Friday 25 November 2011

Illustrators Pick: Miguel Mansur







Miguel Mansur is an illustrator in Philadelphia, PA. His work is often graphically charged creating sharp and lucid experience. Also, as you can see above, he redesigned covers for Albert Camus books. How is this guy not simply amazing?

See more of Miguel here:
Twitter
Blog
Behance
Shop
Google+

Featured Artist Issue 1: Catherine Pape






What couldn’t you live without?
Music to listen to, nice people to dance and go for walks with.

How do you create your images?
Usually they begin with pencil, and then any combination of ink, watercolours, coloured pencils and computer.

Do you have a studio?
I have a bedroom. It's a nice bedroom though. I use the illustration studios at my university as well.

Do you have a shop? (Please include link information)
Not yet!

What’s your typical working day?
It's different all the time. Often I work at uni during the day, and at my desk at home in the evening. But a lot of the time, depending on the project, I go outside and draw from life in interesting places.

Twitter or Facebook? (Please include link information)
twitter: @catherinedraws
my portfolio and blog are at www.keepthisillustration.com.

Are you a tea or coffee person?
Tea, all the way!

Do you prefer traditional or digital work?
I like it when traditional and digital work can combine to create something amazing, but nothing beats going to a gallery and seeing painstakingly handcrafted artwork in real life.

Where do you get inspiration from?
Nature, the wilderness, textile patterns, early morning mist, motorways, psychedelia, in-between places, the night sky.

What do you do when creative block strikes?
I play the piano - using a different kind of creativity helps.

Why did you become an illustrator?
I'm still a student, but I always wanted to be an artist. I couldn't really imagine anything I'd rather do than draw and paint, creating images for a living.

What projects are you currently working on that we should keep
our eyes peeled for?
I'm working on a book – it's based on a song from my band – it's called Flora.

If you could have any pet,what would it be?
A pug and a kitten.

What would you like to do more of in the future?
More painting – branching out from watercolours into other media. Waking up earlier. Swimming in the sea.

You are walking along the road and stub your toe on something,
it turns out to be a magic lantern with a genie inside. He grants you one wish.
What is it?
So hard to decide! Either a flying bike, the ability to sing like a whale, or an instant camera that never runs out of film. 


See more of Catherine here: 

Thursday 24 November 2011

Illustrators Pick: Katherine Tromans






 Katherine Tromans is an illustrator from Stourbridge. Katherine's work combines of subtle shades of pastel colours and detailed pencil drawings, really refreshing to see a unique style. Looking forward to seeing more of her work.

Blog
Shop
Twitter

Jo


Saturday 19 November 2011

Illustrators Pick: Birdy & Me








Amazing fashion illustrations by Australian artist artist Kelly Smith. She's got a very distinctive style and strong portfolio as well.

Beautiful, feminine, pretty.... I love her work!

Blog 
Etsy 
Flickr 

Jo

Friday 18 November 2011

Illustrators Pick: Alexander Wells








Alexander Wells is an illustrator living in Brighton. His work often combines both human and animal elements, as well as digital and traditional media. Visually appealing and intellectually stimulating his work inhabits an aesthetic for the modern man.

See more of Alexander in his Twitter.

Featured Artists: OpenDoorsLondon Exhibition


OpenDoorsLondon curate pop-up galleries using London boroughs as an inspiration. Their aim is to get artists, photographers and illustrators to take creative inspiration from their local area and communities. 

"We accept artists based not on where they live or how successful they have been so far, but on their willingness to create work inspired by or relevant to the area.This is because we believe that art tells a story that is in some way relevant to the local people. We want to encourage local residents to get excited by art and and to hopefully pop-in and buy the art. "

We hope they come to North London in the future as we'd love to take part!

The next exhibition will be based on the borough SW4 which will take place on Saturday 3rd December in Clapham North Arts Centre. To mark the occasion OpenDoorsLondon are running a competition which involves finding BlogDog around SW4! The clues can be found either by following them on Twitter or their blog . Once you find the dog return it to the exhibition and you'll be in for a prize. So hurry what are you waiting for? This sounds fun!

For more details about the exhibition click here. 








Featured Artist: Celeste Palacios







Hello there! Tell us a little bit about yourself.
I am a painter and illustrator from Argentina, living and working in Germany. I'm a graduate student of the Academy of Fine Arts in Córdoba.
I love drawing, photography, traveling, and hot chocolate.

What are you currently working on right now?
At this moment I´m working on some paintings for a new series. Currently some of my works are exposed in the museum of the city Tecate in Baja California, Mexico.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years time?
I hope I'll live either in Salvador de Bahia, enjoying the brasilian sun and the beach, or in Berlin, my preferred city of the world. And obviously, I see my self painting and working, doing what I really love.

What drew you to illustration?
Since my childhood drawing is a great passion for me, and that's why I studied fine art. In the world of illustration I find endless possibilities to express my emotions and impressions. That's why I always wanted to be an illustrator.

Would you mind sharing a little about your creative process with us?
My creative process is based on inspiration I get from music, feelings and life experiences. To start a new project I always begin drawing sketches. After that I transfer the idea on canvas with acrylic colors, or on the computer. To realize illustrations for magazines, fine art prints or designs, the computer has become an important tool for me.

Where are you located?
I live in the multicultural city of Köln, at the river Rhine.


Thursday 17 November 2011

Featured Artist Issue 1: Fiona Purves







What couldn’t you live without?
Payne’s Grey acrylic ink

How do you create your images?
Lots of sketching/thinking then drawing on bigger bits of paper, scanning in and tidying up and/or rearranging in Photoshop.

Do you have a studio?
Nope, I work at my desk in my bedroom!

Do you have a shop?
Yes, I have an etsy shop – http://etsy.com/shop/fionapurves

What’s your typical working day? When I have a day off from my day job which I spend doing illustration, I will spend a while faffing on the internet looking at pretty stuff, then I will devise a to do list, or consult my latest one, and get on with doing what I need to be doing (but often will find other things to do!) for the whole day, with lots of breaks for tea and cakes.

Twitter or Facebook?
I use both (www.twitter.com/fiona_purves and http://www.facebook.com/pages/Fiona-Purves-Illustration/132014383544056?sk=info) but prefer Twitter.

Are you a tea or coffee person?
Tea!

Do you prefer traditional or digital work?
Traditional

Where do you get inspiration from?
All over the place! I find a lot of inspiration in my daily surroundings, as they look different everyday and I always notice different details, colours and characters.

What do you do when creative block strikes?
Try to re-inspire myself by looking at blogs, websites and books. I will go through a phase of being negative but once I have this out of my system I try to start from fresh and draw new things I wouldn’t draw normally.

Why did you become an illustrator?
I find illustration fascinating, and there are always new things to explore and develop.

What projects are you currently working on that we should keep
our eyes peeled for?
I’m working on quite a big personal project based on cities and maps.
If you could have any pet, what would it be? I would love to have a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, and I’d also like a Tortoise and a Guinea Pig...

What would you like to do more of in the future?
I really want to learn how to take good photographs.

You are walking along the road and stub your toe on something, it turns out to be a magic lantern with a genie inside. He grants you one wish.
What is it?
To be able to visit the Galapogos Islands.

You can see more of Fiona and her work here: 

Facebook
Etsy 

Illustrators Pick: Susie Ghahremani





Illustrator Susie Ghahremani, who also goes by the name of Boy Girl Party, has the prettiest artwork and products! It's great to see an artist like Susie who's doing very well by applying her images to products and making a living. This has been something I've always wanted to pursue as I really enjoy making cards and products for sale rather than answering briefs!

Christmas is coming up folks so why not look around her shop for presents (hint, hint.)

Shop
Facebook
Blog

Jo

Tuesday 15 November 2011

Featured Artist: Lydia Fee






Hello there! Tell us a little bit about yourself.
Hello. I am a mixed-media artist, freelance illustrator, card maker and lover of all things Brixton!

What are you currently working on right now?
I have few projects on the go at the moment. A job to design a wedding invitation, a private commission and ongoing work for the Ritzy Picturehouse Cinema.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years time?
I couldn’t tell you! I have hopes for the future but I try to take each and every day as it comes. I have been thinking about living and working in Berlin with a friend for a while. The seed has been planted in my mind and I am starting to believe that this might be an exciting possibility…

What drew you to illustration?
Nothing. I have always been doing it because it makes me happy.

Would you mind sharing a little about your creative process with us?
My work is mixed-media and I combine traditional techniques with modern technology and ideas. My practice has recently evolved and I now use print as a major foundation in my image-making process. The vibrancy of the oil-based inks and subtle textures are not something that I feel can be mimicked digitally.

Where are you located?
I live in Tulse Hill, South London. I am passionate about my area and the local community. I volunteer at my local park and spend most of my spare time in Brixton Village, eating, drinking and rummaging for goodies!

See more of Lydia's work here:

Portfolio: www.lydiafee.co.uk
Agency: www.handsomefrank.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/lydiafee

Friday 11 November 2011

Illustration 101 - Resources

*Little Constructs main mission is to create a network and resource for illustrators. We want to help answer your questions, give you courage, and provide you with the friends and tools it takes to get out there and achieve your dreams.

If you have been following the Illustration 101 posts you have been watching an ongoing attempt at helping confront some of the concerns present in starting out. However, we would be remiss to not provide you with some external resources. Below are lists of websites and books that helped us work our way into the freelancing business and keeping up good creative habits.


*Please note that some of the websites are UK based so opportunities for example may not be applicable for those living outside of the UK. 
However it's still good to look at how organisations work and what sort of help there are for artists in general. 

Books: 

Creative Inc. The Ultimate Guide to Running a Successful Freelance Business by Joy Deangdeelert Cho, Meg Mateo Ilasco
How to be an Illustrator by Darrel Rees, Nicholas Blechman
An Illustrated Life: Drawing Inspiration from the Private Sketchbooks of Artists, Illustrators and Designers by
Danny Gregory
Business and Legal Forms for Illustrators by Tad Crawford
Graphic Artist's Guild Handbook of Pricing and Ethical Guidelines by Graphic Artists Guild
The Right-Brain Business Plan: A Creative, Visual Map for Success by Jennifer Lee
Visual Complexity: Mapping Patterns of Information by Manuel Lima 
Illusive: Contemporary Illustration and Its Context
My So Called Freelance Life: How to Survive and Thrive as a Creative Professional for Hire by Michelle Goodman

Websites: 

(Brilliant podcasts available)
(Creative professionals network and job lists)
Drawn
*AOI Images
You can join up and get advice from them. They also have lots of workshops throughout the year too.
*YCN
* Arts Council
*Creative Living
*ECCA
ECCA is part of University of London which aims to help people in the creative arts who are starting up a business/ being self- employed. Again, they provide lots of news about workshops and upcoming events.
*Jotta
Good website if you're looking for creative opportunities in and outside of London. You can also upload your portfolio onto the website.
UBD Network
Promoting creatives from all backgrounds. Plus you can upload your portfolio for free.
Feature Me





Thursday 10 November 2011