Continued from the previous page ...
Setting up the project for Poster and Frame
Since this is a project with a very definite results, rather than create the art and then come back to calculate resolutions, frame sizes and matting, I'll start with the end product and work my way backwards.
I'm going to use Adobe Illustrator to very quickly knock out a layout for the finished, framed piece. Illustrator is far better than Photoshop for this because of the easy Option/click technique for quickly obtaining very precise measurements.
The client originally requested the art be approximately 16"x19". However, to start out, I'm planning smaller versions of each of four in a grid no larger than 24" x 34". Warhol's "Marilyn" posters were 36 x 36-inches. Proper gallery framing standards dictate the distance from art to frame should be around 3 inches on the top and both sides, and four to five at the bottom. I'll leave a full 7-inches at the bottom to accommodate a title and legend. So now, we've arrived at a live-art area of 18" x 24-inches.
Opening Adobe Illustrator, I start with a blank file.
Set the fill color as white, and the stroke color as black, with a one-point stroke.
Tap the letter "M" (for the rectangle tool) then
Option/Click in the center of the art window.
The Rectangle Object dialog pops up and I'll key in 24 (tabkey) 34, and hit enter. There's our frame. (Keep in mind during this tutorial that Mac=Option, Win=Alt; and Mac=Command and Win=Control)
Using the zoom finger-dance, (Space/Command or Apple) I'll drag a very small rectangle around the still active center point of the new box. This zooms me to around 500% magnification so I can accurately create the next box exactly centered on top of the previous one. Both the box and the Rectangle tool are still active...
Place the cursor exactly over the center point of the active box, Option/Click again, this time key in 18 (tabkey) 24, and hit enter.
The live art box now appears centered over the original. While that box is still highlighted, I'll need to move it into it's 3-inch position from the top frame. The Move command is Shift + Command + M, or select menur: Object > Transform > Move. Either will result in the "Move" dialog where we'll key in zero horizontal, (tabkey) 5 vertical (tabkey) and enter. The live art box snaps to 3-inches from the top, giving accurate positioning for the live art. (How did I know to move it 5 inches? 24 from 34 = 10, so, I had to move it half of 10 which is 5.)
Since the Warhol style calls for four individual iterations of the visual, we'll need gutters between the four pieces. I'll make gutters using two more rectangle shapes.
Return to the extreme zoom (500%) and Option/Click with the rectangle tool on the active rectangle's center point once again.
In the new rectangle dialog, key in 18, tabkey, .5, and hit enter, for a half-inch horizontal gutter, then Option/Click over the same center anchor again, keying in .5, tabkey, 24, and hit enter for the vertical gutter.
This finishes our gutters for a finished key-line for the whole project.
Our layout looks aesthetically pleasing, so we now know that each variation of the art must be 8.75" x 11.75" to fulfill a precise gallery mounting/framing presentation. At this point, we could order our frame and glass, because we know exactly what the final sizes will be. There will be no matting for this project, since mounting rather than matting would be the correct and dignified method of presentation. Close the file and save it to the job folder.
Next: Setting resolution and beginning work
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