10 days in Tokyo- Laura Carlin

Ive been researching contemporary illustrators that work with documentary and reportage illustration, in order to get an idea of whats out there and to see where I might fit in the sea of illustrators. 

Ive been trying to find illustrators that manage to capture an emotive atmosphere when they document, which Laura Carlin has done perfectly here. 

Im starting to think its the marks that are used, as they show a sense of movement, which is what Im trying to achieve in my own work for extended practice. 

Its encouraging to see documentary illustrations being created by people as famous as Carlin, as it gives me hope that there is a place for my work in the world. I just need to practice as much as possible. I want people to feel when they see my work, just like 10 days in Tokyo made me feel.

Warsaw- The poster museum

Visiting the poster museum was so inspiring. It was very historical, with the polish poster movement taking place during and after the war. 

The diversity of work in the museum was really great to see, but most of it was created with stencils and spray paint.

It really helped visiting this museum with a Polish person, as she was able to translate certain things for me that I wouldn't have understood.

There is so much culture and history and design in Poland, which is why I really want to pursue an intern over there. I am not worried about the language barrier, as everyone out there seems to speak almost perfect English. I think it would push me as a creative, enhance my practice and give me a life experience that I will always remember. 

I have sent out numerous emails, but I need to just keep pushing. Im sure something will come up, but for now I just need to work on my portfolio and gain some more confidence with my work, so that when something comes up I will be completely ready.

Presentation

Think of it as a pitch. Less academic and more focused towards professional career. 

-Dress appropriately, tone of voice

- Smile and greet the audience

- Speak clearly

- Use silence, sound interesting

-Keep to the allotted time

Cut the waffle, and keep it to the important stuff. 

Rehearse- no script if possible.

Make eye contact, personalises the talk, engages. 

Move around a little and use your arms to help animate and express your ideas.

Humour, make people laugh. 

Sell an idea.

The use of rhetoric- using language to persuade or convince.

Tricolon

3 things that sell one idea. First two answer the third.

Hendiatris

Sex drugs and rock and roll

Use of contrast

"You turn if you want to, this lady's not for turning" 

Antimetabole

"To fail to plan is to plan to fail"

Alliteration- powerful tool to use too.

Whats the presentation for? Sum it up in a restricted way. 

What will the presentation give me and what am I trying to tell you about my work?

Could be personal, could be emotional, totally up to us.

More emails to Illustrators

I found another illustrator's work that I really love and he is based in Warsaw, so I thought I would send another email, to ask him a few questions about being an illustrator in Poland. I thought I would make this one a little less formal, as I think he is really young. I also offered to send him one of my Warsaw zines as a means of thanks, and to see what he thought of my work. I mentioned that I would like to build a few connections with like minded creatives in the city before I make any final decisions about moving there etc. 

Im really hoping I get some feedback on this one, because the last few really made me loose hope. But Im trying my best to just keep emailing and asking, otherwise I'll never get anywhere.

Artist Research -  Łukasz Golędzinowski

If nothing comes of this email, I am at least really glad that I found his work, as I find his use of 

shape really inspiring, and his playful style. 

How to get paid

-Call from client

-Discuss the content of the brief and the requirements as well as the deadline, you ask if there is a budget 

- Informed that there is a budget of £150

-Negotiate, job might take longer and might be that £250 is more realistic

-But you will cost it up and get back to them

1. You write out an estimate for the job 

2. You explain as they are a new client, your terms are 50% up front with a purchase order required

3. The full balance on supply of final files

4. Copyright/License will be released on FULL and final payment.

5. Any additional work will be charged by the hour and that they would be informed before doing any more work. 

Ask for the purchase order number, even if its a one man band just ask them to come up with a number. If by any chance you have to go to court this will really help. 

If they don't agree to give you one then you don't loose anything because you haven't started the work yet.

Life after college (Resources)

Knowing that I love screenprint, I've been a little worried about how I will continue to push this forward in my practice after I finish, and the college resources are no longer available to me. 

However, Leeds print workshop has recently opened and so I've done some research, and it seems really feasible.

£45 for a years membership, and then £3 an hour for time spend in the workshop. 

I think this would be a really good idea, because if I was paying to use a space I would make sure I was creating work all the time in order to print, and then the incentive to make back the money spent would also be there. 

Its also a really good way to keep networking and working within a community environment, the last thing I want when I graduate is to work in a room alone. So, if I stay in Leeds, I will definitely purchase a membership. 

All of the equipment they have would be plenty for what I would do. 

Warsaw zine

After feeling so inspired by Warsaw, and starting to push my professional future in that direction, I thought it would be a really good idea to make some personal work about our time there.

I think when I connect with my work on a personal level I find I work so much harder towards the final outcome. 

I was really trying to think about where i want my profession to go, and Im really interested in heading down the documentary/reportage route, so wanted this zine to be a little document of our time there. I got all of my housemates to write a little something about it, whatever they wanted. I then collaged the photos I had taken on my film camera and worked from photos of people from my phone to create something completely new. I have never worked with collage. Im in love. The photocopier is my new best friend.

So after making this zine, which I thoroughly enjoyed, I thought it might be a good thing to send to people I want to work for in Warsaw. Maybe some of the ones I've already contacted but haven't had a response from yet. Because John was saying today, not to give up. Keep pushing and trying and asking.

Could send one with a business card and then a personal note too. 

Trying to think of other means of contact, and plus this way they have a piece of my work to remember me by. 

Behance

After today's PPP session, charlotte gave me some really good ideas in order to boost my creative online presence. So I started by making a behance account. I guess the more online platforms I display my work, the more likely I am to get the right people seeing it. Behance is completely creative based, which means Im in a sea of competition, but also the right place when someone is looking for illustration. 

I have linked my new website, and will continue to add new work regularly in order to build a strong portfolio.

Business Cards

I wanted to get some business cards ready for colours may vary so made sure I got them done last week. I don't have much money at the moment, so I wanted to produce these as cheap as possible. Which is why I photocopied them onto colourful paper rather than printed them in colour. 

I know they're not the best but they'll do the job for now. As long as Im getting my details out there thats what matters for the time being. 

Johns contact

During my last tutorial with John, I told him all about Poland and he gave me a past students contact details in the hope that he might be able to give me some more information. 

I contacted him asking for any information he might be able to give me and his response was so lovely and so prompt.

He didn't have any personal contacts to give me but he gave me lots of suggestions and even linked possible sites in for me which was so lovely.

This was a really encouraging email to receive, because it was really helpful, and just the fact that he took the time to reply to me was the boost I needed to keep trying. Its really interesting emailing professionals, and its something I want to keep doing.

More emails for interns in Warsaw

Ive been doing some more research into interning in Warsaw, and contacting a few more people.

Ive come across so many great illustrators, Agata Dudek probably being my favourite. So I contacted her first, asking for an intern or a potential meet up to discuss being an illustrator in Poland and how it works etc. Unfortunately I haven't heard back, and I'm not sure I will, as her website hasn't been updated in a few years, so I'm not even sure where she is based these days. But as least I tried!  And i felt inspired by her portfolio and its diversity, so I'm glad I found her work, as its filled me with hope that my practice can be varied, and still be really strong.

Agata Dudek

Agata Dudek

I found some of her work on a studio's behance page. So a few days later I contacted Acapulco studio. This time I threw in the idea of a short collaboration too, but again heard nothing back. I guess the life of a professional illustrator is a busy one. I'm not giving up though, I will keep trying and hopefully I'll find something.

Website

https://tcnbillustration.wixsite.com/tcnb

I made a website last year, but really wanted to create a new one, with new work and a stronger portfolio showcased. Ive learnt so much about my practice in the last few weeks, and have probably created some of my best work recently, and Im finally at a point where Im happy to share it with people. 

I have 6 images on display, keeping it minimal but showing off an array of styles. These images show how I work best at the moment. Although there are only a few images, I have linked my professional instagram account for people to see more if they wanted. 

The 'about me' section is based on my elevator pitch that we worked on a few weeks ago during a PPP session, and Im really happy with it. Writing that elevator pitch has been useful when writing for potential interns and for the website etc as its a short summary of my practice.

The contact details are minimal, and the tcnb runs throughout which works well. I am considering buying a domain name, but right now Im not in any financial state to do so, so will wait and see how it goes without for a little while. The only difference right now is that it says .wixsite which isn't really a problem.

On the whole Im pleased with this, and I will continue to add work that Im pleased with in order to keep it fresh and exciting.

Considerations

I saw a poster in college that was advertising a free studio space, so I emailed Sharon with the hope to find out some more. 

Unfortunately this space isn't for illustrators, buts she told me about the Duke Studios opportunity, and sent me an application form to look over, which was really useful.

I'm not sure if this is what I want yet, but I really want to get all of the details so that I can make decisions easier when it comes to it. Im trying to be as involved as possible, and as pro active about the future as I can be. Its really exciting actually. 

Staying in touch with people like Sharon I feel will also really benefit me, as she seems like a great contact to have. Which is why going to start up Wednesdays has boosted my networking list, as well as made me more confident to just ask about things and talk to people.

Personal sketchbooks and their benefits

Last summer I started to fill sketchbook after sketchbook, purely for fun. It was lovely. I really see the benefit of keeping personal sketchbooks now. The processes I use to create imagery in them are far more playful and experimental, because I am not worried about final outcome. I have found that being more expressive in my sketchbooks has influenced my other work.

I like to take a sketchbook wherever I go. 

I love sticking things in from my travels and drawing all over them. In a way, this becomes a sort of documentary element, which has probably subconsciously fed into my practice.

I think the idea of collaging the Warsaw photographs came from this idea.

Why I will always keep a personal sketchbook-

-Playful. My mind is open to process.

- Informs the not so personal work.

- Practice makes perfect.

- Creativity is the generation of good ideas that will take you somewhere. For me, this is where it happens.