Association of Illustrations talk

I found todays talk very encouraging. Its so reassuring to hear that there are people outside of college who are looking to support and champion illustrators. It was also incredibly useful to have someone talk so honestly about what it means to be an illustrator in todays creative industries.

Promoting yourself :

website

• A website is key! It should be image led, with your contact details readily available. Preferably on the first page you should have - Emily Chaffer, Illustration, email and images. Keep it simple and direct. 
• http://iwantmyname.com/ - to buy domain names
• https://cargocollective.com/ - is a good one to use to make a website

social media/blogs

• Blogs are good to have because it gives client a better understanding of your creative process and your most current work. 
• Keep blogs regularly updated! 
• Use your blog to feature personal projects, 'your dream briefs' - successful personal projects can lead you to get the kind of work you want. 
• INSTAGRAM is great! - if your going to do it, do it well. 
• Always be professional on social media 
• If your lifestyle - healthy eating, country/city life etc. - is relevant and part of your 'brand' put it up there, if not don't.
• Behance and twitter are also good - use as many platforms as possible in which ppl can see your work (but again do them well, or not at all)

putting work online:

• Put low res, 72dpi images online so people are less likely to swipe your images. 
• Include copyright sign, or the official note on your website. 
• By putting work on instagram etc. you are licensing this work to them. Always read the terms and conditions of a website/social media platform before using it. 

seeking out work :

• Meeting ppl in person - portfolio reviews (this is coming back...maybe)
• Mailers - post things to ppl. BE SELECTIVE - don't do blanket send outs. 
• Know the person your sending it to - do your research. Make the work you send to them relevant, and add a personal touch. 
• NEVER EVER write Sir/Madam or to whom it may concern. NAMES!
• Email (not as good, can get lost). But if your going to make it small pdf 1-3 images, with a link to your website, social media etc. 
• AOI client directories
• bikinilists.com

Copyright and contracts :

using reference imagery/collage

• Using others ppl work as reference or collage only becomes a problem when you are financially benefitting from the work - selling it basically
• Its also ok for fan art etc.
• BUT, try and make something completely new - your an artist! 
• For collage - go out and make your own stock photos. 
• Not true - if you change x amount of times or you x% its ok. 

negotiating with clients

• Illustrators do not work on day rates 
• Illustrators licence (ie. lend) their work to clients, for a negotiable price. 
• This price relies upon a number of different factors : who the client is, what and how they are using the illustrations and for how long.
• Clients will offer you contracts that are 100% in their favour, your job is to make them fair!
• Giving copyright assignment of your work is very rare, and not a good idea. To do this the payment needs to be in 10s of thousands. 
• Moral rights (don't exist for magazines/newspapers) - Right of paternity, right of integrity. Basically its saying you should be accredited for your work and no one can tamper with your work. These can be waived... but make sure its worthit before you agree. 
• Don't be scared to ask questions and to stand up for your rights.

should I get an agent?

• BE CAUTIOUS, not all agents are ethical
• Its not really necessary to get an agent 
• Its best to become successful first, build a practice and then get an agent once you are more established that is ethical and will champion your work. 

you are your own business

• As a freelance illustrator, you are your own business and you need to keep on top of this!
• As a creative you need to be culturally aware. You can claim back on cultural outings e.g. to the cinema, theatre, exhibitions ect.
• Use apps like zero and quickbooks to help you. 

AOI membership £160.00 a year

Student membership £55.00 a year - from the day you sign up (so could do right before graduation)

You don't need to be the most confident person to deal with all of this, you just need to be savvy and aware :)

How to get in contact with Atelier Bingo?

I have been brainstorming some ideas as to how I want to make this initial point of contact. I have thought of maybe making some kind of book, zine, package or even screen-printing on a letter set to make it more personalised. I would love to do all these things and I think it would show a real degree of effort and consideration.

The way I think about it is that although it might be a bit try-hard to do these things, and seem a bit fan like, ultimately I need to make an effort so that they want to make time for me in return.

Colours May Vary

I found the Colours May Vary talk so interesting, and very relevant to my current exploration of retail or publishing as avenues for my future practice. Running an independent shop like this is also one of my greater ambitions for the future. I love the idea of having a space dedicated to beautiful art objects, as well as running events and workshops for other creatives. 

Becky and Andy's appreciation for the handmade and craftsmanship is something that I feel really resonates with me and my practice. I hope to maybe get in the further contact with them in the future - either for feedback or if I feel that I produce something that would be suitable for the shop. 

What sells best in shop?

• Really well crafted
• Universally appealing
• Well priced 
• When making something for a retail context, you have to consider is this a commercial object? Will the process provide an appropriate price in which all my costs are covered but I can also achieve some profit... 

How do you price something that you made?

• Theres the mathematical way of figuring out the cost of making, how many hours you spent on it etc. 
• In shop they take a 25% - 60% margin - it varies depending on the object. Something more hand crafted, they take less of a margin compared to something more mass produced. 

How do you choose what you stock?

• They're looking for something new and unique. 
• It works as a partnership - they both have to like for it to be stocked... 
• Its all about the experience of the object, not just the visuals - the smell, the feel (tactile), (I found this v. interesting)

How to get in contact?

• Email, email, email! 
• They do not like being contacted on social media
• Go into the shop and leave a piece of work for them to 'digest' (not a whole portfolio though!), with an email so they can contact you. 
• Email with a description of the project, why you did it? how you made it? ect. 
• Do not ambush them in the shop, even if ppl are not around they are still at their job and are busy.. 

What are the difficulties in opening up a shop?

• Its a learning curve - they still feel like their learning more and more all the time... 
• The lack of reliability in being independent is stressful in terms of maintaining a regular income. Have a safety net - library job. It also means you have to adapt and change e.g. now making own stationary because rent might go up. 

Gerry Brakus Talk

I found Gerry's talk very useful and really liked how honest she was about her job and how she works with illustrators. 

KEY POINTS >

Getting in contact/making your self noticed

• Emails don't work 
• Letters can work better - but nothing too throwaway, if your going to do this make a real effort!
• Know who your contacting 
• Their name, job title. e.g. Gerry Brakus, Creative director
• Make sure your work/the work your sending is relevant to the magazine/newspaper content and aesthetic - do research into past issues, the creative directors work, the readership of the publication 
• Social media can be really effective - instagram is a good one to use...

Its a matter of collaboration 

• You are fulfilling the creative editor's vision to some extent - theres an opportunity to bounce around ideas but this will obviously vary publication to publication... 
• You will be required to make roughs, colour tests ect. 
• They will do research before commissioning you - so make sure your online content (website, instagram etc.) represents you so they don't have any surprises. 
• You can be rejected even after being commissioned - killing fee or nothing if its really that off point. 
• Know your audience - are they conservative? Americans, germans and french are less-so and more gung-ho

Editorial - is it for you? what are you passionate about?

• Editorial work is decreasing as publications close down/go online - is it a matter of making editorial gifs? or finding other avenues for your illustration? 
• It is not your job to make your opinion clear within the work - you should be like a journalist. But at the same time you need to be passionate about your subject!

The talk really made me think more about the publications I would be interested in targeting to commission me, and where my work would be most appropriate in terms of being featured within a publication. I am not a very politically motivated person, however I could be interested in producing work for different content whether that be environmental, cultural - film, television, music - or even fashion and interiors.  

Study Task : Industry research presentation

Consider where your practice currently stands and what your ambitions are for it's future

Currently I think my practice focuses on using shape, colour and a mix of figurative and abstract imagery, as well as occasionally found photographs. I really like using handmade processes like print, gouache and cut paper collage. I think these processes are increasingly becoming central to my practice. 

In the future I would like to see my illustrations applied to a range of contexts. Currently however I am most interested in exploring homewares, textiles and zines as possible contexts for my work. 

The creative professionals you have identified to date, their work and the influence they may have on the development of your practice

So with relevance to this I have identified a range of people working within the creative industries that could inform my exploration of these contexts. Some of these are illustrators and designers I admire, some are brands that collaborate with illustrators to create homeware and clothing products and others are idependent publishers, press' or magazines that create or use work that appeal to my personal tastes in illustration.

Who you intent to approach for an interview and why? What will your line of questioning be? How will this inform your practice?

Out of these I have selected Atelier Bingo to approach for interview. I am most interested in finding out more about their work for clients like slowdown studio, tictail, wrap magazine, gorman and many more. I'd also like to understand more about how they function as a collective and their individual roles within this partnership. 

Currently I think my knowledge of the day to day practice and realities of living as a working illustrator is very limited, so I think having the opportunity to question creatives that have synergy with my current practice (like atelier bingo) will be invaluable to my personal development. 

I understand that this contact may be less useful in the of my future practice, however whilst I am still a student I want to use this approachable status to gain response from people who may not still be so accommodating when I leave college. This is also only a small start in the contacts I would like to make within the creative industries, and so I see it as practice for approaching many more in the future.

Creative Presence - A list of contacts I would like to have in the creative industries :

These a number of contacts I feel would be beneficial for me to have within the creative industries. Most of these are illustrators or creative practitioners that I admire and would like to understand more about their practice or independent publishers, clothing and homeware brands that I would love to either collaborate with or run a similar business to in the future. 

Wrap magazine 

Founded by designers Chris Harrison and Polly Glass, Wrap produces a biannual print magazine and sells a collection of paper products made by a range of illustrators on their online shop. I think this would a good point of contact simply because this is a context in which I would love my work to be featured in the future - on both paper products and in a magazine like wrap that focuses on contemporary illustration. It would also be interesting to find more about how the founding of wrap came about and the ins and outs of running an independent magazine. 

Poketo

Poketo is a lifestyle brand that focuses on instilling beautiful design into everyday living, selling a range of products from stationary, publications, homewares and clothing. They work with designers, artists and illustrators to create their own products, as well as collaborating on projects with big-time companies such as Nike, MTV and Disney. The founders, husband-and-wife team Ted Vadakan and Angie Myung, I think would provide a very useful insight in how to start up and run a successful brand - as well as hopefully be a good point of contact for future collaboration. 

Atelier Bingo 

Atelier Bingo is a partnership formed of Maxime Prou and Adele Favreau producing illustration, graphic and surface pattern design. Their work focuses on the use of bold shapes and colour to create abstract imagery primarily using print based processes.  I think this collective would be a good contact because the core principles of their practice and client base - featuring creatives and companies such as element, urban outfitters and Wrap magazines - reflect the direction in which I would like my own practice to develop in the future.  

Slowdown Studio 

Marc Hendrick created slowdown studio out of love for playful prints and patterns - a project in which he collaborates with selected illustrators and artists to produce limited runs of woven blankets.  I think it would be interesting to find out why he selects particular designers and illustrators, as well as how the collaborative process between him and these artists actually functions. I feel that speaking to Hendrick would also be useful for gaining a better understanding of how to successfully produce and distribute illustrative homeware products within an independent, small-scale business.  

Gorman

 

Lisa Gorman founded this clothing brand in 1999, based out of Auckland, New Zealand. I am primarily interested in her collaboration with creative practitioners such as Atelier Bingo, and the process through which they develop the final clothing designs. The general ethos and aesthetic of this brand I think also correlate really well with my own personal opinions and tastes. I think finding out how Gorman developed and successfully ran this brand for 18 years would be really valuable experience. 

BfGf

Bfgf is an art brand, run by Lilian Martinez in LA. I think it would be really beneficial for me to talk with her about how she runs her business - mainly the production and distribution of her products. Personally I would also like to know more about the inspiration behind her practice, as well as her participation in collectives and creative events. 

Dusen Dusen

Ellen van Dusen textiles' brand uses bold colour and geometric shapes across a range of clothing and homeware products. She collaborates with other creative practitioners to create products for different brands and companies, as well as for her own. I think it would be interesting to hear more about her creative practice and the running of this business. 

Yucca Press

Yucca press is an independent risograph printing and publishing press based in Peckham, set up and run by designer Daniel Fletcher. Handmade and print based processes being central to my work, I think small, independent press' like this that support young and emerging creatives will be essential to the future of my practice. I am also just interested in finding out more about Fletcher's practice and how he came to find success within the creative industries. 

Hato

Hato is a creative design agency based in London, that also runs Hato press - a risograph printer and publishing house. I think this would be beneficial contact for the future as I am interested in producing zines as a part of my practice. It would also be valuable for me to learn more about Hato's practice as a design agency - working for clients such as facebook, asos and urbanoutfitters.

Aelfie

Aelfie is a home goods company based out of Brooklyn, New York. I really like their approach of creating contemporary products focusing on beautiful design and crafting using traditional processes. I think their graphic shape-based designs correlate really well with the principles of my own practice, and again I think this would be valuable contact to understand more about how to run a small independent homewares business.