Central Illustration Agency

The Central Illustration Agency have just published this beautiful book showcasing all their artists. And I never thought I would be able to say 'I'm one of them'.

That's not some special faux-blog-modesty talking there. Nope, I mean it. I mean it because CIA represent some serious time-served people I admire and look up to as masters of their art - Peter Horridge, Sir Peter Blake, Andrew Bannecker, Paul Slater, David Hughes, Jeff Nishinaka to name a handful. I also say it earnestly because I've happily put in the hours, grafting away at a job I love for many years, to get to the stage where I might be able to sit in the company of these artists, and the relationship I have with Ben, Jules, Rhiannon and Alicja is rather special to me. Long may it continue!


Here's what the press release says:

License To Inspire is an eclectic mix of stunning artwork and fascinating interviews from the world's most talented illustrators and industry innovators. An invaluable resource for art buyers and other professionals within the creative industries, this will soon become a recommended text for art students and particularly those who wish to work in the industry. With inclusions from a diverse range of artists from Jonas Bergstrand to Sir Peter Blake, the book is packed with beautiful images and thought-provoking words. Created by the acclaimed Central Illustration Agency, who have been associated with the brightest talent in illustrative art since 1983, this book will be an essential addition to any coffee table or agency library.

"Illustration has been arguably the liveliest art form of this decade, and CIA have been right in the centre of it. This book paints a brilliant and lively portrait of the world, the art and the business of contemporary illustration." Marc Valli, Elephant magazine & Magma.



You can buy a copy on CIA's website.
or from the ever-reliable Amazon.

Hey doll.

I cleared out and re-organised the toy display last week, and all the toys that could go in the washing machine, did. Those that couldn't had their clothes removed and were bathed by hand in the kitchen sink, since they were covered in plaster dust (I omitted to cover them before work started!)

I was struck by a couple of things. First, I only had three baby dolls, all Tiny Tears, one of whom was stolen from the pram, the other two given away so there are none of those. Second, all my dollies have shoes and pants. It's a long time since I put that many tiny pairs of knickers out to dry. And third, how many of the clothes me and my Mum made ourselves.

We were very short of resources, but Mum could sew anything, and in fact made all of our clothes herself. This was not out of choice, but it did mean that anything she made, she could make at one-eighth of the size, and that meant that by the age of 11, I could too.

This is a version of Lady Diana's wedding dress which we made for the Royal Wedding. Her train was measured to be the same proportional length as Diana's, and her flowers were correct. I thought about cutting her hair...but thankfully resisted. She also has a crystal head-dress.
Fifteen years later, Mum made this version of my emerald velvet bridesmaid's dress worn at my best friend's wedding. We wore boots and thick tights for the December 27th wedding, and had an identical bouquet. She also made an exact copy of Jules' wedding dress, which she still has.
Check Sindy's flares. The jeans were bought, but the blouse was made. Those shoes were the easiest to fall off and I'm astounded I still have them both.
Glamourous brunette Sindy, a ballerina by trade, wears a hand-made fur-collared cape lined with the same black lace as the halter neck dress beneath. And of course, black strappy shoes.
For a more relaxed occasion, Sindy wears a crocheted pink mohair polo neck with shop-bought jogging bottoms.
This Sindy wears the yellow moccasins, because she is an adopted one, and as such bears the scars of a pet dog who likes doll feet.
Purrrrrr! Glamour. Knitted sparkly halter-neck with lace trim and blue slip-ons. And...a haircut NOT by me. Another adopted Sindy.
As well as the dolly clothes I made toys. This is Shrew and Shrew, one made about a month after the other. They've never been apart and came to France with me aged 11, when David Rinaldi dangled one aloft over the side of the ferry and threatened to drop. He didn't, but he's still quite the b*stard for showing such cruelty.
And finally, these bonkers creations were found in Grandma's house after she died. We don't think she made these clothes - she was NOT the crocheting type - but there's such attention to detail I had to keep them. They have matching turquoise knickers and check the little tiny slippers. Pair of hard gits, these boys.
Finally, I didn't make this - this was a compensation gift from Grandma when my sister was born, so I didn't feel she was getting all the attention. Or at least that's how I remember it.
I love the box. And it's mine, look - it says so!

Pelham Puppets:
http://www.ppo.co.uk

Sindy:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sindy

http://www.sindydolly.com/

Are you sitting comfortably?

Check the Rob Ryan skirt! This is me standing next to a hoarding in Old Street, London which shows the beginnings of the Start A Story project run by James at the Big Antidote. I started it off, as you can see, and it's still live - so if you want to chip in a chapter go here: http://www.bigantidotecom

Trip to the Seaside! Brighton Illustrators' Group this Thursday

If you're in the Brighton area on Thursday 29th July, I'll be joining the Brighton Illustrators' Group at their 6x6 talk at 8pm that evening. I'll be with a handful of other illustrators sharing six images which have inspired me, shaped my direction, or in some other way been pivotal to my life as an illustrator. And generally geeking off about pens and the like.

I was invited by Pete Mac who runs the group and I'm sharing podium space with 5 others. So if you manage to nod off during my monologue there'll be another one up soon enough!

Can't wait. Am making a fleeting trip to Brighton with a visit to Pete's studio in the afternoon - shared by agency-mate Nishant Choksi, and Vicky Woodgate, Mark Oliver and Penny Dann to name a handful of the thirteen artists there - then dinner at Bill's Produce Store. And this is my job? I'm a very fortunate girl.

Read about the series of talks on the 6x6 website and if you're thinking of coming along, let me know!

Cosmic Ordering On The Hoof

I'm fundraising for the first time in my life, and I'm worried I'm going to be dragging my sponsorship form round often for the next couple of months that when I get back to my normal running I'm going to expect to find a tenner at the end of every mile.

Oh well. I do however find a lot of interesting things on my runs. Spookily these things are usually found right at the moment I'm thinking 'I could really use a...'

Cosmic ordering? Who knows. I don't deliberately set out to ask for things, but if I happen to be thinking about them, there they are.
Here's a list of what I've found in the last few months.

- a size 8 black fitted New Look cardigan with gathered sleeves and tiny black buttons - kept, perfect fit, worn regularly. At the time I really wanted one but couldn't find one, and due to my strict 'no-made-in-China' rule, New Look would never have been an option. Here it is being worn in Newcastle's Jay-Z cafe in September (no really! it actually is called Jay-Z's):

- a size 8 black New Look cardigan with tie belt - a good fit but not as nice - washed and given to charity.

- a size 12 grey Top Shop cardigan - too big, washed and given to charity.

- a size 8 black vest top - too tight, cut for a teenager, given to charity.

- a pair of brand new scratchless River Island Jackie O style sunglasses - the day my own brand new ones were clawed to death by the keys in my bag. The first and only time I ran with two pairs of shades. Here I am trying to look serious in them.

- a ladies' lined technical jacket - waterproof with hood and many pockets and internal cargo nets. Found right next to me in the ditch just as the first raindrops came and I began to feel cold on a 7 mile run. Ran the last mile wearing it, located owner via the local theatre, returned to said owner and was rewarded with flowers and wine! She needn't have - the coat was stolen from her car, dumped in the village, and was the jacket she wore for her work as a guide dog puppy trainer out in all weathers, so it had to be returned, no question. All together - ahhh!

- an iPod, silver, full of Miley Cyrus and Disney and High School Musical. At the time I was running with my Sony phone which bounced uncomfortably on my hip. Just as I was thinking I could do with a proper iPod, it appeared right in front of me. My attempt to hand it in to the police station resulted (it's a long story) in someone keeping it who shouldn't have. Unfortunately, a few days later I found out it was my best mate's daughter's friend's iPod, and she'd had a proper bollocking for losing it. She still doesn't know that it was once found, but lost again, and it's perhaps best that she never does.
It looked like this:
- I have never found a body. It's always unfortunate 'joggers' or 'man walking his dog' who find those, isn't it?

So. What d'yall fancy? And remember - I can only bring back what I can carry while running!

Inkymole Is Running For Cash: Part One.

I've been running recreationally for two years and intend to carry on doing so. It's just that I've decided to throw in something which is a bit of a stretch. Having read Haruki Murakami's book 'What I Talk About When I Talk About Running' and how it is inexorably connected with his creative process, I realised that having found running, it was very unlikely I would ever stop.

Thus, I'm intending to run my first half-marathon on October 10th in London to raise money for Mind. It took me about five days to decide, because a half marathon needs proper training, which means commitment to regular runs at certain times. Clients would have to be ignored to get them done. Jobs might have to be finished early to accommodate them. I might have to (gasp) go out running in the rain. But I get to RUN further than I've ever gone. It's the Royal Parks Half Marathon through the parks of London, and should be a lovely route.

When I run, particularly on the long ones, my mind clears, calms and refreshes. I come back ready to tackle anything. I want to feel like that all the time, but am in a pressured industry where such spells are rare and precious. I also know how close I've come on occasion to 'losing it'. At least, I thought I did, until I started to discover friends who really had 'lost it', and learned just how commonplace and misunderstood, and how devastating, a poorly brain can be. The unfortunate popular figurehead for mental illness in recent years, Stuart Goddard (aka Adam Ant) describes it as 'a fist in the skull'. And 1 in 4 people will suffer from mental illness at some point in their lives. 1 in FOUR. Mind has therefore been my charity of choice for many years, and I'm honoured to be on their running team. More on Mind here: http://www.mind.org.uk/about

I've committed to raising £1000 minimum as part of my agreement with the charity. That's 200 people flinging a fiver my way. There are 600+ people in my address book and at least 50 people read this blog. Should be easy, right...?

Here's the page which makes donation a whole lot easier than going round your neighbours' houses with your Dad carrying a pen and a sponsor form from school:

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/inkymole

- I do the sweating, they rattle the tin!

I really appreciate all your support, and I thank you in advance from the bottom of my weary trainers.

Status report: Currently running 7.25 miles. Speed needs to improve and I need to watch my knees! More leg presses and abs required. And don't bother with the Go energy gels again - they taste like Satan's wrung-out socks.

Pressies.

I had a morning of wonderment and joy the other day. It was like Christmas, but better, because the things that put the smile on my face weren't planned or requested, or expected: they just arrived.

First of all I received a massive box from my friend Amanda, who lives in Providence. Amanda is an all-round creative being and she makes, amongst other things, hand-blown cake stands for single fairy cakes (or cupcakes, as the Americans call them.) She and I did a trade, but her parcel of oddities far outweighed anything I'd sent her way.

First of all there was THIS - a half-sewn half-drawn note. Can't you just HEAR the frantic ZRRRRZRRR of the sewing machine?

Then delving through the padding was this: wahhh! Snakes and a newt! They later had a fight - turtle won with his flip-top-smother-prey-stealth move:

Beetleface leapt out a bit further down, 3" long, but HE was made of stuff we can't identify, with metal bits, and has a magnet stuffed into his belly so he can hang off anything which makes a clonking sound. I tried him on the range flue, but seeing as this can reach 127C at full pelt, I decided melted beetles wasn't a look I fancied.

Enough already? NO. Buried in paper was the magnificent surprise of an Edward Gorey tarot pack - MY WORD. Did I tell her I liked Gorey? No! Did she guess? Can she see it in my face? Shall I tell my own future and that of everyone I know with characters like The Black Doll and The Limb from now on? Yes, I shall.


And all this is before I even get to the cake stand. Here it is - and can you believe, I had JUST made a batch of sticky chocolate ones. Popped one inside. Yum. Amanda must have used special Dorian Gray-style glass to make her stand, because the cakes in the tin turned to mush that night...and the one inside stayed smugly perfect and youthful.

Then my friend Hayley, who normally writes books like this one showed me her drawing of a rhino. It was so good and so captured the essence of a rhino that I dared her to draw a Mole. Now this was bad of me, because my own drawn animals are always deformed beasts of indeterminate species, but she did it. And here he is. Charmed? I nearly cried. Looks at his massive digging hands! His tiny eyes! His surprised sun-struck face! Now that's what illustration's all about - capturing the squinty digness of the Mole. Ten out of ten, Hayls.

And on the same day I received a thank you gift, which are ALWAYS appreciated - even if I can't drink that wine or eat those well-meant chocs - this was received from Laura and was thoroughly spontaneous, made by hand, and reflective of the arts occasion which triggered it!
Thank you Laura, Hayley and Amanda aka Ezz.

The First Paid Gig.

Just found my first ever live commission after graduating, while organising some archived work samples for the new plan chest (when it comes). I'd had some paid work while at college, but this was the first where I was out on my own.

I got paid £200 for this A1 pastel pencil piece for Southend School For Boys who were celebrating their bicentenary. I drove down there in my custard yellow Citroen 2CV, took a brief (there was no email of course, this was 1993) and lots of photographs (which needed taking into Boots for developing) and went home to draw this over the next couple of weeks. I had to deliver the piece back the same way - on the motorway, with 602cc and a packet of B&H. I was good at driving one-handed. This time they had me down for lunch, and let me have some of the 200 prints they'd had made - all of which I had to sign.

If you look carefully, you can see that the image can be viewed any way up. They'd spotted my piece in Images 17, which was a delight. (Parental-sounding note to young 'uns: see, it IS worth entering the Images competitions!)

They were really pleased with it, and the original still hangs in the Great Hall in a frame (well, as far as I know). Model was boyfriend at the time - I just gave him three different hairdos and coloured his face a bit. I seem to remember he wasn't the most enthusiastic model, but then again, he wasn't the arty type...

Blimey. Foreshortening eh? Don't know if I could do it now!

It's my business.

I like to get behind anyone who's actively promoting and supporting the illustration industry as a whole, so it goes without saying I'm a life-long member of the Association of Illustrators, whose new members are welcomed to the fold with a juicy package emblazoned with a message by Inkymole.

In addition, I try to keep up with the many Illustration sites around like Illustrationmundo, Spraygraphic and Illustration Friday, but I don't often get the pleasure of a simple leisurely browse (which is a good thing if you think about it!) These things are usually run by people who aren't being paid to do it, and do it for the love the trade they're in. Obviously, the existence of the web and the ease of blogging makes this a whole lot easier and cheaper than the days of the AOI's early printed-and-posted B&W newsletters.

This one's a new one and I thought I'd report on it, as it's nicely done (though I think a hand-written header might draw more people in), and has been voted one of HOW's Top 10 Best Sites for Designers. Their catchphrase is 'creativity, community, culture' - which sums it up nicely! Being part of it reminds me of three important things:

1) This is fast-growing industry for which there is no Trade Union, just a solid core of people working away at their trade and its issues, and

2) It is a harder-than-ever industry to work in, because although the web has made it easier and cheaper to promote from a technical point of view, there are... thousands and thousands of us, and we're competing on a global - no longer a local or country-wide - playing field. Which not only sharpens pencils, but focus, ability and professionalism too.

3) Humans LOVE pictures.

Which, for the ongoing longevity and prosperity of my trade, with me in it or long after the pencils have been put down, is A Very Good Thing.

Cakes.

When I'm stuck or unmotivated and I'm in the mood where I'll do anything except what I'm meant to be doing, two things break the stalemate: running, and baking. Thankfully the two are mutually beneficial (well you could run without the baking, but to just do the baking might have me in trouble after a few short sugary months) and there's nothing better than making them for other people.*

Since various craftsmen - builders, plumbers, sparkies, chippies, tilers, shotblasters, metalworkers and scaffolders - have been our extended family for four months, they've benefitted from my frequent oven sessions. You might expect an illustrator to put a great deal of effort into the appearance of her cakes, but prepare to be disappointed.

Not all were captured on film, but here's a round-up of my flour-and-marge endeavours. Disclaimer: not all of them are cakes.

*actually there is, and that is eating them all yourself.

Vanilla Fairy cakes in star-shaped silicone. Date unknown but most likely January.

Fruit loaf. 10.2.10.

A tin of peanut butter and chilli cakes. 3.3.10.

Hardcore Chocolate Sandwich: baked in an industrial-sized loaf tin, jam and buttercream filling. 11.5.10.

Baked especially for Mark and Mick the Builders. Vanilla Sponge with buttercream icing and obvious sprinkles. Two layers. 4.5.10.

Chocolate Bruiser. Two layers, damson jam and chocolate and carob cream. 10.4.10.

This is a haggis pie, 16.5.10. Pastry excuses: see below.

Mincemeat and Apple Tart, 25.5.10. Borrowed Mum's baking gear (and kitchen) because mine is all boxed up, which is the only reason why the pastry doesn't look like a boxing match in a pie shop.

Well they can't have it without tea, can they?

Speaking My Language.

It's been a trying time over here, having to move out of house and studio in early February and suddenly having tools, food, clothing and gear spread across two locations - briefly three - with two studio moves and a third still to come.

I don't adapt well to upheaval, and certainly am not one of these people I read about who can just pick up a sketchbook and a couple of pens and produce work gaily on the hoof. No, I'm a creature of habit and routine, and like to have everything in its place where I can see it.

So there was a real comfort in settling into this job for New Scientist magazine, which has amazing articles with bonkers titles like 'Levitating glass bead proves Einstein wrong' and 'Human Lego could build artificial organs'. This busy piece was done over the course of six days with the studio in bits, and using nothing but a list of the 6000+ languages spoken around the world, an A3 drawing book and two big packs of felt pens. Soothing and calming!

Sometimes, it's as if the Freelance Gods (they do exist) seem to know what's going on, and prescribe exactly the right medicine. Cheers Ryan and Craig at New Scientist!

The first part of the image (this is the cover):

Then the centre part is added, separated out for the interior illustration:

And here's how the cover looks:

Final cover - reversed at the last second, for greater impact!

Memory & Conscience

Being a busy illustrator trying to couple heavyweight clients AND a conscience is difficult, and an ongoing daily dialogue is required to negotiate my way through the dilemmas presented by some of the creative opportunities that come my way. This one was easy though.

I've created a small piece for this project created by Garrick Webster of OneTenEleven, called 'Memories', a book of stories written by people who have lost a person to cancer. I'll be showing the illustration when it goes live for the project.

Far from being maudlin, the stories are interesting and positive, and the art is already looking full of life. Other artists contributing artwork include Vaughan Oliver, Jules Julien, Gary Taxali, Yulia Brodskaya, Ben The Illustrator and lots more people I can't list here - I think the total is up to something like 100! The end result is a book and an exhibition. The project is being launched summer 2010 by Designers Against Human Rights Abuse (DAHRA), Subism, OneTenEleven Media and editor Garrick Webster. Designers Against Human Rights Abuse (DAHRA) was founded in the summer of 2008 by Rishi Sodha. A non-profit organisation, it exists to promote and raise awareness amongst those involved in the creative industry of their social, political and ethical responsibilities. You can see why I was interested.
Go here for more information.

Information Is Beautiful

I bought this book at the weekend, and as the title suggests, it's one of the most beautifully informative things I've ever seen.

David McCandless is an illustrator specialising in information graphics. That is, he makes hard things like maths and statistics and charts easy to interpret by showing us pictures and using colours and shapes. Just what I need, since I find politics and stats and maths don't suit my generally rather simple right-leaning brain (in a cognitive, not a political sense).

For example it took me just a few seconds to learn that almost exactly the same amount of people die from suicide (71m) as die from smoking (70m). One might argue they are the same thing, but that's not why the book exists.

I now know the most-viewed viral on the web. I have a better understanding of the relationship that Israel has to its neighbours. I also know that all the fizzy pop bottle caps being undone in the US releases more carbon than a flight, and that a vegan diet is the most carbon-friendly you can possibly have. Indeed the book is an enormous and delicious feast that you can dip into like a good pot of organic houmous, and is backed by a sprightly website, its own path to existence tracked by a graph in the back pages.

Yep, file this under 'This is Brilliant: Must Try Harder'.

www.informationisbeautiful.net/

See also: Stefanie Posavec - how I would love to see what these people's brains look like!

Inkymole Giveaway 4

Having another clearout. This time it's several years' worth of illustration annuals that I just can't hold on to any more!

These are the fat tomes of Contact, numbers 22-26, and two Le Books from 2009 I think. For the uninitiated, they're juicy collections of full-page illustrations in full colour, hard-bound, about 10" x 12" in size. I also have an Art Book, which is the one that showcases only illustration agencies.

Excellent reference books and free if anyone would like them, but I've got to ask donation of postage as they're HEAVY - a handful of quids should do it - which can be Paypal'd if you're keen. Or, you could collect.

I'm guessing these are going to end up being donated to a college or university, but I thought I'd give the troops first dibs!
Email me: sarah@inkymole.com

I'll give it a week, then they'll be leaving the house, by hook or by crook.

Oh I've got a shed to get rid of too. No really, I have. It's big too.