understanding illustration

The good people of Bloomsbury books have gifted me an inspection copy of 'Understanding Illustration' by Derek Brazell and Jo Davies - the authors have form, being behind both 'Becoming a Successful Illustrator' and the wonderful 'Making Great Illustration'. As with the authors' other output, we can't recommend this book enough. It's a real piece of eye candy, which let's admit it, we all like but more importantly, it's crammed with insight and understanding as well as work not from 'trend' based illustrators but from successful current practitioners and real legends or the art such as Victor Ambrus and Ronald Searle - why their like aren't in every other illustration book produced, we'll never know.

Grillust's recommendation - buy it.

Reminiscence of being ill

Pity me, Dear reader for I'm stuck at home caring to an ill child with Wotsits (other corn based cheese snacks are available) and soothing words (awwww). Seeing the little grillustite sat there on the couch watching whichever box office flop has caught her eye on Netflix this morning I can't help remembering, nay, becoming reminiscent for those bygone days off school with a sore throat / sore belly / broken something or other and watching kids telly. Being whisked away to magical worlds through the judicious application of plasticine and cobbled together sets, programs with budgets that could at times reach into the tens of pounds. Blimey, I feel old.

Stop! Banner Time

cartoons aren't just funny

If you enjoy editorial cartoons and would like to understand the psychology behind them or if you want to take a glimpse into the selection process then this is for you. Contains gratuitous over laughing.



While we're on the subject of cartoons and terrible jeans. Patrick Chappatte



Further cartoon intellectualisations from Ben Katchor



Not cartooning as such - Maira Kalman

JEAN JULLIEN

With an understated and deceptively simple delivery, Jean Jullien's illustrations may be eye catching but they never put style before communication and he's got a real knack for getting his (or his clients) point across. We like the playfulness and humour as well as the joy of hand-drawn mark that is at the centre of his work. Jean Jullien, Grillust salutes you.
For more of Mr Jullien's gorgeous work take a look at his site

Scenes from the Life Room

The first year Illustration students have just commenced an intensive twelve week stint in the life room.

Why?

Well, it's because we're quite 'old fashioned' here at Grillust™ Towers in believing that our Illustrators should learn to draw with confidence and understanding before they tackle the more 'weighty' illustration projects that will come later in the course.

The ability to draw well, underpins all great illustration. If you want to be a great concert violinist you have to first learn to play your instrument with great competence. It's the same with illustration, you have to develop technical skills (in this case the ability to draw) before you can undertake any illustration problem with confidence.

It's the start of a long journey...

Life Drawing, it's a dirty business

Katie is appearing as Magical Mr. Mistoffelees in the Carlisle Amateur Dramatic Association rendition of 'Cats'.

3 minute drawings

Dirty Boy!!

More 3 minute drawings...

As above...

Mmm... lovely lady-like hands.

Rhian after a hard afternoon at the 'charcoal face'.

It's a little known fact that all of Ben's facial hair is actually 'drawn on' by hand each day in charcoal (he uses a mirror).

Printing? Without a computer? What the?

The Grillusy Yr1s are currently working with analogue process'. Stretching paper, collage, using photocopiers etc. Here, for their benefit but also for yours, dear passer by, are a few youtube instructional videos on simple print techniques. They're surprisingly entertaining / unintentionally humerous as well as offering some inspiration.











this isn't a great print (sorry to the girl who done it), but the steps are made clear ▼ ▼ ▼


"McMann print", I've never heard the term before. We call it petrol print although you use cellulose thinners (Halfords or hardware stores). BE CAREFULL, it's hugely toxic and needs good ventilation and even a mask. Nail polish remover also works but not as well. ▼ ▼ ▼

First Years First Experience of Hardcore Typography

Our first year students have just spent a challenging and fruitful two weeks working alongside our 'national treasure', H.R.H The Typographer Royal, Dame Rhiannon Robinson OBT*.

As you probably know, Dame Rhiannon is a demanding taskmistress with a ruthless, critical eye that can spot the slightest typographic imperfection at more than twenty paces.

Luckily for our novice students she took them through the fundamentals of good typography through a series of lectures and on-screen tutorial sessions.

This is but the start of a very long journey, but even after such a short time the students can all spot loose tracking, unfortunate apostrophes, orphans, widows and line lengths that are too long or too short.

Rather surprisingly it was two illustration students Ms Katie Lock (21) and Ms Catt Fearnley (also 21) who came out on top when the work was assessed. Let's see if the Graphic Designers can bounce back in a few weeks time when they work with Dame Rhiannon once again.

The project was deceptively simple. Take some information about a typeface like this:
...and turn it into a visual striking and readable A3 poster like this:


Ms Lauren Mines (21)

Here's a survey of some of the best:

Ms Catt Fearnley (21)


 
 Ms Catt Fearnley again (still 21)


 
 Ms Katie Lock (one score and one year)



 Ms Katie Lock again (still one score and one year)

Miss Rhian Wood (21)

Miss Hannah Holmes (21)

Miss Iinu Karna (kaksikymmentäyksi)

Ms Mollie Barker (21)

Master Ben Newboult (21)

Miss Rachel Tunstall (21)

*OBT = Order of British Typography

Daniel Egneuse - rhymes with genius (nearly)

Beautiful illustrations created with intelligence and thought. What's not to like?




for more of Mr Egneus' sumptuous work, nip over to his site

How to get an illustration agent (maybe)

Are you an illustrator in the making?
Have you asked these or similar questions?

What can an agent offer you as an illustrator?

How can artists attract the attention of an agent?

What should illustrators find out about an agent before working with them?

What qualities do agencies look for in an artist?

Do Fig Rolls deserve a greater recognition and fan base?

if so, then head over to Digital Arts who have an article that claims to answer these and at least one other question




Two random illustrations with nothing to do with this post other than that they are illustrations

Dave Dye Blog

One of our exes Lee Freeman (33) who works at the wonderful Sell! Sell! recently sent us an E-mail.

Here's what he said:

"Dave Dye started a blog a couple of months ago.

It's a resource I wish existed when I was studying. 

It's packed with insights, process and tee-hee-hees."

We totally agree so please go there now!

When you've done with that, also have a look at Sell! Sell!'s own excellent blog here.

One Song, One Student's Response

Just before Christmas we gave the first year students a project that attempts to demonstrate just how crucial personal involvement, emotional response and passion are in producing truly memorable, powerful Graphic Design and Illustration. 

The project is deceptively simple. The students are given a song (at random) and are asked to design and make a bespoke CD cover for it. The difficulty is that they are asked to create a design that is as emotionally engaging as the original song.
 
The level of emotional involvement needed to produce good design and illustration is not too dissimilar to that encountered in the worlds of film and theatre. To totally convince an audience, an actor has to research the part, 'feel it', inhabit the role and then totally commit to the performance.
 
It takes design students years to develop the skills and emotional maturity necessary to work in this way. This project is just the start of a long, long journey. However, we were more than delighted to see the way our students committed to the task in hand.


One of the songs was this:
 


The Testimony of Patience Kershaw is based on the harrowing account given by Patience (yes, she was a real person) to a commission looking into the worker's conditions in Coal Mines in 1842.
 
Patience's life was one of unimaginable toil and brutality, she was only 17 and was described by one of the commissioners as follows: "This girl is an ignorant, filthy, ragged, and deplorable-looking object, and such an one as the uncivilized natives of the prairies would be shocked to look upon."

A serious subject requiring a serious response...

Year 1 Graphic Design student Jessica Plant (21) was more than up to the challenge. Here's just a small sample of the work Jess produced during the two weeks allocated to this project. We should also point out that the photographs are all self-portraits created with an auto-timer and that no make up was used. That's real coal you're looking at!