Design Tools: What tools are used for concept artwork?

One subject that themedattraction.com has not addressed yet is the question of design tools: That is, what tools are used by designers to create theme park attractions?

Blue Pencil

Especially when in the blue-sky phase, one medium relied upon heavily is the blue pencil. Theme park attraction designers rely upon blue pencil in order to quickly flesh out ideas on paper.

Rich West is an experienced professional theme park attraction designer and illustrator. He explains why there is such a heavy reliance on blue pencils for early concept sketches. He explains, “Blue pencil is a great way to express ideas because it is fast and easy to lay down values. And because the scene is completely rendered in blue, your mind tends not to try to assign a color to it that isn’t there. Therefore, your mind tends to believe the character of the rendering itself.”

You can find non-photo blue or other blue pencils available for purchase at your local art store. Generally, along with some tracing paper or some 11″x17″ bond, the blue pencil is a great tool in the arsenal of the theme park attraction designer.

Pencil is being replaced by Photoshop and tools like the Wacom Tablet, but for many, the blue pencil is still an essential part of any designer’s tool chest