This is a commission I did for New Turn magazine. Editorial / political illustration is something I really enjoy and am currently working on other articles at the moment. The brief was to show Scottish First minister Alex Salmond, with the Scottish flag, treading over some history books (also dressed in traditional Scottish wear- as ‘Brave Heart!’). An online version of the magazine can be found here: www.newturn.org.uk. It’s a very interesting read with social, political and cultural comment. Being able to illustrate in an honest, experimental way, on adult subjects has been liberating! The drawing on the cover shown, was by another illustrator JMC, and the writer of the article I took on, was Matthew Bremner, the art director of Blue Period Art.

My Illustration exhibited in the show, B&B Italia 2011

Today Monday 19th September is the first day of a new show which I was invited to participate in for B&B Italia. The private view is this Thursday 22nd and it runs until the 25th. It marks 10 years of the London branch of the Italian Furniture and Interior design company opening, and the brief was to respond to the landmark of 10 years. I was contacted by Camron PR, who organised the exhibition and represent many Art/Design/Communications companies and events, and was told the event itself would be a part of London Design Week and practicioners such as Zaha Hadid, Barber Osgerby and Tony Chambers from Wallpaper magazine would produce work for it. The exhibition runs from the 19th-25th September and then travels to Milan to be shown again there, before entering into their archives. So the first thing to do was head to the the space and get a feel for the building and interior in South Kensington, which was designed by the architect/designer John Pawson.

All of the exhibitors had to produce an A4 response to the brief 10 years in London. Along side Designers, Ilustrators and Architects were Furniture Designers who had produced a new range of designs for the show.. Below is a section of one of two drawings I submitted and will be hung as part of the show.. Looking forward to the party on Thursday evening.!

The Otherside Exhibtion was an interesting opportunity to move my work in another direction, working directly onto the walls in a cafe/bar called ‘Tina We Salute You’. Working in large scale and applying media directly presented new challenges, in designing something unique and engaging for the public. I was given a space which was below the counter, at the front of the cafe. It was tricky to paint on a surface which stretched from the floor up to around 1.5 metres, but for children especially it was prominent and visible. I collaborated with a nice group of illustrators and designers, most were sudents and graduates from Camberwell and the Royal College of Art. As we worked we could see each others processes and interpretations, with the art and ideas blending into a whole. The concept which tied the whole together was in the form of a story written by an English student from Oxford university. Each of the artists received a hand made card, relief printed and letter-pressed with a section for them to interpret (shown above). Becky Allen organised and curated the show, as a final year project for her degree at Camberwell. The process and evolution of work, as well as the importance of collaboration were aims and key in making the show a success. It was a great experience to take the work into a public environment, made specifically  for the time, space and place. Specifically amoung those who participated were some friends, Yuki Nishimura, Monika Naranjo-Uribe and Becky Allen. The event was also showcased on a website which explains further the project and collaborators and can be found here, The Other Side.

The UPside show ran from September to December last year. Looking back it was a great exhibition to be involved in. The organisation started back in December 2009 when I emailed a close group of artists and everyone was interested in collaborating. The concept took shape steadily over the the next following 6 months. At the time, and still now to some extent, optimism had been lost in a wave pessimism. Upside was intended to give a platform for an eclectic range of art, providing a release from heavy air, and weight of uncertainty. When the concept, design and proposal had been confirmed by the Medcalf gallery/restaurant in Farringdon, we used a blog to each post sketches, ideas and thoughts of our work in progress, which you can find here: http://upsideart.wordpress.com/. To mark the event and further document it we decided to compile and print a catalogue of our work. While the brief was specific, the many interpretations of the theme by book-artists, illustrators and printmakers made the outcome varied, surprising and fun. When the time came to exhibit the work, it was gratifying to see people reacting well to the art and atmosphere we had created, where they could spend time, and also eat and drink. In total I exhibited 18 works, in 2 large frames. The works called ‘Animalisms’ featured animals in humorous, surreal and absurd situations, these can all be found on my website here. On the night of the private view and throughout the duration of the show some people’s works were sold and there were two particularly nice reviews which are here: Supersweet Magazine and Sketchbook Magazine. The group have also exhibited as the Playroom collective as well,  showing at the Dream Space gallery just over 2 years ago, also at the Alternative Press Festival and the Thames Festival. The blog can be found here, Playroom Collective. Everything seems to change so much in one year in London, spaces, new media, opportunities as well as faces. Maybe success is based on realising the times and staying tuned.. Keen as Mustard..

The Images and drawings above were produced over the last year or so. While the buildings are necessary structures to provide shelter there are so many more aspects to them that are expressive and revealing. Having arrived in London, the range and personality of every different structure is overwhelming, at first. But as London becomes familiar the rhythm of the skylines and streets are unique at every turn. Scale, period and style of extreme variations, have evolved in London’s long history. The culture of the city lies within its buildings and while there is more green space within the park lands per person than any other British City, the space is restricted. In particular, I am interested in the recycling of space, buildings are pulled down while others are protected and conserved. All buildings are man made and every one was once modern and of its day. So as the sprawl and rebuilding occurs daily, is the result an organic rejuvination? And can man compete with natural habitats as well as providing a fascinating backdrop of history. Structures now can offer little privacy, lights illuminate glass structures and every movement can be read from a distance. Are workers in the city the privilaged elite, looking out over the grounded population or are they confined, exposed and regulated? Increasingly buildings are made with reflective surfaces, with sky, light and other constructions rebounding, creating a merged, sometimes surreal scene. Also with Google investing in clouds of data what is the future in terms of space, architecture and communication? The artist Chris Orr’s work is fascinating, depicting the contemporary and traditional backdrops of London, Tokyo and New York. Another point of reference is the author Iain Sinclair and his book ‘London Orbital’ offering an in depth portrayal of the city.

Last year the Drawing Elective was a very interesting and challenging experience at the RCA. The briefs came weekly and with just a small group of 7 the discussion was relevant and critical. Movement and expression has always been fascinating to me and the opportunity to draw from film, the focus of one brief, proved to be a positive experience. I used stills from films such as Casino (below) and The Deer Hunter (bottom). The results could be quite raw and energetic, but the characterisation and interaction within the story could be revealing too. Federico Fellini, Tim Burton and Alfred Hitchcock all used drawing as a part of their practice, in both an expressive and experimental way but also as a separate outlet of finished work. Surreal, fantastic, humourous and erotic results are found in their work as drawing is an instant and personal tool. In retrospect it has been a useful approach as I’m now making studies of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight (Joker’s henchmen above) in a commission to illustrate and design characters for the new Batman theatre production ‘Batman Live’.

Following this exhibition I was in contact with a PHD student from the Royal College of Art who was interested in hearing about the project with an emphasis on the concerns and considerations children are given in publishing. Jessica Jenkins has hosted seminars, published work and consulted product designers and other creative practicioners for their opinions on the subject. I wrote a piece for her website giving mention to Quentin Blake, childrens’ illustration and how children can be involved and considered more. This can be found at: http://nosmallmatter.wordpress.com

The opening night for the DRAW show coincided with the opening of the Oberon Illustration Awards. There was a really nice atmosphere especially as Quentin Blake was there to judge and present at the awards as well as open the DRAW show. He was actually the head of Illustration at the RCA for many years and taught many of the current tutors. I discovered at the opening that he had personally funded much of the exhibition and was clearly very passionate about conserving the role of illustration and increasing people’s awareness of it. As well as writing many books such a ‘The magic pencil’ on the subject he is putting much effort into setting up the worlds first museum of illustration, due to be opened in 2012: www.houseofillustration.org.uk . This experience has been greatly valuable in many ways to me,  I have learnt much from a high profile and prolific illustrator, also about curating and exhibiting Illustration and collaborating and presenting work. All of this has informed and influenced my dissertation and I’m looking forward to putting what I have learnt and seen into my practice.

In the next room the artists from the DRAW sessions were featured side by side. Drawings from Paul Noble, Joseph Child, Ann Course, Adam Dant and children’s illustration from Angela Barrett and Quentin Blake were featured. My work and Quentin’s work is shown in the photo above on the left wall. It was a very exciting project to be involved in, the space was large and impressive and after the work was hung it looked great together.

‘The aim of the session would be to look at the increasing involvement the Illustrator has in the choice of subjects and messages communicated. The positive impact that can be made in public spaces with an emphasis on showing a darker, more real side of life are both, becoming greater concerns. This is especially true of the messages communicated to children but also those to adults’ as the boundaries between the two genres are far less distinct. The important role Illustration can have in allowing people to develop their own forms of expression starting at an early age is another positive aspect. As new platforms to view and express work across cities and in alternative press increase, the messages are more personal and inclusive to society.’