New Designers- Self Promo

These are some of the more interesting business cards (clockwise from top left)

Phil Bowell: a humourous play on his own name which works because he has followed the concept right through, using the materials, typography and imagery to back up the coffee theme.

Rob Jelly: the outside is very simple, but the typography intrigues you and invites you to look closer. He is lucky to have an interesting surname otherwise this wouldn't be nearly as effective! When you look closer, it says 'squeeze me' in very small type, the result of which can be seen in the photo below. This unusual design makes Mr Jelly more memorable, even though there are no images on the card.

Taena Uemura: this card is great because it reflects the artist's style so well. The natural string on the natural-brown coloured card is like a personal tag on a present. The typography is hand-rendered and fits well with the line drawing of the rodent. Even without the illustration, the materials and typography give a real sense of what Uemura's work is like.

Fatime Szaszi: admittedly, I only chose this because I like the illustration, but it is an unusual size. She has also comitted the cardinal sin of leaving a white border round her work! I still like the illustration though...

Lucy Hill: another interactive card, there is a small folded illustration inside the brown paper sleeve (seen below). The hand is cut out of the paper, giving you an idea of the hand-rendered nature of Hill's work. I also like the typography- simple, printed caps with widely spaced letters.

Amy Lewis: uninspiring typography and a lack of anything unusual about the card itself. However, I think the artist has done a great job of cropping a piece of her work to raise interest without giving too much away. I probably only chose this one because I liked her style as well!

New Designers Exhibition- Illustrators

The exhibition was over a month ago, but I've finally got round to photographing the postcards I collected from my favourite illustrators.

Clockwise from top left:
Abi Hollman- taken from her work that is actually a textiles piece where the black lines are threads and the colour sections are pieces of material. Very striking with the bright colours and mix of textured and in a style that seams suited to the subject matter.

Cate Howes- I like her quirky collection of brightly coloured animals, which would probably be popular in a childrens book.

David Bennison- a pencil illustration of a medieval castle viewed from the ceiling. All Bennison's work is very detailed and uses unusual perspectives. I have a lot of respect for the skill involved, but I felt it was perhaps a little to similar to some of Escher's work to be truly original.

Man in a hat- I chose this for the fantastic hand rendered typography (it reads 'illustration to a different beat'). Very sixties flower-power, but given a modern twist with the black and white colour scheme.

Taena Uemura- Another illustrator of animals suited to childrens books. These are much more realistc and executed in much softer colours than those of Cate Howes. I chose this card because of the materials used- childlike watercolours and crudely scribbled colouring pencils which work because of the accurate forms.

Louise Dean- This illustration really stood out because the paler colours look amazing against the background of brown packing paper. I also like the strong middle-eastern feel carried through all elements of the illustration.

Pat Morley- I liked the black, white and grey and the simple forms of this work. Again, simple animal shapes that had been made into a children's book. Very sweet, but is there room for this number of children's illustrators who only draw animals?

AOI- Tim Ashton

I don't know how this has been created- is it a photograph or an illustration that has been combined with computer trickery? If anyone knows, please comment!
I like that at first glance, it could be a photo, but when you look closer everything is slightly surreal and looks strangely still for someone standing in front of a breaking wave. The seagulls in the skirt work well as they mirror the seagulls in the sky.

AOI- Vicky Newman

I love this advert for the ice rink at Somerset House. Without being over-sentimental, the artist has conjured up the image of Christmas with a winter wonderland scene that also incorporates the architecture of the building. Im not too sure about the stars, which look suspiciously like a simple photoshop brush, but I think they work when combined with the large blue area that looks like a ink splodge. The whole poster is very textural, but the limited colours prevent it looking too busy.

AOI- Vault 49

www.vault49.com

Im sure many people are aware of the design collective Vault 49. Even if they arn't, they have done a huge number of high profile jobs including material for McDonalds, the New York Times, GQ Magazine, Nike, E4 and loads more. Their style is quite similar to that of Sophie Toulouse where stylised photographs are combined with fantasy elements of swirls and plants. Some pieces look like Kaleidoscopes, placing products in this perfect fantasy land of flowers and butterflies. I think Vault 49 are so popular with companies because their style is modern, trendy and edgy whilst retaining a positive feel much of the time (although the two images I have chosen use quite dark colours, other work is much lighter and brighter).

AOI- Sophie Toulouse

Heavily digital, these illustrations are a little different to the usual, more hand rendered styles I tend to go for. I like the abstract flowing lines and floral forms, which don't appear too feminine because of the heavy use of black and white.

Association of Illustrators

www.theaoi.com

A great site to visit if you're interested in illustration as they have a section where you can browse through different portfolios then follow the links to the artists' own sites. The following posts are a few of my favourites.

Studio MIKMIK

I came across Studio Mikmik on somebody else blog and went to check out the website. I admire the eco-friendly aims of the designer- as pointed out on the site, improvements in technology now means that you can get a wide range of good quality recycled papers. There were a couple of different styles in the portfolio, but the simplistic flower designs were my favourite. The two posters have a definate Japanese flavour, but are very modern. I like how similar elements from the posters have been used in the identity for the 'Area' catalogue- I like to see companies using illustrative elements for their promotional material instead of simply photos of the products.

Book- No Cake, No Jam. Marian Hughes

I found this book quite shocking as it is the true story of the author as she grew up in London during World War 2. She starts in an orphanage but goes back to her mother who seems to have mental health issues that affect her ability to care for her children. There are tales of running away, abuse, shoplifting, getting arrested and being evacuated to the country. What I found unsettling was how accepting Marian is of everything that happens to her. She is incredible wilful and resourceful and never gives up her dream of 'happy families'. This book really made me realise just how easy my life is in comparison.

Sarah Coleman

Having used hand rendered calligraphy in my D&AD award work, I was interested to come across the illustrator and typographer Sarah Coleman. I think the images above demonstrate how wide ranging the application of quirky typography can be. I particularly like the 'chips' image, combining the messy, childlike lettering with the minimalist photography to give a modern yet friendly feel.

The apple shows several different types of lettering and is a nice piece of self promotion. Apples are very symbolic- the first thing that comes to my mind is the poisoned apple in Snow White. The calligraphy makes me think of fairy tales, so I think the image is really effective.

I chose the 'ten' image to show the contrasting styles from the same artist. Here, formal lettering is decorated with hand rendered patterns, giving a different feel to the other images.

Fourtet Website

I love the colours and typography used in this website. The sugary shades of the letters contrast well with the bold, block serif typeface to give this band a playful visual personality. The band name is written at the bottom of an image that refreshes with a new image layed down strip by strip. The images are all colourful and intriguing, but without any people in- I think this works well given that the band uses no vocals in their music. Over the top of these photographs are random letters that fade in and fly across the image before fading out again. If the mouse pointer touches the letter, they turn white and fade out. I found this interactive element fun and slightly mesmerizing!

Zara Home Website

www.zarahome.com

I came across a nice little piece of interactive web design on this site. When browsing the catalogue, the corners of the image fold over like a real page when you hover the mouse over it. Depending where you put your mouse, the page folds over more or at different angles. It is quite realistic, but the page doesn't turn until you click, so you can't accidently progress to the next image just by moving the mouse. Pretty and practical!

Yellow Pages TV adverts

I really like the current TV advertising campaign for yellow pages. The slogan is 'here's to the people behind the numbers'. I think it's a really nice sentiment- being grateful and also respecting all the professions that are, while perhaps not looked down on, at least undervalued. The people included in the adverts are involved in manual work like plastering or cake decorating; things you take for granted as standard without thinking about the care and craft invlolved.

The workers are shown demonstrating their skills in extreme slow-motion, while their voice-overs give a background story. The adverts feel very intimate and personal, while the gentle piano music, clean and simple surroundings and slow-motion footage work together to give a serene atmosphere. Watching the adverts makes me feel calm amidst other, more high-tech and frenetic advertsing, so that it really stands out and is memorable.