Sam Hammond

Brand carrier t-shirt.

2009-08-20T15:06:00.000-07:00

'Life is what you make it' t-shirt design. A single line flowing to create a script style piece of type. I like the strokes used, showing the imperfections. I could imagine this design working well as a screen printed piece.

Life is what you make it

2009-08-20T14:57:00.001-07:00

Another t-shirt design I created for the Ringspun brief. I took the 'Life is beautiful' theme and used a commonly used phrase 'Life is what you make it'. The mostly white design is a hand drawn design and the other has been worked on using Illustrator to give it a dynamic style to create a feeling of movement.

Placement at Ringspun. Life is Beautiful.

2009-08-20T02:10:00.000-07:00

I recently applied for a 6 month placement with Redinc Design who design Ringspun clothing. I had an interview which went well and was asked to complete a short brief to see if I could understand the brands style. The brief was to create 1) a brand carrier t-shirt based on the theme of 'Life Is Beautiful'. 2) a t-shirt based on the theme of 'Indigenous Warriors'. 3) a pair of denim jeans which have unique qualities.

This is a hand drawn logo for Ringspun. The typeface was designed to have a classic style, but have a contemporary gradient fill.

Guess who?

2009-07-22T04:23:00.000-07:00

Hello....

I have been a bit quiet of late... so thought it was about time Finished University and had an amazing Degree Show. I have been working on a few small projects to keep the creative juices flowing.

I have been busy searching and hunting for placements and opportunities to keep developing my design skills. All will follow shortly.

D&AD Degree Show Bar Illustration

2009-06-20T12:56:00.000-07:00

I was asked a few weeks ago if I would like to do something for the bar area of our end of year degree show. I was told to do some illustrations, anything. This was very open so I thought it would be appropriate to have birds flying. To represent us leaving Uni and going into the industry. I added the line 'SPREAD YOU WINGS AND EAT WORMS'. I asked a friend and all-round creative Tom Blackett to work on the one-day project, asking him to take control of the type. His love for type and my passion for drawing created a great piece of work which got a huge amount of attention.

Monsterboy t-shirts

2009-06-16T14:40:00.000-07:00

Images of the set of t-shirts I had printed for my Monsterboy project.

More faces of death

2009-06-16T14:33:00.000-07:00

These are images of the final pieces I created for the anti-war project. Let me know what you think.

Lady town colour

2009-05-31T13:23:00.000-07:00

Here is a development of the first piece 'lady town' which I am getting printed onto a t-shirt tomorrow.

robot leaflet.

2009-05-31T13:20:00.000-07:00

Here is a mock up for the Recycle Robots leaflet. Simple, friendly and playful.

Lady Town

2009-05-19T07:12:00.000-07:00

This is another piece inspired by my weird little brother Louis. He didn't know where I went ever year when I moved into Manchester city center. He called it 'LADY TOWN' because he thinks that's where all the women go shopping and he hates shopping.

'Magpies Eat Birds'

2009-05-17T13:55:00.001-07:00

My little brother can sometimes be a great influence on my work. His name is Louis Hammond and he is 7. He lives in a bizarre world where he is king and everything is strange. He recently told me that not magpies are not birds and in fact they eat birds. I have no idea where he got that from but i thought it was amazing. He has all these little words of wisdom and he is never wrong.
I am including these images in my Monsterboy project as I feel they would make great t-shirt designs.

Illustrated typefaces

2009-05-17T11:45:00.001-07:00

These are a selection of hand drawn typefaces I have created recently. They are all different, they all represent different things. I have created these to support my ongoing illustrations for 'Monsterboy'. They are fun and have a hand drawn charm which is kind of what I am trying to express. I want them to represent me, my style of design.

Design books

2009-05-15T08:54:00.000-07:00

Graphic Design That Works

Templates

YCN 08/09

David Shrigley

The Adventures Anual (classic graphic stories)

Latin American Graphic Design

Protest T-shirts

2009-05-15T08:36:00.000-07:00

Protest T-shirts is a book full of T-shirt designs created to provoke reaction. Many are a created to fight political and social issues. There are many aimed at the problems surrounding America and the involvement in the wars in Iraq, Iran, and Afganistan. There are also great examples of designs to fight consumerism and pollution.

'An anthology of graphic fiction, cartoons & true stories'

2009-05-15T08:25:00.001-07:00

'An anthology of graphic fiction, cartoons & true stories'. I bought early this year to help me construct successful narratives. It was a visual influence to see the different style other artists and Illustrators have used to tell there stories. I particularly like the work of Robert Crumb, his dark and sometime provocative work is still so noticeable and distinctive. He displays a confident style, bold and heavy. Displayed in a block grid formation.

The Mighty Book of Boosh

2009-05-15T08:13:00.000-07:00

I purchased 'The Mighty Book of Boosh' early this year. It was so inspiring, making me obsessed with illustrating my own ideas, stories and characters. It is a jumble of work the Mighty Boosh team have worked on since they began. It is a great publication full of ideas and is a stunning example of alternative self promotion.

Hand Job

2009-05-15T08:07:00.001-07:00

Hand Job, I purchased recently to support my typeface project. It is an inspiring catalog of hand drawn type. There are some beautiful typefaces, some practical and usable and others purely decorative, pieces of illustration. The book has inspired the creation of many typefaces of my own. It is worth a look.

Robot A5 to A1 poster

2009-05-14T08:59:00.000-07:00

I wanted to make something more interactive for people to have and desirable to keep. I have tried to tell a simple narrative of how the robots were created. Starting with the pens, next the Mac the the robot parts etc......

Monsterboy A5 to A1 poster

2009-05-14T08:47:00.000-07:00

I have been looking at different way to format my designs. I have created an A5 document which pulls out to become an A1 poster. I printed onto tracing paper which I later found to be very difficult to fold and manipulate. It is stiff and less flexible than paper which means it is getting damaged on the folds.

Lucy Vigrass

2009-05-10T09:28:00.001-07:00

Lucy Vigrass is another member of the 'Peepshow Collective' who's work I admire greatly. She is a freelance illustrator working in London. Her work is beautifully bold and shows a minimal amount of detail. Working with shape and colour to communicate her ideas, creating stunning compositions with a her signature style. I have been looking through the work from the Peepshow recently and as this is the sort of group I would love to be apart of when I leave university. Check out www.lucyvigrass.co.uk and www.peepshow.org.uk for more work.

Alex Ostrowski talked to us

2009-05-10T04:03:00.001-07:00

On Friday we had the privilege of having a talk from Alex Ostrowiski. A young designer doing exactly what we all would love to be doing. He gave some crucial advice as someone who has been approaching people for work and making contacts in the design industry. He mentioned how it is important to build a rapport, a conversation rather than a request for a job or a placement. Other than his advice on getting work when we leave he showed us a collection of his work which has got him where he is now. A mix of fantastic ideas and well executed design solutions. The 'NOTE TO SELF' book was a great piece of work. It was designed to fulfill a competition brief which insisted it was to be A3 size and have only 16 pages. He created a book of reminders, beautifully illustrated little messages to inspire. He is currently working for YCN doing some great work which I hope to one day be doing.

Was a great time to have the talk from Alex and will definitely put us in a good frame of mind on the run-in to the end of our time at uni.

paper faces 'what you saying bruv...?'

2009-05-08T02:09:00.000-07:00

paper faces stop motion from sam on Vimeo.

Stop motion piece just for fun. Practice before the robots piece.

robot stop motion.

2009-05-08T01:47:00.001-07:00

robots recycle stop motion from sam on Vimeo.

This is a stop motion piece I created for my recycling project. It is rough, flawed and needs refining but the idea is clear enough. Hope you like it.

Home Delivery ASOS.

2009-05-07T05:24:00.000-07:00

I am currently working on a competition brief for 'asos' the online clothes company. The brief is to make men aware of the company and its attributes and make them interested in using the website. I have tried to connect the brand to men by creating neon signs with the type as seen in takeaways. Home delivery, piping hot brands, fresh styles etc. I think it would appeal to men. I am struggling to create a neon sign look I am happy with.

Books, lots of books.

2009-05-06T06:47:00.001-07:00

I have been looking at different book making techniques over the last week or so. I want to see if a small book would be a successful canvas for my illustration and narratives. I worked with Lucy Schofield on Friday who really got me interested in all things books. Here are three I created. The first is a small flip book cropped and bound with two screw bolts. The second is a slightly larger flip book bound with string and the third is a simple stapled book. I looked into what would be applicable for sending out to people, thinking about cost, size and functionality.

Non-format design

2009-05-02T04:27:00.000-07:00

I have been aware of Non-format for a while and thought I would share them with you. They are a creative team consisting of Kjell Ekhorn (Norwegian) and Jon Forss (British). Based in London and Minneapolis (USA). They are an inredibally creative design team with clients across the world, including Nike, LG, The New York Times, Channel 4 etc.
In a recent lecture from all round creative guru Adrian Shaughnessy mentioned how he worked with them on the design publication 'Varoom'. They show and amazing creative flair with type design seen on the work they have done for Nike. I have chose to look at them now as I am in need of some direction and inspiration with a advertising project I am working on. The simple choices they have made are probably the most effective. The choice of colour and type are important.

My lecture notes

2009-04-30T06:28:00.000-07:00

I had no paper in a recent lecture but had a marker pen and a banana. Job done

My big posters

2009-04-30T06:01:00.000-07:00

I arranged and printed three A1 posters of my 'little creations', I wanted to see then up on a wall rather than hidden in a sketchbook so here they are. I like the way they are arranged and with the 'robot' poster in a grid. They look organised and and at the same time a huge mess of my ideas. I again had the helping hand from my photographer friend Ed. "Cheers Ed!"

Adrian Shaughnessy

2009-04-29T08:09:00.000-07:00

We had the pleasure of having a lecture from self taught all round creative Adrian Shaughnessy. It was more of a talk than a showcase of his work. He discussed what his book was about, which is what it takes to be a Graphic Designer. My attention was kept constantly throughout the lecture as it is an issue I am dealing with during my final stage of third year. He broke down the criteria he feels are what defines a good designer. These were cultural awareness, integrity and communication. He went into each subject with great detail, explaining what he meant by these three catorgories. He also mentioned you without question need talent, something expected on a design degree course.
The lecture made me question what my abilities were like in these areas. I can sometimes struggle with expressing my idea, whilst in my head I know exactly what I am trying to say. Practice makes perfect. It is vital to have this ability as the client needs to understand every aspect of your work.

This was a different lecture to previous but in no way less valuable, more academic and informative. Vital information for me to know when approaching agencies and studios.

My A to Z

2009-04-23T12:49:00.000-07:00

This is 'My A to Z' based on nothing but my weird imagination. Its not based on any subject, the letters don't correspond with the image in any way other than shape, kind of. I just wanted to create a ridiculous typeface. I want to do a fingers typeface after seeing the 'F' character. Let me know what you think.

Horatio Caine Pulp

2009-04-23T04:45:00.000-07:00

I was asked again to do a simple illustration for the upcoming issue of Pulp magazine the MMU student rag. It was again a simple profile image of a celebrity, Horatio Caine of CSI Miami. I knew who he was but not seen his work. I was told he is painfully serious as the character in CSI constantly giving cliff hanging one liners. My friend Matt is putting together the issue and said he liked the 'faces of music' illustrations I created a while back. This is what I came up with.

George Mitchell

2009-04-22T12:49:00.000-07:00

I was introduced to the work of illustrator George Mitchell. He is still a student studying Illustration at Lincoln University. He shows a great ability to use texture and pattern to create a stunning style which is fresh and contemporary. I was interested in his range of ideas. The random and alternative seem to be his preferred choice. It seems he enjoys to illustrate the weird characters he thinks up similar to how I like to work. Picking things from the world we live and creating an alternate world of the weird and wonderful. It is nice to know I am not the only one.

Robots photoshoot

2009-04-22T11:02:00.000-07:00

Today was a good day. I finally took a good step forward with my 'Robots' brief. I had arranged with a friend to work with me to take some photos of my little creations. I set some scenes up for my cut out 'Robots' to be shot in. We worked together using both my ideas for scenes and perspectives and Ed's expertise in photography and the technical stuff. ( http://www.edwud.com/ )

The first scene represents the craft and interactive qualities of my idea. (to get families involved in recycling.)

I then created a range of scenes to get some nice images which contains depth of field and interesting perspectives. I wanted the characters to appear to be communicating and working together.

I then worked on introducing items of litter which could be recycled. Here is where I feel the idea was at its clearest.

The sixth image is represents the regimental idea that the characters are apart of an army of helpers, organised and controlled.

I will now be working into the images layering up type and shapes to create the advertisements for the recycling project.

Jonathon Barnbrook lectures 21/4/09

2009-04-21T14:18:00.000-07:00

Today we had the pleasure of having not one but two lecture/talks from the well established designer Jonathon Barnbrook. He was incredibly captivating and at times hilarious. His 'no bullshit' approach to the lecture made sure the attention of every person in the room was kept. He was full of interesting anecdotes from his time working with the likes Damien Hirst and David Bowie.
What was even more interesting than the big names in his stories was his actual advice. At times going against the advice we are used to hearing, he talked about personal choice, moral obligations and the power of opinion. He reminded me of some of the most important reasons I am in design and love it so much. He talked about how he has a human moral code which determines what clients he will work for. He gave the example he was doing work for adbuster when 'Coke' came calling for his work. As he was at the time making an example of the consumer brands which shape are world with adbusters, he felt it would be hypercritical to work with them even with the tempting large pay checks.
He showed us a sample of his work which showed he clear interest in world issues, human right and other social issues. He has an incredible skill for creating typefaces and graphic compositions. He was extremely inspiring and at times controversial. I loved it.

He second lecture was more personal. He took the chance to take us all back to basics. Teaching us the rules we may have overlooked. He told us you cant create a successful design unless you have fully understood the problem of the brief. He took us threw a power point presentation to look at the stages of breaking down the brief and not just running to the end creating a basic design outcome. The advice was very constructive, I will take it on board and use it to improve my designing skills.

More illustrations for simon

2009-04-21T13:00:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more illustrations I have drawn for Simon and his surfing project. He described some figures he wanted drawing up and also a view of a classic looking van used by surfers to the beach. Simon liked the initial style of illustration, sketchy and rough feeling it contained the right emotions and energy. I need to refine them further.

Job done....so far

2009-04-20T13:43:00.001-07:00

This is a ASOS brief trying to promote the online shopping store to men. I wanted to create a voice in the work to appeal to men. I came to the conclusion a large proportion of men dont see shopping as a luxury but more of a hassle. I haven't been happy with the project so far, it is becoming a difficult design problem. I have explored colour and shape to see if I can create a style which works. I have also worked on creating some interesting copy to sell the brand to men.

My Jordans

2009-04-20T13:16:00.000-07:00

I was thinking of all the things I love and my AJ1 Jordans were quite close to the top of the list. They are a stunning example of great trainer design and have stood the test of time. I started to sketch them and some of the detail on them. They were sketched with a fineliner and coloured with marker pens.

Hand drawn type

2009-04-16T15:02:00.000-07:00

I constantly practice creating my own typefaces both digitally and by hand. These are a selection of bold hand drawn typefaces. I wanted them to be quite sketchy to show a more human voice. They are going to be used in upcoming designs for my 'Monsterboy' project.

Hey diddle diddle...

2009-04-16T10:41:00.000-07:00

I wanted to create some hand drawn type to illustrate the nursery rhyme. I was influenced by the work of Andrew Rae and Luke Best of the Peepshow Collective. I kept the piece two colour to keep it simple and clear. It flows down the page as you read it. A full colour piece would be too busy and distracting. Let me know what you think.

Luke Best

2009-04-15T10:13:00.000-07:00

Luke Best is a creative, multi-disciplined illustrator/designer. I came across the work of Luke Best as he has worked with Andrew Rae who has been a strong influence on my work. I was particularly interested in the type work. The hand crafted style is very creative and shows a stunning range of skills and ideas. His work is inspiring and shows a number of similarities to mine. See more of his work at www.lukebest.com

10 Things you should know about playground games.

2009-04-13T12:09:00.000-07:00

This is a project I worked on last term. It is an idea for a short book looking at the games we played in school and all the rules they came with. It was a fun project with a focus on illustration. I wanted a simple style of illustration like the doodles you would see in the back of school exercise books.

Work experience at Sony Liverpool.

2009-04-12T12:38:00.000-07:00

Last year I had the opportunity to get some work experience at SCEE (Sony Computer Entertainment Europe) in Liverpool. I had one week in November 2007 and two weeks in February 2008. The first was a great adventure as I was inexperienced on Adobe Illustrator and was dropped in the deep end being asked to generate logo ideas for an upcoming game called 'Wipeout HD'. I was happy to be told one of my logos had made the final cut. It was used for a logo for a level on the game called 'Chenghou Projects'.

The second placement in February 2008 was also a great learning experience, developing my digital abilities on the adobe creative suite and also getting further experience to how a design team communicates and finds the creative solutions to design problems. During the second placement at Sony I worked on creating logos again but for another Sony computer game called 'Motorstorm 2'. I generated a large body of work during the hectic 2 weeks which shows I was comfortable in the studio and looking to improve and develop as a designer. I created the 'Kannibal tyres' logo which I was told was a tyre company making rugged off-road tyres. The logo is to represent its power and ferocity.

Dead Man's Shoes

2009-04-11T14:23:00.001-07:00

My personal favourite from the Shane Meadows collection. It has an epic performance from Paddy Considine with a truly chilling story of a man coming to terms with the loss of his brother and the revenge of his brothers abusers. It is a great masterpiece. As well as an incredible piece of directing from Shane Meadows and an unforgettable performance from Paddy Considine it is interesting to know the pair share the credit for writing the story of a troubled brother returning to town to get even with those who wronged his deceased brother. Other great performances came from Toby Kebbell and Garry Stretch.

Shane Meadows

2009-04-11T13:48:00.000-07:00

I am a huge film geek and feel a sense of pride when I see great work from Britain. The likes of Danny Boyle, Ridley Scott, Tony Kaye to name a few directors which have brought to life some of the most amazing stories. Tony Kaye's 'American History X' has to be one of the greatest films of my generation. Danny Boyle's incredible work on 'trainspotting' and '28 days later' was outstanding and are cemented in my DVD collection. Ridley Scott has made an unbelievable impact on Hollywood with numerous hits such as 'Gladiator', 'Black Hawk Down' and a current favourite of mine 'American Gangster'. All amazing films showing incredible vision and cinematography.

Shane Meadows has had recent success with his work on 'This Is England' from 2006 but its not just his current work which I have found a great inspiration. 'A room for Romeo Brass' from 1999 and 'Dead Man's Shoes' from 2004 were great examples of powerful British cinema. The fact that I can relate to the stories, feeling it could be happening in the town I live makes me have a connection with the film which I cant find in some of the Hollywood pics.

He also has a sharp eye for talent by casting the likes of Paddy Considine and Thomas Turgoose who made the characters they played unforgettable.

My recycled robot

2009-04-11T13:26:00.000-07:00

I made my own 'recycle robot' to see if my concept to help children understand recycling could actually work. Well I am the biggest kid there is and I enjoyed making it. It was made from recyclable cardboard products we use on a daily basis. I then painted it black and stuck some detail on to make the robot come to life. I do feel this concept could work as a tool to bring families together and enforce the understanding of recycling.

"Try it yourself......Recycled robots!!" (that's my reference to my many years watching 'art attack')

How I work

2009-04-11T12:20:00.000-07:00

This is a bunch of my doodled illustrations I have collected. It is supposed to represent my ideas and thought process, the tools I use and the style I create.

(click to enlarge)

Together.com 'Cut It Out'

2009-04-11T10:20:00.000-07:00

Last term I chose to tackle a brief from the YCN website. It was for 'together.com', a company who are trying to fight against climate change. The brief was to get young people interested in climate change. I wanted to give the project a style which would be visually pleasing to a younger audience as well as being interesting and informative. I started by thinking of ideas, names, interesting copy and styles which would be appropriate to the target market. I decided I liked the idea of cutting things out! Cutting out the bad in your life, so i wanted to show the cutting out f the causes of climate change. I was happy with the concept but felt the final outcome lacked the spark I was trying to give it. I want to try printing on different surfaces and push this project further.

Flash experiment

2009-04-10T01:36:00.000-07:00

I recently had a flash tutorial at university. We were taught the basics of flash, how to import images and create movements. After the tutorial I wanted to create a small animation, I used some type I had creates and used the tools on flash to create a moving title. I wanted to make it look like blood cells floating. Getting to grips with flash has opened up new possibilities for visualising my work and ideas.

(The file hasn't illustrated the smooth movements created in flash)

Sticky Fingers

2009-04-09T13:43:00.000-07:00

These are two t-shirt designs for a project I am working on called 'Monsterboy'. My own little brand, producing t-shirts which represent me, all the things I like and all the crazy ideas that pass through my mind. It s fun project and this is easily seen in the work I am creating. These are part of the 'Sticky Fingers' collection which is just about the things in life we crave. Here I have illustrated treats we hate to love. Other designs in the collection are ice lollies and penny sweets.

Nike Dunk X Cherry

2009-04-08T15:54:00.000-07:00

I am a big trainer freak and have a huge love for 'Dunks'. I found this design on Sneakerfreaker.com and thought it was fantastic. Nike have taken one of there most successful trainer models and used the print designs of french textile designer Paule Marrot Editions. The outcome is a thing of beauty. It is part of the summer 09 dunk collection, i could imagine seeing these walking past me on a sunny day and me turning my head and picking up my jaw. The are really fresh and bold, not for everyones taste but are still a beautiful creation.

Henning Wagonbreth

2009-04-08T04:46:00.001-07:00

Henning Wagonbreth is a graphic illustrator with experience in comic illustration and graphic novels. I found his work online when researching into graphic novels and really enjoyed his distinct style of illustration. His style is very angular with sharp edges. He has a very bold use of colour which makes his work jump of the page. I especially like the football team characters in the collectible cards they give the impression of having different personalities which I like. Also the way they have been laid out in rows and columns is interesting and is something I like to do with my own work.

Paul Farrington lecture 17/03/09

2009-04-08T03:02:00.000-07:00

Paul Farrington of Studio Tonne came to give a lecture about his professional experiences in the design industry. Studio Tonne is a multi discipline design agency. They show an amazing ability to discover new ideas and outcomes for design. There interactive web design is where I feel they excel. The 'sound toys' are beautifully designed and have incredible functions for creating sound/music and visuals. The toys have a huge number of possible outcomes which means the toys have life after one use. The Studio also creates a stunning range of print work, logo design and illustration. Paul Farrington has a distinct style of work exploring shape, pattern, colour and perspective.

Birds

2009-04-07T16:32:00.000-07:00

Here is a quick sketch of a repeated bird a draw quite a lot. Its fast rough and flawed which I like. Different to the more polished look of the cakes and ice lollies. I like the piece it shows an idea and my movement when drawing which is interesting. Let me know what you think!

State of the Art New York exhibition Urbis

2009-04-07T16:30:00.000-07:00

I was able to get invites to the opening night of 'State of the Art New York' at the Urbis. I went with three of my friends not knowing what to expect. We were met with sounds of new york with heavy hip hop beat playing through a live DJ which was interesting. It created an atmosphere for the exhibition. The hip hop sounds continued as we walked around looking at the huge variety of work. There were 16 artists displaying there work. From towering installations to hand crafted pencil drawings and new media to photographic work. It was a menu of opinions which I loved, representing the diversity of 'The Big Apple'.

The images here are three pieces which really caught my eye.

The first is by Michael Schall called 'Smoke Factory Malfunction 2007' (graphite on paper). It gave me the impression of a world of industrial power. The piece is so well crafted, with such a flawless hand drawn skill. It was extremely impressive to see the piece up close to see the lines and detail.

The second is by Shelter Serra called 'SPLIT TIME' (H2) 2007 made of foam. It was a real eye-catcher as it is of a fairly large scale of a recognisable American car. We wondered about how it was created coming to the conclusion it was far too precise in scale to be created by hand. It is interesting simply to see a recognised object in this environment. Also the fact that it was made from a soft absorbing material such as foam in contrast to the hard steel of the actual H2 we are used to seeing in images of war and rap videos.

The third is by Gandalf Gaven. This light installation is similar to the one created for the Urbis space. The pink neon tube lighting was incredibly beautiful to see. This piece sparked a conversation about design versus art. How design is more than art, it is art with a purpose or function. The four of us are all design students with years of studying the skills of design so the debate was fairly one sided but the point that as a designer we do constantly try to find the beautiful in the boring. For an artist the finding of beauty is made much easier. I found it interesting that we began these conversations after minutes of being around pure Art and not around are lovely world of design.

Old toy advertisements

2009-04-07T16:15:00.000-07:00

I was looking for some visual styles for some illustrations I was working on and came across these old magazine/newspaper toy advertisements which I loved. I liked the hand drawn imagery, the non digital look they have, the ranges of rich and faded colours. The layout of the information is so different to how it is done today which is interesting to see. The use of boxes and grids to structure and highlight the important details. On the 'toy soldiers' piece I like the great scene they have illustrated showing an exciting scene from war. I have chose to show these pieces as I think its sometimes important to remember how things have been done before and done successfully. Clean and perfect digital imagery can get generic and tiring. these have definitely stood the test of time.

Andrew Rae

2009-04-07T15:52:00.000-07:00

This is an Illustrator I have come across since the start of this year and am greatly influenced by. I took inspiration from his style of drawing characters and his bizarre ideas. He grids his characters neatly which is something I like which gives the impression of organised chaos. His work is fantastic and well worth a look. I have taken a focus on my illustration work in recent months and the quality of Andrew Rae's work is one of the reasons why.

Seb Jarot

2009-04-06T00:56:00.000-07:00

This is an artist I looked into when researching illustration styles for the surfing project. I loved the work and it continues to inspire me with current work. I like the expressive line drawing style and the flat block colour behind. The piece looks well crafted and so stylish. The use of and drawn type works really well and is also something I love to create myself. The style is shown to be a successful advertising style also with the piece for 'Jameson Chill' working very well to sell the product.

NCC Stephen Smith lecture

2009-04-05T12:59:00.000-07:00

Stephen Smith is Neasdon Control Centre. He has a large range of creative disciplines in graphic, installation, film, motion and more. His work shows superb vision and technical skill. We had a lecture by Stephen Smith recently where he talked about and displayed his work from his career in design since leaving university. He came with some great advice, suggesting the world around you can be inspiration enough to create great work. I said how he would regularly go for walks to think about work and take a look around. Often finding odd object, unwanted materials which he could work with. The talk was inspiring and contemporary and for me not one I will forget.

Matt Pyke lecture 11/02/09

2009-04-05T03:44:00.000-07:00

Matt Pyke is based in Sheffield from his studio 'Electronic Cottage'. He is well established in the design industry with huge clients such as Nokia, Audi and the London 2012 Olympics. He is experienced in art direction and excels at creating fascinating concepts using modern technologies. He has interactive work which has been displayed in galleries in an art format. The 'Second Nature' piece is a program which reacts to sound to create tree like images. The colour sound and shape are all determined by the sound it receives. this lecture was interesting for me as it made me think about the concepts of my work before the visual. I can sometimes rush on in a project before giving it enough time to fully resolve the idea which could potentially get a better result. He is very ambitious and with each project tries to create something which hasn't been done before similar to how a fine artist would work.

Johnny Hannah lecture 7/11/08

2009-04-05T03:06:00.000-07:00

This was the first in the series of guest lectures from industry professionals. He is a skilled illustrator with a strong love for hand drawn typography. He has a distinct style which has found a place in the design industry. He shows his interests for music and culture in his work. I love the imperfections of his work, showing his human character. The loose style of illustration works so well. If the work had a more realist style it wouldn't have the same impact and quality which makes it successful.

In the lecture Johnny Hannah talked about how he creates his work and some of his career highlights such as his jazz projects and his work for 'The New York Times'. His talk was really inspiring and reminded me of the importance of the hand as your first and most important tool. Not all designers need to live in front of a mac. I also enjoyed how he has been able to pursue his love for his own style and find a successful life.

Si Scott lecture 24/3/09

2009-04-05T01:26:00.000-07:00

Si Scott is a well accomplished designer with specialties in typography and illustration. His work is created by hand showing incredible talent. He has a distinct style which contains delicate flowing lines and shapes. He has had success across the globe, an example of this is the Nike advertisement made for french audiences where his work speaks for itself. In the lecture his gave us a look through his work since his college days to present showing his continuing change and development as a designer. His work has effortless beauty and has been exhibited as Art in some cases which shows the standard of work he creates. Si Scott also talked about his movements after leaving University to find work in agencies in London and Manchester before making the decision to go freelance. His casual attitude was refreshing and i found it easy to connect and understand what he wanted to tell us.

After the lecture I was fortunate enough to get to sit down with Si Scott to talk over some of my work. We talked about where he saw my my going and the next step. I wanted his opinion on some of my illustrations. He also told me how it was important to remember what it is I am trying to say. His advice was very influential and the meeting was a great experience.

Reality Hack: Hidden Manchester Andrew Paul Brooks

2009-04-04T16:21:00.000-07:00

This was an exhibition at the Urbis which displayed a body of work from Andrew Paul Brooks. The work was a selection of beautiful images taken from parts of Manchester which go unseen. The images were displayed with back lighting coming through the image making them feel alive like windows into the environment. They were shot with an interesting selection of perspectives and lenses which was very creative. Being from Manchester I was fascinated to see images and views of the city which I had never seen before.

Black Panther: Emory Douglas and the art of revolution

2009-04-04T16:02:00.000-07:00

The exhibition was outstanding. Had interactive elements which made the experience personal and focused. There was areas where you were able to add your own opinions to the exhibition and show your opinions on current equality. The exhibition felt so important with the current events in America. This was my first introduction to the revolutionary work of Emory Douglas which left me speechless. The work was filled with opinions and provoking content which was so visible and exciting. I loved the beautiful illustrations, they were so bold and beautiful along with the the photo montage work. There are element to the work I want to see come through my work.

Bronson

2009-04-04T15:25:00.001-07:00

I was excited to see this film after weeks of talking with my friends about it. 'Bronson' was a surprise but not a disappointment. The film was a look into the events which have lead to his 34 year incarceration of Micheal Peterson AKA 'Charles Bronson'. The story of his roller coaster time in prison was interesting but not breathtaking, however Tom Hardy's epic performance as a crazed and tortured soul of 'Bronson' was amazing. He was extremely convincing and delivered some unforgettable lines. What also amazed me was the physical transformation of Tom Hardy from his much slimmer character in 'RocknRolla' as 'handsome Bob'.

In the film 'Bronson' continually narrated the sequences of events through an interesting switch to an old styled theatre scene where you see him physically performing to a crowd as the entertainer he thinks he is. This is where i feel the film was outstanding.

This film deserves credit for tackling a real story with such creativity and flair. Its a must see and another example of outstanding British cinema.

Cakes

2009-04-03T08:41:00.000-07:00

After I created the set of ice lollies I wanted to create some similar looking cakes. I must have been hungry! I think they have a nice look and am thinking of have some t-shirts printed with them and the words 'sticky fingers' on the back.

Faces of music

2009-04-02T06:46:00.000-07:00

I wanted to do a set of illustrations of my favourite music artists/bands which I have enjoyed listening to over the years. The illustrations are loose and are to represent them at the time I enjoyed there music. For example Michael Jackson looking slightly more youthful from his thriller days. This was simply for fun and to show some of the musical greats which have influenced me.

Type using shapes

2009-04-01T16:03:00.000-07:00

This began as a support project to create a typeface to work with my recycling project. It soon escalated as i discovered an obsession with creating typefaces and finding faults and correcting them. I wanted to see if I could create a typeface which was graphically interesting with only the basic regard for legibility. I enjoyed this small project enough to expand it into a full project to create my own typefaces. The project has given me a chance to understand the discipline it takes to create a successful typeface. In the images there are two which are built from digital shape and one which similarly built from shapes but hand drawn shapes to give the typeface a human element.

Marker pen repeat pattern

2009-04-01T15:55:00.000-07:00

I wanted to explore the use of shape by reflection to create pattern. I started by drawing a section of random shapes and lines until I thought I had created and interesting piece. I then reflected it and applied colour. It was simply an experiment which created some interesting pieces of illustration.

Lollies for crazy udder

2009-04-01T15:46:00.000-07:00

This was just a quick couple of hours work to create some illustrations for a friend. They are to be used in his families milkshake business (crazy udder) on an advertisement. I was asked to create some clean, fun illustrations which would be appealing to children. I like the quality of the finished images.

Glamorous Hooligan

2009-03-27T02:17:00.000-07:00

This was created as a t-shirt print for upcoming brand. The work was never sent as communications broke down but still created a nice piece of type to show all. The brand had a play on words, mixing the two contrasting description to create an idea of what there brand is to represent. I wanted to created a jumbled piece to show a controlled chaos.

down at the bottom of the garden

2009-03-27T02:04:00.000-07:00

I want explore a range of interesting titles from my childhood, from TV shows to nursery rhymes. I will be creating a set of typographic pieces trying to reflect what they mean to me. When I was a child i liked the 'Podington Peas' title sequence where this comes from. "Down at the bottom of the garden......." I love the use of letterpress as you are able to create imperfections which make results interesting. This is simply a quick experiment to show you some of my ideas for the project.

Essay Proposal Stussy

2009-03-25T12:08:00.000-07:00

For my third year dissertation I was asked to create 2 x A3 pieces as a visual proposal for my intentions with the essay. I have a huge interest in Urban Fashion brands such as Stussy and came up with these two pieces which are simply photographs of my thought process as I was researching for the essay. I liked my outcome it was so different to anything else created by others in my class.

Surfers for simon

2009-03-25T06:36:00.000-07:00

These are hand drawn illustrations a created for a friend who is creating a moving image piece based on surfing. I was interested in working with Simon after seeing some of his previous projects and thought my style of illustration may compliment his ideas. The project is still on going and with more work needed on the illustrations.

Good times bad times

2009-03-25T05:42:00.000-07:00

I love to explore type as image. This logo was a quick exploration just to see what I could do with the words to visualize the message.

Lets build a robot

2009-03-25T05:33:00.000-07:00

This is a print design to interest children and parents in the importance of recycling. I especially like the wooden robot illustration.

Robot Type

2009-03-25T05:25:00.000-07:00

This is a piece of type made from the components that the robot characters are made.

Pig Ink

2009-03-25T04:30:00.000-07:00

Pig Ink is a hand drawn design which was inspired by an article I read about artist Wim Delvoye who tattooed pigs and when they died he exhibited their skins. I thought the idea was hilarious and creative.

Monsterboy

2009-03-25T04:16:00.000-07:00

'Monsterboy' is an urban fashion brand I designed last year. I hope to print a selection of t-shirts in the near future. The brand is a fun, urban brand with a focus on bold t-shirt prints that reflect my personal interests and imagination.

Satan comes to Bucharest

2009-03-24T15:31:00.000-07:00

This is a magazine layout I created for a University project for John Walsh's Flux magazine.

Robots

2009-03-24T15:11:00.000-07:00

This is a selection of robot characters I have created as part of a recycling campaign for children. They are hand drawn and edited in Illustrator.

Manchester letterpress

2009-03-24T14:55:00.000-07:00

This is a piece of letterpress I created a while ago but like it enough to show you all. I simply wanted to create an interesting piece of type to reflect my hometown of Manchester.

Faces of death illustration

2009-03-24T14:39:00.000-07:00

This is a piece i created for a friend who is putting together a illustration magazine. The brief was simply death and I chose to look at the faces of death, who is responsible. I want to take this idea further after taking some helpful advice.

Eddie Izzard Pulp

2009-03-24T10:24:00.000-07:00

This is a line drawing using fine liner for an article for Pulp magazine, the MMU student magazine. I was asked by Matt and Oyunga to create a simple profile image of the actor/comedian to visualize the interview.