Coming soon!

So this year I was actually organised enough to embrace ridiculously-early-Christmas-Spirit and get some card designs illustrated on time!
I've just sent these (among others) to print, so they should be up for sale next week. There's three vague sets: Slightly Naughty Christmas Animals, Christmas Love and Christmas Castles! They'll all be available to buy individually or in a set.  They're a pretty limited run right now, so drop me a line if you're interested and I'll make sure you know they second they're out.

A's Assignment

This week, I've had a great time delving into possible futures illustrating this fantastic micro-story by Andrew Jolly on Medium.

The story was written in response to the Writing Prompt "What would you do with your last ten dollars?", and I think it's a great take on it.  I'm a big sci-fi and futurology fan, so it was a lot of fun to dream up super futuristic classrooms and (stylish) teacher get-ups. And yes, that is a telepathy-helmet projecting the class visuals straight to screen - no more Powerpoint in the future, guys.

You can read the story and recommend it here, and it is well worth a read if you have two minutes. I've recently joined Medium myself, and will be posting a lot of my freelance advice articles up there, so jump in!

Glasgow inspiration

As you may have read in my earlier post, last weekend I ventured up to Glasgow for the launch of my new picture book The Lavender Blue Dress.  The launch event in Waterstones with Aidan Moffat was absolutely fantastic, a seriously big moment in my career, and a lot of my weekend was spent at the venue!  I did get a chance to explore the city and wander, it was my first time in Glasgow so there was definitely a lot to see.

Glasgow has such an amazing atmosphere, I honestly couldn't believe how friendly everyone was - I loved how disinhibited people were to start chatting away!  I saw a lot of the gorgeously cultured side of Glasgow, as well as the parts that were a little rough around the edges, and it all combines into such a vibrant place.

The whole weekend was inspiring, and I snapped some of my favourite finds.  I really loved the brushwork on the china vase in Scottish Colourist Francis Cadell's painting in the Kelvingrove gallery, as well as this stunning piece of street art painted on a wall in central. There was so much to look out for, in every corner of the city.

I was staying near the West End so enjoyed the falling Autumn leaves in Kelvingrove park and the museums in the area.  The Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum was incredible, there was so much to see; whilst the Riverside Transport Museum was full of fun and engaging attractions (I never thought I'd be so interested in transport!).  I can't imagine that I've even seen half of the things I'd like to in Glasgow, so luckily I've realised that it's really not that far away from me (a three hour drive), so I'll definitely be back!

The Lavender Blue Dress Picture Book Launch!

Photos by Andrew Jolly

Last week saw the launch of The Lavender Blue Dress, my newest picture book with Aidan Moffat and Cargo Publishing.  To celebrate the release on October 10th, I headed up to Glasgow for the big launch event at Waterstones Argyle Street.  Aidan's a brilliant musician (you might recognise him from Arab Strap), and he played a few songs before I joined him onstage with Cargo's Murray Buchanan for a Q&A about the making of The Lavender Blue Dress, and a book signing session.

The crowd was absolutely packed, and I was genuinely shaking with nervousness before the Q&A (I'm not quite used to public speaking!).  According to the audience I pulled it off though, and answered some great questions from Murray on the making of The Lavender Blue Dress and how the project got started.  It surprised a lot of people that Aidan and I had only first met just before the event, it's definitely an odd modern world where you can work with someone on such a big, soulful project and only meet after it's completed! But it's also very refreshing to be able to collaborate with people all over the world so easily.

After the grown-up's event on Friday, we had a kid-friendly (and slightly chaotic!) event on Saturday chaired by the lovely Diane Buchanan. Again, the space was packed, and Aidan read the book to excited youngsters.  We brought back the 'design your own dress for Mabel' sheets, and it was fantastic to see the kids engaged in the story and creating such beautiful dress designs!

It was so humbling to have received such support for the book, and I can honestly say that the launch was the absolute highlight of my career so far.  It was definitely a personal hurdle for me to jump into the public realm with my work, I'm often quite shy, but it was such a joy to meet so many people touched by something I've helped create.

Huge thankyous to Aidan, Murray, Diane, Waterstones and all the amazing people at Cargo Publishing for making the event so great! Thanks as well to Andrew Jolly and Michael Gallacher for the event photos.

Keep your eyes peeled for my post about my other adventures in Glasgow, up later this week!

Best Arts & Culture Blog Winner

So, last night I went to the Blog North Awards as part of Manchester Literature Festival. Hosted at the Deaf Institute (one of my very favourite gig venues!), the atmosphere was sizzling with excitement for the entertainment, and of course the awards themselves.

There were some great performances from the likes of The Flashtag Writers, Claire Dean and some of the shortlistees from the Best Writing award category.  I particularly loved General Lucifer's Repro-man stories, Kevin Boniface's Huddersfield-postman-tales and Mollie Simpson's teenage diary readings!

The awards category rolled around, and I'd managed to calm my nerves by convincing myself that they must've told the winners beforehand.  Best Arts and Culture Blog flicked up on screen, and I prepped myself to buffer any confidence knocks if I didn't win (hey, even being shortlisted was a bloomin' honour) - but somehow, my name was called! 

This year there were some glitzy crowns and tiaras up for grabs, and I stumbled nervously up the stage towards them.  The judges crowned two winners in our category, so I was lucky enough to share the stage with fellow winner Marc Provins.  I made a warbly little speech about the sheer talent of the shortlisted blogs, how unprepared I was, and apparently got a few "aww's" as my voice tremmored saying thankyou. 

I'm absolutely over the moon to have won Best Arts & Culture Blog.  I've put so much work into this blog over the last few months, and having that recognised in some way is fantastic; a real encouragement.  As General Lucifer so rightly said in his winning speech "Blogging sometimes feels like just shouting into a black hole, to hear something back is brilliant".  

Thank you to everyone who voted for me, the judges and all the lovely people I met last night!

You can see the full list of winners, runners up and shortlistees at www.blognorthawards.com. Definitely check them out, there's some really fantastic blogs there!

Portfolios, pitches and microbiology.

In all my busyness over Summer, I've just realised that I completely overlooked this piece.  This illustration stemmed from my research for a pitch to The Eden Project, who were seeking written proposals for an exhibition on the theme of 'The Human Microbiome' and microbiology.

This was really only ever a quick sketch to wrap my head around my writing, but it was one of those defining pieces that has really snapped my work into a new direction.

There was a wealth of information to respond to in the brief, but the thing that caught my eye was the idea that our preoccupation with technology and the digital world could have adverse health effects. 'Is our disconnection from the natural world making us sick?'.  Personally, as a dual digital world explorer and fully fledged nature admirer, I found this idea really interesting.  The brief centred on the concept of us, as humans, being interwoven within a worldwide ecosystem; and the issues that can arise when we remove ourselves physically or consciously from it.  There's obviously the idea that getting outside, going for walks and taking time away from zombie-staring at screens helps improve our sense of wellbeing and connection to the world; but the report also considered the idea that interacting with nature and all it's muddy wildness exposes us to a far greater variety of microbes, which in turn help strengthen our immune systems.

That's what I wanted to focus on in this sketch, and I chose to approach it as if I was responding to the report as an article for an editorial illustration.  This is really where my work has turned.  A lot of my portfolio is centred around narrative illustration, which isn't a bad thing, but I've always wanted to strengthen my conceptual thinking in terms of editorial illustration.  It's those illustrations for magazines and newspapers that have such layered communication - the instant visual summary of the article, and those subtle little details that enhance the writing and fit snugly into place as you read through the text.  

I chose to work in a simple visual style (for me!), with cut-out figures and a limited colour pallete. I've had a great response to this style of illustration, so I'm hoping to keep it up with more editorial work, both personal and client-based.

In the end my exhibition proposal didn't go through with Eden. But, as always, it's something to grow from.  I always enjoy taking the opportunity to write out my ideas, and I'm a sucker for learning new things.  But really, the main thing I've taken away from that proposal is the re-boot in the confidence I have had in my own conceptual visual thinking.  There are always benefits in taking a critical look at your portfolio and knowing where you need improvement, or what you need to work on.  No illustrator is ever perfect at everything (although there are certainly some that seem that way!), but it's always worth a shot at adding another string to your bow.

The Results Are In!

Big thankyou to everyone who took the time to enter my Big Print Giveaway this week.  As I mentioned in the original post, there were three signed prints to giveaway (Wild Ride, Norwegian Wood and Summer Dip) and a quick comment of your favourite would enter you into a draw to win that print.  Wild Ride was inevitably popular as it's part of a limited edition run of screenprints! But it's great to know that the prints will be going to people that specifically chose each one.

I wrote this scruffy list of the entrants to each draw, and used a random number generator to pick the winner in each section! I'm contacting the winners as we speak, and the prints will be shipped out in the next few days.

If you're shedding a single tear that you weren't so lucky this time, remember all these prints are available in my shop at www.emmelineillustration.mysupadupa.com. Check back for more giveaways soon!

Draw North West

So tonight is the nineteenth Draw North West creative meetup! If you haven't been to one of these already (and you're even vaguely in the area) you should definitely come along.  

Held in the brilliant Kosmonaut bar in Manchester's Northern Quarter at 7:30, Draw North West attracts crowds of creatives from all walks to drink, draw and talk shop.  There's never a lack of chats about projects, collabs, films, exhibitions, music or *cough* Steve Buscemi. More often than not there's drawing games to join in with, and always someone up for a quick doodling session between the beers!

It's a great thing to connect with other creative people in the area, and it's always worth putting a face to those names you see bobbing around on Twitter and Facebook with their stunning portfolios.  There's been a few brilliant exhibitions and projects that have come out of the friendships people have made at Draw North West, and it's so good to have such a creative hub of ideas and support.  I personally live a fair trek away from the meetup, but every time I can go, I do go - it's absolutely worth it.

So whether you're a first year design student, a seasoned senior art director or just fancy a bit of a draw in your spare time - I really recommend heading down to Kosmonaut tonight.

You can find out more and keep up to date at www.drawnorthwest.co.uk or in the Draw North West facebook group here.  This month's poster by the super talented Kristian Duffy!

Emmeline's BIG print giveaway

You could win one of three lovely signed prints.  It's an easy one, just comment on this post with which print you'd like to win (Wild Ride, Norwegian Wood or Summer Dip) before October 1st and spread the word!

All prints are signed and on 200gsm+ slightly textured paper. Wild Ride and Norwegian Wood are A3 size, whilst Summer Dip is just-right at A5.  Wild Ride is a limited edition original screenprint.  Open worldwide.

Three winners will be randomly selected and announced in the afternoon of October 1st. There will be three separate draws - one for each of the prints, with one winner per draw - you enter a draw via your favourite print comment.  One entry per person. If you can, please include your name and Twitter/Facebook handles in your comment. 

Find out more about the prints in the shop at www.emmelineillustration.mysupadupa.com. Tell your buddies!

Great Exposure! The moral dilemma of working for free.

A few years ago I wrote some Creative Tips and Resources articles for the fantastic Ten Paces and Draw website.  I thought it was about time to take a peek at my old work with that, and share and expand on a few of the highlights here. 

So first up, from the 'Getting Started, Getting Seen' article - Working for free.  

"I’ve touched on this before, and it’s a delicate subject which ignites flames of anger in some creatives: working for free, with the promise of exposure. You won’t believe how many ‘clients’ come forth with the glimmer of a fabulous commission but then drop the bombshell of “Oh, well, we don’t have the budget to offer payment to illustrators, but it’s an opportunity for some great exposure!”. It raises some particularly difficult morality issues if you’re starting out and don’t have any other offers of ‘real work’ on the horizon. It’s oh so tempting, and yes, I’ve been tempted into it before – mainly so I have something with a bit of direction to work on. But I have to say in a awful lot of cases I regret it – none of those promises of exposure ever delivered and it seemed like a bit of a waste of time, I could’ve been working on something I really love for my portfolio.

The main problem with clients seeking out illustrators that will work for free is that often they know there always will be illustrators willing to work for free. Post-graduates in this exact situation, like I was, and like you might be now. You’re waiting for commissions and will take what you can get for the exposure and practice – it’s nothing to be ashamed of, but it does become a problem when clients stop giving out paid jobs because they can prey on the newbies. Just look at these offers with a skeptical eye, weigh up if it’s really worth it and make sure you’re not undermining yourself for future commissions.

Of course in some cases working for free isn’t a bad thing at all. I’m very passionate about using my illustration work to help others through charity. It feels great to be helping others, gets you working to a brief and (without sounding like a cold-souled businesswoman) does often bring in good exposure. I’ve used my work to raise lots of pennies for some great charities in the last few years – It’s good to share the love!"

This is definitely one of the aspects of freelancing and the creative industries which really gets my storm clouds raging.  Even over these past few years since I've written this article this issue keeps cropping up.  I can understand why companies and illustrators go for it, but it's often an endless circle that saps a lot of life out of the industry in the long run.  

On the other hand, over the years I have made a lot of friends and allies who are going out bravely and starting up their own brands and magazines, and I've seen them struggle with budgeting and have to rely on contributors for content.  With a lot of these cases once they do have the funds coming in they will rightly pay illustrators for their work; but it's still a case of making it clear that illustrative content should have priority in a budget.  Personally, in situations like this - when I really love the ethos of a company, want to support them and build a business relationship with them; I will collaborate with them using existing work from my portfolio, or often they will look to feature my work or interview me - it's promotion and support for us both without the hours of unpaid work on the illustrator's end.

It's a complicated and often conflicting situation. We know the importance of building a portfolio and it's great to network and grow relationships; but in the end, like everyone, we have bills to pay too.  It's a risk either way, but in thinking of the career long game I would vote to stick to your guns and spend your time working on your portfolio through personal work, rather than feeding too many of the companies out for bargain content.

It's a case of knowing what your work and time is worth, and sending the message to the 'bad guy' businesses that crowd-sourcing, design competitions and free work isn't the direction to go to get quality creative work.

For more creative tips and resources head over to the Ten Paces and Draw articles here.

[Also, new illustration above! Getting my editorial illustration muscles working again with my own articles!]

September is for sketching

Just a collection of some of the quick character sketches, a revived drawing and my new profile avatar from recent weeks.  September is for sketching.  It's fantastic to get back into the swing of character design by just drawing the first characters that pop into your head.  I haven't used any reference for these, so I thank my years of life drawing classes and people-watching for being able to coax out a reasonable degree of character movement and posture!

Someone asked me recently what on earth was up with the dude tying his shoelaces - I think we'd all understand: his little sister has just spent all his credit on rubbish in-app purchases, and he really can't deal with doing the washing up right now, Mum. "Ugh, I'm going to the park with Phil!". Cheer up little guy!

15 for 15 award finalist

Exciting news, guys! I've been selected as one of the finalists in the 15 for 15 award for self-employed businesses.  

I wrote from the heart about the dizzying heights and the real struggles of working as a lone-wolf freelance illustrator, and I'm absolutely chuffed to have been chosen.  

I find that often freelancers and self-employed people are overlooked in business.  I know that I personally have struggled with getting support as I was starting out, and I have written many (ignored) letters to my local council about the benefits of supporting freelancers alongside the multitude of '3 employees +' grants and guidance programs they offer. 

Freelancers, in the creative sectors and further afield, are important - we're those people who know it will be hard, but are passionate enough to follow our dreams.  I'm so impressed that the 15 for 15 award (supported by ipse) is recognising that, and I'm so humbled to have been chosen to represent one of the 15 'brightest and best self-employed people' working in the UK now.

Here's a quick statement from the 15 for 15 team, and their ethos behind the awards-

'Enterprising individuals right across Britain are starting brand new businesses every day.

Most of them aren’t well connected entrepreneurs launching trendy startups and boasting millionaire backers. They are independent, enterprising people making the brave choice to go it alone because they want control of their own destiny.

There are now almost five million self-employed people working in the UK and that number is growing all the time. They are some of the brightest and most independent minds in business and 15 for 15 aims to give the most promising among them a little helping hand.

That’s why we are looking for the independent professionals who are set for big things in 2015. We want to find fifteen independent minds who truly represent the diversity, enterprise and bravery of Britain’s self-employed.'

I'll be heading down to London's LSO St Luke's for the awards ceremony on 19th November, where the fifteen finalists will be guests of honour (eep!) and one overall winner will be chosen.  It's all a bit exciting.  

Wish me luck, buddies!