Natasha Aldred Illustration

Spirit

2012-02-13T14:10:00.001-08:00

I've been working on this project with the theme 'spirit' in mind. I worked on this a different way instead of going straight into conceptual meanings and looking deeper into the subject i tried to look at the more obvious. I looked at the spirit as a ghost and took it away from it's seriousness and tried to have a little fun and a laugh. This is my end result.

I've entered this in the 'Don't Panic Poster Competition'- if you like this give us a vote by following this link.

Strumpets Bazaar- The new face of Vintage

2012-02-07T14:25:00.001-08:00

Back in September i worked with Jayne Horder the creator of the vintage retail business Strumpets Bazaar. We arranged a photo shoot around the local towns of Mirfield and Morley, modelling the clothes sold in her Etsy shop. The photographs were a hit with Jayne and her customers. So in January, Jayne and I arranged a meeting to discuss rebranding her business. Designing a Logo and Leaflets/ double-sided postcard to promote the business.

When designing the logo i went through loads of ideas, taking inspiration from vintage type and traditional logos. I wanted to create that original vintage look- with abit of pzazz! (i love that word). Plus we needed the colour red in there to create that strong look and because Jayne is "Surgically attached to the colour red" (her words). I put that together with two of the images i took earlier in September. My favourite is the girl in the phonebox. This image gave me chance to work my new style of illustration with my photography. I got to mix in a few quirks in there too, finding words like (New) old! Plus in the telephone sign it also says " Get them in every colour". After talking to my brother he said that she looks like a female Doctor Who- which fits perfect with the Vintage theme and 'Time-travelling with clothes'. There should be more to come from my collaboration with Strumpets Bazaar, so keep your eyes open :)

Itch

2012-01-30T09:15:00.000-08:00

So I've been away from my blog for a little while, but i have been keeping busy. Between this time I have been back at the photography studio helping out with some online marketing. I have displayed some work to sell in a tattoo parlour in Wakefield and in "That's Entertainment" in Huddersfield. I'm also working on a logo and leaflet.

The above image is the final artwork to my depression series which is the 1st stage, as can be shown in the second image. You may already remember that these images were based on strength, Solace and Support. With this first stage i wanted to show it as more controlled than the others. It's the time when the emotions slowly start to creep in and you begin to hide, emotionally and physically. Where you look in the mirror and start to see things changing but are unaware what is really happening. These will be sent to the Blank Slate Art Competition. A charity to help those who have suffered Domestic Violence.

I've just heard back from this competition letting me know that these pieces will be exhibited in the Departure Cafe in East London for 2 weeks in March and will be up for auction. The money will all go to the charity 'Nour' above :)

So happy :)

Angela Carter- The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories

2012-01-10T03:07:00.000-08:00

I've recently just entered a competition, the book illustration competition that the House of Illustration and Folio Society put on every year. This year the book in general was Angela Carter- The Bloody Chamber and Other stories.

In these books Angela Carter uses the basis of fairytale stories but transforms them into modern, seductive tales. The three tales in the book to illustrate were; The bloody Chamber, Puss-in-Boots and the Company of wolves.

The Bloody Chamber- ' Dead as his Wives', (p28)

Puss-In-Boots- 'It was not I alone who saw her; with that smile he swears she stole his heart', (p80)

Company of Wolves- 'The girl burst out laughing; she knew she was nobody's meat', (p138)

This is a rough Binding idea to go with the three illustrations;

Through this blog I've illustrated a couple of Angela Carter's stories, so to see this competition really excited me. I like the dark, more risque feel to the stories, which has allowed me to push this style further. When i was in New York last year for portfolio reviews, one of my criticisms was to apply my riskiness which i had enveloped in my photographs into my illustrations, which i feel this project has allowed me to do. So the deadline closes tonight. Wish me luck! *fingers crossed*

Overload

2012-01-05T11:04:00.000-08:00

Earlier in December last year I posted an image up called numb. The image was to participate in a competition with the theme, strength, solace and support. My main idea with the piece was to look at Depression as a time which people need the strength and support from others to get them back on their feet. As i mentioned to you then i was thinking of doing a trilogy of these images with numb being the final the 3rd of the trilogy. This image 'Overload' is to represent to 2nd stage of the depression. When everything is blown out of proportion and finally hits you and your mind begins to scream and thoughts turn over and over like cogs. This is the stage where emotions explode and are released. This may not be an exact account but it's my own interpretation. I'm now working on the first stage but wanted to show you all what I've been upto. :)

Veal

2012-01-04T06:23:00.001-08:00

I posted this image earlier in 2011 as the "Big Skull Collab".

Illustrator James Fenwick set up this collaboration to bring together fellow creatives and help them to work together. Out of this project James put together an online digital zine called Veal which is now up and running and contains my piece and my friend Hannah Brown's piece. My piece can be found on page 20 and Hannah Brown's on page 10.

It was lovely to work on these pieces and to see the end result. It is also an honour to have been shortlisted for the zine :)

I hope to do more of these in the future which James will be keeping updates on his facebook page. So Take a peek as they're maybe something you can also get involved with. Both myself and Hannah will be submitting work for this zine, so do join us :)

Emily & Remzi wedding taster

2011-12-23T12:37:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday i spent the evening photographing Emily and Rezmi's wedding reception. The original wedding took place in the summer over in Turkey. But to celebrate with the friends and family who were unable to make it, they arranged this second reception in brighouse. The night started with photos of the bride getting her hair done, followed by the groom and best man. We then ventured to the venue taking photos of the people there. The decorations were gorgeous with a very christmas seasonal feel of green, red and white. The bride herself was stunning in her turkish style wedding dress and her hair beautifully done up. The evening followed with food, speeches and cake cutting. And to end with dancing and traditional turkish dancing. It was such a fun night had by all. The photos above are only a taster of the images I've taken.

numb.

2011-12-16T04:41:00.000-08:00

This is more of a personal project which I'm thinking about entering into a competition. The theme was to look at strength, Support and Solace. Looking at the words i thought of the opposite. The time when people themselves have lost the strength to hold back the bad things, when everything in there head attacks them and leaves them feeling numb and needing support from others. Sometimes life can get to a point when all the small things which are so tiny build up in your mind, they torment and grow until one day ur mind just goes numb. You don't hear anything you can't think of a single thing or imagine. This piece above is the ending. The final piece to that struggle before the help and support comes. It's the putting on a brave face, but not being able to express it. I'm thinking of doing a small sequence of these from the start to this one.

I apologise about the darkness of this post. But i do believe that some people face this every day, or at least once in their lives and that it should be shared, and understood. This is only a glimpse as into a fraction of the feeling that can be felt.

Grandad

2011-12-09T00:35:00.001-08:00

It's my Dad's birthday today and as a gift for him i drew this image from a photograph my grandma found of my grandad who died this year in June from prostate cancer. The photograph was taken of him in his early 30's. I've been wanting to draw a portrait in this dot technique for a while after my dad had mentioned it to me and thought this was the perfect time :) I've enjoyed drawing this so much, and it's wierd how emotional you get drawing some-one you know for some-one special. I was so excited to give him it this morning and was pleased that he loved it :)

In Memory of Geoffrey Bruce and i send my love to the people and families who are suffering from prostate cancer. R.I.P Grandad.

Samantha Beth Rounding

2011-12-07T05:39:00.001-08:00

These are my favourite shots from a photo shoot i did on sunday with the lovely Samantha Beth Rounding and Melissa Hawksworth. We will be photographing these clothes again in location, but as the weather did not live upto our expectations, we managed to pull of a girly set-up, allowing me to practise with my lighting equipment. The clothes featured in the shoot were designed and created by Sammie for her vintage/ girly collection to hopefully be sold in boutiques in the future. Sammie studies her fashion and manufacturing degree at Batley college and has a strong talent for colour and texture. With a strong interest in lace :) I love collaborating with Sammie, we usually come together on an idea and will work our hardest to make sure we both get the images we want. So look out for her and more photos and collections from this talented fashion designer :) Plus if you like what you see, check out her facebook page here

Also on other news, I'm putting together something for some-one special at the moment, and will be sure to post it up very soon for you all to see :)

US AND THEM

2011-12-05T08:39:00.001-08:00

This is a piece I've been working on today for a Society6 collaboration for a zine called "US AND THEM". I wanted to show the way that society can sometimes trap people and make them conform in a certain way. The way people have two personalities, the one which is not them, more like a mask so they're the same as everyone, while underneath they are some-one different and trying to break out of the mold. The signs show "One way" giving the illusion that people should follow and that there isn't no other way, although there are two ways to go and possibly more.

The print is also up for sale on the above link.

Fashion Rally submission

2011-11-27T15:40:00.000-08:00

Just sent my submission for Illustration Rally's Fashion Illustration competition in collaboration with RedRock. This was the outcome :)

I've also got some more prints for sale on society6. Take a peek :)

The Snow Queen

2011-11-15T12:31:00.000-08:00

A new image as an idea for christmas cards based on the story of the snow queen, also can be bought as a print on here

Art Prints for Sale

2011-11-14T10:52:00.000-08:00

So I've just set up an online shop and i have this image above as a print for sale. So get yourself over to the shop to check out what else i'll be selling :)

Liam Smith

2011-11-14T06:03:00.000-08:00

Yesterday i did a collaborated shoot with the photographer Ruth Ellen Brown. We met up with the model Liam Smith in Huddersfield and wanted to do some urban street scenes. The weather wasn't too cracking, cloudy and raining slightly which caused a few problems with locations. Between us we chose a few locations with textual backgrounds with the hope of working in black and white and working on the definition of texture. Liam has an edgy editorial style to his modelling and worked his hardest to get the shot right for us :) I hope to work again with him in the future. This was a challenge and very insightful. I got the chance to work with another photographer and collaborate on ideas for locations and poses. Also good for having another point of view. I also got a chance to expand my portfolio and work with a male model, to give abit of a change to my usual female models. The weather also challenged me to work harder on my camera settings making sure i could get the best out of the model under the circumstances. All together fun was had :)

Heavy Lies The Crown

2011-11-11T14:37:00.000-08:00

Heavy Lies The Crown is a hardcore/metal/mosh band from Durham UK. When my friend Charlotte (owner/ creator) of Charlie Cakes Cupcakes mentioned to me that they had a logo competition running, i jumped at the chance of having my logo on the band's merchandise. So today i spent illustrating this image.

lion skull

2011-11-10T07:54:00.000-08:00

I've been recently drawing animal skulls between projects to hopefully exhibit and sell. This is my third image using uniball eye pens and a dotting technique I've been using for a while. The original image is stronger in detail than the scanned image. I would like to continue doing a few more of these and may even push myself to try out a portrait in this style. We'll see how it turns out. I've recently got a christmas temp job in a music and dvd store- which is keeping me inspired with all the artwork around me and has led me to a few ideas for new projects and competitions for the future weeks :)

Fun pet photography

2011-11-08T15:40:00.001-08:00

Tigerprint had a competition on for Fun Pet photography to be produced on Hallmark cards. These are the photos i entered. I love the top one of Wilf my friend's dog who you may have seen earlier in this blog. The other photo was taken after a trip to Newquay zoo last year. Both images made me chuckle and had a reason for choosing them. If you would like to see the other entries, you can follow them here

The Big Skull Collab

2011-11-04T08:46:00.000-07:00

Today I've been working on a submission for "The Big Skull Collab" which is featured on the Dead Fuzz blog. The Skull outline was illustrated by James Fenwick and then given out to illustrators/ artists and designers who were interested in illustrating the skull for the online based magazine. I've really enjoyed working with this as it's pushed me to think of new ideas to go with the image put out in front of me and hope to collaborate with more creatives in the future. Thankyou to Hannah Brown who let me know about this and follow the link here to see her gorgeous submission- it'll make you hungry!

Bird Skull

2011-10-23T14:12:00.001-07:00

Something I've been working on, to follow on as a set from the deer skull. Got a few more to come :)

The Queen Bee

2011-10-15T14:27:00.001-07:00

I've been wanting to put these up for a while now. These images were produced during the summer as fashion illustrations. They were not the final outcomes but 4 of the initial finals, which i then changed due to a brief. I will show the finals when i can. I photographed the model shown here and then using the outfits suggested illustrated them to fit the model. Looking at the outfits i personally thought of a queen bee and looked at the strong female with a sting in her tail. The clothes designs are NOT my own and are copyright of the designers, so I'm not taking credit for them. I mainly wanted to put these up to show the mixture of photography and illustration coming together in my work and hope to work on this further.

My First Wedding

2011-10-15T07:25:00.000-07:00

So on the 3rd September 2011, Andrea and Nick Fisher were married in St Mary's church in Brandesburton and this eventful day was followed by an entertaining reception at Billabong Watersports. The weather was perfect and overall everyone had a good time and a laugh. For my first wedding i had been quite nervous, but the bride, Andrea had convinced me that i could do it, and she was right. Me and my mum got there at 2pm and straight away got set up for a long day and night. Everyone was so relaxed, up for doing things a little differently and made it a day to remember. Andrea looked stunning and her bridesmaids were so pretty. After the ceremony we went to take a few photos of the couple on their own. They looked so happy :) The reception began with them arriving by boat and followed with group photos and random poses :) All in all I personally had a great time, had the experience of shooting quickly and running around the whole day. I edited down the photos and presented Andrea and Nick with prints, CD and a printed wedding book, which you can see the page layouts above :) To have a closer look, just click on the images

Pin-up perfection publication

2011-10-07T11:52:00.000-07:00

Yesterday i got some lovely news from the lovely model Carensa Semmens, letting me know that the image above from our zombie pin-up shoot had been published in Pin-up Perfection Magazine Halloween edition 2011. This being my first publication i was over the moon :)

Along with this my friend from the lovely Strumpets Bazaar has wrote a blog about our first photo shoot- take a peek on Strumpets Bazaar blog.

I've recently photographed a wedding for Andrea and Nick Fisher, the photographs were responded well and I will be giving you a few previews of the wedding album, as soon as the bride and groom have seen it. :) I really enjoyed the day, and after worrying for ages, the day became very relaxed and fun. It was such a change working on an event and having to work spontaneously without long poses and organising groups and the bride and groom.

Along with this i have been spending my time gaining some work experience at a local photography studio, photographyworks. I've been learning more about studio lights, working commercially, organising models and working with clients. I've met some lovely people and I've learnt so much in the last month.

I'm hoping to have abit more work on here soon, but as of the last two weeks I've been recovering from my shoulder operation, so keep you eyes peeled for more :)

Strumpets Bazaar

2011-09-19T05:25:00.000-07:00

The photographs above were taken as promotion for Strumpets Bazaar an online vintage shop founded by Jayne Horder. The clothes were modelled by Natasha Elise Estdale in Mirfield and Morley and Morley's very own American 50's Diner- Bertie's Diner. I'm hoping to work with Jayne and Natasha again to create more fun and interesting shoots, with new and strange locations and clothes combinations :) Add Strumpets Bazaar on facebook and twitter for more news and upcoming shoots.

Deer Skull

2011-09-05T08:21:00.001-07:00

This is something I've been working on for a couple of days now. It's a big piece, slightly bigger than A3 all done in fine liner pen. Unfortunately it didn't photograph so well and the detail is alot stronger on the original image. Let me know what you think :)

Bees

2011-08-23T14:59:00.000-07:00

I drew these 2 months ago and totally forgot that i hadn't shown you. Suppose I've been very bee-like myself recently. Even though uni has finished, I've had a few jobs here and there to do, plus I'm now occasionally helping on photo shoots with a professional photographer, who is teaching me as we go along. The voluntary work is improving my experience of busy studios, lighting and communicating with a client. I have an upcoming fashion shoot with Strumpets Bazaar and a wedding to photograph :) both i'm very excited about. I'm recently wanting to push my photography and work on my illustration more personally. But you never know, let's wait and see :)

Tigerprint Female Photography

2011-08-19T12:15:00.000-07:00

I recently entered the tigerprint female photography competition, with this image. They're has been alot of lovely submissions to the competition, take a look on here

Charlie Cakes

2011-08-18T14:12:00.000-07:00

Recently i got asked to design a logo for Charlie Cakes Cupcakes, baked by the lovely Charlotte Catmull. We met in a cafe and went through ideas. A cupcake and the name underneath was the main idea, we then expanded this by adding a little bit of charlotte's character for her love of sugar skulls, into a cherry. The colours bright pink, purple, teal and black were added to make the image very colourful. To add a sense of fun, we added stars and sprinkles. Charlotte was really happy with the design and it can be found on her facebook page on the link above. Please check out her page as the cupcakes are scrumptious :)

Fly for food

2011-08-10T05:46:00.000-07:00

The birdhouse, that my dad, Jud made always attracts loads of birds and through the rain we had today they still kept flying over for food. So from my window I wanted to capture them in flight and gathering together. It's funny to watch them fight over food that my grandma leaves out for them. I love the blurr of the wings and the stationary look of their bodies as they hover in the air :) Just something to cheer people up on a day like today. Sometimes we need something as beautiful as a flock of birds to realise that their is more to the world and something to care about while riots and wars take place. I send my regards to all the people who have lost lives, family members, friends and businesses at this time.

Wilf

2011-08-01T00:58:00.001-07:00

Since I've been back home I've had a few bits here and there. When i got asked to photograph this lovely border collie for his family i was a little wary, as it's not something i would usually do. His name was Wilf, so playful and fun, but so so so camera shy, which left me with a challenge and made him more fun to shoot. After taking him out to the field and in his favourite spots in the house we soon found that Wilf's character came out through the camera. I was also asked as part of this commission to photograph the family's niece with wilf. Scary- Children and pets- together! Bless she behaved so well after a little cry which was unshown on the photos and she soon enjoyed it. Although these photos of the child and wilf were liked by the family, i have decided not to put them up for protection over the child. All in all this turned out to be an interesting project, allowed me to take up a challenge, find a decent printers around the area i live and helped me work with commissions.

Happy, Smile

2011-07-21T08:56:00.001-07:00

Ok so i couldn't resist a new blog post. Recently I've been unable to enjoy drawing for just me, which is strange. Today I spent my bus journey back from Leeds location drawing and it felt good. The evidence is above :)

The past week me and my friend Gemma West (Blog) have been collaborating on a piece for New York's Fashion Magazine, Astonish. The piece will hopefully (fingers crossed) be published this September 2011. I'm really excited and will be showing you the photos when i can. I'm at the moment editing some cute dog photos as a paid commission :) and have a few other things lined up, so do keep a look out for more posts popping up here and there.

I haven't forgot....

2011-07-15T04:36:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't been blogging much recently had a few things on and a few projects which I'll have to keep quiet and away from eyes for a while. These past few weeks have been quite hectic but fun, new designers was an amazing experience and the rest of my time has been spent with a little job hunting plus getting ideas for a couple commissions for two magazines and competitions. I also photographed a cute border collie today and had a chat about a wedding photographer commission for september. :) So watch this space, I'll pop the work up when i can :)

Horror Licks

2011-07-05T11:35:00.001-07:00

I've been a little obsessed with Frankenstein and his bride recently and a huge craving to watch old school horror films. This afternoon i spent drawing this. I've got a few funky ideas hiding up my sleeve, which i hope come together. Tomorrow is the New Designers exhibition in London, so head on down to the preview tomorrow night to see work exhibited by myself and my fellow classmates and universities from around the UK. It is open from the 6th-9th July so take a peek if you can, it should be fun!

Scarab Beetles

2011-06-30T16:05:00.000-07:00

I drew these for my friend Elli's 21st birthday. They were drawn in pen. So happy that she liked them :)

So who are you?

2011-06-22T08:40:00.001-07:00

So here's another piece for my new designers board. :) So from yesterday I am now a proud owner of a BA (hons) Degree in Illustration from Falmouth University- mega chuffed! Aswell as this piece i have been drawing some scarab beetles which I'm really proud of- plus they all grew personalities while i was drawing them. I will have them up soon.

Scream Zone

2011-06-19T13:46:00.001-07:00

So I'm trying to get some new work for the new designers boards which will be displaying in Islington, London on the 6th to 9th of July. I would like something abit new and fresh and to be using the comments i recieved in New york. So i had fun with this today :) Let me know what you think? x x

Mime Nostalgia

2011-06-18T18:11:00.001-07:00

A few more images from the mime shoot. I went for black and white for these with a tiny tint of a warm filter to create that nostalgic feeling. There's a few more photos on their way but if you have facebook add me on natashaaldredphotography to see more :)

Mime..

2011-06-16T17:55:00.001-07:00

So today, i got an idea for a mime shoot. Here are some of the images although there are more to come. I focused on pattern, texture and facial expressions. This was so fun and the model truly got into character. The make-up and styling was done by me and parts of the outfit i made too. It's been a while since i've done a photo shoot as my degree and creative illustration work has been distracting me. I really like the layout and composition of these ones and could maybe see the bottom one as a album cover. Check out the models blog- http://hannah-f-b.blogspot.com/

Got my degree private preview evening tomorrow- excited and not long till we get our results. *fingers crossed*

toodles x

Page Layouts

2011-06-13T12:53:00.000-07:00

This is what I've been upto today- sneaky page layouts :) I'm having so much fun! :) I also got the Goliath Latex Fashion Photography book such a gorgeous book, awesome designers and their clothing, fantastic photographers and talented models. So worth it! Think I'm getting a little addicted to blogging.... toodles!

MIrror Mirror

2011-06-12T11:26:00.000-07:00

I'm in the process of making a small zine. This is part of the cover- unfinished, still missing something in the middle and i can't seem to get the type right (a little annoying.) I forgot how much i missed drawing in detail. Would love some feedback :)

Wolf Skin

2011-06-10T14:53:00.001-07:00

Thought I'd let you lot see what I've been doing today. I thought I'd play around and experiment with some of the feedback i got from New York, which was to work over my photographs with the type of line i was using for my horoscope images. This isn't finished yet still needs some tweeks and a few extra things added but i like how it's developing.

Bat Girl

2011-06-08T16:42:00.000-07:00

A character designed today. As part of the brief i was only allowed to use black pen, it's wierd for me not to have texture. I think i may work into this and add some collage and photomontage to add colour to her. Bat Girl with a twist.

Framed bat skulls

2011-06-08T08:33:00.000-07:00

I'm becoming a little obsessed with animal skulls at the moment. I really like the largeness of the eye sockets on the bat skull. These are just a few experiments... nothing final but i just liked certain areas of them. Really enjoying this and practising with a few photoshop techniques. Let me know what you think?

Candy Apples

2011-06-03T10:30:00.001-07:00

So my degree show is up and I'm waiting around for results. I'm feeling quite creative at the moment so I thought I'd attempt to take on some of the feedback that i recieved at the New York meetings. So I've been playing. It still needs some work and practise but i kind of like it where it's going. Let me know what you think?

I also had an email yesterday from New York based, Astonish magazine, who me and gemma contacted for feedback. They asked us to collaborate to illustrate 3/4 garments for the new season which they will send to us. We're both really excited! can't wait :)

Watch this space!

New York

2011-05-26T12:32:00.000-07:00

So i couldn't put up all my photos from New York so here's a small selection. Unfortunately the slideshow has made them a little murky :( but you get the jist.

It was such an inspiration, we visited loads of places and met some lovely people. While we were there we made meetings with and agency called Lindgren and Smith, organised by our tutors. Vault 49 a creative design agency. Who took their time to look through our portfolios and give us advice and let us know of their experience with setting up a design agency and moving to New York. If you're ever in New York, check out MF Gallery, a lowbrow gallery in brooklyn and run two lovely people with awesome artistic taste. These two were so friendly and helped us realise that we need to get back to doing work for ourselves and that it doesn't always need to be commercial. I appreciate it guys :) So if you're in the area check the link out and pop in and say hi. The last but not least was 3x3 magazine. The gentleman was so friendly, informative and to the point. He doesn't mince his words and this is such a good thing to have in industry because you know where u stand with him and the advice he gives is honest and appropriate. This magazine was the first illustration/ art magazine i picked up and it was an honour to meet the gentleman behind it. We did loads, way too much to mention in one post but before i forget if you ever get chance to visit the lovely New York, go away from the tourist attractions and down the side streets, visit bowery meets 2nd Ave and watch a performance by Saint Hollywood. The group are so friendly and made us feel at home. Their singing voices are amazing and acting skills are awesome. They give off a brilliant performance, down to earth and slightly strange but entertaining. Check them out! Also go into brooklyn, where u can find Williamsburg (full of little alternative shops, fun characters, and graffiti) and check out the place that time forgot (Coney Island.) It's like walking into an old photograph full of memories of the seaside and funfair attractions with typography everywhere :) Anyways I've spoken quite a while so i best go... toodles :)

Virgo and Libra

2011-05-09T21:26:00.001-07:00

So for anyone who is still awake or has just woken up, here's some more horoscope illustrations :) These two are going in my portfolio along with gemini and aries, but i plan to finish the rest of the starsigns after new york. So illustration portfolio is finished and just needs printing :) so best get my photography one out of the way.... toodles x

Swan Lake

2011-05-08T09:30:00.001-07:00

This project has been driving me insane but i think i finally had a break through with it. It's just a prospective poster, so unfortunately this ballet is not showing on those dates. After trying collograph and loads of photos i finally came up with this. p.s. can you see the female portrait in there too? My projects at the momment seem to be very feminine.... wierd!

Lolita

2011-05-06T18:02:00.000-07:00

This is a book jacket for the classic Lolita. A story about a man who becomes obsessed with a 12 year old girl. The dress and doll is to represent the innocence while the man sees her as a sex symbol. This feels quite girly to me, as I'm not used to using pinks in my work, although i wanted a feminine colour which can also represent the flesh. I enjoyed drawing the underwear though, i got to play with detail and pen work :) happy!

New Quote

2011-05-05T14:14:00.000-07:00

So i wasn't happy with my other quote and after doing my business cards , ready for New York i fell in love with this image instead, which i feel promotes my work alot better than the last piece. The quote also changed after becoming obsessed by a song called 'Carnival of Rust' by Poets of the Fall. Check out their video, it's crazily fun :) - Poets of the Fall.

The quote is "It's all a game, avoiding failure, when true colours will bleed"

It's more conceptual which is perfect for me. :)

Business Cards :)

2011-05-04T06:43:00.001-07:00

So finally got some business cards ordered from moo. com. The first image below is the front page of all the cards which shows the contact information.

As the cards are double sided i was able to make a back cover for each. I want to make a set of 5 but i think I will finish them off after New York for my exhibition and new designers. I went for layout similar to how i lay out my scrap books so i could mix in some of my favourite photographs and images. Really happy with how these look on the screen, looking forward to seeing my printed cards :)

2011-04-27T20:50:00.000-07:00

Quote Illustration "Time is a circus, always packing up and moving away"- Ben Hecht.

As part of the third year illustration at falmouth, each student picks a quote to illustrate to promote their work. These quotes are put together into a quotes book, which the university sells and distributes to agents and clients.

I think I'm finished but I'm unsure, any feedback would be very useful

Archie's Coffees, shakes and bakes

2011-04-27T03:17:00.000-07:00

So for the past few days I've been working on a poster for a live brief. The client being Archie's Coffees, Shakes and Bakes. A retro american 1940's style cafe in Heckmondwike, West Yorkshire. To produce this poster I took photos at the cafe as a reportage project to capture images of the friendly atmosphere of the venue, which was a necessity to have on the poster. I used the Archie's logo and created the ice cream colour/ pastels theme to bring out the 1940's feel of the cafe. The Photo's are in circles to create that record/ donut look. You may see this around the West Yorkshire area soon. Pop in and enjoy they're frothy milkshakes, homebaked brownies and especially in this weather, they're icecreams. You can also find them on facebook on Archies- Coffee's, shakes and Bakes.

This was a new way of working for me, it got me working with the client, and making the image to how they would like. We kept in contact and i sent a versions to them, and had them tell me what they would like changing, each time, working back into it and sending it off again. This was an interesting experience and has given me proffessional practice for the future. It's an insight into what to expect :)

Gemini

2011-04-22T11:11:00.000-07:00

An illustration for the zodiac sign of Gemini- the symbol of twins and ruling planet of Mercury. In greek mythology, Mercury was the messenger of the gods, always on the move, thirsty for knowledge and usually has the gift of the gab. Gemini's birth stone is Aquamarine.

Sneaky peak of horoscope illustrations

2011-04-22T08:17:00.001-07:00

A sneaky peak of illustrations for horoscope zodiac signs. This one above is Aries, the symbol of a Ram, with the element of fire and birthstone of a ruby, the starsign is adventurous and active. It is a naive sign who is trusting, innocent and can be a child at heart.

Memoirs of a Geisha

2011-04-21T09:06:00.001-07:00

A prospective artwork for the Memoirs of a Geisha bookcover. I wanted the masks to portray the acting and performance that the geisha provide also showing the way that they hide their true feelings. The face of the geisha shows the beauty. The koi karp represent the true love in the story and the swimming through troubled waters. I have used the same typeface as the original book because i like the brush strokes and fluent movement alike the water. Would love to hear feedback. The grey line around the edge is only to show the proportions, as white on white can get lost, it is not on the artwork itself.

Sammie Rounding's black Dress

2011-04-20T14:15:00.000-07:00

I forgot i hadn't put these up. A friend of mine is doing a fashion degree at Kirklees college. She designed this dress based on gothic architecture and needed some photos to show in her portfolio. We chose one of our local churches and graveyards as our location. Sammie modelled her own dress as she had made it specifically to fit her, but i will have some other photos up soon of a landgirl top she has also created modelled by her cousin erin. It was a fun project to work with and let me see the fashion side of photography which i really enjoyed. It allowed me to play more with photographing the outfit rather than just the model.

Would love to hear any feedback, it's always appreciated x x

70's Hippy shoot

2011-04-12T15:18:00.000-07:00

I've been keeping myself busy this week with photo shoots. I had the chance today to meet up with an old friend who is studying Hair and Make-up. Her project at the moment is focussing on different eras, and i asked if i could help with the 70's shoot. It was nice to work with a make-up artist for the first time and to have some-one else on the shoot with me to give me directions on the poses they wanted plus giving me freedom to experiment myself. If you are interested in any of Rachel Maude's Hair and Make up expertise please contact her on rachelmaude.makeup@googlemail.com

Again i may use some of these photos for an illustration project, but I'm keeping the idea as a suprise. Watch this space- there is more to come!

Candyfloss and funhouses

2011-04-10T15:39:00.000-07:00

After seeing there was a funfair on by my local town i was inspired to create a funfair photoshoot, with crazy outfits and candyfloss and rides. So this saturday just gone, i took out two mates of mine and headed there after dressing them up in layers of random colourful clothes and strange make-up. We got a few free rides and played in the funhouse and hook a duck. I really wanted to catch the colours and shapes of the funfair and the fun and creativity of the people around, by using the models. All three of us had a fun time, and i got to explore an outdoor shoot with laughter and crazy poses, plus adding that hint of fashion photography too. I'm in the middle of editing photos but picked these four too start the albulm off. Would love any criticism of these and hope you have a lovely day, toodles.

Geisha Shoot

2011-04-08T15:23:00.000-07:00

I'm recently illustrating a prospective artwork for memoirs of the geisha bookcover. As part of my work i organised a geisha photoshoot. I like the colours and simplicity in this shoot and used models who had never modelled yet. This gave me a challenge and allowed me to express the essence of a geisha through simple poses and angles. I will be drawing from a few of these and hope that some will make it into my portfolio. Criticism is most appreciated. I want to play on this geisha shoot and recreate an alternative anti-geisha of the modern day. So expect more geisha shoots to come :) I've also done a shoot today for a friend's uni fashion garments which was so fun and different. I will have these new ones up soon :)

Wild Thing! Rockstar editorial

2011-04-04T14:58:00.001-07:00

So this project has literally taken me forever, I just couldn't seem to get it right.... or perfect really! I hate being a virgo sometimes... perfectionist lol. I tried loads of different models and loads of seperate layouts. But yey, I think I've done it. The article was an old elle article on Female rockstars named "Wild thing you make my heart sing". There was no pictures apart from a timeline. I've decided to change the magazine to "Dazed and Confused" or "wonderland" and have created something I hope seems a little more striking and new. Let me know what you think.... constructive critism is always appreciated :)

Bradford Photography Museum

2011-03-30T14:34:00.000-07:00

So me and my mum went to the photography Museum in Bradford and it was so much fun, off course we started off with the sensible stuff and stared at beautiful 1900's Kodak Brownie camera's which i secretly own one and tried to figure out the year mine was made, then we headed upstairs where we found the KID"S ROOM! It was like a spaceship with experiments. Take a look below.

We found giant mirrors and everything was so colourful full on inspiration for my quotes book quote. Fun giant typography reminded me of the circus :)

We found the mirrors really fun, we went from being large and fat to tall and skinny, to a whole range of mini versions of ourselves. I wonder what it would be like if we did have mini duplicates... i would get so much done... hmmm!
This was a really cool day, upstairs they had animation rooms and media, where kids could film themselves as an newsreader, or in the sky or even teletubbies land. To be honest i kind of wanted to try that out, but they're was loads of kids hehe. Fun day all in all, and very inspirational :)

Rewind the tape, and let's watch it back.

2011-03-28T02:06:00.000-07:00

So I'm back home and I found a book of poems i used to write.... they are quite personal and some people may think I'm quite emo from this but i wanted to post them, because in a way i like the creativity and flow of words, and description that i used.

Once upon a time:

Once upon a time, a heart fixed was whole,

now this heart is still split in two,

disguised by a slit, sellotaped together with the cheapest masking tape that the girl could find.

A smile which once held all the love in the world,

is now faked,

the frown hidden underneath a clown's mask, with a painted happy smile.

The girl who used to stand so tall,

is slouched,

hidden behind her knees and books, hiding herself from the world.

The light which once shone from this girl,

is hidden by darkness,

at night she is once again unseen.

Mascara rain:

I'm fed up of living,

a stupid lie,

I'm fed up of being,

locked up inside,

these poems are,

my only way out,

as my heart and soul,

screams and shouts,

Leave me!

Let me live!

Stop my heart,

from bleeding through,

stop these showers,

of mascara rain,

leaving zebra lines,

upon my face,

Let my soul,

and heart run free.

Discrimination:

The world is seperated,

by a transparent wall,

segmenting all the people,

so they won't converse at all.

Standing in a building,

In a two story city,

looking out and watching,

the war that has begun,

Between races and culture,

music and fashion,

Individuals scared,

to stride upon a land,

which they believe to be anothers.

The wrong impression being drawn,

the truth being brighter,

we need entrepreneurs and explores,

to venture forward.

Open mindness has been lost,

or was it ever there?

Discrimination in this land,

needs to be destroyed!

Stereotypical groups,

not needed to be applied

and everyone has a right to prove themselves!

It can wierd to look back at you old work, either with it being artwork, photography or literature or random outbursts of words like the ones above. Sometimes it makes you wonder where the creativity comes from.

derelict abandoned pub

2011-03-24T15:49:00.000-07:00

I went for a random walk on sunday and took my camera. There's an abandoned pub in falmouth. Inside is covered with grafitti, beams where the floors used to be and a section of it is missing a floor. It's dingy and moldy and there's areas where the wallpaper is peeling off, but this is what makes it fun and interesting to photograph. The detail and texture carries out well, especially with black and white photography, discarding the colours and allowing the shapes to provide the true forms and shadows in the photographs. If anyone is to check out this place i do recommend decent shoes, and watch out for the pigeons lol. Really fun for photo shoots as an interesting location. Been busy this week with photo shoots- but being at the other side of the camera. It was interesting to see the side of the model more and play out more eccentric roles as Alice in wonderland. Four shoots in 3 days is really tiring and I am quite shattered, but they were exciting to do and i found myself getting into the character. I hope the photographer thought the same :) Anyways I'll stop boring you now.... toodles! x x

Website is up and running!

2011-03-22T07:45:00.001-07:00

So my website's finally up, and yes I'm a little excited :) This really makes you feel like you've taken a more proffessional approach. So it's all ready for easter, I will be updating it as much as i can and this blog will probably become a little more personal aswell

So check it out on www.natashaaldred.com or www.natashaaldred.co.uk

Let us know what you think :)

JDStone- Unreal Experimental

2011-03-17T16:07:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to put these images up for a while now, last year i did a cd cover and cd illustration for a close friend. The cd was for a talented keyboardist, into his prog rock, his music is experimental, new and fresh. The influences of his interest in rock can be heard and experienced through his work. It was a honour to design this cover illustration. The typography was also worked on by JDStone. Through doing the cover we kept in contact, exchanging ideas and roughs, so we could both pull together something we were both proud of. His cd is on sale, contact him on the below links for details or to listen to the songs.

Check out JDstone's blog and his youtube

I've been thinking recently that there's been alot of changes and tricky situations which i know i can pull myself through, I've been feeling more positive and enjoying my uni work and my renewed creativity. I missed it. I now know that what I've wanted all along, this course and creativity is what i want my life to be about. I can't let things hold me back and I need to grasp any opportunity life throws at me. I need it, it's what I've always wanted and for a long time i forgot that. Sorry this has been more personal than usual, sometimes you need to write things down just to make them clear to yourself.

Duck races and swan's dribble

2011-03-15T08:37:00.000-07:00

I'm currently doing a poster for swan lake, so i thought it would be fun to go capture some swan's in action. Its been really sunny today so the lighting was perfect, plus i got the chance to finally use my macro camera lens for the first time since buying it. I was lucky that a lady was feeding them all (good timing) so i got to see the swan's and ducks up close and watch the way they eat. The swan's would take the bread from her then dip it in the water, kind of like we do with soup. The detail i got from that lens made me snap happy so I've now got a bank of images just on swan's and ducks. Hope you like them... now to pick some to draw and conceptually create layouts :) toodles!

Walking clocks and circus shadows

2011-03-13T10:10:00.001-07:00

This is a neat rough for the illustrated quotes book. I've enjoyed this so much that i had to show you. Can't wait to get the colour, collage and photos on there and bring out the circus theme more. The quote is;

'Time is a circus, always packing up and moving away'- Ben Hecht

Drawing shadows and making clock people was so fun, and i may think about making a short story about them some day :) Watch this space for the finished version soon :)

Shutter Six

2011-03-10T09:29:00.000-08:00

Just a drawing of a six (6) for the third year illustrated quotes book. The quotes book has a double page spread of each third years work and chosen quote. This has in the past been distributed to agents and clients and is becoming a collectable. Now i just need to think of a cool way to illustrate my chosen quote. Little excited to see something published. Watch this space... I'm feeling creative at the momment :)

Website Planning

2011-03-08T14:27:00.001-08:00

Finally signed up for website designing :) and I'm so excited to see it up an running. Had our first session last week and started putting together a home page. These are just a few sneaky previews on how the website is going to look. Been having so much fun doing these :) hehe!

Not long to wait! :)

Attitude!

2011-03-05T13:38:00.001-08:00

The photographs above are from a rockstar shoot i did with some friends. There are more to come or check out my facebook page. The shoot is for an old editorial i found in Elle magazine about female rockstars. The images I'm going to produce for these will be more edgy and focussing on a dazed and confused style.

Today i met up with a local wedding photographer who was lovely enough to lend me some tips and advice on how to shoot a wedding, which i have been asked to do this September :) The gentleman was really helpful and we had a good laugh, it was nice to hear these pointers from some-one whose work is fantastic and really recommended. So all in all it's been a good day :)

Fairytale magical media

2011-02-23T13:48:00.001-08:00

So these are my finals for my Grimms fairytale project, Folio society style. They look so much better mounted :) The first two are Rumplestiltskin, followed by Snow White, Little Red Cap and Tom Thumb. I've really enjoyed this project, learned loads on the way and i can finally say that i think i may have found my style... going to try this out with a few different projects and see if it works. Hoping these will be featured in my portfolio and my website which i will soon be learning to make. :) Hope you enjoy :)

Preview

2011-02-20T16:55:00.000-08:00

These are just a few of the images I've been creating for a grimms fairytales project. The project has taken me longer than i thought but fortunately i feel like i have gained alot from this. Mixing my photography with pen work and collage was never an easy task for myself, but i feel like I'm almost there, and i am actually happy with my outcomes so far. There's been alot going on at the moment and unfortunately due to circumstances i have been unable to keep up my 365 day blog, which i will hopefully restart again when the circumstances have gone away. Toodle peeps :)

Lady Gaga Shoot

2011-01-24T05:16:00.001-08:00

I took these for a competition called 'women as the photographer' which was all about how women are viewed. I really wanted to look at the 'Independent woman' and 'the woman of today.' I chose inspiration from Lady Gaga, as she is one of the most influential women out there today, independent, strong plus in her own individual realm of creativity. The model above is the beautiful Holly Locket. She was a pleasure to work with and really helped me bring out my creativity in the shoot with amazing angles. :) So hopefully fingers crossed and wait for the results. But keep your eyes peeled for some more shoots like these coming up soon :)

The Outsider by Albert Camus

2011-01-15T12:51:00.000-08:00

Finally uploaded these images. I was going to enter these into the folio society but unfortunately missed the deadline. The image at the top is an idea for the cover. The folio society don't put any text on there covers apart from the spine area. I have also been practising my photography and transfer prints with the 3 pages which have been illustrated from quotes in the book. I would really appreciate any constructive criticism?

Christmas Badge Designs

2011-01-13T12:24:00.000-08:00

Over the christmas period i spent the first week making christmas presents for some close friends. I made the cards using playing cards with ribbon and mixed media to make each one personal to the person i was making it for. I then photographed these and made badges with the cropped versions as Decoupage Button badges :) These were so fun, and gave me abit of time away from uni work

People watching with spectoscopes :)

2010-12-08T17:13:00.000-08:00

Finally got back into the whole location drawing malarky. This is no longer part of our uni work this year, but i hope to keep it going as it can sometimes help me relax, plus people watch for some interesting characters and ideas for stories and reference :)

Auction piece

2010-11-30T16:12:00.000-08:00

Auction piece for uni, to raise money for our quotes book. Alongside us students the tutors are also submitting work to sell, as well as Michael Foreman and Quentin Blake :) a little exciting. I hope we can raise as much as we can tomorrow, as the quotes book is a massive part of our uni year, which holds a double page spread from each student as part of an agency. This is then distributed to other agencies, companies and shows like New designers and New Blood etc.

Prostate cancer awareness

2010-11-17T14:37:00.001-08:00

Important: These images are just for uni project work and are not part of the NHS campaign.

This is the poster i put together to provide awareness of Prostate Cancer. This subject is not focussed on as much as Breast Cancer and Lung cancer but it is the 2nd most dangerous cancer for men. This cancer can be silent and may not cause any symptoms, but can start from the age of 50.

These two images above are hand outs from my campaign. There will be four altogether, but for this project i have done two finals and the other two as neat visuals. These provide abit more information into Prostate cancer in bitesize amounts, so as not to overwhelm the reader. I decided to do this after i went to the doctors for information about the subject. I was suprised when the information only came out as computer print offs rather than leaflets which could be read, maybe in the waiting room of the doctors.

my heart... my pendulum

2010-10-28T14:58:00.000-07:00

"I've made out a will; I'm leaving myself"

by Simon Armitage

I've made out a will; I'm leaving myselfto the National Health. I'm sure they can usethe jellies and tubes and syrups and glues,the web of nerves and veins, the loaf of brains,and assortment of fillings and stitches and wounds,blood - a gallon exactly of bilberry soup -the chassis or cage or cathedral of bone;but not the heart, they can leave that alone.

They can have the lot, the whole stock:the loops and coils and sprockets and springs and rods,the twines and cords and strands,the face, the case, the cogs and the hands,

but not the pendulum, the ticker;leave that where it stops or hangs.
I love this poem, the description from Simon Armitage is amazing. For my 2nd project of the year i decided to illustrate this poem. I would like to apologise if this image offends anyone. This was a fun image to make, I had a few problems at the start as i made a leather heart to begin with but found out from a tutor that it need to be a stronger image. I then ordered a lambs heart which i then sewed up. I wanted to describe the last part of the poem, where the rest of the body is being taken away leaving the heart in the dark, where it's stopped.
Also as i said in my earlier blog i have set up the website for my 365 day photography project it is called Zeitgeist, follow the link please. I will get the images up soon :)
http://chickenwinglikesphotos.blogspot.com
Copyright of Natasha Aldred

not tested on animals

2010-10-28T13:56:00.000-07:00

I've finally got round to putting these images up. So I've finally started the third and final year at uni, scary! This time next year i will have hopefully graduated :) So for my first project to start the final year of i decided to re-package the boots 'natural collection' cosmetics brand. The original packaging i personally find boring and out of date, being a boots employee i see these items quite often. So let's jazz it up. Keeping to the natural theme and wanting to make the brand look more stylish and proffessional, i headed to the zoo for photographs and drawings. This was so fun! I also used feathers to print from to create soft delicate patterns :)

I really enjoyed this project and it's outcome :)

I will hopefully be updating this alot more quite soon, also i will be adding a new blog, which i will advertise on here, where i will hopefully complete a 365 day photography project, so look out for this space... It should start from the day before halloween, so look out for updates from the 31st october! lets get that camera clicking :) take care x x

Swimming directions

2010-09-27T10:48:00.001-07:00

With it being the summer holidays, I've been busy with work and random holidays to Filey and Leeds Festival, both were amazing and spent with my closest peeps. I've also celebrated my 21st birthday, aye I'm getting quite old now, but the one thing missing was any artistic influence apart from photographs and the odd location drawing. Which i may put up sometime soon. When the holidays started my stepdad met a tree surgeon on his milk round and was cheeky enough to recieve two lovely pieces of wood from the tree. As we always have problems with delivery drivers finding it hard to find our house he decided he wanted some signs made. So looking through typography books, i drew out the text, allowing jud enough room to cut this out. The signs were then varnished and ready for me to paint. I've never been able to use oil paints, but after a while found them extremely easy to use, and a challenge to paint on wood. So now with a week to go before heading back to falmouth, I think the creativeness has flooded back in. I'm looking forward to the year to come, Hopefully there will be more posts up very soon :)

Bacon hearts

2010-06-04T13:12:00.000-07:00

For my last uni project i chose a 2 day editorial. The article is about how processed meat increases heart disease risk. Looking into the project i decided to make bacon and sausages into a heart, to represent the grease and fat. Salt was then stencilled into a blood pressure monitor. To define these i drew the images out using crosshatching. The lines at the side represent the blood pressure rising and the colour red, symbolises the danger. I really enjoyed doing this but unfortunately i could not touch the heart after, it looked too disgusting to eat. Maybe the editorial hit me after all. Now to enjoy the beach and wait for assessment *fingers crossed.*

The Erl King

2010-06-04T13:02:00.001-07:00

Finally my blog has allowed me to upload these images. Using the images below taken with a film camera i scanned them in and started to work into these 3 pieces to adapt a story. The Erl King being a story about virgin girls entering the woods and getting leered in by the Erl King who takes away there innocence and turns them into song birds. There is a twist at the end, which i have chosen not to give away in my illustrations. But if you would like to read on the story can be found in "Angela Carter's The Bloody Chamber."

I have chosen to use photoshop to mix and match photographs and drawn images. I am happy with the turn out. I hope to use this technique in the future and learn new ways to improve it.

The theme of Innocence

2010-05-24T08:51:00.000-07:00

I have taken this shoot with my new Cannon T70 film camera. The camera itself is a beauty and sounds amazing when the photos are taken. :) The photoshoot is based on an adult narrative by Angela Carter, called The Erl-King. Through this story virgin girls get lost in the woods and are leered in by the Erl-king where he destroys their innocence and turns them into birds. With this i wanted to look closer at the theme of innocence. The shoot was fun to do and a little different to my usual shoots. I was looking at the brightness of the character in the harsh woods, the size of her compared and the softness. The model who's blog is http://hannah-f-b.blogspot.com really got into character and was perfect for the shoot :) I am going to use a couple of these photos to illustrate and create some stronger illustration pieces :)

Superhero vs Supervillain!

2010-05-20T12:34:00.000-07:00

These are from an old shoot, photographed in an old run down pub, but the graffiti was awesome! A shot, to provide a sense of 60's super-hero with the theme of a slight fetish.. This shoot was fun to do and the models really got into character :) I miss having this confidence under the influence of a camera. I'm hoping to gain this back and retain it :)

Kids in canon lenses???

2010-05-15T12:23:00.000-07:00

So guys, I bet you're wondering why the crazy name.... well today while i was "writing the rest the of my essay" ha! I bid for this gorgeous SLR camera on ebay :) can't wait for it to arrive and hopefully try and find a fish eye lens for it... hmmm... Thinking maybe getting abit of black and white film-age going going on! :) Also even though Thursday was two days ago, i still have a huge smile on my face. Princess Pavilion was stage to an awesome band called Kids In Glass Houses and were supported by two awesome bands. The first being Spy Catcher, who set the standard high for the night, engaging with the audience and gave off an awesome performance with their songs... "rock is cursed", "you got Soul" and " I hate ppl". I recommend for a great performance and a catchy tune. The Second Band was General Fiasco who followed beautifully, the band was energetic like the first and the lead singer showed of his Irish vocals, when performing with the band and by solo. Kids in Glass Houses came on and the crowd went mad! They were performers and played games with the audience. Starting up multi-tasking song wars, bringing together mosh pits and was found laughing at the crowd, as we all went mad. The atmosphere was electric, and smiles were seen on everyone's faces. At the end they came on after the encor, telling everyone that they would do a signing. In all the gigs I've been to, I have never seen this happen. So we queued up with tickets at the ready. The band was lovely and seemed generally pleased to have a chat while signing our tickets. Meeting the band made my night, it was then followed by more dancing and a few more drinks in the local clubs in Falmouth. But to see them being like that made you realise that they haven't lost their passion for their music and fans like most bands do when they become big. They were generally happy to chat to their fans.

I know there's not much work photos in this post but i wanted to add something different and fun to this blog.

2010-05-12T15:36:00.000-07:00

Ok maybe I'm a little bored.... got an essay due soon and i am unable to write! Writers block completely when it comes to facts. So i thought I'd add some extra drawings... Just a few that i do when sat in cafes or on the train... just drawing people. I like to make stories up about them. Some may look like Sid Vicious, others are cute couples, and some i make up when i hear random conversations. It's fun to do and keeps my drawing going. :) I would like to make a Zine out of these some day! I think it would be fun for others to see the people I've met or seen

Autistic Brain

2010-05-12T09:45:00.000-07:00

I decided to give myself a short project of a 3 day editorial, after reading the New Scientist, I found an article about Autism and how it shouldn't be known as a disability as it can hold many advantages and the people who are autistic can be strong in so many ways like ; memory, attention to intricate details, musical pitch recognition, visuospatial skills and rational decision making.

I am very interested in this subject and would like to look further into autism and other functions like this.

The article i chose to base my project on was New Scientist- Autistic Brain.

This has helped me develop more photoshop skills and my mark making skills.

Over the weekend I saw Mic Macs at the cinema directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet. The same director as Amalie. The Film was fantastic, quirky and deep. Artistic in every way, another one of Jean-Pierre Jeunet's amazing pieces.... I would recommend anyone to watch this!!

Photoshop "Phoniness?"

2010-05-09T04:13:00.000-07:00

So... i think I'm up to date :) For my latest project i thought I would return back to my English lessons at high school, and pick up the book that a lot of my class mates hated. The Catcher in the rye, which was once banned, is a bildungsroman and tells the story of Holden Caulfield as he is coming of age. Everything is "phony" to Holden, and he hates change, and watching innocence and purity disappear. I was able to borrow a baseball glove for this book jacket. I photographed it and drew it out. Using Print and sewing for the words, i then ventured on to my attempt of assembling this on photoshop. Not knowing many photoshop skills before i feel that i have gained more knowledge in this subject :) Remember don't fall off the edge of the cliff where the field of rye grows and the children play, keep your innocence, don't fall into the world of adulthood where life is full of phoniness! Enjoy having the peter pan syndrome.... and never fully grow up :)

Tell a story through the eyes of a parrot

2010-05-09T04:01:00.000-07:00

This was part of my negotiated projects. I spent a week on these images for the Hugo Boss Competition. The main Brief was to design a t-shirt using the templates and a parrot for the Spring/ summer 2011 edition. Unfortunately i didn't win, but it gave me a good insight into working in new ways. I focussed mainly on the colours and patterns in this project. Looking at the parrot as a repeater and how fashion is a repeats itself like the parrot. Also by researching into the parrot i found that they have a wide eye-view and an amazing hearing. So like stories are repeated and past on few the years.... i wonder what these stories sound like and look like through a parrots eyes?

Colourful creepy critters

2010-05-09T03:46:00.000-07:00

When i first found out that i had to illustrate a children's book for uni, i wasn't looking forward to it one bit. We got given the texts and i chose "in the attic". The text gave loads of room for adaption and experimentation and i soon came up with the idea of a squirrel living in a tree. Using watercolour and bight colours i transformed creepy critters into colourful, friendly creatures. This was so much fun, completely different to my usual style and gave me a chance to draw animals in new ways :)

Bleeding Ink

2010-05-09T02:44:00.001-07:00

Tattoo designs :) so where to start. The reason I'm putting this up, is because i have just been asked to design an old mate's tattoo. I love doing this. It's so personal to the person and you get to know them better. Also tattoos can look sweet when inked by an awesome tattoist. The body is like a canvas and needs painting :)

The first one on this page is my most recent design. A friend of mine wanted something ionic with a japanese geisha to go on his ribs. Geisha are known for their beauty- alike pin up girls are in britian. They are controlled by the men, like puppets to a puppeteer. The Koi Karp was added after to add continuity to his tattoos, which made an accidental wrap around. Happy mistake :)

The Spider was for friend i speak to on Dewsbury Market when I'm at home. He was going through a personal rehab and wanted a spider on his foot. The Rehab got me thinking and a pheonix was produced to symbolise starting a new.

The Latter one in colour was designed for an old work mate, she had asked for a yellow rose and 4 other roses to portray her children. Working with colours i added the blue and pink for a new born baby approach of a boy and a girl.

Perfume

2010-05-08T18:22:00.000-07:00

The Images are based on the book "Perfume" by Patrick Suskind. The Brief i wrote for myself was to make a book which acted out as the main character Grenouille's diary. Grenouille is an amazing human being who has an extroadinary sense of smell, Although this sense of smell leads him onto a path of murder as he tries to gain the essences of virgin girls. With this project it helped me to create images which i felt Grenouille would be thinking. Allowing me to express emotion through touch and smell aswell as imagery. If anyone is interested in seeing anymore the rest can be found on my flikr page x x x

"So the memories begin" the lion roared

2010-05-08T16:49:00.000-07:00

I wanted to start off this blog with a few images from my illustrated book in year one "the Courtship of Mr Lyon" All drawn onto fabric with sewn and photographed images.