The 'Christmas Look'

Last year and this year I've been paying more attention to what kind of things are considered 'Christmasy'. I tend to still think of Christmas colours as green, red, gold and silver, and in addition to Christmas colours there are winter colours like icy blue and white. It's strange to still have that idea considering how long that's not actually been the case. At the risk of sounding old, it's probably due to what I was used to seeing as a child. A lot of Christmas wrapping paper has floral patterns instead of snowflakes and is bright pink instead of red.
Something in particular stood out to me though and that's the use of owls, usually in hats and scarves, on wrapping paper and Christmas cards. Its a fun little idea and not that surprising really, considering how owls became quite trendy. That and Russian dolls (which when I first glanced at them I thought they were wise men) seem to be trying to edge their way in next to snowmen, robbins and snowflakes. And of course Scottie Dogs in hats- great news for all dog lovers.
Christmas has long since moved away from its original purpose for many to make way for Santa, Christmas trees and reindeer and as long as its making money, it will continue to grow into something different. Its great news for artists who want to try new colours and ideas and generally just want to keep ideas fresh and fluid. For me, I will always try to keep in mind what Christmas is actually about and simply enjoy all the different looks its bound to have and take full advantage of any creative avenues it may go down.

Flowers (Work in progress)

Last year I was hill walking and took some photos, so I've started an illustration of one of them. Its a little flat looking so far but it's on the right track.

Goldfish

I don't have much in the way of illustration to show for the last couple of weeks as I've been dealing with the somewhat boring and tedious part of being an illustrator. On the other hand I spent a fun week going around galleries in Edinburgh and Glasgow, so I really can't complain. It's always refreshing to spend time away from your own work and looking a someone else's (even if a few modern art pieces had me totally perplexed). I also spent a week re-decorating my studio! Although I'm not sure having a cream coloured wall in front of my desk was a wise decision… Anyway here's a recent painting of a goldfish.

New online shop

You might have noticed my online shop has changed. You can still buy prints (including framed prints) canvases, phone cases, bags, kitchenware, clocks and cushions just like before. If you want to have a look around my new shop click here

Saints & Sinners Branding

This is the branding for the new local start up business Saints & Sinners Shakes and Smoothies. It was a fun project for me as I love illustrating food and the layouts were quite straight forward on the menu boards. There is a high chance these menu boards will have more added to them so there is some extra space with that in mind.

logo

smoothies/ milkshakes menu 1

smoothies/ milkshakes menu 2

lunch menu

signboard

Beetles

Some more beetle sketches.

Clarinet Sketches

I forgot I had these. I did these around the same time as the 2Cello work. More or less the same as the ones I drew back in February but with different instruments. The saxophone is the same one as before but I just thought I'd see what it looks like with a bit of colour.

Smoothies, Sweets, Bluberries and Beetles

I've been working on some branding recently for a smoothie/ milkshake bar. I've decided to put a sneak preview up. Here's the logo and a bit of illustration. Since there is going to be a little wait before I can actually upload the project there may be a few sketches being posted here to keep me busy. Last night I drew a beetle. Not for any particular reason but I think they look quite interesting.

2Cellos

I was shown these guys on Youtube and really enjoyed the amount of energy in their live shows. Stjepan Hauser and Luka Sulic are so passionate about their music that they are just full of energy and movement. I wanted to try and imitate that movement and activeness in my work to a certain degree. It was also quite fun just to paint the instruments. A while ago I sketched some violins and a saxophone with ink but they didn't have anyone playing them so this made a nice change.

Jeans

Mother's Day and Father's Day Cards

More Poison Frogs

Frog (acrylic on canvas)

Internship and London

Last month I had an internship with Advocate Art in London. It was my first time in London so I spent plenty time doing all the touristy stuff and visited a load of art galleries. One of the things I enjoyed most was the Natural History Museum, even though I didn't get to go round all of it (wasted too much time in the science museum...) I took some pictures so that I could illustrate/ sketch a few when I got home.

Tiger Card (high quality)

So here's the high quality version of my last post. I've got my computer back and I had a chance to get a better image.

Peacock

This is just a part of some work I've been doing recently. There's more to come.

Musical Instrument Sketches

My computer had to go for repairs so I did a few sketches to keep myself occupied. It was a nice excuse to do some ink/ paint work and ignore all digital work. 

 

Nudel brand work

I recently completed some branding for Nudel, a new noodle bar in Falkirk. The job included logo, flyer, menu board,  front sign and window stickers. This is far more design based than my other work but I still really enjoyed it. Here is the final logo and one of the pages of sketchbook work that went into making it.