Bank Holiday Independent

Controversial was my first thought when I got yesterday's brief for the Independent. I was asked to illustrate the view that releasing the Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi was the right thing to do to protect British trade/economic interests. Having just logged onto the Indy's website (as well as the BBC, Times and Guardian) I was aware of the storm brewing over the leaked letters that insinuated such an opinion was in fact, a fact, and this knowledge contributed to my initial response.

I am often asked if I have ethical problems with any commissions I receive, or if I illustrate my own opinions and I always say that in commissioned work I create to the brief set by the art director. This was the case here, it is (in my work for the Independent) not my job to make judgements or comment on the issues, my job is to find a visually satisfying way of depicting the opinion articulated by the author on each given week. Until my name is attached to the words I am comfortable visualising their opinions, whether I agree or not. But it does concern me that sometimes people might see an image I create with a particularly strong sentiment and assume that it is my own personal opinion. I am not egotistical enough to believe that my work could ever garner such attention on a large enough scale to cause me any discomfort, but in the age of far reaching technologies one does consider this more then before. I guess that was one of the reasons behind my decision to start this blog, to give any visitors to the website a chance to learn more about the process of creating my imagery.

Generally for the Independent I am given something akin to a statement of intent, one line or sometimes even a mere word that I am asked to generate ideas around. Sometimes it is quite abstract, other times more descriptive such as this weekend's brief. But in all cases my position as illustrator is to do just that, illustrate, not push my own agenda. That is what self directed projects are for!

Some might argue that my position is a cop out, that I have a platform to say something important, but I don't view it that way. I have a role to perform and people have their right to agree or disagree with the views I illustrate on behalf of the newspaper. It is after all an opinion and debate column, not a fact and truth one, thus the ideas outlined on the page both in words and pictures are there to be discussed, ruminated on, shouted at or applauded. If comment is free (as one other newspaper declares) then I am happy to be part of that process.

Now saying all of that, yesterday's process actually went a little awry, in that the brief I was given and the direction I took became a little too similar to that given and taken by the cartoonist on the page adjacent to mine. So an 11th hour rethink was required, not the most fun of events but something to get the adrenalin pumping! I was asked to think about Gordon Brown's involvement in this scenario and after a little discussion both the art director and I decided to work with the notion that Gordon Brown had hidden the truth about the motivation for Abdelbaset al-Megrahi's release (that it was for trade purposes).

A quick round of ideas ensued and after another rapid discussion we decided I should move forward with the image that appears in today's paper; that of Gordon Brown up to his neck (or in this case nose) in oil, holding up his hands in a show of surrender or pleading innocence, depending on how the viewer sees it. Brown almost drowning in the oil is intended to have political implications, the idea that this is another case where his political career is likely to be even further damaged and that he is metaphorically drowning as PM. It is also meant to be inferred that this is another sleaze type allegation, that leaks (oil spill > leak) from within Government show up more of Brown's perceived inadequacies and that once again the Labour party is linked with behaviour that one might call oily. Obviously the most overt reason for the spilt oil is the idea that the true reason for the release of al-Megrahi was all about oil and that this truth has now been leaked. Simple really!



As for opinions in my work, sometimes I agree with the authors, sometimes I don't, but I pride myself on the quality of the work being consistent irregardless of what I personally believe.

Finally, here is a little picture of the 'oil slick' I created at the last minute yesterday using vegetable oil and cocoa powder (for colour), I was quite pleased with my ingenuity (she says modestly) and this picture provided the right texture and outlines for the final image. Illustration can be a ridiculous thing sometimes!

Inky fingers

Firstly I've just finished updating my website so if you want to check out some new pictures then please give it a visit

Today's illustration for the Independent focuses on Afghanistan, in particular current events there and how the author's support for the war has wavered in recent years. I was asked to reflect the elections that took place last week by creating an image made out of a fingerprint.

This was tricky (and messy) work, as not only did I have to compose the image I also had to make it work within the fingerprint shape and make the contours bend to show the figures. The messiness came from fingerprinting myself which I did with very little skill, leaving my finger and thumb a nice blue shade (including the fingernail). So if you should see me out and about in London this week please remember that it isn't dirt, it's just very stubborn ink!

The image itself turned out really well, again I was pleased with the sense of drama and atmosphere I managed to create. It's much more abstract then the piece last week, but generally that tends to be the way when I don't need to discuss or suggest specific people.

Enjoy!

Prints

I don't make a big issue about selling prints of my work, but I do actually do it, so I thought it might be worth mentioning on the blog.

Not to make this a hard sell but I currently have giclee prints available of a large range of my images in limited edition series of 10 or 20 (depending on the print).

To make this post a little more visually interesting here are a few pictures sent to me by Dan Upham, whom I recently sold (and hand delivered) a print to in New York. It was pure coincidence that his enquiry came just before my trip, so international personal delivery isn't the norm! Alongside having impeccable taste Dan happens to be a comedian and you can check him out here



If you would like to buy one of my prints please contact me via email to discuss the images on offer.

Independent

Hello blog,

sorry I've been absent for a week but things have been hectic at Jemillo HQ (I wonder if I say that enough it will take off, or will it continue to sound cheesy forever?).

In fact things are still hectic, so this is a super quick post just to show the image in today's Independent. The brief focused on the news that David Cameron is keen to protect the NHS in the wake of criticism of the system by other Tories (and the Americans who are against a public health service).

I came up with the idea of Cameron as Superman, but with less muscles and more MP style trappings (socks and shoes with the tights, rather then boots) looking down on the audience with a grey city style hospital in the background and a small selection of nurses and doctors to represent his 'sidekicks'.

Colour wise I tried to keep the Tory theme with the different blues and overall I thought the image had a nice feel to it. Certainly one of my recent favourites compositionally.


Oh and if you happen to see it in print today you'll notice that I have been credited incorrectly (it's a G-Gemma, rather then a J-Jemma) but it's still me!

Is Twitter Down?

Having resisted much of the social networking trends of the past few years (I don't myspace, never Bebo'd and rarely venture onto Facebook) I occasionally looked down at those people who checked their facebook pages like I check my email. I enjoyed the technology and appreciated its significance, but never felt the need to broadcast every moment of my life to people I'd once known. As anyone with an ounce of self awareness will recognise, everyday life is not that interesting, trying to document your every movement in the manner of Heat magazine is tiresome, inane and often boring. It's hard enough sometimes writing this blog (case in point?) a few times a week and that's even with the open brief of not having to always write about myself.

So imagine my horror when I realised that I was bothered by the fact that TWITTER IS DOWN. How has it come to this? How have I become a lover of the act of tweeting? Have I given in to the media drip feed of how awesome Twitter is and started to believe the hype? Or is it that it actually has a benefit beyond finding out that Paula Abdul has quit American Idol?

Well I would say (in my defence) it has quickly become important to my working day. Although I would consider maybe half of the people I follow on there friends, a great deal are people I respect professionally or whose tweets give me food for thought throughout the day. So I follow the posts of No.10 Downing Street and Barack Obama, Creative Review and The Independent. Services like this keep me informed of developments worldwide which I may have to illustrate, or of creative output that might inspire or interest me. I follow a Guardian blogger whose articles made me laugh and a musician whose music I enjoy but who also has a fantastically original approach to engaging with her fans. I follow other illustrators and I also used twitter to make connections with people before my trip to New York, which was invaluable in giving me a chance to network and in some cases make friends.

All in all I would now call myself a fully paid up member of the Twitter fan club. I don't think Twitter can save the world (Sorry Guardian Online), and I recognise that for most it may just be a simple distraction, but if you utilise it properly the system can be a really useful tool for a freelancer and definitely one worth exploring. So earlier when I felt the need to google "Is Twitter Down?" and landed on the fantastically simple site Is Twitter Down, where the answer was Yes, I found myself rushing to my blog to bemoan the situation and share a more lengthy version of what I will post when it returns;

Jemillo: @twitter "You don't know what you've got til it's (temporarily) gone"

Disclaimer (with tongue firmly in cheek) I'd like to point out that I am not an addict and I'd also like to say that this post was in no way paid for by Twitter (I wish) or endorsed by them or anyone associated with the website.

Now if only Twitter was working I could let people know I'd written this....

News..

or at least definite news, is a little thin on the ground at the moment. A lot of things in the pipeline but it's limbo time (not in the fun party way) at Jemillo HQ as I wait for people to return from their holidays and for plans to be put into motion. Not the worst way to be as it has given me a little time to work on my New York animation. You can see it in its current rough state below:



This is my final contribution to the We Have A Nice Day project I worked on whilst I was in New York. I'm going to be adding my favourite images from that project to the website and blog soon, as soon as I get time to do all of the admin required and once I get this animation finished. It has taken longer then the other outcomes because I wanted to take my time and experiment with 3d space and cameras in After Effects (I've also been pretty busy since I got back, so have been squeezing in time to work on this). Generally when I animate I tend to work in 2d space and move along the horizon, so this has been a lot of work, experimentation and tutorial watching to get to this point. Ridiculously frustrating in parts but I'm quite pleased with where I'm at so far. Hopefully I'll get some time this week to go back into it and work up the backgrounds and add the next scenes.

Alongside this I did my image for the Independent, which looked a little like this yesterday:


This image is about state control/intervention. I was told that the article would mainly be about assisted suicide, but I was asked not to work with that, but to focus more on the broader topic of Government intervention in people's lives. This was the idea that was chosen by the art director and my main intention was to use the Union Jack as a set of paths, showing the character being prodded down one route by the hand of the state. It is meant to be a little reminiscent of Government propaganda and also suggest an all controlling power. I wanted to stay away from CCTV and prison like environments and was quite pleased with the way this turned out.

I also completed a full page illustration for The Ride journal last week, which I won't post here until it has been published. That was great fun though, a wide open brief and evocative story to illustrate. It was perfectly timed given that I was working on it whilst the Tour De France was coming to a close, so I worked up the rough with the inspirational feats of Bradley Wiggins and Mark Cavendish on in the background. Good times!

Right now I'm working on an image for Ink Publishing so I'd better get back to it..

Harry Patch

Whilst fighting illness and surrounded by visiting family members over for a BBQ at my family home I snuck away for the afternoon to await my weekly Independent brief. This week I was asked to create an image about the death of Harry Patch, the last remaining veteran of the first World War.

Sometimes a commission comes through that makes you really think. Not so much about the job itself, but about the subject of the piece. This was certainly the case yesterday, as I got lost in thought about what this brave man had seen throughout his lifetime. This was a man who had survived a horrific war and gone on to lead a quiet life, well respected it appears, and who had only begun to talk in public about his experiences in the last 11 years; a complete contrast to the age of celebrity and 21 year olds' autobiographies that we live in now.

I don't know anything beyond what has been reported in the papers, so I will not claim to speak with any authority about Harry Patch. But I did want to create a piece with quiet dignity, which seemed in keeping with the news reports, also remembering that this was someone's grandfather not someone who chose a public life. I can't take credit for the idea this week, my art director suggested the Poppies in the chair approach, but I worked hard to make the composition quiet and understated with the addition of the wartime scene in the background populated by ghosts of a different time.

I rarely analyse my work after the event, but I was pleased with this and the sense of atmosphere that (I believe) I have generated within the image. It took a lot longer to make the background work and overall I was happy with the sense of history and memory that I created.

The Independent has carried a lot of stories about the troops in Afghanistan recently and I think it has done a fantastic job of reminding people that it is a dangerous place, something to think about in the here and now, not as something that began when I was at University and just continues to trundle in the background. Whatever one thinks about the merit of this war or any war, I always try to remember that it is real people involved with families, friends, dependents (on both sides) and not just a source of stories for Hollywood films or political posturing. My commission yesterday sparked off many conversations amongst my family, as we had a current Army captain and a Navy Veteran of World War II in the house and an absent cousin who is serving in the Army at present.

I guess that is what a simple illustration can make you think about. Harry Patch represented a generation that was lost. It put my grumblings about being ill into the shade and I hope that my work was suitably humble and respectful to his memory and his family.

*any views expressed here are mine alone and do not reflect the Independent's editorial position.

News update

A quick post to keep the website up to date as I haven't had chance to upload any new work recently.

I'm back in the UK now and to quote Tracey Jordan in 30 Rock I'm 'On my grind', or working hard as it's more commonly known.

I have a set of Independent illustrations to upload and I intend to bring some of my favourite bits of the We Have A Nice Day project onto the website too. I'll be talking about that project in more detail on the blog once I complete my final image. I didn't want to rush it so have used the time to work on an animation in After Effects which is a little more technically accomplished then my previous efforts (I hope!).

Once that is finished I intend to put together a showreel of my animations, as the 'new' jemillo.com doesn't currently showcase that side of my practice, which was a conscious decision at the time. But now I have a reasonable amount of material I definitely want to take the time to produce a proper showreel.

I also have an illustration on the go for Ride magazine, which I am excited about, as well as an illustration for Mental Health Practice magazine.

This is a busy time for me as I'm catching up on all of the things that I had to put aside when I injured my hand, which means lots of personal work being finished and loose ends tied up. I'm also looking into the ways in which I can expand my creative practice, which is something I always like to do once the academic term has ended.

So I think that gives a brief summary of what's happening here at the moment. Hopefully there will be new work on the website over the weekend so keep an eye out for that...

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.

Week 1

It's been a busy first few days in New York City. I've pounded the streets with my laptop on my back and boy are my feet paying for it. But along the way I've encountered some interesting people, things and places, all adding up to a great first week (and I still have the Mermaid Parade to come!).

One of the things I did was pop in to see Dave Tabler and Jami Giovanopoulos at the ispot offices in Midtown. I've had a portfolio on the ispot since the beginning of the year and spoken to Dave and Jami several times about things to do over here, so it seemed only apt that I called in to say hi and thanks for the advice. Dave and I did the obligatory photo too:



Also in the Midtown vicinity I went along to the Center For Book Arts to check out the “\’flo\: art, text, new media” exhibition. Although the premise was interesting I didn't find the show particularly inspiring. I think in situations like this my image as communication prerogative rears its head and I find myself questioning what the piece is trying to say and who is its intended audience. Besides from those big issues I also question the state the work is presented in, taking the time and care to select an appropriate housing for your work is, to me, a big part of exhibiting and some of the work on show here felt like it had been thrown up with little consideration of how that affected the message. But it was interesting and there were a few pieces that I enjoyed, chiefly the work of Chris Burnett and a piece called Reading Through. I've tried Google for more information but all I found was an out of date blog, but nonetheless I enjoyed that work, in particular the 'Truck Stop'.

I also found time to meet Jesse Kuhn, illustrator and creator of The Quirkles, a science based children's book series. We had a chat about all things illustration, which was fun, it's always nice to meet other illustrators and swap stories. I wanted to mention him on here as if you happen to be in Brooklyn this weekend you can pick up one of Jesse's prints at The Seventh Heaven Street Fair, which sounds like a great event and one that I will be attending.

Right at the beginning of the week I went along to 'Tearing the Veil of Maya' a comedy show at Union Hall in Park Slope. It was great, I enjoyed all the comedians, but the one that stood out was a guy called Mike Birbiglia. He's quite a big deal over here and I was fortunate to get to see him on my first day in town. He has his own site and a YouTube channel. But I've embedded a little animated skit below too:



I think that gives a brief overview of my time here so far. I'm planning on heading to Williamsburg today to check out the galleries there and have a wander around. Although I'll be heading back into Manhattan for this later today.

Have a great weekend.