Mengistu's University Blog

What I'm reading:

Hand to Eye: Contemporary Illustration, A. Hyland & R. Bell, 2003

Magnum, thames & Hudson, 2007

Getting my head around 'contemporary' and how I fit into the illustration world is not easy but I think I am peeking over the horizon of understanding. In Hand to Eye's introduction it talks about the the integration of technology in illustration and graphic design and that although software such vectors created a 'new stylistic movement' it pointed out how easy it is that a, 'unique illistrative style can be cloned'. One of my favorite illustrators, hungarian David Foldvari was quoted in the introduction, "with digital illustration, it seems that a certain style becomes fashionable, everyone jumps on it" and "it becomes very boring very quickly". foldvari adds, "It's the same as music: knowing how to play a piano doesn't necessarily make you a good musician".

This was written ten years ago and the technology has survived the threat of becoming novel and traditional techniques have survived the threast of becoming obsolete and illustrtators simply use any methods they feel are needed to realise the images the seek to create. I have experimented with using texture, found or photographed myself and used digital software to create, integrate and manipulate into an image I want.

I think that when it comes to communication and narrative arts you can tell the story any way you want to. Being a good storyteller is the key and lots of other artists vary their styles, whilst also remaining distinct.

the idea I had for this competition is pigeons and how they are such an integral cizitens of the City of London as much as the human population. They have their own lives and rely on the city just like us. They even famously did their part in winning WWII for the allied forces and had medals of bravery to show for it. their image went from stardom as a main attraction in Trafalgar Square to rock bottom as certified vermin and suffered widespread starvation after laws wer passed to stop feeding them. They have recently roused curiosity in their behaviour of travelling on the trains and I aim to show how they enjoy the view from all of Londons high attractions.

International Society of Typographic Designers www.istd.org.uk

This site is a members site for Typographic pro's and enthusiasts. It has a very limited gallery and sells journals of all the latest and best from the typographic world. But because it is a selling site it shows the viewer next to nothing and the site is a waste of time for browsing.

Royal Society of Arts www.thersa.org/sda

This is a bit of a 'Dragon's Den' of design entries. There are a ton of competitions to enter but of which are there to improve life so all of the entries seem well worthwhile. Nearly all briefs are of a practical nature.

Young Creatives Network http://www.ycn.org/showcase

YCN was an interesting site and full of active briefs to look at, showcase pages, artists portfolios and a diverse range of media entries. The showcases and portfolios are divided into disciplines, there's an option to just showcase your stuff and compare what you can do compared to what your peers at your level are doing. I will be keeping an eye on this site from now on!

Penguin Design Award www.penguin.co.uk/static/cs/uk/0/minisites/penguindesignaward

Got my first brief of the final year today and it's gonna be a competition entry for The London Transport Museum. I have to produce a poster and the theme is London Stories. It can be any story, fititious or true, any era, legends urban or historic and the prizes are £2000, £1000 and £750 for top 3 places and the top 50 entries will be exhibited at the London Transport Museum.

The brief had two options for competitions though. The other was a choice of 5 Typographic designs for the International society of Typographic Designers and the categories were: Sound Bites (Audio clips); Circus; Books Still?; Food for Thought?; Unsung Heroes and Heroines.

Storytelling I think, is what I want to do as an illustrator whether it's making  multiple drawings to form a narrative like a comic or a single image like a poster which tells a scene in some way. Even an less descriptive picture which is left open for interpretation, whatever way it's told I want to inspire thought and stir imagination with images I can create.

Storyboards, caricatures, murals, children's books, posters, cartoons, comics, webcomics, advertising, editorial illustrations, merchandise, T-shirts, character design for games and movies, animation cells, CGI, pop art portraits, sculpture, 3D models, typography.

These were fields that I have experience with or that I have some interest in. I am passionate about cartoons, comics, caricatures and portraits. 

I am curious about drawing for children's books, animals, webcomics, typography, character design and digital design. 

What I aim to discover about these fields. I want to be able to bring something fresh to any given field. I have so much I want to do that I would happily have a go at every single one. I have a very cartoony style that I cant shake off, so I will probably stay within that spectrum.

What skills and abilities do I have? I have some intermediate digital skills and a lot of practical experience in drawing. I work freelance as a caricaturist, portrait painter in watercolours, acrylics, pencils, pen and inks, charcoal, pastel and digital. I also paint wall murals and I experiment in creating images for all kinds of projects.

What skills could I acquire? I want to discover more about digital techniques because I think it will give me access to more fields and create images more effectively then using all the various specific materials involved. For example I want to use more textures in my illustrations and I can use photos of materials such as skin, earth and plastic and add them digitally and sketch on a graphics tablet and add effects to my designs.

What do I currently enjoy in work and life? I like the freedom of being a freelance artist and designing from a brief. It's very rewarding for me to present my finished piece and to share what I've done with the public. 

How do I work? I like to draw the physical figure, whether it be human or otherwise. I am better at drawing on real life than creating strange creatures. I am discovering a new fondness of drawing objects and playing with real textures over line drawing. I will happily work for a crowd or create from my studio. I would like to draw on location more often.

This is a commission which is a gift from one set of friends to another.

I thought about the positioning and I wanted it to look like the couple are still walking that aisle years later into the present where they are loving sharing a meal.

Superfamily

A caricature I did for a friend and her little family. I suggested she ditch the glasses just for this pic because it'd look like the superheroes had both forgotten to take off their disguises ;)