The Visual Communications degree show opened on the 29th of May. Unfortunately I didn't make the night itself but called in to see the work later in the week. As always I was really impressed with the standard. I'm getting really frustrated with my camera phone as the quality is so terrible!! New camera on the horizon...
I've been the worst blogger ever! Can't believe how busy my life has gotten since i've been teaching fulltime, it's been mental but great.
I have really missed doing design work for myself, been doing a lot of handdrawn typography and calligraphy over the Easter break (will post pics when it's done) and I put together this poster for the upcoming Suadela and Underscore Orkestra gig in the Crane Lane. They're doing an Irish tour so i'm really looking forward to going along to a few of these gigs!
I read this amazing interview with Giorgia Lupi today via designboom.com. I've always been interested in information deisgn and her work is BEAUTIFUL! So stunning. To me they manage to appear historical, modern and science-fictional all at the same time. I love her colour palettes. She also has some brilliant thoughts on drawing that are useful to reflect on in any discipline. I think i'll bring them in to my students:
"I use drawing as a primary form of understanding reality and expressing thoughts and ideas. this is also very related to what I just said in relation to the previous question: the very act of drawing, of reproducing reality and thus focusing on the things we like and notice definitely helps to introduce what I would call ‘a level of abstraction’ that helps to translate the things we like into clues for our designs. since drawing can mediate between perception and reflection, it plays a constitutive role in the production and communication of knowledge, and from my perspective, the genesis of ideas is often directly connected with graphical thinking."
My good friend Shane Cronin recently contacted me about designing a tourist map for his heritage society in Coppeen. Shane has been really active in Coppeen in promoting local heritage and tourism and this map is hoping to further boost public interest in Coppeen. I just recently finished the map which features illustrations from a local artist. The map will be installed on the 18th of August, hoping to make it down and see it in the flesh!
I recently finished these wedding invitations for friends of ours, Dan and Carola. I'm really pleased with how they turned out, they wanted to channel the Great Gatsby buzz that's around at the moment. Can't wait for the wedding!
This is the best thing i've seen in a while! Sharp Suits is a series of posters designed in aid of the Temple Street Children's Hospital. The posters all immortalise various cringe-worthy client comments through the years. I've featured some of my favourite above, but they're all amazing!
So i've been blogging a lot about A Brief Exchange the last couple of months, Noeleen recently put up a facebook album of the work done for the show, there is a lot of great work there.
I'd highly recommend you to check it out. Here is some of the work to whet your appetite...
The Brief Exchange Exhibitors Gathering happened Saturday 11th of August in Cork School of Music. It was so interesting to see the other participants work, everyone's responses were so different. There was lots of artwork and design there that I found really beautiful and inspiring and i'm so delighted to have taken part (more about my piece here.)
The curator, Noeleen Doheny, did a really great job, the space looked wonderful and the standard was very high. It was also a very relaxed and friendly event, which is always lovely!
Brief Exchange travels to Dublin next, it's taking place for one week at the Exchange gallery from September 22nd.
Here's my final submission to Brief Exchange, as usual I was working right up to the deadline!
I submitted a short rationale as well as follows:
"Nature vs Nurture".
Research on the brief quickly led to the dark topics of eugenics and human animal husbandry. In these debates the female body and foetus are often reduced to delivery mechanisms and products. The resulting work references DNA and incorporates female and foetal imagery to allude to these debates.
I'm really looking forward to the exhibition and seeing the other work! It's all the brainchild of the very talented Noeleen Doheny and the follow up to last year's Full Circle exhibition. Check out the lovely poster below...
I'm getting married to Noel on June 23rd this year (aah!). It's getting close & i'm quite excited and nervous!
We sent out our invites just last week, my good friend Will Sliney did the majorly cute illustration as a wedding present, they took AGES to make but i'm happy I did it! I've included a few pictures here.
I'm also making wedding favours with my awesome badge machine, based on Will's graphic (pic above).
Exciting times!
The mysterious Johnny Burger Pimp mailed me today having seen an earlier blog post on his work. He included some more images of his work, it's all sooo good!! All hand-drawn "using acrylic ink with brushes and a quill" - a quill!! Deadly. The work has an almost frantic energy and is very bleak and dark at times. Feast your eyes here!
I'm working away on the graphics for Forbidden Fruit 2012. It was one of my favourite jobs last year and is again this year! There's loads of scope for creativity in it. At POD's request I developed a set of ads similar to last years style and a set of ads in a new style, but keeping the same psychedelic element.
POD just contacted me to let me know that the above ad has been nominated for the NNI Press Ad of the Month for March! Fingers crossed!
And here's the other ad currently running....
I recently completed the artwork for Slow Motion Heroes' new single Paper Over Cracks. It's a great tune so fingers crossed it goes really well for them! I worked with a theme the lads are developing for the single video, based on a paper bird. I forgot to credit myself on the back though! Major DOH moment for me!
