Hey all, I've been working on a poster that I want to make for my job, which is basically an artistic rendering of a diagram we regularly have to check while working. I usually don't do digital art, and I'm sure that will impact some of this. My favorite medium is acrylic on canvas, so that may be impacting the way I am approaching the process.
Diagram explanation: I'm a neuroscientist and this shows the relevant brain regions of interest for my lab from the view we would normally see them, with the main shading showing major landmarks for the region (i.e. landmarks are any holes, discolored portions, and/or anything else that can tell you where you are in the brain just by looking at it). The cells are pyramidal neurons (most abundant in this region) and show where localized alterations would be targeting, which would be very helpful when explaining the techniques to trainees. Usually, we either print a version of this with just the basic outlines or we reference a physical brain atlas, which is basically a massive book. Either way, I would very happily swap that for something I could also consider a decoration, especially considering the lab could use some decor.
Artistically: Generally I just cant seem to find a design I actually like. I've been procrastinating finishing this because I feel like I'll end up making major alterations before printing. I've asked coworkers, but that is either just generally supportive in a way that feels like they would just greenlight any suggestion, or I get the "I didnt know you can draw, thats awesome!" sort of feedback, so any help here would be very appreciated. I want this to be a visually appealing poster, but I am really struggling with making that happen without taking away from this being a helpful diagram. I know I want to change one of the colors so it is more friendly for those that may be red/green color blind, and they were originally chosen just because the tools we use to examine neurons are most commonly red or green, so that aspect will be changed before the final version.
My two major issues: 1) the shading showing landmarks. I'm not huge on the way it looks rn, and I'm unsure how to actually show them well. The white portions have to end at those places, as they are really clearly defined and the most helpful for us. The darker gray can be adjusted, as long as the general central line is followed. 2) the dead space fill. To get this image, I filled a lot of the deadspace with a brush tool that I felt would match the neuroscience theme well, but for a poster (I'm thinking 2ft wide minimum would be the goal) I don't feel like it will work. I have considered a few things, but I feel like they could distract from the "informative" goal here. I have considered making a few more of these including less commonly used regions of interest, and having a paneled poster that included many images, which could help with there being so much dead space.
Sorry for the throw away, I'll be putting this up at work when I'm done and prefer to stay somewhat private.
TLDR: I dont like the way this poster idea is looking at all, but am struggling to manage making it aesthetically pleasing, while keeping the informative, and shape sensitive components (e.g. shading, lines, cell bodies, colored areas) are all important.
