Now this is what a professional brief should be...!

New Painting

Have been wanting to start painting again for a while now. Been hung up on whether it should look good? whether it should communicate something specific? if it will be fine art or illustration? commercial? it makes my head hurt and my motivation dwindle.

I heard a colleague of mine recently tell our students that creativity was as much an act of bravery than inspiration. where's the fear come from? the fear of ridicule, failure, derision?

I have tried to concentrate on the process rather than solely on the final product. i must admit, it gave me a thrill to peel off the masking tape, revealing the crisp white paper juxtaposed with the pink brushstrokes.

eh! look at me! Juxtaposed! Must be an artist now!

Illustration Now! 3 My pages

Here's my spread. Surprised they didn't choose The Queen or Vivien, but am still very pleased! I even feel OK with my pretentious statement!

Illustration Now 3

The latest volume in Taschen's Illustration Now! series features 150 illustrators from around the world, using a vast range of techniques.

It's out now, and I'm in it!!! You can leaf through by clicking here.

It's a brilliant feeling to fulfill ambitions!

Shane Meadows signs print!

Went to see the new Shane Meadows film, Le Donk & Scor-zay-zee at the Broadway Cinema! Absolutely FANTASTIC film, laugh-out-loud funny!

Shane, Paddy and rest of the crew held a Q & A afterwards and it was great to see they were still 'pissing around' like they were, 15 years ago.

Anyway, overcame my deep and utter self-conscious embarrassment and got Shane to sign my illustration of him. Seemed to like it anyway, despite my inept ability to hold a coherent conversation, and will be sending him a large print! Chuffed.

The golden age...

Am in the middle of writing new project briefs and a guide to visual research for Sept and was rummaging through my old college sketchbooks and came across these two drawings. I did these at a convent hospital after being refused permission to draw at a morgue! HA! Next best thing... an old peoples home!

The nuns at the hospital were brilliant and i spent the day with this woman (feel really ashamed that I can't remember her name). She had a heart monitor beeping away and the room was BOILING hot but I felt really privileged to be able to spend the day drawing. Aaaahhhh, 1993, seems like a lifetime ago! Actually for some people following this, it is!!!

The Romantic Movement in French Literature

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Have just posted this on i-am-visualjournal blog, thought it might be of interest here too..

Am just sorting out the office / studio as we are moving this summer and came upon this old book i bought when i was living in Brighton.

It's a really lovely crimson coloured hard backed book, written completely in French. I painted over the pages with emulsion and started using it as a visual journal. Have just added the last page 'Heartburn' as I seem to have had it for days! Will definitely keep this little book going. Might even set it as a project for the new students!

Stelios image for Economic Review

Here's my latest commission for the Economic Review, Abu Dhabi.

Another oldie!

Here's another oldie! This was in my first ever portfolio that I dragged around London. Aint got a clue why I called it 'Golden Showers' though!! Still quite like the drawing.

First!!

Ha ha!! This is my first EVER attempt at a digital illustration! Can't believe it was nearly 10 years ago!!! The type is shockingly bad but I can def see the style forming. Will put some other oldies on now I've found this disk!!!

Adios!

Zaha Hadid-Architect

Hi all. Here's a pic I did a few months back for The Economic Review, a new magazine of the Abu Dhabi Council for Economic Development (ADCED).

The image is of Zaha Hadid, an internationally renowned architect. The brief was to represent her colourful personality, and to showcase some of her recent buildings.

If you are interested in her work, she is just one of a myriad of creatives showing at this year's Manchester International Festival!

Why not pop along and check it out!?

Climate Change

Here's an image I was working on last week for the Telegraph. Unfortunately the job has been canceled due to timings. Shame.

Biker Illustration

Here's the image I have just finished for Building mag. Will post the published image when it comes out. Big thanks to me uncle Gary, for posing with his Harley Davidson at 7am. Nice work!

Deadlines!

So busy this weekend/week. Gotta get the rough done for Building Magazine for this afternoon, final Monday, get all my marking done for end of next week, the roughs for Daily Telegraph for Wed, final for Friday. Final show's for National Diplomas Mon/Tues.

Better get on then...

New Jobs!

Got a couple of new jobs in today. 1 for Building magazine (need a nazi helmet for this) and a fantastic job for the Daily Telegraph- a weekly illustration, for 9 weeks! Should keep me busy eh!?!

Will post as I go along...

Advanced Photoshop Magazine Issue 57

Am featured in this month's Advanced Photoshop magazine, as part of their new Industry section. Basically I did an interview about having an agent and what that has done for my illustration career. Will post the article once I have scanned it!

We two, my dear friend, are sun and moon

"I am serious. It is not our task to come closer together, no more than sun and moon or sea and land come closer together. We two, my dear friend, are sun and moon, we are sea and land. Our goal is not to blend into one another but to know one another, and for each to learn to see and honour in the other what he himself is - the other's counterpart and compliment."

New site nearly there!

New site is nearly done, added a few touches. just gotta work out the php for the contact page, and get the shop section from Tim and we are underway!

It's half 2 in the morning and Katie is in Cornwall. At least messing with this has killed off some of that loneliness. Will post some new quotes in a mo!

Any comments on the new site as it develops is appreciated.

cheers

A distinct lack of knowledge

Trying to host the blog at my new site but have to use blogger spotty template which is a bit shit. Really frustrated with my lack of knowledge.

New site is nearly ready, and done in Flash. Was quite easy really. Just the finishing touches to do.

Visual Journal now LIVE!

Hey everyone, I have now got the visual journal blog up and running. Why not post some journal / sketchbook pages? Send them to:

journal@i-am-mark.com

All I Needed To Leave Behind

"...I left all that I needed to leave behind, which is to say everything."

A capacity to escalate

"...She was compelled to see the thing lit. She couldn't help it. I guess humans like to watch a little destruction. Sandcastles, houses of cards, that's where they begin. Their great skill is their capacity to escalate."

New quote

"No matter how i twisted or turned there seemed to be an anchor in my chest which held me fast, the long line leaning out against the slant of the sea taut and trim, as if it was cleated fast into the rock of the earth's vast core."

Watching the sky

"...Usually it was like spillage - cold and heavy, slippery and grey - but once in a while some stars had the nerve to rise and glow, if only for a few minutes. On those nights, she would stay a little longer and wait.

'Hello, stars'.

Waiting.

For the voice from the kitchen.

Or till the stars were dragged down again, into the waters of the German sky.

Book Quotes

OK, I have been collecting sentences I like from books for the last 10 years or so. I have put one small book of these quotes together, completely out of context from each other, and without reference to the book they are from. I find these really spark off ideas and it does frustrate me at times not remembering who originally wrote them. I think this frustration is part of my process. Anyway, I am going to start posting quotes on here, in between making work. Maybe it will inspire me (and you) to make something!? We'll see...

New Illustration! Gillon Mellor

Here's the final version of River Cottage head chef, Gillon Meller! Am now ready to get the series printed and sent down

Gillon Meller watercolour element

Here's the start of Gillon Meller, River Cottage head chef. Am really looking forward to seeing it finished!

Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall. New illustration!

Here's Hugh! Hoping to get one of River Cottage's head chef, Gillon Meller done and will then send down the prints. Hope they will like them!

River Cottage's Ray Smith!

Here he is, Master Butcher, Ray Smith. The 1st installment of my river cottage team!

Smoking and Curing at River Cottage!

Have been away from the blog for a little while, but have been down to the River Cottage HQ to do the Smoking and Curing course with Ray Smith. It was an absolutely fantastic day and Ray and the team were inspirational. Gonna add Ray and Hugh to the portrait list. In the mean time, here's some images from the day!

Submission request from Illustration Now 3!!!!

Had some really exciting news this week! I have been asked to submit work for the next Illustration Now book from Taschen.

I'm really pleased as having my work appear in an anthology of contemporary illustration has been an ambition for me from the start. I think it is due in part, to all the hours I spent pouring over these kinds of things, dreaming of being an illustrator.

I suppose it is recognition and validation. Mind you, 10 years on, it's been a while coming!!! lol. Anyways, here is the cover to Illustration Now 2. Wonder what the new one will be like?

New illustration! Lily Allen

Here she is! Started last night whilst watching the woman herself on the Friday Night Project. I really like her new song, but am sure it will get overkill on the radio and this time next week I'll hate it!

Her Majesty. New illustration!!

Well, here's a new illustration of the Queen. It is another mix of hand painted and digital. Just finished it. I reckon I've nearly got enough to show. Leave a comment and let me know what you think.

Visual Journal

I've been keeping a visual journal for a while now and advocate that my students keep one too. It's very similar to keeping a sketchbook for me, but with more writing and personal entries. Anyway, I am going to start posting them as a way of motivating me to do more. I might even set up a separate section and get people to add pages from their own! Yes, I think I will.

Bert Simons. paper colones!

Well I am completely gobsmacked by these stunning paper clones by Bert Simons who is based in the Netherlands. Take a look at his site here to see his process from photo/scan to final sculpture. It's worth a visit just to see him dancing about his studio with one of his heads on!

Thorbjørn Ankerstjerne typography and design!

Hmmmmmmm...Yum Yum!!! Here's a taste of Danish born, freelance graphic designer, Thorbjørn Ankerstjerne. He lives and works in London and his client list includes MTV, Louis Vuitton and Specialten. Tasty!

Snow

Here's a view from the window of my bus to work. Don't normally enjoy snow but it has given most people the gift of a day off from work. Can't be bad!

fuck you penguin blogspot

Enough said.

Steal Everything!

Saw this at British graphic designer Richard Weston's blog Acejet170. Great quote, I always thought it was a Picasso statement, maybe he said something similar? Anyhow, let's take this to heart kids!

3X3 Illustration Annual, out now!!

Was in London at the weekend and got myself the new illustration annual from 3X3 magazine. It is crammed pack full of brilliant illustrations just like this image from Cat MacInnes which features on the cover. I am chumming her work, especially as this looks like my lovely and very newly married wife!! I will be posting some more interesting artists and their work soon, and I'm pumped up to crack on with some new work myself!

Type Trumps cards

Saw this great Type Trumps set in Computer Arts Magazine this month, designed by Rick Banks of Face37 They are retailing for £9.99 and can be bought from his site, or Magma books!

Silja Gotz Illustration.

Here is a selection of some absolutely gorgeous illustrations from German born Silja Gotz who now lives and works in Spain. I love her sensual use of line and colour coupled with the almost mythical imagery. Yes Please!!!

Lars Henkel Illustrations!

Get a load of these!! WOW! I love Lars Henkel's beautiful, haunting work. These are taken from his Blinde Walminiatur comic series. They are a mixture of photography, puppets and photoshop. Brilliant!

Guinevere van Seenus. Older illustration

Here's an illustration I created a while back. It is of Guinevere van Seenus. She is definitely one of my favourite models, I really love her hard stare. I am hoping to post an illustration archive if I can work out how...

Amy Winehouse. New illustration!!

Here's another recently completed illustration. It's a reworking of an older acrylic and ink painting I did a while back. I'm really enjoying the more 'hands on' approach to these and am loving getting my hands dirty again! I'm thinking of developing these into a series of British icons and showing them. Any ideas on who to include?

Stephen Fry. New illustration!