YaviKosh

Advice: manipulate the viewer’s emotions!

This is no longer a new technique: audiences have long been trained by mainstream cinema to perceive different locations and time periods through a specific color language.

The steps for choosing a color palette are quite simple — understand what you’re doing. The focus is not on details, but on meaning.
1. If you’re drawing / rendering a futuristic future — push it toward neon and cold tones.
2. If you’re drawing / rendering something connected to the past — shift it toward sepia and reduce color saturation.
3. Always ask yourself what exactly is thematically important to convey in this piece. Knowing the answer will help

I caught myself thinking that one pretty obvious thing often gets overlooked by people who make art.

We talk a lot about goals, but usually it sounds like: “I draw for books / games / comics.” And very rarely like: “I draw to make the viewer feel sadness, joy, or anger.”
But working with emotion is basically the final goal of any visual art.

You made something — and then what?
What is it actually for?
If it’s commercial art, what goal is built into it?
Who are you trying to sell it to?
And what emotion do you need to trigger so someone even wants it?

Why do we rarely talk about this, when it’s obvious that people are driven by emotions?

Music works directly with feelings, and we all understand that.
There’s music for the gym because it gives energy.
Music for a quiet evening with a cup of cocoa and a melancholic stare out the window.
And deeply emotional songs we play during breakups or hard moments.
It’s a clear “emotion subscription” through sound.

Visual art works the same way. Maybe not always as loudly, but the principle is the same.
Satirical cartoons make you think and question things.
Cute art creates warmth and affection, especially for parents.
Bright, detailed art grabs kids’ attention.
And so on.

And here’s the key point: the emotion you want the viewer or customer to feel basically defines your style, approach, and visual language.

So why, when working with art, do we so rarely say this out loud?
Why is game art becoming more and more average?
Why is it expected to be just “not off-putting,” instead of creating a clear emotion?

This world of safe, middle-ground art really tires me.
I want emotional art swings.