3x3,The Magazine of Contemporary Illustration

Winners Again

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 20:52:00 +0000

We just got word from Applied Arts Magazine that two of our covers for 3x3 are winners in the 2010 Applied Arts Photography & Illustration annual coming out in May. This makes the third time this year that the cover by Nick Dewar has been honored and the Applied Arts judges also selected Krister Flodin's cover for Issue 12.

Strand Totebag Design Contest

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 19:42:00 +0000

The Strand Book Store has partnered with the School of Visual Arts, TOON Books, Drawn & Quarterly and Fantagraphics Books to host a tote bag design contest.

Beginning March 1, 2010, artists from around the world are invited to submit original illustrations featuring the Strand Book Store.

Contest Dates
March 1-March 31, 2010

Design Requirements
The illustration must represent the Strand Book Store.
The illustration must include the artist's signature, "Strand Book Store NYC" and "strandbooks.com" or a representation of the Strand logo.
Size of Illustration: Artwork must be no larger than 11"w x 10"h.
Line Weight: Use a minimum of a 2 pt. rule.
Halftones: Must be at a 40 line screen or less, with percentages no less than 20% or greater than 60%.
No Trapping: If colors come in contact with each other they CAN NOT overlap.
Typestyles: Should be no smaller than 20 pt. on 15 oz. fabric with a minimum of 2 pt. rule. Do not use reverse type smaller than 22 pt. with a minimum line rule of 3 pt. Avoid serif typefaces! Their detail tends to get lost in the canvas.
Contest is open to all, aged 18 and above. The Contest is void where prohibited.

Judges:
Françoise Mouly, Art Editor of The New Yorker & Editorial Director of TOON Books
Art Spiegelman, Pulitzer Prize winning comic artist
Steven Heller, co-chair MFA Designer as Author Program, School of Visual Arts
R. Sikoryak, creator of the book, Masterpiece Comics
Adrian Tomine, author of the bestselling book, Shortcomings

Barbara Nessim: Chronicles of Beauty

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 20:52:00 +0000

There was a reception for Chronicles of Beauty-- Barbara Nessim's new photo-collage work last night at the Conde Nast Building, 4 Times Square. On view were a wonderful assortment of recent work which included a series of digital prints on aluminum as well as a mock up for a 28-foot high image that will be going up in the new Kimpton Hotel in Chelsea.

If you get a chance drop by, the work is in the lobby til March 25th.

Congratulations to Milton Glaser

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 16:51:00 +0000

Milton Glaser received the 2009 National Medal of Arts from President Barack Obama last Thursday (the first time for a graphic designer). He was one of twelve to receive the honor for their outstanding achievements and support of the arts. The medals were presented by the president and Mrs. Michele Obama in an East Room ceremony at the White House.

In presenting the award President Obama said, "The 2009 National Medal of Arts to Milton Glaser, for a lifetime devoted to improving the way people communicate through innovation in graphic design, and for memorable visual artifacts that challenge contemporary artists and delight all Americans."

The National Medal of Arts is a White House initiative managed by the National Endowment for the Arts. Each year, the NEA organizes and oversees the National Medal of Arts nomination process and notifies the artists of their selection to receive a medal, the nation’s highest honor for artistic excellence.

"These individuals and organizations show us how many ways art works every day. They represent the breadth and depth of American architecture, design, film, music, performance, theatre, and visual art, " said NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman. "This lifetime honor recognizes their exceptional contributions, and I join the President and the country in saluting them."

In addition to Glaser the recipients include Bob Dylan, Clint Eastwood, Maya Lin, Rita Moreno, Jessye Norman, Joseph P. Riley, Jr., Frank Stella, Michael Tilson Thomas, and John Williams. As Steve Heller said in his post: "Sadly Dylan could not attend, thus making the inevitable photo-op between the poster maker and the poster subject impossible."

Click here to see the video of the presentation.

For What It's Worth No. 14

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 23:38:00 +0000

Times are tough, budgets are tight and illustrators find themselves with fewer and fewer ways to promote themselves in a meaningful way. We know about this firsthand as we're facing an ever increasing problem recruiting illustrators to fill our advertising sections in the magazine, and our problem isn't unique all print publications have seen a dramatic drop in advertising support. So when I'm told by someone I can't afford to advertise I want to say you can't afford not to. This is not a time to hunker down and lay low this is a time to promote in any and every way possible, paid and non-paid. I know it's a tough decision to make but by laying low illustrators are making it more difficult on themselves when times get better. Right now it's the safe bet for any art director to use people he or she already knows, if you're not out there letting them know you exist the ones getting the work today will be the ones getting the work tomorrow.

So you may say to yourself here he is just being self-serving, just like every other publication he's looking for ad buyers. Of course I'm always looking for illustrators to take that next step to promote themselves in our magazine but I'm here to tell you that you must find ways to promote yourself other than just putting your site up and hoping someone will find you. There was a talk last week at the Society and while I agreed with 90% of what was said about promoting yourself I disagreed with two statements. The build-your-site-and-they-will-come approach for those just starting out in the business and the avoidance of sending emails to art directors.

I'm afraid I've heard the build-it approach from way too many entrepreneurs in my past days as an ad exec and creative director. Too many people new to business believe so strongly in their product or service that they are convinced everyone will be flocking to their door starting day one. It just doesn't happen. Somehow you have to get the word out about yourself. As illustrators a non-proactive stance does nothing to build your reputation or to gain awareness of your talent. You must think of yourself as a brand, how is your talent different from every other illustrator? why should or would an art director commission you for a project? By just setting there waiting in cyberspace you're doing nothing to gain visibility. Or to get work.

There is a strong misconception that art directors are actively perusing the web for illustrators, it's just not the case. Art directors in the New York area certainly may have more time to spend on projects than outside the city but even they won't be spending time looking for new illustrators. And outside the city they are all too busy with ongoing projects--I'd be working on four or five projects at once while my New York counterparts may be only working on one or two. But we all had creative briefs to look over, meetings to attend, research to read, presentations and the like that can eat up pretty much any and all days. So don't think you can just sit idly by waiting for the phone to ring or the you've-got-mail chime. Go out there and generate some buzz.

Now is an excellent time for established artists to explore new directions, do self-generated projects, create a whole new body of work, just be sure to share those with art directors, The only caution I have is that if you feel your style has shifted significantly then you need to consider adding a non-de plume to avoid any confusion out there.

You're short on cash, what do you do to promote yourself? You use email blasts at least once a month to announce new projects, show new personal work, promote a show winner...whatever that makes relevant sense to use to promote yourself. As an art director/design director I am constantly being sent email blasts from photographers from around the world, however very few illustrators are using this method.

The nice thing about emails is that it doesn't interrupt the day of the art director or art buyer, they can read it whenever they choose to. Many times I'll grab all the photographer's emails and drop them into a separate folder to look at later. Many times I will look at an email when something else is uploading. It makes it so non-intrusive that it makes good sense to send emails out. Just don't send out too many a month, once or maximum of twice a month makes sense. But be consistent, don't do it one month and forget the second. Mark it down on your calendar, make it the second week of the month and send it out on a Wednesday. And make it personal, address it to the person you want to reach, use their name in the body of the email. Remember the desktop--virtual or physical--of any art director is littered with briefs, layouts and stacks of mail--you have a better shot at getting noticed with an email than you do with a tiny postcard.

Entering shows is another perfect way to get in front of art directors who are serving as part of the jury, an inexpensive and tried-and-true way of getting noticed. Send out quarterly promotions, but make them special, not just a postcard. Every art director knows when they get a printed postcard that you've done a mass mailing, it just doesn't make it special. Shrink your list every so often to a smaller number and send out something original.

So start an active promotional campaign. I know what will happen if you don't promote yourself, nothing. I do know if you promote yourself you at least have a shot at getting work.

SPD Winner: 3x3 Issue 13 Cover

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 22:18:00 +0000

We just got word that our cover for Issue 13 is a winner in this year's Society of Publication Designers 45th annual competition, the brilliant cover illustration by Nick Dewar. With over 5,000 entries this year, 3x3 came out a winner--this makes seven out of eight years that 3x3 has been in the winning column; in 2008 our cover for Issue 9 by Ward Schumaker was even a finalist for best cover of the year. Nick's cover was also honored recently by Communication Arts magazine.

Behind the Cover: The Anniversary Issue

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 15:46:00 +0000

This posting is a bit late in that the New Yorker anniversary issue has already appeared but this video provides some insights in the decision to do multiple covers for the issue. You'll hear from Françoise Mouly, Chris Ware, Adrian Tomine, Dan Clowes, and Ivan Brunetti as they discuss the concept behind a special four-part cover for the February 15 & 22 2010 Anniversary Issue.

Lunch with Yuko Shimizu

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 23:59:00 +0000

We had Yuko Shimizu over for lunch at the studio yesterday, Yuko has been so busy we've had to postpone our lunch several times. Not only with the business of illustration but also in a new move to her new apartment, fortunately as she says it was only 12 blocks away from where she was renting and still a decent commute to her studio in midtown. And not too far a subway ride to our studio. Her first question upon arriving, would we like her to remove her shoes? We asked why and she replied "I always remove my shows, I'm Japanese". We must add this custom, the floors would be a lot shinier.

The first part of our meeting was discussing the work of the designer Marcel Wanders, new to me but she had already heard of his work but was not familiar with his new book I'd bought. I'd seen this wonderful profile on him on Ovation and became an immediate fan, in fact one of his vase trio is on my birthday wish list already.

I have to say I'm amazed at Yuko's story, growing up in Japan she came to New York with her parents when she was in middle school. She was one year shy of beginning her English lessons in school there so there was a language barrier when she arrived--which she had to overcome. Then after four years it was back to Japan where she finished her education, attended college--a advertising and marketing major and after graduating she started working in a public relations firm. Keep in mind she was not studying art, wasn't doing art commercially, she was working in an office. In speaking with her you can tell of the frustration of her job and the desire to do art. So what does she do? She picks up and moves back to New York and starts classes at the School of Visual Arts, having her college credits she was able to skip ahead two years and then onto the graduate program and in the end starting a very successful career as an illustrator. She traded an office for a studio and hasn't looked back.

Asked about her artistic influences at home, her mother was quite the seamstress and her dad evolved into a highly acclaimed calligrapher following his retirement from the corporate world. Looking at her work you can see the influences. And she's very interested in graphic design and design in general. Working on her new digs she's bent on saving up her money to buy the real designer thing rather than the rip-off.

Now she's back teaching at SVA, she's a tough taskmaster and tries to instill the sense of the real world of illustration in her classes. And she's always traveling whether it's for pleasure or to do a workshop or speak with student and professional groups.

Her exuberence is catching and she's a great storyteller which is also evident in her work. And she's downright funny, we were all in stitches!

Talking about work, with the new mortgage she's cut back her studio space giving up her large wall for drawing we'd seen in her feature in 3x3 but she says that it's time for a change anyway and has started drawing smaller. If she needs a large wall space, there's always her new apartment.

Our conversation continued over mealtime which had a vegetarian twist with a chickpea ragout, salad with homemade vinaigrette and the vegan chocolate cake we'd first tried out on Sean Qualls capped off with espresso. Then it was her back to her studio and us to ours. We were delighted to have our visitor over and get to know her a bit more on a more personal level.

Nick Dewar's Cover A Winner

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 19:54:00 +0000

We just word today from Communication Arts that the cover of Issue 13 done by the late Nick Dewar is a winner in this year's CA Illustration Annual 51 coming out in May/June of this year. We knew it was a winner the minute we saw the sketch we're pleased that the judges at CA echoed our belief. This is the second year in a row that 3x3 has been honored in CA, last year's winner was Martin Haake for Issue 11.

Lunch with Sean Qualls

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 22:25:00 +0000

We had the pleasure of having Sean Qualls over for lunch today; a number of Sean's children's books have been in our annual and Sean was one of our judges in last year's children's show.

A somewhat-native of Florida--he was born there but his family moved to a small town in southern New Jersey when he was three months old. Sean always liked to draw and become acquainted with illustration mostly through books and album covers--he had no interest in being a children's book illustrator, not then anyway. His high school art teacher encouraged him to take two classes his senior year, someone had seen the raw talent. He went to Pratt for a couple of semesters first as an art-ed major, dropped out of the illustration program transferring to the fine arts department and then had to drop out due to financial constraints. He had every intention of going back to school, took a job at the Brooklyn Museum bookstore and went about self-educating himself as an artist which was made easy since he was surrounded by books on artists and of course the exhibits in the museum.

That lasted eight years, in the meantime he was also self-educating himself about illustration, took a class at the SVA, invited critiques from Marshall Arisman whom he credits of giving him the best advice and anyone who would take a look at his book. He also developed his list, bought lists, sent out mailers, usually postcards done at the copy shop and waited for the phone to ring. It took a long time for that to happen. One senses the trial and error of an artist finding himself, the early work was influenced by Picasso's Red and Blue periods with layers of charcoal, acrylic and oils--many thought the images to be too much on the dark side but slowly the artist matured, his style evened out though Sean will admit he's not looking for perfection, he likes things to be on the gritty side. Other odd jobs followed whether it was working as a mover or working at another bookshop or being a tech manager, all the while building his book with eventual goal being a graphic novel, or editorial. It was almost out of the blue that he got his first children's book assignment--only one of the postcard mailings he did had a child on it--obviously an editor and/or art director saw something they liked and a career was born. Sean tells us that the process can take six months or more and expects to complete at least four new projects this year.

When speaking with the soft-spoken Qualls you sense a deep seated intensity devoted to his art and practice of illustration, while he may feel that he missed some of the tuteledge he might have received if he had finished his education, he has more than managed to overcome that obstacle by self-will and self-criticism. For someone so young he has the maturity of someone far older than his years.

Sean likes to keep his style less-than-perfect and what I see is the influence of Brooklyn itself on his work. The King's County melting-pot has always had a bit less glamour than Manhattan but a warmth that comes from cheerful hellos from our neighbors. There's no slickness or high-fashion to Sean's work, it is of the people, for the people.

A vegan, we had to modify our menu to include a veggie-burger made wtih kidney beans, oats,onions, spices and parmesan cheese with a side salad and chickpea fries that were out of this world. That followed by chocolate cake, again with no egg or dairy. Thankfully our snow had melted which made Sean's walk back up Prospect Avenue less of a trudge. it's always a pleasure to get to know the personal stories of artists and how that influences the work we know about them. Sean brought his new children's book, Little Cloud adn Lady Wind by Toni Morrison & Slade Morrison.
He lives right up the street from the studio in South Slope with his illustrator wife, Selina Aiko and his young children, Isaiah and Ginger.

We'll continue to watch Sean's growth as an artist, illustrator and hopeful writer.

Editorially Speaking

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:28:00 +0000

Nat Ives reported in today's Advertising Age that magazines' newsstand recession certainly isn't over -- but it seems to be lightening up.

Many magazine publishers now reporting circulation figures for the second half of last year are again posting declines, but in most cases those declines aren't nearly as steep as the plunges that came before.

This suggests, moreover, that the momentum may be shifting for the better. Newsstand declines had been getting worse -- progressing from a 6.3% slide in the first half of 2008, compared with the same period the year prior, to an 11.1% drop in the second half of 2008, and then to a 12.4% descent in the first half of 2009, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations.

Declines returned in the second half of 2009 but decreased at many of the biggest newsstand sellers. Some titles actually posted gains, while others lost more ground than before. But the overall picture definitely suggests some brakes on the decline.

There are circumstances specific to each magazine or magazine category that could help explain the shift in momentum. Some titles, for example, faced reduced competition following a rival's closure. Sales in the first half also suffered from a dispute involving magazine distributors that disrupted the flow of some issues to the racks.

But the broad economic recession has been the chief culprit hurting magazines' single-copy sales, Mr. Porti said. "If you were a women's service magazine, you were competing against a gallon of milk," he said. "If you were an auto book, you were competing against a gallon of gas."

Let's hope this is a good sign for the industry and for us all.

Jean-Philippe Delhomme Talk

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 22:33:00 +0000

If you're in New York or the surrounding area don't miss a chance to hear and see Jean-Philippe's talk at Parsons tomorrow. Sorry for the late posting I just got word that he was doing this. Wednesday evening! At Parsons! Free!

Nick Dewar

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 17:41:00 +0000

I just heard the sad news about the loss of Nick Dewar. We just featured Nick in both current issues of 3x3 and Creative Quarterly. When I originally contacted Nick about the 3x3 article he warned me that he was headed into the hospital and that the recovery would be about six weeks--but he was anxious to do the article--and also the cover art--if we could wait til after the recovery time. We of course said yes, though we also offered to postpone the article until the following issue but he persevered.

Then when we were putting CQ together last month we decided to reach a different audience with his work and again he came through for us. We had no idea how serious the illness was, he never complained, never tarried and quickly helped us meet yet another deadline.

Working with Nick on the cover I was reminded by Nick that he was old-school using paint made by the Cartoon Colour Company on illustration board. In the digital age he preferred the tactile quality of paint on board laid down with a brush. In the opening spread of his article in 3x3 there's a picture of his computer, you'll see in the background a photo which Nick took of an apple on a tree in Ladahk, Nick told me: "I hung it over the computer to remind me that there is life away from the monitor". Another of his photos is the inspiration image he sent us for CQ, a photo taken in Thimphu, Bhutan during a festival honouring Guru Padmasambhava. "It is a photograph of a mother clasping her hands behind her back. Her child is sleeping in the folds of the cloth we see at the top of the picture." Nick told us.

His words to live by for our 3x3 Twenty Questions feature: "Life is short, filled with stuff, I don't know what for..." - Lux Interior. Lux, the founding member of the legendary garage punk band, The Cramps, died suddenly in February 2009, aged 62. I didn't think much about the words at the time, obviously I was thinking he had skirted something major but in fact he was reminding us of something we don't think about enough. Life is short.

It looks good!

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 22:48:00 +0000

I was just forwarded this link by Yuko Shimizu. The art director and/or stylist for Crate & Barrel's CB2 used Krister Flodin's cover for Issue 12 on this new magazine rack!

The Taxali 300

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 23:38:00 +0000

As many of you probably know Gary Taxali has a show coming in Toronto, The Taxali 300, the opening reception is Thursday, January 28th, 6 - 9 pm. Gary was hoping to get a catalog printed in time for the show and had asked me to do the foreward for it, as it is there will be a small book for the show but a monograph coming out later this year from the Narwhal Art Projects that will have my Foreward in it.

I was deeply honored to be invited to write the foreward for Gary's book especially in light of the fact that Gary's work propelled me to the status I find myself in today. The date was somewhere in the year 2002, I was working as co-publisher at Graphis and trying to get Marty Pedersen more interested in illustration. I myself had slipped away from illustration in the late 90s gravitating towards more use of photography but I stumbled onto the work of Gary Taxali, the Clayton Brothers, Marc Burckhardt and the like and was totally re-energized by what I was seeing. To me a renaissance was happening and I wanted to be a part of promoting the work of these new artists. Gary helped open my eyes to what was possible in illustration, how unique it could be, how unlike photography it was and how the personal voice of the artist rang true in every piece. So yes I was more than happy to write Gary's foreward, Gary gets the biggest credit for my starting 3x3 in 2003.

Here's my Foreward:

Artists have been making marks on surfaces for centuries, as any art history major knows the first evidence of such mark making is found near Vallon-Pont-d’Arc at the Grotte Chauvet in southern France. Dating back 32,000 years these cave walls display hundreds of animal paintings depicting at least 13 different species, including those rarely found in ice age paintings—all done in the limited palette of red ochre and black. Also, rather than depicting only the familiar animals of the hunt these walls are covered with predatory animals: lions, panthers, bears, owls, rhinos and hyenas. Figures are a rarity, one represents a woman’s legs and genitalia, another the lower body of a woman and the upper body of a bison. There are also a variety of red ochre handprints along with other abstract features of dots and lines.

What makes the caves near Vallon-Pont-d’Arc so interesting is the preparation of the surface. Time was spent chipping away the rock to make a smooth and much lighter background. It also made it easier to incise lines around selected images drawing them into the foreground. In a certain light these figures have a three dimensional quality. This was no passing fancy, the intention was clear: to represent their day and time, the why is the mystery. Many feel there were spiritual or shamanic reasons for such paintings. The fact that they’ve lasted for centuries without abuse, without modifications, additions or deletions gives them a power all their own. Once their mark was made it stayed.

Even as young children we are compelled to use our hands to make art, to describe visually what is around us. Long before we are able to write we draw. Our first feeble efforts may be nothing more than scribbles on paper; later efforts add circles, oblongs and squares. Our primitive drawings are meant to portray family, friends and basic elements of our environments. Backgrounds are minimal. Perhaps a simple horizon line, a tree, a house with mom out in front and a few clouds against an otherwise blank sky. There is no perspective, things are flattened, one-dimensional. There is no shading, things are filled-in in flat colors or left blank so the paper shows through. There is no directional lighting; frontal full lighting is the style of these early drawings. As children we’re strictly two-dimensional.

Artists have always searched out surfaces to draw, paint, carve or etch. It could be wax or clay tablets, silk and later papyrus and finally paper. The preparation of these surfaces could be a process in itself. Take papyrus for instance, a thick paper-like material is made by weaving the steams of the papyrus plant then pounding the sheets with mallets and then gluing them together as scrolls. Introduced in Egypt’s First Dynasty, the actual evidence has been traced back to 2400 BC. We have the Han Court eunuch Cai Lan to thank for developing the first papermaking process in the 2nd Century AD. The use of paper spread from China through the Islamic world, where the first paper mills were built, and entered production in Europe in the early 12th century. The mechanized production of papermaking in the early 19th century caused significant cultural changes worldwide, allowing for relatively cheap exchange of information in the form of letters, newspapers and books for the first time. In 1844, both Canadian inventor Charles Fenerty and German inventor F.G. Keller invented the machine and process for pulping wood for the use in papermaking. This would end the nearly 2000-year use of pulped rags and start a new era for the production of newsprint and eventually all paper out of pulped wood.

Whether made from papyrus, parchment, or paper in East Asia, scrolls were the dominant form of book in the Hellenistic, Roman, Chinese and Hebrew cultures.

The first written mention of the modern codex book format form is from Martial, in his Apophoreta CLXXXIV at the end of the century, where he praises its compactness. However the codex never gained much popularity in the Hellenistic world though the Christian community embraced its use during the third and fourth centuries. The reasons: the format is more economical as both sides of the writing material can be used, it’s portable, searchable and most importantly for the Christians, easy to conceal. The Christian authors may also have wanted to distinguish their writings from the pagan texts written on scrolls.

Before the invention and adoption of the printing press, books were copied by hand, which made books both expensive and rare. In the Middle Ages, monasteries, even the largest ones held a mere 500 volumes while it is said that the papal library in Avignon and Paris library at the Sorbonne held only 2,000 volumes. Bookmaking was laborious, each copy was made by hand by an assembled crew made up of five types of scribes: Calligraphers, who dealt in fine book production; Copyists, who dealt with basic production and correspondence; Correctors, who collated and compared a finished book with the manuscript from which it had been produced; Illuminators, who painted illustrations and Rubricators, who painted in the red letters. The parchment had to be prepared, then the unbound pages were planned and ruled with a blunt tool, after which the text was written by the scribe, who usually left blank areas for illustration and rubrication. Finally, the book was bound by the bookbinder.

The Arabs revolutionized the book's production and its binding in the medieval Islamic world and became the first to produce paper books—sewn with silk and bound with leather covered pasteboards with a flap that wrapped the book up when not in use. The production of books became a real industry, walk down a certain street in Marrakech and you’d find more than 100 bookshops. Other advances included moveable type, first introduced in 1045 AD by Chinese inventor Pi Sheng who made the first moveable type from earthenware followed by metal movable type invented in Korea during the Goryeo Dynasty around 1230 AD. But it was Johannes Gutenberg who is credited with inventing movable type in 1450 AD along with innovations in casting the type based on a matrix and hand mould. Book production increased as the cost to produce the book went down. Books were no longer treasure but an object to be read and treasured.

The artist has always contributed to the visual imagery of text throughout the ages whether it was a 15th Century woodcut illustration, a 16th Century engraving or the advent of lithography in the 18th Century, there were artists, illuminators or illustrators—mostly anonymous—who told stories through pictures.

What may have started as a cave painting is today found on every surface and screen in the world. While the Golden Age of illustration may have come and gone there is a renewed vigor in the sources and styles of illustration we find today. The younger generation has found new life in this profession and the examples are as varied as the artists themselves.

One never likes to talk about style, after all what is style? It sounds so trendy and can be. True style is really a personal vision that the artist has that is his or her own. No one can claim the rights to any one style other than their own. Each is unique. Impactful. Realized. Emphatic. It comes from within, from a person’s culture, his background, surroundings and influences large and small. No truer example of this is the work of Gary Taxali. Born in Chandigarh, India in 1968 the Taxali family moved to Toronto one year later. His father worked for the Ministry of Transportation but also liked to draw and paint and write poetry and would be the first to encourage Gary’s early drawings. Drawing since age four, Gary’s focus never varied graduating from the Ontario College of Art and Design he began a fruitful career as an illustrator/artist.

What distinguishes Gary’s work is his use of surface. While other artists gravitate towards a clean, smooth surface of vellum or paper or canvas Taxali searches out found papers, old textbooks, and antique books to draw upon. Purposefully leaving the marks that come with age and not resorting to adding textures commonly found in today’s Photoshop, there is certain spirituality to the work surfaces. Someone before this artist has made their marks—dates, signatures, addresses, stains, doodles, which force the artist to be sensitive to their presence thus keeping his additions minimal. While the source of the book or paper isn’t important to the concept of the drawing it does import a sense of the past not found in other artist’s drawings or illustrations. There is a sense of history and reflection in this work, a reliance of things past—comics, advertising ephemera, graphics, typography, icons—you sense the gravitational pull of the pompadoured Bob’s Big Boy. There’s a bit of Barney Google to his portraits, the comic feel of the Katzenjammer Kids in his toys and a sense of Everyman in his figures just as you find in the works of Saul Steinberg or Jean-Michel Folon. Yet there is no specific date to his work, you don’t look at it and think the 30s, 40s or 50s, though you know it wasn’t done yesterday, or was it?

Like the ancient artists in the Grotte Chauvet, surface is key. But Gary’s work is the antithesis of their approach, Taxali would be more likely to leave the drawings alone and simply add his figure and hand-drawn type as homage to their ancient marks. He would revere their touch to the surface yet make it his own.

Dare Mighty Things

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Sat, 09 Jan 2010 04:14:00 +0000

I'm reminded of my time as a young illustrator, designer and ad agency principal back in Austin, Texas. Our little agency was sweeping the annual shows, winning every gold medal there was, CA was writing about us, it was all good we were having fun but not making much money. It was then that I learned that winning gold doesn't mean a whole lot when the rent comes due--if only the award were actual gold! Times got so tough that I had to give up my apartment and move into what was the conference room--my first live/work space--my partners had spouses or significant others to room with thank goodness otherwise we'd all been living in the office. Ramen noodles were often lunch, now I love Ramen noodles but not everyday.

We were really doing exceptional work especially in that market, our clients loved us and we loved them even though their budgets were low--thank goodness we could use lots of illustration which I could do. And we did use photography on occasion but rarely and by far one of my best art direction assignments was actually my first one working with a dear friend of mine for just the cost of film and processing. It was a simple shot of a group of kids our age all friends of ours seated in a living room--the client was a local radio station. I'm not sure exactly how it happened but there was a magic to the image that is haunting even today.

It was during this time that I volunteered to do a newsletter for the local Ad Club, a writer who had seen our work asked if I was interested and I said sure. His name was Forrest Preece--an exceptional writer and an extremely funny guy so working on the newsletter with him was always something to look forward to. We became friends and working on one of the issues he brought me this quote by Theodore Roosevelt to use on the cover of the newsletter that also spoke to me in a special way and has guided my every move, figuratively and literally from that day forward: Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs even though checkered by failure, than to take rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much because they live in the gray twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.

Amen.

Year End

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 00:04:00 +0000

January is a wonderful time to reflect on the past year and look forward to the adventure that awaits in the new. Thankfully, all the projects got out the door and we were able to leave for a week upstate in a lovely rental outside Rhinebeck. A great time to relax, rest and read. Some of the highlights of the trip were getting a chance to catch up on reading and running across Lara Tomlin's beautiful drawing of the late Robet Altman she did for The New Yorker--such grace of line, perfect likeness all tucked away in a neat little space, smaller but no less elegant than her usual larger work.

Reading mostly consisted of catching up on past New Yorkers, New York, GQ, Esquire, Vogue and the New York Times Magazine though I was finally able to read Maira Kalman's book The Principles of Uncertainty--a true treasure of sites and scenes that only Maira could bring us. Then I picked up R.O. Blechman's little book, Dear James: Letters to a Young Illustrator and fell in love with its simple but oh so true messages. I urge you if you haven't already, pick up a copy, it really speaks to the illustrator and creative person in all of us. Using his own personal experiences as well as quoting famous authors, scientists, teachers, artists and others about the common things we all encounter in our creative lives. A must-read.

Most of the time was spent on the couch in front of the fireplace but we did get a chance for a lovely lunch with Istvan Banyai and his charming wife at Gigi's in Rhinebeck. Lunch lasted all afternoon, from beers to whiskey-loaded tea, pizza to salmon--nice meal, great company and always a treat to get to spend some time with them both. We're used to seeing celebrities in Manhattan and Brooklyn but in walks Matt Frei the anchor from BBC World News America...in Rhinebeck, he looked like he was on vaca.

Looking forward to spending more time out of the city in the woods, it's a great way to recharge the batteries, to reflect and recount and plan for the future. What new exciting projects and promise await? Happy New Year to you All!

3x3 Illustration Annual No. 6

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 20:29:00 +0000

Well after a total reprint of this year's annual, they're off to the distribution points and post office. A pagination error on the printer's part forced a total reprint of the annual, originally scheduled to deliver before Thanksgiving we were forced into the reprint which of course delayed delivery. When there's one error there's usually another, and sure enough we find a typo on page 4 and had to reprint the first signature again--at our expense, so another week delay getting the job printed. This year's annual was printed by JS McCarthy, an eco-friendly printer located in Maine; we have used them before on a number of jobs here an at Graphis and have always been pleased with the results.

Our cover was done by Marco Wagner, not to be confused with Mario Wagner. Marco works in his home town Veitshöchheim in Bavaria. Clients include Bajazzo Verlag, Playboy Germany and Nintendo and has been a winner in numerous shows including Communication Arts, Illusive 2, Novum Magazin and 3x3.

Look for the annual on your newsstands next week and get your entries ready for next year. We have a wonderful panel of judges lined up for all our shows--we'll be sending out the Call for Entries in January. Just a note, we're moving the student show to late March, the ProShow will still be mid-March and Children's Books will be in April.

For What It's Worth No. 13

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 18:32:00 +0000

We're right in the middle of putting out our third 3x3 Illustration Directory and I'm a bit puzzled by a recent email I received, not only because as a design firm we wouldn't be advertising in their directory but also in looking at their claims I find them hard to believe.

When directories first came out they were thin and only featured the very best illustrators and photographers in the field. There was certainly some sort of selection process that unfortunately doesn't happen today, now it's merely a pay-to-play scenario. Though just as a plug, that's not the case with 3x3's. Now directories look like strip malls, way too many images per page, every page is a different design and there is way too much mediocre work being shown. Again, in 3x3's directory it's curated, I personally select artist who are shown–-they must have been winners in our shows or have been in the magazine and I may add illustrators whose work I admire to join this group but it is definitely not pay-to-play.

Coming from an advertising agency background I've been around market research for most of my career and understand the basics on how to select a target audience. Relying on the best list source is certainly the first step but then analyzing where the potential market is is the next step. I don't buy that there are 18,000 to 20,000 creatives in the US that have an interest in commissioning illustration. My research just doesn't support that number, in fact it's in the thousands and not the tens of thousands. Sure I can get to the 20,000 number but that includes those who have no interest in hiring illustrators. Marketing is about targeting, being specific instead of being broad--a rifle shot not a shotgun blast. Making sure you have a valid list is key. From personal experience our ad agency always received way more directories than we had people and in many cases addressed to individuals no longer working with the firm. So buyer beware.

Also if there were 20,000 art buyers out there then we'd all be a whole lot busier. And don't be fooled by the suggestion of sending directories abroad as a source for work, first of all while it is a global market, the fees are much less outside the US and there are other issues to consider such as language and collection of your fee. The US market still offers the best source for illustration work.

There are those out there that say directories are passé, that art directors only look at the web for artists. I do agree that the current state of directories are out of fashion and they should be. But I'm not buying that art directors only surf the web for artists. First of all there are way too many sites for an art director or art buyer to look at. That option becomes a laborious waste of time. Secondly, until now there hasn't been a directory that only showcases the best work; for far too long art directors were left with a poor taste in their mouth about illustration since the directories were filled with marginal work. Lastly, illustration is not on everyone's radar; we're trying to shake that up by sending a well-designed, well-produced, minimalist directory--one image per page-- to a select group of art directors and art buyers in the US. I'm convinced that seeing illustration in a better context will help to change the minds of ADs and designers who are not using illustration today. And we haven't ignored the web component, our site has direct links to each artist's web site.

I'm all for more promotion of illustration in as many places as possible--I think that illustrators don't do enough promotion. And I realize that directories are a business. I just think the cost to play is too much if you buy the fact that very few of the 18,000 or so recipients commission illustration and fewer still even have illustration on their radar. Our directory is a break-even proposition, our page costs are one-tenth that of other directories--hundreds of dollars, not thousands of dollars and while I can't guarantee that an illustrator who appears in our directory will get work I do believe we are presenting their work in a much better light. The more I can show really interesting images the more chances we all have that art directors will wake up to the benefits of hiring illustrators.

This year's 3x3 directory will be mailed free to 6,200 art directors and art buyers in a variety of industries in the US. We have selected the top ten advertising/media markets as the basis for our list and cherry-picked individual markets and titles. Of those on our list we found only 1,500 were in editorial which offers an untapped market out there for illustration beyond magazines and newspapers. There are a number of reasons to consider good directories, there are a innumerable reasons to promote your work; spend wisely.

Capture the Imagination:Original Illustration & Fine Illustrated Books

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 23:26:00 +0000

Bloomsbury Auctions announces its annual holiday sale of original illustrations and fine illustrated books on Wednesday, 9 December at 2pm. The sale will showcase important works from the Golden Age of Illustration to the present day.

Among the other important modern illustrators in the sale are Caldecott winners Arnold Lobel, Uri Shulevitz, Beni Montresor, Evaline Ness, Richard Egielski, Paul Zelinsky, Trina Schart Hyman and Leonard Weisgard. Other treasures that will be auctioned are Maurice Sendak’s original designs for the Wild Things Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade balloon ($40,000-$50,000), an unused illustration for The Bee-Man of Orn ($30,000-$40,000) and numerous signed presentation copies.

Watercolors by William Steig for the original Shrek! ($15,000-$20,000), Sylvester and the Magic Pebble ($15,000-$20,000) and other works will be sold to benefit The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art. Two time Caldecott winners Leo and Diane Dillon are represented by works from Ashanti to Zulu ($15,000-$17,000), The Sorcerer’s Apprentice ($10,000-$12,000) and other award-winning titles. There will also be watercolors, drawings and other work by Edward Ardizonne, Umberto Brunelleschi, Edward Gorey, Tomi Ungerer, Al Hirschfeld, H. A. Rey, James Marshall, Barry Moser, Jerry Pinkney, Charles Santore, Charles M. Schultz and Walt Disney.

Exhibition
Saturday, 5 December, 10:00am to 3:00pm
Monday, 7 December, 10:00am to 5:00pm
Tuesday, 8 December, 10:00am to 5:00pm
Wednesday, 9 December, 10:00am to 1:00pm

Special Event
Illustrators of Our Time
Lecture by Michael Patrick Hearn
Tuesday, 8 December, 6:00pm
at Bloomsbury Auctions, 6 West 48th Street New York, NY 10036
www.bloomsburyauctions.com

Bloomsbury Auctions, New York, Wednesday, 9 December, 2pm

For What It's Worth No. 12

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:19:00 +0000

Getting out of town helps clear the mind, getting out of the country creates a whole new perspective. Trying to avoid jet lag before the lecture series, we opted to land in Paris instead of London. Our first day was spent getting used to a new language, one that I'd feverously studied but came up lacking during our entire trip. All I really needed to tell them that I spoke no French was Je suis un Americain, I am an American.

Later that day we ventured into Pere Lachaise which was two blocks from our hotel--as many of you know I have a dreaded fear of cemeteries but somehow Pere Lachaise was different; perhaps it was the time of day--the quality of light and the fall colors made the place look radiant. Maybe I would have had my old familiar feelings had it been a cold, dreary day. Whatever the reason I embraced it, it was similar to visiting a sculpture garden, the variety of gravestones, the typography, the ornamentation all lent an air of artiness to the place and one I could enjoy.

The next day was a step back in time with a visit to Palace de Versailles, it was huge! I pictured something a bit smaller, something like what I would soon experience in London, but the massiveness of the place was almost overwhelming. And the crowds of vistiors spent little time in the rooms, preferring to raise their cameras above their heads and snap photos. Thankfully, the gardens were less crowded and much less so at the Petit Tranon, the simplicity of this place was much appreciate after the extravagance of the palace.

On the opposite end of the spectrum was Villa Savoye, the next day's excursion. Completed in 1929 it is a prime example of the architecture of Charles Édouard Jeanneret, aka Le Corbusier. The austerity of each room, the multiple views, the contrasting colors, the act of bringing the outdoors in makes it a home worth living in, though its tenants were very disappointed with the house and the workmanship--sometimes to be expected as the result of working with a genius.

Two ends of the spectrum, Louis XIV to Le Corbusier but both mad geniuses.

On to London via Eurostar, under the English Chanel which lasted only 20 minutes of the two and half hour trip from Gare du Nord to London's St Pancras. If they offered an cross Atlantic route I'd sign up. The trip was smooth, the food was what you used to get on the best airlines with service to match.

We tended to remain historic in our sightseeing, looking back at centuries past rather than searching out the contemporary scene. Our weekends were spent sightseeing, our weekdays conducting lectures on illustration at various colleges and art schools in and around London.

We also got to visit the offices of the Association of Illustrators in their shared loft space with Big Orange in East London. We met with Derek Brazell whom we have been in contact with for sometime and their new director, Ramón Blomfield who just celebrated his first full year this month. We talked about the difficulty and non-profitable aspects of newsstand distribution especially in the US and found we both share better interest in both Canada and the UK. Their house publication, Varoom, started off as their newsletter and my suspicion is that once they saw 3x3 they decided there must be a market for a magazine on illustration, several other publications have sprouted up since we started back in 2003, all with dismal results. A new one just launched this month in London.

I have long admired what the AOI is doing for illustration in the UK and feel they do a much better job than we're managing to do here in the States with our illustration organization which has a much longer history than the AOI. Why that's the case I'm not sure, but it does not bode well for illustration; we must all be doing more to increase the visibility and promote the viability of illustration.

Sometimes you have to get out of the country to see what you really are. Our visit uncovered the fact that 3x3 holds the only international student show as well as the only international professional show--something I hadn't really considered before. Being there pointed out just how insular each of our countries are. The fact that neither the AOI nor the Society of Illustrators actively invite international entries nor have international panels of judges pointed out our uniqueness and something we need to exploit as it gives our readers and our entrants a totally different "perspective" on what's happening in illustration.

Getting a first-hand look at the education of illustrators in the United Kingdom was one of the purposes of our trip; seeing the differences and similarities was helpful. What I noticed immediately was an intense sense of pride in each school, each went out of their way to explain why their school was the best in the country. Whether the claim was the largest, or the highest number of successful graduates or the star-quality roster of alumni, each school felt that they did it best.

In a number of the schools a student would get instruction from a single instructor for each level, others may interact with one or two more but I did not encounter anything like we have here in America with multiple instructors for each year. And their programs ran three years, not four. What I did notice was an emphasis on idea generation rather than style which I found refreshing. In America we seem too worried about developing a personal voice, sacrificing sound market-driven visual solutions in the process: Students may develop a voice but they often times have too little to say. I didn't find that in the UK, and from the class I sat in on the problems are not simplistic, they're quite involved requiring research before laying pen to pad. I wish our schools did more of that. But from what I learned their national government has put much more emphasis on practical knowledge and as a result those studying applied arts learn how to apply their craft though at times sacrificing experimentation in the process. There they can learn something from us Americans. No educational system is perfect, ideally it would be a mix of the two systems I've witnessed.

Being abroad also puts today's news into focus. What I also gathered is that the 24-hour news cycle has exploded the recession way beyond fact. While there was a downturn in the early part of the year, the illustrators I've spoken with, here and abroad, all say that they are busy, and some are busier than they've ever been. Which is really good news, for illustrators and for illustration. And it looked like the Christmas season was already in full swing judging by the crowded streets and stores.

Getting out of one's homeland points out differences but also similarities. Looking at the faces of the students in the crowded lecture hall was no different than here in the States. Bright, enthusiastic faces that will soon become the next generation of illustrators. General remarks about our talk were that it gave a more "American" approach to being an illustrator, the fact we stressed about illustration being a business, that it was important to be visible and the fact that using the correct marketing tools led to a successful illustration career were appreciated with more interaction from both students and faculty than we've received before. Though I did add two new sections to the talk since last speaking in the States, so it may not be a fair comparison. Whatever the response I'm glad we went, I'd like to thank all of the schools who invited me to speak, for their warm hospitality and welcoming spirit and I'd like to thank Sarah for the planning of the trip and keeping us on schedule.

Lecture Six: Kingston University

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:41:00 +0000

Our final morning in London started with a cab ride through some of the historic British landmarks onto Waterloo Station to catch the train to Kingston.

A short train ride later followed by a short cab ride and we arrive at Kingston's Art and Design building and were quickly greeted by Geoff Grandfield. Geoff is a noted illustrator and has been the Illustration Course Director at Kingston for almost four years now. A short tour of the building followed by a stop in the cafeteria for an espresso and then a laptop presentation about the school and their areas of concentration. Sequential work is stressed here both in comics, graphic novels and in motion--short films and movies. We found out at the Royal College that Kingston is one of the school the RCA actively recruits from for their MA program.

The lecture took place in one of the large classrooms, over 100 students crowded in to hear the talk. Afterwards we had the pleasure of having lunch with Geoff at a local pub a few blocks away from the school that had been transformed into a Thai restaurant. Then we were off on a 45-minute car ride to Heathrow.

Photo of Geoff Grandfield by Sarah Munt

Lecture Five: Royal College of Art

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 16:10:00 +0000

Thank goodness for the two day respite between lectures, a good time to catch up on sightseeing and rest before starting the week. After a morning meeting at the Association of Illustrators (AOI) with Derek Brazell and Ramón Blomfield we were off to the RCA.

And wouldn't you know it, the one time we didn't consult our map coming up out of the Tube we started walking in the wrong direction. Arriving a bit late Andrzej Klimowski and Debbie Cook swept us off to the faculty dining area for lunch which started with a bottle of red. It was like dining in a museum, a Hockney here, a Moore there, Kitaj and other alumni from the Royal College graced the walls and plinths. We were used to eating in the school's cafeteria which was all well and good, but here they have their own chef; on today's menu: pheasant, risotto, salmon with scrumptious sides. Too nervous to eat much I settled on the risotto. Then time for espresso and on to the lecture hall.

Entering the building I was struck with a familiar smell, turps; it brought back memories of all those days in the fine arts building down in Austin and it had been ages since I had smelled that old palette buddy. Setting up was a breeze and then it was time for the lecture. Good questions at the end and then a quick tour of the school's facility and then back to the flat to ready for our final lecture and then the trip back to New York.

Andrzej and Debbie before the lecture and students, photos by Sarah Munt

London Get-Together

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 19:01:00 +0000

As many of you know we like to invite out of town artists for a meal at our studio so we figured why not try the same thing in London. Except we were only going to be there for such a short period we opted for a small get together over wine and cheese. And we kept our list to artists from the London area.

On the invitation list were those who had been in the magazine including A. Richard Allen, Andy Potts, Paul Wearing, Richard Wilkinson, Jo Holdaway, Sara Fanelli, Paul Blow, Russell Cobb, Nishant Choksi, Phil Wrigglesworth, Harriet Russell, Vanessa Dell, Chris Corr, Joao Fazenda, Sharon Tancredi and Chris Haughton and added Cantell Ronca who we'd just met when we were in Hatfield. Several couldn't make it due to personal obligations or last-minute deadlines but it was good to meet those who did come and put a face with an email address.

It's helpful to get a sense of the illustration community in the UK and how it's the same or different from the US. All seem to be unaffected by the recession, though things had slowed down early in the year now some are busier than ever.

The next time we're in London we hope that we can meet more illustrators in the community. Thanks to those who braved a soggy London evening to drop by.

Andy Potts, left and A. Richard Allen listening intently to Paul Wearing who is off-camera.

Lecture Four: Loughborough University

noreply@blogger.com (Charles) — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 18:51:00 +0000

A short train ride south from Sheffield and we arrive in Loughborough, home of Loughborough University, the site of our next lecture. We were greeted at the train station by our old friend Andrew Selby and his colleague Alastair Adams, a noted portrait artist and head of the illustration program. Thanks to the generosity of Andrew and his wife Felicity we were invited to stay at their lovely home in Oakham the evening before our lecture. Located about 45 minutes from Loughborough we arrived in Oakham in time for dinner with the Selby's at one of the area's oldest pubs, The Olive Branch.

The following morning we got a better look at the beautiful countryside as we took the trip back up to the university. Andrew had scheduled my talk for the evening but had Sarah booked for a roundtable talk about publication design with the students interested in publishing in mid-afternoon. Reports are that Sarah did quite well in her first-ever lecture, mine followed in the evening.

A fairly restful day before our lectures we got a chance to see the sites around the small village town, had a coffee and English Breakfast at a lovely spot call Wests and got a tour of the illustration floors in a building that had great light and a life drawing studio which was once used as the energy generator plant for the entire campus, plans are for the department to move into newer quarters in the not too distant future.

Unfortunately we didn't get to see that much student work as they were in the midst of tutorials but we did wander about the studios to see the work hanging on the wall.

The evening's lecture took place before a fairly-packed auditorium, especially considering it was Guy Fawkes Day, the equivilant to our 4th of July. We had lots of questions during the lecture and afterwards. Then off to bed for our trip back to London on Friday morning.

Andrew introducing the speaker for the evening, photo by Sarah Munt