The World in your Kitchen Calendar 2015

It's officially Autumn now, or Fall for my Stateside readers, and thoughts are turning to Christmas or more importantly the rush to get suitable gifts for family and friends. Luckily I can help you out with that should you be stuck for the all important stocking filler...

Back in Summer 2013 I was approached by New Internationalist, the world's leading independent publisher of magazines and books on global social justice and sustainable development, and asked to be the feature illustrator for the World in your Kitchen Calendar 2015. The calendar is produced every year and showcases a different recipe from around the world for each month with an illustration about the dish or location to accompany it. One illustrator produces all the imagery for that year's calendar and they wanted me to be that person for 2015, so I said yes and spent most of my weekends last year illustrating exotic places and looking up dishes that I'd never previously heard of. It was a fun experience doing all the research and I'm very happy with the results. Some of my favourite spreads are below:

Further images from the calendar can be seen on my website, but to see all twelve you'll need to buy the calendar! It can be purchased direct from New Internationalist or amazon and is also for sale via Amnesty International in Britain and France.

Thanks for reading, hope you like the images...

A final New York post..

written in England, sadly.

But all good things must come to an end and my time in New York is up, for now. Much to the relief of my bank account and probably my knees, who will appreciate a little less pavement pounding.

I promised I'd blog about my final week in New York and I figured it would be poor form to renege on my promise.


During my last week I took a trip over to the Tenement Museum for an interactive murder mystery event I'd seen advertised in Time Out magazine. The Tenement Museum "tells the stories of immigrants who lived in 97 Orchard Street, a tenement built in 1863 on Manhattan's Lower East Side" and for one night only a crowd of visitors would try to solve the real life case of 'The Ryans'; a brother and sister who were found murdered in 1873. The event seemingly captured the imagination of many a New Yorker, as when I arrived 40 minutes early (by now having got the hang of these free events!) a line had already formed and the email reservations we had been asked to make were scrapped as too many people had replied. The event attracted more then twice the usual turnout, but luckily I was one of the 100 people who were able to participate.

The murder mystery was lead by actors playing the parts of residents and when split into groups of 25, it was down to the visitors to interrogate the suspects we found lurking on the street or in the Tenement itself. The experience was fun, the actors really inhabited their roles and certainly in my group we enjoyed speculating over the identity of the murderer and asking questions to the suspects. It was my own slice of C.S.I New York, but just a century and a bit earlier.

The most entertaining part of the night was unscripted though and happened right at the beginning of the event. My group were 'interviewing' our first suspect on the stoop of an apartment block around the corner from the museum, when a resident of the building became a little enraged by the insolent, strangely dressed man talking about the Ryans on his stoop. What ensued was a confrontation straight out of a sitcom. The resident walked into the lobby and then returned to the actor three times, each time becoming more irate at the actor's perceived offensive comments about him and his fellow Lower East Side residents. Obviously our 'suspect' was trying to stay in character and props to him that he only let the facade drop once when it looked like he may take a blow to the face for his art. Even when the reason for our gathering was explained a verbal volley addressing film crews, tv programs and performance art continually consuming the street was unleashed. Irrelevant to us, simple as our motive for being there was; to enjoy a fun evening. But the resident raised an interesting point, what to us was a fun piece of performance was, to him, one of a series of daily intrusions into his life when all he wanted was to get into his home after a long day at work. A hazard of living in a a desirable location for films and tv programs (I had in fact been here the previous week on the Gossip Girl tour) or a valid point?

The general consensus seemed to be that he had overreacted and certainly his aggressive behaviour was completely disproportionate to the crime committed, especially as the actor in question did actually live in the same building. But it provided a slice of real life drama and demonstrated just how easy it is for passions to ignite and tempers to escalate in a densely populated small space, which seemed perfectly apt in relation to our reason for being there.


A photograph of 'The Landlord' taken at the event organised by Carlo d'Amore.
Photo taken by Greg Scaffidi http://www.gregoryscaffidi.com/ see the original blog post here

Whilst on the Lower East Side I knew I had to pick up a cupcake from Babycakes. The very reason for my earlier experience of Broome Street (said store features in Gossip Girl series 1, the Thanksgiving episode, for those who care..) I had only managed to have a shot of frosting (yum) so this time with free hands and a few spare dollars in my wallet I popped into the all-natural, organic, free from many allergens bakery to see if a healthier version of the sweet treat could taste as good. Answer = yes. My choice was a delicious chocolate cupcake with chocolate frosting, which of course looked as good as it tasted. So much so that I couldn't resist posting a few pictures. Yum.



Also on a food related note, I had to post this picture of Tom's Restaurant


I found this on their blog, and it was added by Kit Kaplan a Brooklyn photographer who I think captured this slice of Brooklyn history (the diner has been around since 1936) perfectly in the shot. This is where I had the most delicious breakfast of Pancakes, Eggs and Bacon washed down by fresh O.J. The diner was packed and it seemed everyone left with a full stomach and a happy face. If you're ever in Brooklyn and want a great breakfast in a place brimming with history this is my recommendation.

I rounded off my exploration of New York with a subway ride down to Brighton Beach in Brooklyn. It was fun to seemingly leave the city behind and hit the sand and also to be in an area where very few people were speaking English and the signs were often in Russian. The area is filled with immigrants who have found a new home and life in Brooklyn, subsequently it is a melting pot of cultures, but definitely with Russia as its heartbeat. The Village Voice talks about this more here But with it being my last weekend in New York I'm only slightly ashamed to say that my interest was more rooted in hitting the beach and relaxing with a book, rather then exploring extensively. I apologise for the touristy nature of these last few paragraphs, but as it's my last real post on my trip I want to milk it! This is a picture of Brighton Beach, with Coney Island in the distance:


Then one of the Promenade at Brighton Beach.


I enjoyed it down there, although it was definitely surreal to walk past the fur selling stores just a few metres from the beach, not your usual seaside fare.

Finally I did a little bit of shopping in Soho, with of course a foray onto Canal Street to pick up a New York trinket or two. Whilst I was enjoying the hustling and haggling of Canal Street I looked up to notice this advert for Grand Theft Auto.

It's probably been around for a while, but I was struck by how completely fitting it was to see that there (and not just because the game is based in Chinatown). Maybe I am a horribly commercialised, advertising influenced example of my generation. But rather then see it as an intrusion on the natural environment I thought this was a perfect example of outdoor advertising at its best. A product that so befits the environment it is shown in, in terms of attitude not just locality. Despite its tourist attraction status Canal Street definitely carries the scent of the underworld, but for the tourists in a slightly distant, thrilling way rather then in an obviously threatening fashion, which is something the Grand Theft Auto franchise totally exploits. It presents this dangerous, crime filled, violent world to people who rarely encounter it and allows them to run riot. Of course it also works because the game is based in Chinatown, but it wasn't that connection that first caught my eye. The image also appears to be spraypainted onto the building, though I imagine it is some sort of vinyl wrap, but again everything is just so and fits perfectly with the environment.

So that's my justification for snapping it. Plus it does look pretty damn cool!

In summary (on this exceedingly long post) my trip to New York was an action packed, adrenalin fuelled cultural adventure that, in terms of my own work, has been highly beneficial. I managed to do a lot of promotion, which was great, but I also replenished my mental store of visual reference by spending so much time watching and observing. It was great to get out and do that and I am hopeful that I can squeeze some of the amazing events I observed into personal work over the next month or so.

Thanks for reading and I hope I haven't bored you too much with my tales. Normal service on the blog will resume shortly, with more work orientated posts returning. Until then...

Too much to report, too little time

I say goodbye to New York on Monday, so I've decided to leave the blogging alone for a few days so I can maximise the minutes I have left. I haven't yet got around to telling the tales of the Tenement Museum ghost story or discussing my latest venture into Williamsburg. All of this I'll post when I return to the UK I think, once I've had the chance to collate my thoughts and pictures.

So for the next few days I'll leave you with one of my favourite pictures from the trip so far, taken when I stumbled across the Gossip Girl shoot in Soho. This show is my guilty pleasure, for which I feel no guilt, I just love it...

Have a great weekend (xoxo)

4th July

For the 4th July celebrations I took a little trip over to Hoboken to meet up with some fellow Brits and enjoy the Macy's fireworks from a Jersey vantage point. Macy's fireworks have been an East River tradition since 1976 despite their debut as a Hudson River spectacular in 1958. However, the fireworks returned to the Hudson River after a long hiatus to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the exploration of the Hudson River by Henry Hudson, so Hoboken offered the perfect view for a Brooklyn resident willing to take the PATH train and bypass the crowds forming on the West side of Manhattan.


Top: The many boats moored on the Hudson ready for the show to begin
Above: The crowds on the pier in Hoboken built steadily


Fireworks over the Hudson River


A nice close up

I had a great time watching the fireworks but I was also fascinated by the crowd during the build up. There is something compelling about crowd dynamics, especially when there is a development of unspoken rules that someone unwittingly disturbs; a person who chooses to stand in the area where it had been silently decided no-one should stand, the muttering to, and elbowing of, neighbours as a newcomer snags a better vantage point, or the stranger who stands too close to a group for their liking despite it being inadvertent and a natural consequence of a busy event. All of these things took place and I always love watching how people respond to such a situation. I think it's important for my work to take note of the nuances of social interaction and I am especially vigilant when I find myself in a crowd because I love to depict them in my illustrations and I'm always on the lookout for new subtleties to add to my interpretations.

Mega update

It was never my intention to turn this blog into a travelog whilst I was in the States but seemingly this has happened. I promise to return to more illustration related topics when I get back to reality!

But for now I'll summarise what I've been upto in-between dropping my portfolio off at places such as the New York Times and Pentagram Design.

The highlight of last week was a rather haphazard spontaneous remoulding of a planned event. Essentially I turned up to Cringe Night at Freddy's Bar in Brooklyn expecting an amusing, albeit Office-esque night of squirm inducing tales only to find out that the host hadn't shown up. This left a rather large group of disappointed people unsure of what to do. Luckily for us I had invited along Doug Stone: documentary filmmaker, screenwriter, producer extraordinaire who also has a wicked line in comedic tales and the gift of delivery. With little regard for his own reputation Doug took over the mic stand and christened the evening 'Salvaging Cringe Night' before opening with a tale from his own teenage years. Despite the fact that only one person had brought along any prepared material and the rest of us had arrived purely to spectate, what followed was one of the funniest evenings I have experienced in a long time. Adroitly hosted by Doug, one person after another stepped up to the mic to share tales from their teenage years that were embarrassing, shameful or in a few cases just shocking!

What was notable besides the humour of the event was the atmosphere that prevailed. Despite the lack of preparation and the nerves that beset one when it is time to step up to the mic and share a tale that has never been shared before, people confidently braved the moment and were cheered on by the watching crowd. It was definitely a supportive atmosphere and momentum really built, so much so that the 'show' lasted nearly two hours. It was great to be involved in such an organic process, although I have to confess that I didn't take the opportunity to indulge in the comedic therapy on offer, but I did really enjoy the evening and appreciated the willingness of the majority to give it a shot and get involved. Maybe unfairly I couldn't help thinking that if such a thing had occurred in my local pub at home it was highly unlikely that a similarly successful night would have ensued without copious amounts of alcohol being involved.

Art wise I took in a few galleries in Chelsea, the standout one being Brazilian artist Adriana Varejão's exhibition at the Lehmann Maupin Gallery



"O Iluminado"(The Shining) seen above, was the focal point of the exhibition, monopolising over 5 metres of horizontal wall space. The use of light in the image doesn't really translate on the web but I was transfixed for a long time, tilting my head back and forth in wonder at the way it was so beautifully captured. I found the image stunning and the sense of depth and space so lightly conveyed was a delight to behold. As someone continually concerned with colour use the limited colour palette on show throughout the whole exhibition was interesting to me, as it brilliantly accentuated the stillness of each piece whilst also bringing a vitality and life to the space. A great show to experience first hand.


On Friday I left behind Manhattan and joined a throng of New Yorkers enjoying a day off to take the ten minute ferry over to Governors Island, the ex-military base of the US Army and later the Coastguard. The island was closed in 1996, but in 2003 most of the Island was sold to the people of New York and the Governors Island Preservation and Education Corporation oversees the majority and is tasked with redeveloping and preserving the island.

I had a great time exploring the island, it was a veritable treasure trove of textures with a great deal of the buildings being in a state of disrepair so I was in my element snapping away and capturing doorways, windows and gates. I had initially intended to hire a bike as part of free bike friday provided by Bike and Roll but in the end I followed the walking tour and enjoyed a investigative wander across the island. I found the experience fascinating, the whole place had an eerie feel to it (despite the crowds) and it would make the perfect setting for a horror film. There is a real sense of isolation even with the proximity of Manhattan and Brooklyn and the absence of traffic means the ensuing stillness takes on a mysterious quality when coupled with the desolate buildings. Brilliant!



4th July pictures to come soon...

ADC 88th Annual Awards

As I mentioned in the previous post, I caught the final day of the Art Directors Club 88th Annual Awards on Monday. Obviously there was some great work on show and it was comforting to wander around a gallery showing the kind of work that I look at and admire on a daily basis. I was definitely more at home here then in the fine art galleries that I visited the previous week, or on my trip to Chelsea on Wednesday.

I wanted to add some of my own pictures of my favourites, but alas the lighting was just too poor and subsequently the pictures are not great. So the link to the full archive is here and below I'll just reference a few pieces I particularly loved.

First up is a campaign I was alerted to last year by my fellow blogger Bowerbird so I was pleased to see it had won the Gold Award for "Advertising: Product/service Promotion, Product/service Promotion - Campaign"


I also enjoyed the Gold Award winning outdoor advertising campaign "Le Grand Mix" for Nova radio by Young and Rubicam France:


A favourite from the UK was the promotional campaign for Harvey Nichols' Christmas sale by DDB London. I just love the fantastically communicative gestures that the Mannequins are depicting. Despite their inanimate status the viewer is immediately able to visualise the next 'scene' as the storming crowds rush into the store in search of a bargain:


Finally, I loved the logo for the Issey Miyake fashion line (I assume) "Pleats Please", the 'Sushi' poster won the Silver award, but my attention was definitely more focused on the logo itself, which I just loved for its simplicity yet striking brilliance:


(apologies for the poor picture)

There were plenty more examples that I enjoyed viewing and I definitely enjoyed the concepts on show. I might link to a few more images when I have a little more time, but for now if you have a spare ten minutes I would definitely recommend viewing the image archive. Don't forget to click Launch Media to see the images/videos at a larger size.

Machines, cyclones and sunshine

Yes the sun is shining on New York, New York. Finally had to reach for the factor 25 and a hat to protect myself from the fierce June weather that my wardrobe had anticipated!

It was a weekend of firsts really; first truly hot day, first visit to an experimental art/theatre piece off-off-Broadway and my first Baseball game.

I went to see the Brooklyn Cyclones, which is a feeder team for the Mets. It was a colouful, lively experience with the game seemingly a footnote to the food, socialising and product placement that is so alien to a regular attendee of English sports games. The Cyclones won, which was great and I took some fun pictures:




and one scarier photo of a guy two rows in front of me:


The sun is flooding the image a little, which is a shame but I thought it might be foolhardy to ask him to move so I could get a better shot of his Hooligan tattoo!

Short but sweet post this morning as I'm heading over to the New York Times today to show my portfolio, but the show I mentioned was Machines, Machines, Machines, Machines.. and it was really amusing, especially for someone who is a fan of such oddball comedies as Green Wing, Big Train and Spaced.

Finally I caught the end of the Art Directors Club show yesterday. I took plenty of pictures of work that I enjoyed so I think I will dedicate my next post solely to that rather then rush through it now.

Have a great day!

A weekly round up

I feel like I've neglected the blog this week, but luckily that translates into having plenty of material to feed it with right now.

Once again I've been super busy. On a professional level I've dropped my portfolio with Harpers magazine, then at the New Yorker. I've also been in for a chat at R/GA and with Mike Joyce of Stereotype design



RGA was a great experience, a massive company housing what seemed like thousands of buzzing creatives dashing back and forth but in reality was a mere 300+ (!) and discussing their work was really interesting. I wish I'd had something akin to the Ballers Network when I was captaining teams in the past, would have made life so much easier.

Chatting to Mike over at Stereotype was great, made even better because on route the sun came out for the first time in days! We discussed a whole range of topics and it was wonderful to indulge my love for typography in a place adorned with type based posters. I also came away with the delightful business card below (apologies for the poor photography). Thanks for your time Mike!



But I'm getting ahead of myself, right at the start of the week I went to the Inkubator Summer Series, to see a reading of Dusty and The Big Bad World one of three new plays written by women that are being shown (for free) in June. I had a chat with the co-curator at the interval, who told me that the series is driven by the fact that most new plays never get a second production, so playwrights often miss out on the chance to add new ideas to a script and see them performed, which is what this series aimed to rectify. The playwrights undertake a week long workshop to try new ideas out and develop the material before the reading of the 'new' play takes place at the end of the week, where hopefully it will be well received and possibly lead to a second production.

Dusty and The Big Bad World was fantastic; funny, emotive, sensitive and political. A brief synopsis is on the website, but I really hope this play gets a second production somewhere as it was too good not to be seen by a greater audience.

Saving the best until last and again in a theatrical context, Wednesday brought about Twelfth Night. Anyone who has seen my twitter account will know my reaction to this but for everyone else, IT WAS AMAZING.



I had seen the posters around the city and they had caught my eye because of the wonderful (as usual) design by Pentagram


and the fact that Anne Hathaway was in the show. As I was in Manhattan early on Wednesday I decided to take a chance and join the line for free tickets, yes I did say free. I got there at 9:30am, tickets were distributed at 1pm, yet the line began at 3am. That is dedication! But for the chance to see an Oscar Nominee in her professional Shakespeare debut I could understand it. The idea of bringing Shakespeare outdoors and making it so accessible (if you can stomach the wait) is such a brilliant idea and the show did not disappoint. I'm no theatre critic (despite the previous blog entries) so I'll leave the reviews to the experts: New York Times Theatre Review but I found it magical and yes I did buy a poster!

Finally it's a frivolous day today; the Gossip Girl tour. Ha. And as it's Ed Westwick's birthday tomorrow (apparently) it is a specially themed Chuck tour where all participants have to get dressed up as their favourite character. Decisions, decisions....



(images courtesy of RGA website, Mike Joyce of Stereotype Design, the NYT online photo gallery and Pentagram's website)

Williamsburg/Manhattan/Coney Island

If only you could get frequent 'flier' miles from your own legs I'd be eligible for all sorts of gifts, treats and upgrades. Ok, so that analogy got a little confused but the point of it is pretty clear; I am covering a lot of ground.

I even snuck in a run around Prospect Park on Saturday morning, which was great. I really adore the way the parks are such a hub of activity in New York. I know it happens in other cities, but there is a real sense of ownership here and the general public will use that space for all sorts of activities, one man rode past me on a unicycle with his dog in tow. An inventive, albeit dangerous, way of walking the dog.

Friday I spent in Williamsburg, it was my first ever visit and I took a walk down Bedford Avenue before my five gallery extravaganza began. I'm not going to list them all, but my favourite was the work of Steven Brower and his Brower Propulsion Laboratory at the Parker's Box Gallery.


The whole concept revolves around the (fake) aerospace company BPL and the exhibition is designed to operate as a precursor to a 'mission' the company will undertake later in the summer. The space is filled with objects for the mission and the walls are adorned with ironic internal memos and corporate press releases, which are funny and raise some interesting questions about modern society, corporate spending and power.




You can read all of the memos on the corporate site of BPL and it's definitely worth it. The No Parties memo (shown above) is my personal favourite. A great show, really fun and interesting and the inventions and paintings displayed were well crafted and sympathetic to the overall concept.



Friday Night I took a visit to Broadway and managed to snag a last minute seat to the Noel Coward play 'Blithe Spirit' starring Rupert Everett (in his Broadway debut) and Angela Lansbury. Although in my head the full cast ran more as Everett, the lady from Murder She Wrote, Karen Hayes from 24 (Jayne Atkinson) and the blonde lady who I knew I should know but didn't (Christine Ebersole - multi award winning actress!).

But despite my limited knowledge of the cast's theatrical experience I knew I was in for a treat and so it turned out. The play itself is a gem and the sort of thing that I love to go and see, but I also thought the performances were fantastic. Rupert Everett has such a powerful stage presence and had the audience under his spell from the minute he delivered his first line. Angela Lansbury gave a marvellous comic turn as Madame Arcati and the rapport between the two leading ladies was convincing and engaging. A great first taste of Broadway for me!

Last, but absolutely no way least was the Mermaid Parade at Coney Island. I don't want to go into too much written detail as a few simple words will sum up the experience: bizarre, wet but fun.

The pictures below give you a taste of what I experienced stood in the torrential rain on Surf Avenue, Coney Island. It really was an odd procession. Undoubtedly a family event, but just not a family I'd be comfortable being a direct descendant of in some parts (although these pictures are pretty tame and don't show some of the more spectacular sights). But it was certainly enjoyable and worth the trip.







That's it for now. Back to Manhattan tomorrow for a few more meetings and portfolio showings. Remember if you're reading this in New York and want to see my book, just drop me an email.