Inspiration

INSPIRATION

Jim PhillipsPages 4 – 7

Stanley Chow Pages 18 – 19

Vault 49Pages 8 – 11

WhitelinesPages 20 – 21

The ReasonPages 12 – 13

Grégoire GuilleminPages 22 – 23

Olly MossPages 14 – 15

2046 DesignPages 24 – 25

WavelengthPages 16 – 17

Celery DesignPages 26 – 27

Jim Phillips is by far one of the longest standing inspirations of mine, through the clever illustrations he has produced over the years in relation to the surf and skate scene. It wasn’t untill I was bought a book full of his work that i realised how little of his work I had actually seen.

Predominantly illustrative work using pen and ink to create some of the most inventive and clever illustrations I have seen. The piece to the left is a great example of this, signifing the wave as the forceful hand of the ocean, which at any point could crush a surfer riding the wave. This particular piece is also on of my favorites through it’s striking appearence.

“Jim Phillips is the man responsible for pretty much all of the most recognizable and iconic skateboard graphics pretty much ever.” – Andreas Trolf

On the following page is another example of Jim Phillips’ work, for Santa Cruz who he worked for during the 80’s creating their iconic ‘Screaming Hand’ in 1985.

Jim Phillips

Valt 49“Vault49 is an artistic collaboration, a playground, and a creative incubator for innovative design projects. We adapt our approach to each and every brief and bring an open mind to all our projects.”

The way in which they describe their way of working and ideals, gives me the impression that working for them would be really quite enjoyable. Their work is mostly in relation to advertising.

I’ve admired the work of Vault 49 for many years. The way they combine different elements of design into their work is so inspiring. This piece to the left is by far one of my favorites by the team, combining illustration and 3D. On the following pages are show pieces that I admire for their illustrative qualities.

Their open minded and enthusiastic approach to each project is beyond inspiring. This is something I need to improve on, to not get bogged down with the details and push to be creative from the off set. To work for Vault 49 would be a dream.

The Reason

The Reason is an independant snowboard magazine. Publisher Ian Sansom has worked for almost every mag in the UK, before deciding to get off his ass and do his own thing. The Reasons is available, for free, from snowboard related outlets four times a year.

I first found this magazine in 2010, in a small snow sports shop. Initialy picking it up because it was free, but when I began to read though, I found it was a really well produced magazine with some amazing photography. All around a sport that I love, what could be better!

To the left are examples from the first issue showing a variety of different approaches to the layout, however I think it is all based on a 4 column grid. There are few magazines that I can genuinly say I would like to work for, but The Reason is definately one of them.

Olly Moss

Another great inspiration of mine is the illustrator Olly Moss, with his simple style and effective choice of composition. Limiting himself to a small number of colours generally two or three. This is a chalenge I have put to myself for one or two projects.

These are a few examples of his work that I admire. In particular the piece on the left, when I first saw it I only registered the gun initially and thought it was cool, but soon after noticed the face and saw straight away that it was Clint Eastwood, without having the text. I hope that I will be able to create work as clever as this.

“Olly Moss is a young british designer/ illustrator. His self initiated work includes these bold poster designs for well known movie titles such as ‘The Deer Hunter’ and ‘The Great Dictator’. Moss has also produced work for clients including the New York Times, Computer Arts magazine and Urban Outfitters” – designboom.com

Wavelength

With living in Cornwall in a town by the beach it is almost expected to be a surfer, and well thats what I am. So it seems a bit obvious to admire the work of a magazine thats all about one of my favorite sports.

Thing with Wavelength is that it has been one of my prefered surf magazines since I can remember. The use of beautiful photography and engaging layouts make me want to read it.

Like I said previously there are very few magazines I would like to work for in the grand scheme of things But the idea of working for this magazine is more appealing because it is all about something I love so much.

These are all examples from the latest issue of the magazine.

I only really came across the work of Stanley Chow last year, when browsing on the internet. Finding an illustration of the Avengers characters he had desinged for Boston Globe/ G style section. Straight away I admired his work as it is simplistic style which I strive to achieve (not the I’m in any way at the same standard). A limited number of the Avengers print was being sold, and now no. 13 proudly hangs on my wall.

What I find most impressive about Chow’s work is how he conveys to the reader a good representation of what the character is like just through his illustrative skills. For example to the left is Tyrion, from Game of Thrones, he an inquisitive man who is suspicious of almost everyone.

“Stan Chow was born and raised in Manchester, England, where he currently resides. He began his career in 1997, mainly as a fashion illustrator and storyboard artist, and has become one of the most highly respected and established artists in the UK, working across a platform of media in advertising, design, publishing, packaging, gaming, animation and interactive. Recently he has been diligently working on his first love: cartoons and caricatures...” - Bernstein & Andriulli.

Stanley Chow

Whitelines

Again another magazine I would work for, but less likely than the previous two. The magazine is on more of a larger scale. Being run by Factory Media, who produce almost all the extreme sports magazines available in the UK.

Saying that I do find the design really engaging, giving the information required without taking away from the awesome photography, which in all honesty is half the reason I read the magazines.

Whitelines is the UK’s premier snowboard magazine. Printed in a coffee table format, it combines incredible images from the most respected photographers in the industry with in-depth articles that get you amped. Every issue of the magazine is filled with informa-tion for all types of snowboarder – from trick tips and backcountry advice to far flung travel features and high profile interviews. Whitelines is aimed simply at fellow riders – not a clique – offering a unique UK perspective on the whole world of snowboarding.

The Work of Grég Guillemin is generally based around films, often illustrating key charcters. The above are from a series I admire a lot called: Paper Heroes. Where he’s illustrated characters using simple shapes and basic colours.

“It’s not real paper cutting, it’s Illustrator forms transformed with paper material in Photoshop.”

The piece to the right is what initally drew me to his work, it is called Famous Capsules. There are a few posters in this format giving characters of films, but this one is by far my favorite of the series. I spent quite a lot of time figuring out them all but I still think I’ve not got some of them right yet.

I find Guillemin’s work really interesting, with taking a different approach to most of the work by other artists. But he obviously still has some simularities. I would like to think that I can come up with original and quirky designs like this, I just need to open my mind more to the possibilities.

Grégoire Guillemin

The work by 2046 is mostly posters in relation to films, again with a simular style to that of the other influences previously mentioned. What I find interesting with this work is the combination of photographic and vector asthetics which works really well together. I find most of the work produced by 2046 appealing there are simularities but at the same time quite different approaches.

Again I hope to become more confident with my design abilities, to make the choices that create such interesting work.

2046 Design

Celery Design

Finally the work of Celery design, is quite different to the previous nine. There style is simple and in some ways could be considered sleek. But what appeals to me the most is that they are making a concious effort to be environmentally ethical. By using a process that looks at the project as a whole before they even begin to think how to design it.

This is a really interesting approach, which I believe to be a quite important issue to tackle, because as a designers we have the power to influence people on both a small and large scale.

10 key influences and aspirations of mine from the world of design. Each differrent to a degree but collectively equally key in the progress of my work.

Louise Kelly