HULLABALOO: BA (Hons) Illustration Fundraiser events

To contribute to the fundraising of our London Grad Show, I have joined the Fundraiser event committee. This has so far been a very rewarding and helpful experience to develop my team work and organisational skills. With alot of us being craft-based illustrators we have incorporated this into the decoration of the event location. In the previous event, I contributed to the decorations with paper cut 'photobooth' letters and various photobooth masks and props. This was great development for my paper engineering skills and working collaboratively with a team of other paper makers.

For the second event, much of the previous props were re-used. However as the theme changed slightly from Mardi Gras to Exotic. In the venue there is a large pillar in the middle of the dancefloor. Previously, it had only been decorated with feathers. I saw an opportunity to transform the pillar to make it much more in keeping with the event's theme and decided to decorate it with hand made card leaves, flowers, balloons and fairy lights so that it resembled a palm tree that made the event guests feel as if they were on holiday. This was the result...

I can identify from this experience that I am good at problem solving in group projects. Even though I think there is still room for improvement on finished anesthetics, I can feel that this is a career avenue I would like to pursue. This 'hands-on' approach definitely suits my personality and illustration practice!

Theatre Posters- AUB Commissions

This academic year I have made work for two AUB Theatre productions. These are my first established commissions to be undertaken. Both were a large learning curve to understand how to respond to a clients brief and their critical feedback. Looking back the posters are very different in their aesthetic and I don't think an audience would recognise that they had both been designed by myself if they were placed together. Obviously it was important that I encompassed the different needs for each production, however it is important to start creating consistent work that clearly demonstrates what my practice is about and avoid confusion.

 

Cloud 9 by Caryl Churchill was the first poster I was commissioned to design. Despite my previous exploration with paper art and photography, I decided to approach the poster design with traditional mediums, looking back I probably wouldn't have used such traditional techniques. My focus was put too much on the illustrated woman in the centre of the poster than the full design of the poster, therefore everything else became secondary to the main image. Compared to the poster I did later for Persuasion, It is unclear that the poster is advertising a theatre production at all. The main issue I can identify is the combination of image and text hasn't quite worked. They seem to clash, which was not my intention. I need to be more aware of the image/text relationship, especially if I intend to work in an advertising/marketing environment. In the Persuasion poster, I feel that the main typography fits better with the imagery, however I know that I was rushed for time with the typography and think this shows in the presentation of the poster. Its not as clear as I would like it to be. Also the mix match of the typefaces is an issue for me. It was a decision made with the client, therefore it should be accepted but in the future I would rather research or render my own text to use throughout. On a positive note, I was much happier with the final Persuasion poster. The colour palette of just three colours works well and makes it punchy and stand out. The image looks crisp and despite working in separate layers, I do not think there is much attention drawn to the fact it is paper cut work. There is definite room for improvement, I'd much rather find a method to approach poster art work with some analogue but also crispness. I feel the Persuasion poster still lacks performance. This is a passion of mine which I feel does not yet come through in my own practice.

Career Aspirations

It has become apparent in the past couple of terms, that I wish to direct my practice towards advertising and marketing avenues, in particular set design and illustrated works for window display. This would suit my interests in creating illustrative performance in both 2D and 3D formats.

There are few practitioners that have particularly inspired me:

Shona Heath

http://www.clmus.com/set-design/shona-heath

From my research, it appears Shona Heath is the most sought after set designer. Her work with Tim Walker is fascinating for my own practice as her work proves the ability for three dimensional illustration to become a performance whether it be presented in public space or through printed formats.

Rhea Thierstein
The Contemporary of Shona Heath, Thierstein is another inspiration of mine. In particular, I am really drawn to her approach to events and window design. The work is usually thoughtful and considerate of her audience.
A particular example would be the set design she did for the Claridges Dinner hosted by Mulberry. The event required the guests to climb through a tent into the dinner party- This connected directly to the Tim Walker's film The Lost Explorer that was being shown at the event.

Sarah Illenberger

http://sarahillenberger.com/

German 3D illustrator has made a name for herself doing a wide range of Three Dimensional Illustration work for both editorial and set design projects. I particularly admire her determination to keep changing her practice and incorporating new skills. Her projects are also usually playful and undertake a number of issues and present them in accessible ways.

This blog will document how I develop my practice to suit my career aspirations as an aspiring art director.