I've been hearing of some confusion going around and read more about it in ^Jules1983's journal. I'd like to help explain just what makes vexel art different from vector art.

Key Word: Pixel

When understanding the difference between vexels and vectors, there is mainly one term you need to keep in mind: pixel. Why pixel you ask?

Pixels are exclusive to vexel art and are non-existent in the vector world. Vexels, you see, are raster images that are formed by a series of these individual squares we call pixels. If you take a raster image, a JPEG for example, and resize it beyond its resolution, you will see these pixels. Other way of determining resolution are done via the metric system or by DPI (dots per inch).

Scalable and Non-Scalable

Everything we've discussed so far is totally irrelevant to vector art. If you take a vector piece and zoom it in, it will retain its original dimensions. We refer to this characteristic as 'scalable'. Unlike vectors, raster images distort when they resized or transformed in any way.

Not Just A Matter of Style


_{Can you tell which of the two is a vexel?}

Confusion arises because vector and vexel art can look extremely similar in style. The simplest yet simultaneously complex way to differentiate the two is to know that it's a matter of technicality rather than presentation. Similar tools and approaches may be used when making both forms of artwork, but the mechanisms by which these actions are carried out are decided by the program used and not the user.


Hope this helps.

=taho
Club admin of and member/contributor of