NCC

Officially on the NCC website as the Pink Cat Club with Abby (our little collective)! It's just a one day convention but it looks like there will be some pretty cool guests there, including someone from Marvel! Exciting stuff.

Illustration Ltd

I've wanted to contact Illustration Ltd for a while because they represent a diverse range of illustrators and I think this is the kind of agency I need to be targeting. Rather than going through the general artist submissions page, I read about their team and decided to email their senior agent/associate director for a little bit of advice on what they look for. 

I kept the email short and to the point whilst hopefully showing my interest in what they do. I don't know whether I'll get  response because I'm sure they're pretty busy. If not, I'll try emailing somebody else on the team (link here).

From looking at the illustrators work on their website, I feel a bit more confident that there is a place in the world for my work. I definitely think I need to draw more for fun. At the moment I've just been working on briefs so I don't think I've really let my work develop through play. I think I'll set myself a goal of producing one drawing per day that isn't work related but might help bulk out my portfolio.

Mailers

Whilst getting a load of stuff ready for print, I decided to design some mailers to go with my business cards (and I hated the previous designs). I always struggle with this because I feel like there are two quite distinctive areas of my practice and I can't really get them to fit together.. But this is ok! It just means that I'll have to target clients with different material. One area of my practice is character based and I think that's what people follow me for on my social media - cute, sassy, edgy girls. On the other hand, I have my more design oriented work - pattern, lettering, packaging etc, which feels less like 'me' but I enjoy it nevertheless. I think it's important to show both of these areas of my practice in my portfolio but it might not always be appropriate. With these two mailer designs I'll put in some postcards/samples of work to send to people and tailor it to them. 

Promo material?

I've been thinking about the kind of stuff I can take to conventions, art markets or any other event I want to go and sell stuff at/network. I've started creating some simple sticker designs with existing work which I could send out with my promo mailers or I could make sticker packs to sell? I'd like to take full advantage of the print resource whilst I can and I think this is the kind of application I tend to design my work for.

Portfolio Progress

Since my previous post, I've asked a few people which business card design they preferred and this is the one everybody picked!

I agree that it's more eye-catching and because it's more recent, it's probably more appropriate for my body of work right now.

To create some consistency with all my promotional material, I've decided to carry it across onto my portfolio layout.

It's a work in progress but I'm slowly selecting work to go in it. I think there will end up being different sections within my portfolio because the content of my work varies quite a lot - I have packaging projects, pattern designs, character and lettering. The thing that brings all my work together is the fact that I often design with the intention of it being applied to something (product.packaging etc). I could try and organise it by process, but I flit between a few that I like, depending on what's appropriate so it would probably just look jumbled together. I'm not really sure why I'm being so precious about what I put into this because I've already uploaded a lot of work to my website. I suppose anything I put into this will be swapped out with newer work in a few months anyway!

More Business card ideas

I decided my previous designs were way too boring and I actually use a lot of colour in my work so my business cards need to reflect this! I knew I wanted to use some sort of pattern on the background so I've used some of the ones I made in OUIL603. I'm much happier with these! I don't know whether to have all the info on one side or whether that will make the details too small - maybe I should put that stuff onto the back instead? I also can't pick which one I prefer, I think it would depend on the client/who/where I was handing them out and which would be appropriate at that time.

Amended Business card design

FRONT:

BACK:

I thought the front was too cluttered before so I simplified it. I'm a little unsure about the polka-dots though, does it make it look too busy? Does the white look boring? I could potentially hand-embellish them somehow to make them more eye-catching or use an off-white stock (or both??). I'll have to do some print tests and see how they look off screen. 

Acceptance of Commission and ToC's

I'm SO happy I went to the lecture we had a couple of weeks ago with the Association of Illustrators (post about it here). I wouldn't have known how to put this together without the template they gave us and since somebody just contacted me about a commission, I can finally put it to use! Feeling pretty professional right now.
I had to type up all the ToC's because we just got print-outs, but it gave me a chance to read them through properly and get a better understanding of my rights as an Illustrator and the Client's rights. All the info the AOI gave us on how to price work/the questions you should ask about the client were really helpful too. As I've just been commissioned by a small independent business, I tailored my price to them - when I asked about their budget, they said they had no idea what the going rates were (they were scared I was going to ask for something like £500 which was way out of their budget). I got this commission through word of mouth essentially, so having up to date work on my website and various social media platforms definitely paid off because they were able to look me up before they contacted me!

Business card/Mailer Design

I haven't really thought about things I can hand out to people in quite a while - I've been more concerned with my online presence recently. I'd really like to make a sort of promo pack with a couple of samples of work inside and a little 'about me' section, to show off what I'm all about. 

I've played around with a lot of business card designs so far and I've changed my mind about all of them. I figured since I used this image (sort of based on myself - the pink hair!) on a lot of my online profiles, I should probably carry it over to the physical stuff to make everything look consistent. This way, people are more likely to remember what I look like too! Drawing girls with colourful hair is quite an integral part to my practice too, so since I don't get to do that for a lot of my 'work', it's nice to get that in somewhere.

Yoshi Yoshitani

I recently came across Yoshi's work and instantly fell in love with the colour palettes and patterns she uses with her characters! I really want to improve on my character drawing skills because I feel like everything I draw looks a bit stiff? It's not really my intention to focus my work towards animation/character development but I find it so useful to get ideas from because of how they are able to capture the movement/personality in each piece. 

I also think this would be a good reference for my OUIL603 final project! I love how the mermaid's tail comes out of the frame here.

Confirming NCC

In this post I mentioned that I had to send some stuff over in preparation for Nottingham comic con and I've only just got around to doing it!

I think I'm getting much more confident in planning these sort of events and how I want to be perceived there. Although this correspondence isn't anything major, I suppose it's just part of trying to get your work out into the world.

Ricardo Bessa

Whilst looking for agencies that might be suitable for me to contact, I came across Ricardo Bessa's work on FolioArt. I've been following him on Twitter for sooo long and I'm pretty sure I saw him at Thought Bubble too!

I just really love the colour palettes and the kind of glowy lighting he uses! All his work looks so unified/harmonious. It makes me realise just how much I still have to improve on. I really like all the backgrounds/scenes in his illustrations which is something I've kind of avoided tackling because I'm lazy. Feeling really motivated to go away and practice this stuff now! 

Illustration CV

It's getting to that point in the year where I need to start thinking about employment for when I graduate so I've been looking at a few Junior artworker positions in Leeds that I might apply to.. However I'm not all that confident in my CV writing skills, so I think I'll ask for a bit of feedback from somebody before I send any out.

Vivian Le

Whilst uploading some other work to ISSUU, I noticed an issue of Forge in my suggestions and was immediately grasped by the cover artwork! In her work Vivian Le explores issues such as the objectification and commodification of women and children through doll-like characters.
What struck me about her work is the juxtaposition of the colours/characters with the deeper conversation that's happening with her work. I also immediately recognised how her work is influenced by Hayao Miyazaki and Ghost in the Shell!

This is the issue of Forge, worth a look!

Getting Organised!

After the assessment briefing this morning I realised I needed to start thinking about what I need to get printed for the submission - like my creative presence boards which will need to be A3 on some nice stock.
Print slots seem to be filling up pretty fast so I've booked one for Wed 30th March @ 11AM and another for Friday 8th April @ 10AM (highlighted to help me remember!). 
These will act as mini deadlines for most of my ongoing projects and I really need to make the most of them. Today my planner has been my best friend but I think I'd like to make something I can colour-code and decorate because time management for the next couple of weeks is going to be so crucial to the success of everything I'm working on!

Plum Pudding Illustration Agency

Whilst I was sat doing a bunch of emailing, I thought it'd be good practice if I sent a quick email to another agency. I'm not sure if Plum Pudding is necessarily the right fit for me since most of their clients look like children's book illustrators but it's worth a try just to get some feedback right??

Edit

Here's the response I got;

I wasn't really expecting much from these but at least they confirmed that I didn't really fit what they're after. I think I need a bit more time to work out what kind of illustrator I am. I see this as good practice though, I'm getting a bit more confident with contacting people and introducing myself as a professional!

Lisa Barlow

On LinkedIn I found Lisa Barlow who graduated from Leeds College of Art the year before I started! She's represented by Plum Pudding Illustration and does a lot of cute character & pattern based work. She gave me such a well thought-out response to my questions and I'm thinking about going to the New Designers showcase in London that she mentioned.

Genevieve FT

I've wanted to speak to Genevieve for soooo long so I figured it was about time I actually did it. I'm worried I ramble a bit too much in emails but I think the more I do it, the better I'll get at articulating things.

Gemma Flack

I have so many questions about life after uni and I'm so unsure about what I'm going to be doing, so I'm going through a list of people I wanted to talk to right at the beginning of the year and hammering out some emails. Hopefully I hear back!

Lemonade Illustration Agency

I've posted about this agency before and I finally plucked up the courage to send them a submission. I have no idea if I'll hear anything back and I probably should have had somebody check what I'd written but I have to learn to be independent with this sort of thing and have confidence when sending out applications.

Right now I don't think I really need to be represented by an agency, but I think it's good to start thinking about my options and creating those contacts.

Albion Place Market & Public Liability Insurance

Myself and Abby are really interested in selling some stuff at the Albion Place Market (more info here)but we got a bit confused about the application and forgot about it for a while.. We've set up our Public Liability Insurance and we're ready to start the application!

We're happy to do any of the highlighted dates but we got a little confused about what we need to actually send.. so I found an email for the market manager and decided to as him.

Hopefully I hear back soon! I'd really like to get this sorted as soon as possible. At least now that we have the Public Liability Insurance we can do any markets we want.

Updated Website

I have FINALLY got my head around how Cargo works (with the confusing project lists etc) and now I really love my website!! I've made it so that whoever visits it can see a good overview of what my work is like and then they can click onto the individual images to see it better or see more of the same project. I've also ordered it so that my favourite and most recent work is at the top so that's seen first. 

NCC & Thought Bubble 2016

So I definitely have a table at Nottingham Comic Con (I didn't even know it existed!) so I have something to work towards. It isn't until after I graduate but I need to start doing some of the prep now! The email above is a couple of things I need to do so that I can be listed on the website but it'll also give me a chance to consider how I want my practice to be perceived online.

As well as NCC, I've applied for a table at Thought Bubble! This will also be after I graduate but there's still a lot of prep I need to do to get me into the professional mindset!

Madelen Foss (Illustrator)

Madelen Foss is an illustrator based in Oslo and we've actually been following each other on instagram for quite a while. She recently hosted a little giveaway which I ended up winning, so she sent me the stuff below!

I spoke to her about it and she said she was really glad it was me she was sending this stuff to! As there was a return address on the package I think I should send her something back for sure. She's collaborated with other illustrators before for her 'Babelien Zine' so I think she's a really great contact to have, just incase! I'd also love to ask her a couple of questions about how she got established as an illustrator.

AOI Lecture Notes

I'm so glad we had the opportunity to get some information from the Association of Illustrators because it answered some questions I hadn't even thought of yet!

When sending out promotional material:

• Make sure contact details are really clear on website
• Do you have a blog? Needs to be kept current and updated. A lot of potential employers like to see what you're up to, not just portfolio work
• Mailers - A6 or A5 is best, then follow up after a week with an email
• Any electronic mailers should include a PDF with no more than 3 images. Less than 1MB.

• Must register for income tax within 3 months
• Keep up to date with accounts
• Retain all claimable receipts
• Keep paperwork involved with every job
• Have a physical copy of all paperwork

Copyright:

• Does NOT require registration or a symbol to exist
• Independent of physical artwork itself - the right to copy is not affected by what you do with the original piece
• Reference fee - being paid for your work being used as a reference
• Copyright CAN be assigned to a client BUT this should cost a lot and should only be applicable to logos etc.
• Licencing means that a client will pay for the actual use of the imagery NOT possible use
• Right of paternity - the right to be recognised as the creator
• Right of integrity - artwork must not be edited etc

Pricing work:

• When pricing for a vague client, ask about:

1. Client profile - larger clients will have a larger budget
2. Usage - a little postcard or a nationwide billboard campaign?
3. Territory - UK, Europe or Worldwide?
4. Duration of licence - 3 months for an editorial illustration etc..
5. Budget - Don't undersell yourself or give a low fee before you know their budget. If you get repeat business they will always expect the same price range.