Zizzi Camulodunum!

Roman inspired mural

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star mural

Zizzi Ristorante commission James Grover to create two murals for a refurbishment of their Colchester restaurant.
The first of the murals was inspired by Roman pottery and mosaics, James immersed himself in the history of Colchester (or Camulodunum as it was known in Roman times) to make this gorgeous decorative piece. The second appears on the stairway at the restaurant, a star in the night sky with “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” written around the edge of a diamond - originally written as “The Star” by English poet and former Colchester resident, Jane Taylor. Both works of art were painted using acrylic paint pens and emulsion, and surely transform the interior from restaurant to gallery!

A Bose Gift

Nina Hunter creates a gift illustration for sound experts Bose.
Used globally, the artwork made of ornate swirls was to have the ability to be pulled apart with elements used separately if needed. Nina says of the commission “I was thrilled to be approached by a company such as BOSE. It was an exciting project and I hope I will have a chance to work with them again sometime in the future.”

New Talent Alert: Kaitlin O'Connor

Brooklyn-based illustrator and graphic designer Kaitlin O'Connor's striking artworks have graced the pages of magazines on both sides of the pond, including Nylon, Lamono and Company. Kaitlin's portfolio...

Anne Wilson in Mac User

Anne's feature in Mac User

a selection of Anne's art used in the article

January's edition of Mac User Magazine features an article on the wonderful Anne Wilson. Experiencing the industry in times before our digital world, Anne talks of the changes, her illustration education and inspirations with some sound advice; " just do what you do".

The article:
I have been practicing as an illustrator for the past 15 years or so...the time seems to have flown past so fast at an unbelievable rate. During this time the technology I've experienced has evolved tremendously. One of my very first commissions for example was completed through to the finals stage using a fax machine! Email now is second nature, and the format now in which discussions on projects tend to take place in the main, to the point where now I cannot remember the first time I began using email! It has always been a highly competitive industry and unless, for the most part, illustrators keep an eye on the technology available to them and embrace it in their working practice, those around will most likely have the upper hand.
I love the global feel of the industry, now more apparent than ever. Often I get work via the USA and recently I have completed a few jobs for various clients in Korea. The days of hiking around London with my portfolio focusing in the main on UK based clients, has passed and evolved into an exciting mix of cultures, opportunities and inspiration on a world wide basis.
On the one hand there seems to be a constant barrage of fightingly good illustrators graduating and entering the industry today, bright eyed, fast paced and full of imagination, which is both wonderful and overwhelming for me. But on the other hand it provides a pool of fantastic inspiration which serves to keep me well on my toes year after year. As this career tends to be a rather solitary one, the reality of the competition for commissions is important, a good reason I feel to take the time and energy to enter industry led competitions when ever possible. They serve as a good tool to sharpen your creative processes and a bench mark for where you are at within the illustration world.
New creatives are certainly one source of inspiration. More and more creative collectives are appearing such as the illustrator led groups of Ohh Deer and No Brow, but global culture in the main endlessly fascinates me, from intricate details, patterns, textures, colours and beliefs people possess and live their lives by.
What would I be lost without? Well the traditional side of me would undoubtedly opt for my Swan Morton scalpel, with blade 10a, and the current side of me would say my Wacom drawing tablet and pen (teamed up with my Mac and Photoshop.) I think it is important to embrace both sides, to pick up a pencil, or my dip pen and ink and commit to a drawing, or make marks with mono prints and any other mixed media I might care to throw at a surface in the moment. Neither are seen as a separate entity and when the two working methods are brought together, exciting things evolve from their meeting. I enjoy the physical process of colour mixing and mark making according to what might be suitable for the project I am working on. These results then get scanned and imported into Photoshop to create a final image. Increasingly it is my Wacom pen and eraser tool which becomes my scalpel.
I certainly don't even pretend to be remotely wise, but if I had a little wisdom to share, I would say keep it all positive, be 'can do' in your communications with clients and get plenty of fresh air!
I have always felt compelled to draw and create something on paper or whatever comes to hand. I loved picture books as a child and as my reading progressed I would still look for the pictures! I think since school I had in my mind that creating pictures to tell a story or describe something was what I wanted to aim for, just to see if maybe I could give it a go, and maybe I might be able to keep doing it, and just maybe, if that happened I could make it my job! The funny thing is, that I still don't feel I have a 'job', so in an obscure sort of way that makes me a very lucky person!
So I progressed as follows; school, (start drawing) A levels, (keep drawing) Art Foundation course, (more drawing) Degree - BA Honours at Bath, (definitely some drawing here) and then I went to do an MA in Communication Design at St Martins College of Art in London a few years ago, where I was lucky enough to get a Distinction, (masses of drawing stuff went on here!) There was no other obvious career paths for me, in my mind it was simple, I love drawing and creating images, so all I have to do it keep creating and I felt that one day I would become a professional creative of some sort - illustration fitted the bill nicely.
Some of my favourite projects have been children's picture books, I have completed several for Barefoot Books, but other recent clients include The London Transport Museum, The Independent On Sunday, The BBC, Mojo Magazine, Francis Lincon, Feast Creative, Beam, Crocodile Creek and Save the Children.
So that's me in brief! I would add though that one thing I have learnt through time, frustration, joy and the general madness my creative world involves, is that you can over think things to the point where you just can't see...my answer, is to take a deep breath...and just do what you do.

Modern Twist Designs

children's bib and table mat designs

sea pattern table mat

Helen Lang works with San Francisco based Modern Twist to create designs for their baby and kids range.
Commissioned to supply four animal designs to be used on children's table mats and bibs, and a sea pattern for another range, Helen used her signature lines to produce these fun and friendly products. She says "This company has been great to work with. The products are great to touch and use."

Sky Party

Combining nature with pattern, Vicky Scott designs a 'Sky Party' wall mural for Bloompapers.
The Barcelona based company is an online wallpaper store selling designs on many themes by a wide range of artists. Vicky says "(they) feature the work of some fab artists on murals and wallpapers (including one of my heroes Catalina Estrada!)

Shauna works with Post-it®

Chalk set of notes

Nautical set of notes

Shauna Lynn Panczyszyn works with the Post-it® team to produce designs for their Signature Series Notes.
3M approached Shauna at the beginning of 2013 with the idea of making designs geared for 'a creative woman who loves the little things in life'. After plenty of sketching the result was four different designs, of which the 'chalk set' was chosen. Shauna has since been commissioned by the same team to supply a nautical themed set of notes, she says "The final for this set is my favorite of all the designs I created. I had such a wonderful time working with the Post-it® brand and creating two final sets of Signature Series notes for them. I’ve been keeping this project secret for over 6 months now, so needless to say I am incredibly excited for its release so I can tell all my friends about it! Thank you, Post-it® brand, for such a wonderful and fun opportunity".

Illustration Now! Fashion

We're very excited to see Sarah Beetson's spreads in the latest from Taschen's Illustration Now! series.
This book, celebrating the fashion genre, features her works such as Green Heart Heels, Flamingo Socks and Escher Striped Shirt and Corset. Illustration Now! Fashion is out now.

Back In Town

New artist with us Dr Ponce will be holding a one man exhibition of his work entitled "Back in town". Taking place at Galerie Mlle, in Montpellier, France, you can get your dose of shapes, colours and composition from 15th November.

New Talent Alert: James Grover

We are excited to now represent James Grover who brings his rich, intricate hand drawn patterns to the agency. James's work can currently be seen over the walls of restaurants as well as on album artworks, gifts and homeware. Take a look...

Pikka Pikka

Chrissy Lau is commissioned by Pikka Pikka to develop a series of patterns for their micro fibre cleaning cloths for spectacles. 
Chrissy was asked to create whimsical and endearing designs and ones that would appeal to a younger audience. The results are five artworks, which have proved to be incredibly popular.
Simon Kuong of Pikka Pikka said of Chrissy's work "I came across Chrissy's work on the Internet and was instantly attracted to her unique style and the amount of detail in her art. Her communication is timely and her work has won us many great comments from our customers. It is often said success is not only to rely on one's talent but more importantly attitude, and Chrissy has shown she has both. I wish her every success and would highly recommend her as an artist and illustrator."