Study Task 2
Inspirational Illustrators

For this task I have tried to include a collection of not just my favourite contemporary practitioners but more specifically ones that I feel relate directly to the context of editorial illustration as well as the aims I have within my own practice on a more general level outside of this module.

Mood/Atmosphere

Throughout 504 mood and atmosphere was a huge part of my work and is something I want to carry through to the rest of my practice. In particular I am interested in creating erie, ephemeral imagery that has a muted yet dramatic feel to it. This is something that is present in the majority of the illustrators I have included below.

In the work of Bragg, McNaught and Kalorkoti clever and dramatic compositions are combined with well considered colour pallets so as to create images rich in atmosphere. In the images by Kalorkoti and McNaught this is used to create a sense of melancholy, something I have often tried within in my own work and given the anxious subject matter of this current project, it is something that I want to carry through into 505.

Eleni Kalorkoti

Jon McNaught






















Bill Bragg

Format

All the illustrators I have chosen produce work for editorial commissions, however I have tried to include a range of different formats so as to best display and understand the variety of different formats you may be require to produce.

As mentioned earlier in this post I am most interested in creating highly atmospheric, full bleed compositions, however I realise vignettes are also incredibly effective and used often within the context of editorial illustration. The below image by David Faldvari is a good example of how a clever visual metaphor can be turn into a simple vignette that would sit alongside a piece of text. This would create a better sense of unity between the image and text creating a more succinct response to a given article.

Visual Metaphors

The use of visual metaphors, in any given format, is also essential within editorial illustration due to how it requires you to clearly and succinctly communicate abstract concepts as well as summarise whole bodies of text in a way that might not be possible through the use of literal imagery.


Tiaggo Galo

David Faldavari

Process/aesthetic

After 504 I feel a real affinity for both the process and aesthetic of print, particularly screen print. However I realise that, given the short time frames in which you have to complete commissions, you would never be expected or be able to screen print designs for editorial commissions. Therefore  am interested in trying to mimic this process digitally.

All the above artists create bold imagery in which texture helps break down the different elements and give them a warmer more engaging feel. In some cases this is through the use of analogue processes, as is the case with Faldvari and Kalorkoti who create their images use ink. However in the cases of Bragg, Galo and McNaught this is created through both analogue printing methods, such as screen printing, as well as through the digital application of textures so as to make the images appear that they have. This is something I want to gain a better understanding of and bring into my own work.

Audience

Although the above practitioners operate in a variety of different areas, all have undertaken a lot of editorial commission, almost all of which have been for broadsheet newspapers, most of which have been left leaning.

This means that much of their work is produced for a mature, intellectual audience who probably have an interest in and understanding of social, political and economic issues. Therefore the tone and content of their work has to reflect this, often communicating quite complex subject matter in a way that is visually playful but serious in its over all tone.

Promotion

Having researched these practitioners I have realised just how essential social media and online presence is to gaining commissions. All the above practitioners have regularly updated Instagram accounts within which they can display their most recent and best work giving art directors a flavour for what they do. Furthermore they then include contact details as well as links to their websites so as to allow for further enquiries and a more in depth look at their work.

When displaying work online I think it is important to let the work speak for itself, with just small accompanying descriptions giving an insight to the context of the illustration rather than pages and pages of writing being the most effective way of displaying them.