Keep it simple stupid

An article for Prevention magazine, on the health benefits of part time meat eating, and 'flipping' wheatena cereal into your breakfast for the benefit of your heart. I was especially pleased with the way the colours really sing on the buff background colour. That simple colour contrast can really lift an illustration. I learnt to mix colours properly in cmyk mode several years ago when I first started working for UK greetings. Before then, colour for me was an afterthought. When designing a card range, I often start off with the colour pallette. This book, http://www.amazon.co.uk/Colour-Index-Jim-Krause/dp/0715313975/ref=sr_1_1/277-0755917-8532431?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1238492197&sr=8-1 The Colour Index is an invaluable source for colour combinations. I tend to mix onscreen in photoshop as well.

I was again inspired by vintage Penguin book covers for this article about Plectrums. I started off with lots of Plectrums, but it didn't work, and was over fussy. It takes experience to say to yourself - this isn't working - start again.
I was really pleased with this simple design - and added the dog eared book cover bends to make it look authentic.

Stress!

This illustrates me perfectly recently (without the hair and glasses) - I've been juggling a few different jobs - both in North America though - so there's been the time difference - which can work to the illustrators advantage regarding deadlines, but it can mean that you're waiting all day for a response for roughs that you've emailed. This illustration is one of a series for the Indianapolis monthly magazine on "How to get rid of stuff" - this particular one deals with: "I am going to read/fix/organize all of that when I have some free time.” All good intentions, of course. But, let’s face it, that ever-rising stack of New Yorkers on your night stand is probably more of a stress trigger"
This is a subject close to my heart - I just love to throw stuff out/give to charity - and my work space has to be fairly tide for me to start work - sad I know! Clearly inspired by Edvard Munch's 'The Scream', I was really pleased with the simplicity of the composition, the balance of colours that really sing - and the addition of the New York Times text - on top.
As usual with the best of my stuff - it came to me quickly and fluidly - after an hour or so - it was almost done.
A few suggestions from the client (add hair and make less baby like) and it was complete.

Turn on, tune in.....

...Play out!
The article was about encouraging people to get out of their bedrooms and playing their guitars in public. I managed to find a fantastic photo from Image bank Corbis.
The style that was needed was 50's advertising. At first the client wanted me to reproduce a similar illustration to 'Lets Rock' (http://scottrhodesillustrator.blogspot.com/2008/12/lets-rock.html) I was happy to do that, but felt like I didn't want to repeat myself - and I could just visualise the illustration more or less as is. This is always a good sign - the most successful illustrations come with a clear idea of what you want at the very beginning. If you don't then messing around for hours with no clear idea is a real bind - and often results in a less strong images (though sometimes happy accidents happen.) Also my best illustrations are executed very quickly because of this.
There is so much inspiration on the Internet, no illustrator has any excuse to be uninspired (though it happens to us all.)
Here's some vintage cigarette ads that were an influence on this project:
http://flickr.com/groups/13876518@N00/pool/

It was a real thrill to do a piece illustrating Motown's unsung musical hero's of mine The Funk Brothers, the studio band who played on all of those tracks I love so much.
I incorporated parts of their signature style - the stars and text and graphics from those wonderful vinyl records, and melded them together using my signature style - old paper and a vintage feel that really suited the subject matter celebrating 50 years of Motown.

The simple (still) Life

And now for something completely different:
I 've long loved still life paintings, since I used to be a painter myself. I'm a much better digital artist though. I love the speed which I can create on the mac, I went back to painting a while ago, and couldn't believe how long it took! It was quite theraputic though.
I've created these works, using my own photography, but with the feeling of those old masters works. I went to a wonderful exhibition of these in 1995 'Spanish Still Life from Velazquez to Goya', at the National Gallery London (book available here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Spanish-Still-Life-Velazquez-Goya/dp/0300063563 )
I was especially taken with the work of Francisco de Zurbarán (1598 – 1664) less well known than his contemporary the great Velazquez.
The book cover above has an element of a still life by Juan Sánchez Cotán who was an major influence on Zuberan's work.
This painting created in 1600 has such beauty in its visual impact and the compostition is thought to have been created under strict guidelines of mathematics and geometry.
The natural order, simplicity and balance appeals to me and is something I always try to achieve in my own work.
I try to not put too much in that over complicates, and spoils the composition.
I love a lot of modern digital illustration (Vault 49 et al) This stuff is amazing and beautiful.
But it is not me - I like really simple composition and work.
What is not put in is as important as what is put in.

I ate all the Pies!

I consider myself a bit of Pie connoisseur - the inspiration behind todays illustration.
http://www.pieminister.co.uk/ make excellent ones, available at many summer festivals, but the best Pie I ever ate was at the Windmill Pub in Mayfair London, they call their Steak & Kidney variety an "Institute of Pie Excellence" http://www.windmillmayfair.co.uk/

Owls

Part of my on going Hi Cutie range - it's great to do a card range that is none Birthday/Christmas related. Key elements - simple, cute, minimal colour, screen print look, and 'hand painted'.
Even though it's created digitally - I work hard to make it look hand done. I start off with simple clean lines then paint over them for that rough edge. There has been a move away from that 'perfect' finish recently - it just looks to clinical and soul-less.

The rules

Here' a new piece.
When you create an illustration style, you have to make rules that apply to that look. These are often more instinctive than planned - but here they are as I see them:
1. Keep it simple stupid!
In my opinion simple ideas are the best.
I cannot bear it when a client tries to add absolutely everything that is in the article.
It's a joy when you get an art director (as in this case) who says - we like your work, do what you want (within reason) they will always get a better job than those trying to meddle. That is not to say I am not averse to changes - the client is always right (even when they are wrong!)
But I think that adding loads of bits that may be found in the article is unnecessary, fussy and in my opinion inferior to a simple cleaner idea that represents the article (or may even add to it) in one bold design.
2. Limited colour palette
In this case and in a lot of my work, I am using a 50's inspired 2 tone colour palette.
In the past they would use just 2 colours, when that is all they were allowed in the printing process. But as in many cases having to kick against a limitation can allow creativity to roam.
3. Old style Typography.
These letter were printed using old fashioned printing blocks.
It's hard to believe, but at Manchester Polytechnic in the early 90's they still had sets of old lettering blocks - with the actual leading (gaps in between.) There were barely any computers then, and we certainly didn't use any for illustration. The computer though is just another tool - the idea is most important. The computer just lets you create it easier and quicker (though this is not always a good thing.)
4. Brown Paper.
All my work begins with a sheet of old brown or yellowing paper. The edge are uneven and look torn.
5. Distressed image.
A distressed screen print look that matches the typography.

Recycling

As part of my regular column I was asked to create an illustration on how the credit crunch effects sales of guitars. As I'd already done a personal piece on this theme, (seen further down in this blog) I decided to adjust it to suit this subject. I was really pleased with the new version. It has the simplicity and balance I want to achieve in my work. It also has that feeling of a vintage poster that I like. As usual with my best illustrations, it was relatively quick to put together - it is the ones that I struggle with for days that often are least successful.

Vintage Rock!

Some friends of mine make electronic music, I did this piece for them. Inspired by Monty Python's Flying Circus and using my collection of vintage illustrations.

The Eligible Bachelor

Flicking around the TV channels yesterday I came across 'The Eligible Bachelor' a film made by Granada in 1992. It was the first job I had after leaving Manchester Metropolitan University. I had to draw the images Sherlock Holmes saw in a dream and had scribbled down. (They had to be purposively 'scruffy'.) It was very exciting going to see the actors rehearse and take photos of the late Jeremy Brett, I remember him saying "the eyes need to be black darling like yours, very black." It was all very 'actor' like. Brett was widely considered to be the definitive Holmes of his era. I didn't know it at the time but he had been hospitalized for much of the last decade of his life suffering from bipolar disorder .This film was sadly the last they made before his death in 1995.
I remember the joy of clearing my student overdraft with that first and in some ways most exciting of jobs.

A slow week.....

It's been a slow week getting back into it, and not feeling particularly inspired after the Christmas break. It's difficult to explain the creative process, sometimes no matter how much you try - it just doesn't 'flow', at other times it comes so easy!
I'm currently waiting for a few jobs that are pending.....
I did get an email enquiry from nowpublic who wanted to use a photo of mine on an article about how a lot of Brits are contemplating getting a scooter. It was taken just coming out of a London pub - I just saw the red of the scooters and phone boxes and had to take the photo.
http://my.nowpublic.com/tech-biz/credit-crunch-sparks-scooter-revolution

Happy New Year!

I'm actually happy to be back at work today, after all the festivities.
As a great start to the new year, I'm featured as a selected artist at the front of the Association of illustrators (A.O.I) website. This is the website I always go to as a resource, and information about publications, pricing etc. They also have a great forum where you can contact other illustrators, and find out what's going on in their world - it's good to see the opinions of people in the industry.
http://www.aoiportfolios.com/content/content03.shtml

Christmas bear

As part of my new Folklore range here's a new cute design....
Usually we work on Christmas in the first few months of the year, but I started early this year to get myself in the spirit!
You can see the rest of the range so far here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/24380936@N08/

Let's Rock!

I had an excellent brief for an illustration in a 50's American advert style. It should be a family guy and kids with a 'jetsons' feel, with a Danelectro guitar (the subject of the article.) Coincidentally I bought a fantastic book at the weekend called "Meet Mr Product"
http://www.amazon.com/Meet-Mr-Product-Advertising-Character/dp/0811835898
This proved a fantastic resource for this brief as it contained hundreds of characters many from the 1950's used in vintage advertising. This has been a style well mined by the wonderful Candadian illustrator Gary Taxali, probably my favourite illustrator currently working today.

London

We went to London recently for a weekend, and took these shots. You can see more here:
http://flickr.com/photos/scottrhodes/sets/72157605536822651/
Whilst there we went to Dennis Severs house on Folgate street in Spitalfields.
It was a truly amazing experience, ( you can not take photos inside though.)
I cannot compare it to anything else, it was like walking into a living old master painting or opera setting.
It is definitely not a museum or an art exhibition, but like walking back in time.
You enter the house in silence (no mobile phones thank god) and it is like the inhabitants have just left. Lit by candlelight, and fires in the grate, half eaten food is left, reading glasses and glasses of sherry. Your imagination is key here, and the more you let go to your senses, the more magical it is. The house is full of beautiful detail, but it is the feeling you have which is more important than any one thing. One might say - "oh this is the wrong century, in the wrong place" if one were trying to be 'clever', but this is missing the point entirely - it is not about seeing, but about soul and your feelings to it. Rather like Christmas itself.
I didn't want to leave, but wanted to sit for a while in that room with the large Christmas tree chatting to an imagined elderly aunt drinking tea, and eating those little cakes left out. As you go up a floor, you go forward in time until you reach the attic inhabited by Scrooge himself. Another room animates a Hogarth painting that you see on the wall of drunken men, you see a knocked over chair in the painting, and notice its real counterpart in the room.
Going back down, I lingered for a while in the rooms I'd passed through taking in the smells and looking round in awe and wonder one last time. This really was and unforgettable and magical experience and surely counts as a unique work of art, and true art is what I would call it, (though its creator Dennis Sever himself was hostile at any classification)

http://www.dennissevershouse.co.uk/#

Snowtown

I usually keep my illustrations clean and simple, but on this picture from a few years ago I decided to try and create something a bit more complicated, almost a 'where's wally' image.
It took me a while to put all the detail in (every weekend for a month!) But it was worth it.

Christmas is coming!

This is part of my new Christmas range 'Folklore' - inspired by Fuzzy felt and weird obscure animation from the eastern block that was on TV when I was a kid.

Vintage Inspiration

Inspiration in the form of source materials is an invaluable resource for any illustrator.
I had two editorial illustrations to do, and found inspiration in the form of some wonderful Penguin book covers.
You can see quite a few on this Flickr site:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/joekral/sets/72157594264351021/
I've long been a fan of vintage books, their design, limited colour use and simplicity.
The first article was about how the original line up of any classic band is usually the best (especially Led Zeppelin.)
This is something that is quite tricky to convert to illustration. I chose a venn diagram and an old 70's text book feel with reference to the idea of being a mathematical formula for the band, and thinking about school books from when I was a kid.
This look was successfully spoofed by the BBC TV show 'Look around you'
http://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/lookaroundyou/
For the second piece, (about using a fretless guitar) I went for a similar look, but this time the 50's look of the Jazz record label was the direct influence. I just love the simple use of colour and shape - it's a case of less is more when designing this way.