LCC FdA Design for Graphic Communication Show
I say hello, Steph Says Hello
Soupa is a bit of fan of illustrator and designer Steph Says Hello (AKA. Steph Baxter), who's based in Leeds.
Steph's work is a colourful, happy mixture of hand drawn characters and digital colouring. She is heavily influenced by Japanese cute culture and small baby animals (kittens, rabbits and red pandas are her favourite) Stephs typography work was recently part of the Lyrics & Type: Verse 2 exhibition in London alongside awesome artists such as ilovedust, Allan Sanders & Drew Millward. She will also be exhibiting at Inkygoodness London in September.
When Steph isn't doodling for other people she can usually be found chatting to her cat, Tibby, drinking ginger tea and watching Nickelodeon.
See more of her work at: www.stephsayshello.co.uk
All work and no play?
If that sounds a bit familiar, we've got a special offer that might make things a bit easier for you.
Workology is a online business platform that provides easy to use tools to help freelancers stay on top of their accounting and get paid – without the worry of chasing payments for invoices.
What you can do:
• Create and track quotes
• Create professional looking invoices
• Note expenses and allocate to a project to ensure reimbursement
How it helps:
• the system tracks the payment of invoices, automatically sending reminders
• when payment is received funds are remitted straight away
• sales records are kept up to date automatically reducing bookkeeping and accounting costs
There are no set-up fees or recurring monthly charges. Instead they collect only a small platform fee when the invoice gets paid. We get paid by helping the freelancer get paid – on time and without the worry.
Soupa member Carlos Garde-Martin is already a member and you can check out his mini site here:
carlosgardemartin.workology.com
If it sounds like something you might want to try, Soupa readers can claim aspecial introductory fee structure with no charge at all for the first three months. You will also receive a voucher so that you can create a mini site for no cost (which usually costs £30 per year).
Visit Workology.com to request an invite or learn more.
Backstage with VJ Dan Conway
Dan Conway is one of the founding members of Soupa and provides visuals for a range of clients including Deadmau5, Pendulum and Eric Prydz.
Soupa catches up with him to find out more about his exciting work.
Do you have a process when setting up the visuals? Firstly, we draw up with the client exactly what they want from the light show – this is then translated into schematics and a pixel perfect template.
Do you work out a storyboard? I find that for the majority of projects a storyboard would take too much time to come up with so usually the tempo or stage area/shape will give me inspiration. Although saying that I'm producing a video for the band Pendulum at the moment, and that has to be second-by-second storyboarded as we're midi-triggering every frame to the band's live instruments!
Where do you source your images? I used to be pretty naughty and grab anything from anywhere but these days as the clients are getting bigger, I have to produce everything from scratch but this doesn't mean I can't find inspiration in other artists' moving images
How do you create your visuals? Coming from a cell animation background, I found that the now defunct Adobe Image Ready and its frame by frame gif animation lent itself to the laborious work I was used to – then a mate gave me an After Effects tutorial and I've never looked back! It's like Photoshop with legs on – very fast, powerful legs! I still draw and always have a sketchbook at hand - as I think this is still the best way to extract those gems from your mind!
Is there a lot of editing involved? This depends entirely on how well you've thought the project through or if the project demands pin point accuracy or if the deadline is 9am and it's now 7am! I love to get in there and edit edit edit 'til I'm happy with how the visuals expand and marry with the sounds. Seeing something not work once kicks you in the gut hard enough that you learn the value of precision
The original discordance vids were all initially made in Image Ready – everything you see is a gif animation then I edited and overlayed and overlayed again and again etc etc in Final Cut – a nice easy editing program which I still use occasionally if I need a break from after effects
For those of us who don't know – what's midi triggering? Midi triggering... imagine, each 4 bars of a tune OR each chorus OR change in tempo and then imagine every time these happen a new part of the motion graphics gets triggered. So initially I produce a solid 6 minute video, from which I can edit/ separate off into 20+ loops that correspond to changes in the tune (mood/tempo/chorus etc
Our coding genius' then connect these to segments in the tune that when played by the band trigger said loops making for a totally sequenced sound and vision experience – even if the band wishes to play a little faster or slower that evening
I work a lot with Immersive on this; http://www.immersive.eu/
Can you tell us about any specific projects you've worked on?
For the Deadmau5 2009 world tour (http://www.immersive.eu/live/tours) I produced a series of white on black loops geared towards 128 beats per minute, to be shown on a bank of LED batons and a central LED screen. This entire area for coverage was only 615 x 115 pixels wide but when laid out onto a physical stage this could be spread massively.
I also worked with Eric Prydz @ Matter in the O2 – for this I had to produce another series of white on black loops but this time the template was 1920 x 1080 (the actual pixels of the projectors we use so instead of LED, this time we used projected light).
Also instead of a flat surface, we built a faceted wooden structure and bent the light to hit each surface.
Q&A with Jason Lear
What or who inspires you?
I feel that it is important to try and keep my work fresh and vary a little from one piece to the next. With that in mind I do try to avoid having a closed source of inspiration. I admire artists such as David Downton, Stina Persson, Rene Gruau and a host of other fashion artists. My inspiration comes from many other varieties of artists and media and from things I see from day to day or people around me. I think it is important to record mentally or literally, at least one fresh source of inspiration a day.
What materials do you use when working on your illustrations? My start point is always pencil. I have a set of 3 pencils that I use religiously for each new work. An H, 9B and a graphic retractable pencil. After that, Black Indian Ink and then anything I can lay my hands on that suit the specific piece I am working on, whether it be fabrics, threads, paint, tape or pieces of jewellery.
How do you decide when an illustration is 'finished'? I will always have a mental image of what I want a piece to look like, or to what point I want to continue pushing it. I am a big fan of minimal, subtle and unfinished, so I will always be tentative in my approach. I will always prefer to leave something unfinished and suggestive than overworked and heavy.
How do you go about promoting yourself? I am a little old fashioned and like to believe that the work speaks for itself. I do find that an online portfolio and blog work very well, as well as being part of artistic groups and communities online. Whenever I have a personal project finished and ready to be shown I will send mail outs to clients and contacts, and plan exhibition time in order to get less commercial work circulating.
See Jason's work here : www.soupa.co.uk/showcase-jason.html
Soupa's Spanish talent in Etapes Magazine
Soupa member Oscar de Castro's work has been featured in the latest issue of Etapes Magazine.
You may recognise these works as they were on sale at Soupa's Christmas stall in the Truman Brewery last year.
The magazine is distributed in Spain, Portugal and throughout Latin America in more than 15 countries. It's considered one of the most important and respected publications in Graphic Design.
Here is the extract translated from Spanish:
"Oscar de Castro is a conceptual graphic designer. He takes all the sense of one idea to smash all the small elements in a precise shape, on the one hand very simple and subtle, but on the other hand, the creations are a mixture of details very calculated. In his new vision of the old human masks, he had used contemporary shapes based on maths to show images related with legendary myths."
See more of Oscar's work on Soupa : http://www.soupa.co.uk/showcase-oscar.html
Cockpit Arts - open studios
Project10 – June (graduate) edition
Steve Price (Plan-B Studio) has set himself a rather intriguing challenge; 10 projects in 10 months with 10 NFP/NGO organisations or projects that are 'fun'.
When he first began in January he thought Project10 would be ten projects for ten charities. But Project10 has become much more than trying to create ten projects in ten months. As ever it is about quality, not quantity. It’s also about something fundamentally more important; collaboration.
Rather than send out press releases to promote his endeavor, he had the bright idea of using the Newspaper Club to create a limited-edition mail-out to 100 industry leaders and press people. The content is contributed to by writers, designers, artists, illustrators and other generous people, who often team up and work collaboratively on the content itself.
Steve’s dedicating June’s issue to the newest graduates. Not all 16,000+ of them; Steve’s picking ten for a carefully created issue that celebrates the best of the design industries newbies.
Applicants will not just be selected on their work, though. Oh no. In order to get yourself and your work in to the paper you must (off your own back) source, organise and interview your design industry hero/heroine for the paper SPECIFICALLY about the notion of collaboration in today’s industry (N.B. Steve might be able to help you get the interviews).
Applicants need to contact Steve with their plan and then supply up to 500 words of interview, images to support the interview and/or examples of your own work. Deadline is Tuesday 8th June 2010.
For more information contact: project10@plan-bstudio.com
Bunch of stars - TONIGHT
Clerkenwell Design week starts today
Brief encounter
New to the Soupa shop this week are these Fancy Pants by designer Rhiannon Taylor. Pretty cute aren’t they? All the best-dressed bottoms are wearing them – so I’m told.
Open for business
I love Artists Open Houses in Brighton – when else could you see the work of more than 1,300 artists all within a short distance of each other? Not only that – you can buy gifts, see behind the scenes and in some cases, take tea and cake in the garden – bliss!
With 243 venues to choose from, you’d be wise to visit while you can as this weekend signals the close of the event and if you’ve got an iPhone – there’s even an App so that you can navigate your way around the houses.
So much to see, so little time? Here's Soupa’s pick:
Ourhouse www.ourhousebrighton.co.uk Featuring limited edition textiles from Lisa Gellender (pictured, below) and stitched heirlooms from Polly Banks.
Cardigan in Love www.cardigan.ltd.uk Showcasing the work of artist Kate Jenkins, Cardigan is one of my favourite textile labels combining wearable and displayable pieces like this gorgeous Sailor-inspired crocheted tattoo entitled Cherish (pictured, below).
The Yellow House www.yellowhouseart.com You might recognise the chair below (affectionately named Olivia) as I blogged about Melanie Porter’s wonderful knitted seats a while ago. Well, this is your chance to get up close and personal and admire Melanie’s expert crafts(wo)menship.
If you’re heading to the South Coast this weekend, you’d be foolish not to pop into one of the Open Houses – so to find out more, visit http://www.aoh.org.uk/
All images courtesy of the individual artists.
Pens and needles
It would be fair to say that Liz Clements loves ink. Not only does she produce beautiful illustrations inspired by people she sees in real life – she's also working to become a tattooist.
Liz studied illustration at Falmouth College of Art and, after graduating in 2006 has worked with a range of fashion and editorial clients.
Talking of her work, Liz told Soupa: "I am a big fan of reportage style illustrators such as Adrian Tomine, David Choe, and also more classical artists such as Klimt, Egon Schiele, Mucha and the Pre Raphaelite artists, particularly Rosetti."
While Liz's website is under construction, you can follow her on Twitter @ Lsbeth
Design Museum talk – Bibliotheque long lunch
Craft Central - Made in clerkenwell
LCC Summer shows - Power of ten
Shades of Gray
Harriet Gray is a designer-maker whose pretty stitched hearts you might have seen in an earlier post on Pass the Pattern.
As a practising illustrator, Harriet produces beautifully delicate drawings with a stylish edge, and she's now developed her own label making cushions, ornaments and mini mirrors.
I caught up with Harriet to discover how she's gone from paper to fabric and whether she can offer any advice for those who want to see their illustrations come to life.
What's the idea behind your new range? I love drawing and creating new illustrations but I had the feeling that I could do more with them, which is why I started experimenting with putting them onto products like fabric, badges and mini mirrors. I love the character of handmade items and knowing that someone has personally put the hard work into making it.
Do you make all the items yourself? My handmade items are only ever made by me, either on my sewing machine or tedious hand stitching! I also use a badge and sticker maker which takes up a lot of my time – oh, and stuffing!
I am a bit of a control freak when it comes to my work so I like making the items myself to ensure everything is exactly how I want it.
How do you get your illustrations onto fabric? I tend to shop around suppliers depending on my needs for the product I'm making but I generally locate them on the web. I use Spoonflower (who are based in the States) for my fabric printing as they offer a variety of options for the weight of fabric/layout of design and I’ve always received high quality products, good prices and a fast service.
They only offer digital printing though, and as I love screenprinting I am now on the lookout for somewhere local where I can screenprint some of my new drawings onto tea towels and other items.
How would you describe your style? My style of work is quite delicate and girly so I think the items I make suit my drawings quite well. I get a lot of inspiration from nature, fashion, the human form and generally the little random things that happen around me – most of my items have been made specifically with someone in mind.
I usually keep to small runs for my products and don’t generally tend to make more than 20 of any one item – I think it makes the item more special if you know there are only a few of them in the world. This also keeps ideas new and fresh and stops me from going insane trying to make hundreds of one item!
What advice would you give to those who'd like to have a go at selling their wares? To anyone wanting to start being crafty I think it’s important to make things that you like yourself – get involved with local craft fairs to get your work out there, go for it and don’t be afraid to experiment!
Images courtesy of Harriet Gray. Find her work online at www.soupa.bigcartel.com
Soupa's updated hub site
Check out Soupa's hub site at www.soupa.co.uk - you can find the portfolios of creatives here along with the look book and promo book. The blog will also be situated in the main site shortly, so we will be all in one place.
Design Museum x Pecha Kucha Night
