Files
Academic Level at Time of Creation
Senior
Date of Creation
Spring 5-26-2024
Artist Statement
The 9th Life Cat Café is a cat-themed café based in Queens, New York. Featuring an app prototype with mobile ordering, four large-scale branding concept illustrations, social media ad campaigns, and a large-scale menu, the 9th Life Cat Café is sure to capture your attention with its attentiveness to detail and delicious treats. The color palette and logo are both inspired by a calico cat, which is a breed that is viewed as “good luck” in many cultures. The 9th Life Cat Café also features examples of cats that would be available in shelters to encourage cat adoption from shelters.
I view design as a feast for the eyes, leaving viewers hungry for more knowledge and inspiration. I enjoy bringing food into my designs and illustrations because everyone can relate in some way. Incorporating elements of food into my illustrations mirrors the joy and satisfaction found in culinary creations, as each bold color, shape, and texture resonates with the same sensory experience as a well-crafted dish. Through my work, I aim to evoke not only visual satisfaction but also deeper emotional connections, tapping into the universal experience of eating. I wanted to find a way to combine my interests in food illustration and cat adoption, so I chose a cat café to seamlessly merge the two ideas together. In my designs, vibrant colors and enticing textures bring to life the atmosphere of a cozy café, while playful cats add a touch of whimsy and charm.
My work centers around branding, illustration, and UI design to create playful and dynamic designs. Drawing upon my past experiences, I've meticulously crafted the café's logo, iconography, and typography to reflect its fun and cozy atmosphere. My illustration technique is drawn from how I create paintings. I start with a sketch, then I begin blocking colors in and painting over top to render each object, using my stylus like a paintbrush with different hand pressures. The process mostly consists of layering and blending until you've reached the layer limit. In paintings, I often use pinks and purples in the shading of objects and figures. I have translated that into my illustrations, using purple on a multiply layer to create more interesting shadows. I favor illustration and user interface design because I love to pay close attention to detail and create immersive experiences. The prototype for 9th Life Cat Café uses elements and techniques that are similar to my other pieces but allow for a more interactive experience with its mobile ordering features.
I draw a lot of inspiration from artists like Ross Tran, Vivienne Medrano, and Studio Ghibli, taking note of their use of color, lighting and shadow, and different drawing styles. Studio Ghibli's immersive realism and lush environments influence my aim for a blend of realism and magic in my illustrations. Vivienne Medrano's dynamic lighting and bold colors, along with Ross Tran's detailed and painterly style, inspire my lighting and composition techniques. My food illustrations are inspired by Alai Ganuza, a contemporary oil painter. The different shades of teal and purple in her works always makes me come back for more, and I love how she uses texture and lighting in things such as berries and glass. The approach of different elements of design and illustration by these artists have helped pave the path for me to find my own style of illustration and design, which I have implemented into the work shown in the 9th Life Cat Café.
Advisor/Mentor
Gregory Scott Cook
Description
This exhibition consisted of four 24 in x 36 in illustrations, an app prototype, six social media ads, five cat adoption posters, and a 36 in x 24 in menu. Other small details include business cards, stickers, and vinyl. All illustrations are created in Procreate and Photoshop. All designs were created using Photoshop, Illustrator, and InDesign. All illustrations and the menu are mounted on foam-core.
Photo Credit
Myself (Bethany Burbage)
Recommended Citation
Burbage, Bethany, "9th Life Cat Café" (2024). B.F.A. Practicum Exhibition (ART 498). 127.
https://digitalcommons.murraystate.edu/art498/127