ANORAK

ANORAK is an example of illustration in the context of magazine media.

Today I got to meet Cathy (the creator) and hear about how and why she started the company ANORAK.

Titled the 'Happy Mag for Kids', Cathy pioneered this illustrated children's magazine in response to the lack of choice in the magazine industry for this audience.

She was horrified by the selection to choose from.

ANORAK is aimed at an intended audience of girls and boys aged 6+,

Distributors and clients didn't like the fact that ANORAK didn't have a specific age range demographic and suggested that she should target just one, either girls or boys and an age limit. Cathy's argument is if you can read it, you can appreciate it, so it shouldn't be restrictive.

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This cover is so exciting and I want to buy it! It's engaging and so refreshing next to all the other junk on the market. It's the one different thing.
ANORAK work with lots of different illustrators to decorate the magazine each issue, but I think that there is often a recurring 'house style', perhaps of illustrations that Cathy is attracted to. They're all 'her thing'. I'm interested in this retro vibe harking on 70's illustrated comics and pattern. Very groovy, but will it be attractive to younger readers?

I think the price tag might put some consumers off and it seems to be more of an 'art shop' kind of product. I bet most of the readers are actually adults... or arty parents who have the disposable income and interest to invest in this product.

ANORAK mag is often themed in response to the National Curriculum and school subjects

but also themes with philosophical subjects too, such as fears and friends.

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I think ANORAK achieves its goal of being gender neutral and an educated approach to a kid's magazine because of the careful consideration to colour, character and language. Neither girls or boys should feel 'left out' because the magazine appeals to the imagination, the childishness, rather than any gender preferences.
I'd agree that children are saturated by Disney and the same characters they see on the TV. They need stimulation and not just mindless, repetitive themes.

STUDY TASK 3 - Pinterest

I've been keeping a Pinterest for a long time and I was a little disheartened at the idea of starting a new one, but I can understand why.

This new Pinterest will be much more organised and structured (my current one has got super cluttered and busy over the years).

My Old Pinterest is here:

https://uk.pinterest.com/jaystelling/pins/

My New Pinterest is here:

https://uk.pinterest.com/js254607/pins/

PURPOSE, CONTEXT, PROCESS, PRODUCT, AESTHETIC, CONTENT

PURPOSE

I really appreciate art that has a purpose. Rather than just being aesthetically attractive and pleasing to look at, I value work that demands some kind of greater function.

I'm particularly interested in children's books and cautionary tales.

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Carlson Ellis illustrated this cover for WILDWOOD, a modern fairytale. It's empowering, inviting and evocative of adventure. Conforming to the genre but updating those old expectations.

CONTEXT

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Illustration can move! This is from a paper stop-motion video by My Robot Friend, who has used stop motion to move these hand-drawn illustrations and transform it into a film. So clever and I love to see illustration slide into other forms, not just printed media.

The traditional pen-and-ink paper illustrations bring a handmade, old-school charm to the video. It feels authentic and delicate.

PROCESS

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I'm always intrigued by artists who move beyond drawing and painting, doing something different and innovative to tell stories or make an image.

Tyler Thrasher combines science and art by collecting dead insects (mostly cicadas) and forming crystals on them. Each one is unique because of the reactions and molecular structures of the crystals and minibeasts.

A really unusual process, but the final outcome is breathtaking. It walks the line between taxidermy and fashion, naturally.

PRODUCT

Where does illustration become product? What makes it commercial?

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Yosiell Lorenzo is the father of these 'Sicklings'. They're art toys, collectable sculptures that are showcased in exhibitions and galleries but can also be 'adopted' Lorenzo sells his Sicklings as though they are pets, with product descriptions describing their personalities.

I think that this really adds to the believability of character and illusion of life in these creatures. I think the jars are a great touch too, a clever way of solving packaging but also protecting the sculptures too.

AESTHETIC

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Anandamayi Arnold makes these beautiful crepe paper objects. Their aesthetic is a natural, biological and representational approach to botanical illustration, achieved through constructing 3-Dimensional tissue paper forms.

I love this aesthetic because it's something I've never seen before. They're so realistic but also idyllic and almost surreal in their perfection.

Anandamayi hides tiny 'surprises' inside the sculptures, which is a lovely little feature, but also quite amusing. People buy these gorgeous artworks because of the craft and precision that has gone into them, and yet the artist reinforces them to ruin that work! Crack them open and look inside... I couldn't bring myself to destroy the artwork, no matter what was inside.

Is this the artist's joke? Is she commenting on the concept of 'treasures' and possessions? The power of curiosity?

CONTENT

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Louis Wain drew anthropomorphised cats, but as his mental condition worsened (he was hospitalised with Schizophrenia), his cats began to change in appearance... they became more colourful, abstract and busy.

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I find it so incredible to see how his art changed and the content of these drawings seemed to evolve with his illness.

Where Am I Now?

Glyn Dillon

This week's Big Heads interview was with storyboarder, graphic novel artist and costume designer Glyn Dillon. I'll admit that I didn't expect to enjoy his work. I was initially uncomfortable with the knowledge that he had previously produced pornographic cartoons and just didn't think that his graphic approach to illustration was my cup of tea.

I'm actually quite disappointed in myself for assuming like that and not even giving his work a chance, because when I did see and hear more about it, I saw how well composed and highly crafted the images he makes are. I'm so glad I attended this week's big heads because Dillon was such a fantastic artist and human being to speak to!

I've never really got into graphic novels, only some manga books when I was a little younger, I thought that comics were for kids and nerds. I have to stop shutting myself off to new things because I am missing out on so much. I have to study these different approaches to illustration in order to understand what illustration is. I was surprised to discover how much I liked his comics and the quiet, mundane subjects he discusses because I expected them to be jam-packed with action and super heroes. Shows what I know. I must read 'The Nao of Brown'.

Dillon's ambitious practice made me really respect him as an artist. He hasn't defined himself to just one title and he is constantly looking for new challenges, which I think shows that he is still learning and is motivated to do more. He's not afraid to do something new and is constantly developing his portfolio by jumping into tasks.

I am interested in costume/concept design, so hearing about his recent designs for Star Wars was pretty impressive. Although I'm not a huge Star Wars fan, I can appreciate the immense fan base that it curtails and the Sci-Fi legendary status it holds. Dillon is gaining notoriety in his work for this job and he told us how it had always been his dream.
How did he get there? He said it took a lot of pestering and confidence! You know what you want to do? Go and show them who you are, don't wait for them to find you.

I was mostly interested in how he worked at the Jim Henson Creature Shop in Camden. He mentioned this just briefly and I couldn't resist but ask him about this at the end. I love Jim Henson and I have heard very little about the Camden Creature Shop which shut down in 2005.

Me: "I love Jim Henson and I would really like to hear more about your experience there. What was it like? What did you work on?"
Dillon explained how he had worked there under Hallmark entertainment and contributed to the creature effects on Arabian Nights and Sinbad. I'd not heard of these TV-films before, so came home to find out what they were.
Though not the Hollywood blockbuster scale of Labyrinth, these films have impressive special effects and I found it really interesting to hear Dillon talking about the studio atmosphere.
G D: "It's such a shame that it's no longer there. It was a great place to work and was filled with movie props."
G D: "I even saw the throne that David Bowie sat on as the Goblin King!"
I would have loved to visit the Camden Creature shop and I am really disheartened that I can't. Maybe one day I'll visit the Los Angeles studios, but for now Dillon's stories about it and the work that came out of it will do!

While talking about the Creature Shop, Dillon discussed the introduction of digital software at the time  and how it was perceived as a huge threat to the puppetry department.
I don't think it's a threat, because it's a totally different process to sculpting. It can be used as a tool to enhance and improve sculpted effects, but I think these digital tools have made some designers lazy!

Maybe it's just for the nostalgic element or my own personal taste, but I much prefer Henson's work pre-digital creature designs. It was used in Labyrinth to remove backgrounds (basic green screening on the Firey scene), but the rest of the creatures were all real, tactile models. Glyn Dillon uses 'ZBrush' in his digital design process - a digital sculpting tool that I don't know anything about. I'll revisit this later once I find out what it does and how it can be used.

Designing costume is really different to making comics because you are then dealing with storytelling, acting and movement.