This time for Notebook Magazine - a publication aimed at the ladies of Australia. This was for a feature about teenage abortion - a heavier subject matter than usual but it made a refreshing change. I can incorporate trees and leaves into any commission!
It’s been a little while since the last post - sorry about that! I’ve been busy with a few illustration jobs which aren’t published yet so I don’t think I’m allowed to reveal the full image but I’m sure it’s ok to give you a little sneak preview.
I always enjoy foody subjects and a job from OUP has given the opportunity for just that…..
Tesco magazine asked for some festive decoration, once it’s published I’ll be able to share the whole spread with you, for now here are a few cropped details. A really enjoyable commission.
Some of my earliest memories are of the picture books I was absorbed in as a small child. On my latest visit to my family home I rummaged around in the loft and found a few of these books. It was a bit like being reunited with an old familiar face as I poured over the same pictures that fired my young imagination and then featured in some trippy dreams back then. Being a child of the 70s, alot of the illustrations are in pretty vivid colour schemes and looking at them now, with an adult/ illustrators perspective, I see the quality of drawing wasn’t always that great.
There is an exception though and I wanted to share a few of the gorgeous illustrations with you here. The Bowerbirds isn’t one I remember for it’s story - though it is really charming. I loved the elegant watercolour/ pen and ink images by Margery Gill. A little bit of research reveals she died quite recently at the age of 83 and though successful, maybe didn’t receive the recognition she deserved during her career.
Enjoy my scans - in doing these I’ve broken the yellowing tape of a repair job from years ago. The images following them are from various vintage kids books sites. I may well track down a few copies for myself, purely for the illustrations!
If you check out Dessert Girl’s quirky blog today you’ll see a recipe and images by yours truly. This blog is for those with a sugar craving and provides scrumptious recipes for you to try at home. She also invites creative folk to submit their favourite recipes so when I was kindly invited to join in I also added some images.
Puddings and illustration - a sensory overload!
Geeez, I’m going a bit crazy with the blogging today (procrastinating you could say) but I just found these guys and their work has got me excited like I haven’t been for ages!
Lab Partners are a creative duo based in San Francisco who work wonders with the gocco printer. They sell their hand printed wares on etsy though as I type, their shop is being updated. I’m very fussy when it comes to buying contemporary art but I simply must have these 2 prints below…..they have captured the 50s modernist aesthetic perfectly and by keeping the images just about understated enough - they could be mistaken for mid century originals. I love it!
At last I can now share with you a job I completed a few months ago. Elmwood commissioned me on behalf of ASDA (huge supermarket chain, for all you non UK visitors)
They needed new artwork for their own brand facial tissues. The first pics show the cube box design followed by the flat box style. Unfortunately I don’t have any shots of the actual item but here are the patterns which wrapped around the whole box.
I was quite pleased with the final designs, actually it was surprisingly quick to get approved. I really enjoyed working on these and hope to do more packaging design in the future.
If ever you should take a fancy to one of my patterns you now have the option to download a file to brighten up your pc/mobile or any other type of screen or digital display. Digital Bloom provides a quick and affordable way to personlise your gadgets with digital artwork.
I shall be updating my images this week so do check in again if you can’t find what you want just yet.
As mentioned in the previous post, I was looking for a few references of vintage ceramics; the image below is one of the resulting illustrations. This is a theme I really love so there will be more to follow, also planning to do a few prints featuring vintage ceramics.
Following some work I did for Wallmart and Asda earlier in the year, I wanted to develop more ideas for decorative packaging. This time I wanted to focus on food products so here are three ideas I had for common flavours that could be applicable to several edible products such as tea or confectionary.
All this talk of food has made me peckish so time for lunch, then I’ll be having a stab at something similar for basic tea and coffee labeling. A really stunning design can transform the customers perception of quality - I know I’m a real sucker for pretty packaging!
Just thought I would share the latest image I’ve uploaded to my online portfolio. This wholesome family are here representing the conscientious recyclers of modern Britain. Don’t they make it look like fun too! Even the family pet joins in.
I felt that I needed to update my folio with images based on simple concepts in contemporary society; environment, finances, health and lifetsyle. I think in the past I have got bogged down trying to find clever ideas whereas what an art buyer sometimes just wants to see is if you can can clearly communicate simple messages in an attractive style.
These days I also like to include an element of decorative pattern wherever appropriate - usually the background, just to add interest (along with a watercolour wash background). This is great when you have a very dry subject matter and very simple content.
