ON THE BEACH
Life was one big beach party for a couple of weeks recently when I was asked to provide photo realistic beach signs for a marketing event at a famous shopping mall in the midlands.
It was re-stressed that the signs must be dis-stressed and very weather beaten. So I started with some reference shots of bamboo and wooden fencing in the back garden and with clever use of textures (and a few hundred layers in Photoshop) they began to take shape.
Here’s a small selection. Double click the images to supersize them but please remember that they are strictly copyright.
FRUITY YOGHURTS
MONKEY AROUND
•MONKEY AROUND
This is the first of 3 new games I’ve been working on for Interplay.
This was a deviation from my usual method of ‘super realising’ the game itself. Instead we took a more creative approach and created some fun monkey characters to populate the front of the game box.
I’m particularly pleased with the cheekiness of these little monkeys.
Other than these games I’ve been full-on occupied with creating Hot Frog’s 30 anniversary blog as well as preparing a HFG@30 summer garden party and frog treasure hunt.
The blog is up and running and being added to weekly.
http://www.hfg30.blogspot.com
there’ll be a competition announced shortly for all my clients to take part in.
Please feel free to double click and supersize these blog images but remember they are all strictly copyright. ©
UNDERWATER WONDERLAND
This was part of an exciting set of greetings cards that should be out later this year.
Again I’m not at liberty to give any more details but when they hit the shelves I’ll certainly display the full set.
Incidentally, another reason for my lack of recent posts has been my Mac suddenly deciding it needed a new power unit and logic board.
I was prepared to wait over a weekend for the repair but it has been 3 WEEKS now, and I still haven’t received it back.
Consequently I’m now enjoying a shiny new iMac, that fastest Mac on the planet at the moment.
Yes, I love it but I had a deep meaningful bond with my G5 and I want it back!
Please feel free to supersize the images in this blog by double clicking but remember that all are strictly copyright. ©
BEER BEER WE WANT MORE BEER!
World Cup Fever has reached Hot Frog too with these three beer labels for local breweries. Don’t forget it will bring us good luck to get stocked up on these ales prior to KO on June 12th.
Wish I was on a royalty per bottle!
Please enlarge the images by double clicking but remember that they are all strictly copyright. ©
WALLY ON HIS TRAVELS!
As mentioned below I have just completed around 50 Wally Woppapotamus pictures for his first book. Just about all these were in pencil with one or two full colour ‘specials’.
Wally is a great character to work with and I’m hoping he achieves the success he deserves for his creator, Helen Bonney.
Here he is seen being accidentally chosen as a christmas gift by a young girl in line to meet Father christmas.
Another reason for my absence from this blog for a week or two was the absence of my Mac from my desk! but more of that later (or earlier, since this blog lists chronologically)
Please feel free to supersize Wally with a double click but remember he is strictly copyright. ©
MEDICATION
I realise that I don’t use this space as a ‘proper’ blog, and just as well since I’ve been suspiciously quiet for over a month now.
Various reasons I suppose, one of them being the intensity of work, that is, the mad panic at the end of a project to get amendments approved by delivery date.
These 3 pieces are a case in point. I illustrated, or artworked, over 50 packs of meds for Elmwood (and this was just the overspill from the ever busy Myles!)
Most of the pack wouldn’t stand up to display in an illustration blog so here’s just a taste of the more artistic few.
I also completed over 50 illustrations for Helen Bonney’s Wally Woppapotamus book, see a single example above.
Please feel free to double click and supersize these images but remember that they are strictly copyright. ©
WASHING POWDERS
•WASHING POWDERS
Now these two packs, done for the same client as the 3 below, were in luscious cmyk full colour, and so I could really go to town.
From photo reference of Jasmine taken 2 years ago outside our kitchen window, lilies from Switzerland, oranges shot in our back garden (not growing I hasten to add) I pieced together and re-illustrated these still life scenes.
During the ‘re-building’ process, and before the illustration part begins, the images look dreadful but I’ve learned not to panic at this stage and keep forging ahead with Count Arthur Strong, Tom Brown’s Schooldays and Harry Potter for company.
Please double click these images to get a close up view but remember that all my images are strictly copyright. ©
WASHING LIQUIDS
• WASHING LIQUIDS
I always enjoy packaging design and illustration. It’s one of the subjects I was particularly interested in at college, so to be now producing my own is very satisfying.
These 3 labels were limited by single spot colours (ie. not cmyk), so they proved a challenge.
Please double click to supersize and remember that all my images are strictly copyright. ©
BUG BELLY UPDATE
•BUG BELLY UPDATE
This year certainly started with an epic rush of work. I think I’ve already produced around 60 or 70 illustrations to date.
These range from labels for a cheese pack, beer bottles, medical packaging, washing up liquids, washing powders, pop-up greetings cards and another poster in the set for Nationwide.
I also managed to sweep aside commissioned work long enough to think about some new sketches for Bug Belly as suggested buy an interested editor.
Since I’m not at liberty to display most of the other work at this moment in time, here is one of the new sketches featuring the ever hungry Bug Belly striving to gather up a few furry, wriggling spiders.
I’ve also produced some new full colour illustration work for Bug Belly but I don’t want to jeopardise his possible success by splashing too much of him around. It might be unlucky to do so, not that I’m superstitious, touch wood.
Please double click any image to supersize it but remember they are all strictly copyright. ©
OLD YEAR / NEW YEAR
•OLD YEAR / NEW YEAR
Happy New Year to all. A little late I guess, but still January!
Plenty of work was done at the end of last year including a fantastic game called Discovery Garden for Forrest Pruzan in Seattle.
It afforded me some brilliant illustrations to complete, including the box cover, sides, inner box and gameboard.
Here’s a section from the incredibly detailed game board and hopefully I’ll post most of the other artwork up here too.
As I type this I have various jobs stacked up in the InTray – beer labels, greetings cards, cheese labels and another game.
It’s promising to be an exciting year especially since it’s a ‘special’ year for Hot Frog. But more on that later.
Please click on the image to make it huuuuge and remember that all are strictly copyright. ©
WOPPAPOTAMUS GREETINGS
• WOPPAPOTAMUS GREETINGS
Wally Woppapotamus is pretty busy these days. Helen Bonney his creator keeps him hard at work meeting children all over the galaxy but she did manage to ask him to pose for this quick snap which I turned into a Christmas card for Helen.
I thought I’d share it with you and wish all my readers, clients and imaginary co-workers and colleagues, a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year. See you all in 2010.