines, reduced detail, longer limbs, as well as a colouring style that’s more in line with my current work.

Process and Results

My process always starts with a planning and sketching session. I made a few notes about the colours and placements so I could better align the new character with my branding and collateral. I then used Procreate App on my iPad to sketch up some ideas, playing with different proportions and stylisations before eventually settling on a little square faced robot with a messy hairdo.

The sketches were then exported from my iPad into Adobe Illustrator for inking and colouring, then moved the artwork into Photoshop to experiment with different textures and finishes.

Evolution

My little robot character has undergone a fair few stylistic and structural changes over the years – from the simple single layer linework I used in 2012, through to the more colourful layered iteration I’m using now. What started out as a little vector doodle for my website’s footer has now become a big part of my branding – and I have whole load of ideas for developing it further.

If you’d like to commission a character of your own, please get in touch.