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Our 4th year Illustration students Ann Mcleod and India Pierce are taking over the blog this week to report about their summer travel/illustration experience:
Ann and I went to Malaysia for three weeks and travelled across the north of Borneo (Sarawak and Sabah). We mixed it up by staying sometimes with my relatives and sometimes in hostels, but we experienced pretty much everything from the busy cities to the remote tribal villages.
The highlights for us were probably staying in Gunung Mulu National Park where we went caving and trekking, and also diving on the coast of Sabah. We both sketched loads along the way, and learnt a lot about the local art too, which has definitely influenced our work for going in to fourth year!
If you are heading down to Leith you should check out this exhibition showcasing 13 ECA Illustration alumni and friends who have come together to investigate the surface of water – asking questions about what floats above and what may hide below.
All work is made using Out of the Blueprint‘s risograph printer and a limited colour palette to give the collection a unified aesthetic.
The show was organised and curated by our Artist in Residence and very talented illustrator Andrea Popyordanova and is on display at Out of the Blue Drillhall until 15th September. Prints are available for £20 while they last.
Come and see ‘House Style’ at the Edinburgh International Book Festival -and maybe pick up a card or two!
House Style came about as a way of uniting all the staff and students of Illustration in a collaborative project. The staff came up with suggestions for a list of novels which was assembled by George Douglas, (GSA 2015-16). Each participant chose a book for which to make an image. Sarah Bissel, (artist in residence), put together the plan for a limited palette, a clever idea which has given a unified aesthetic to the considerable variety of imagery and use of media in the illustrations. It was felt to be a great thing to celebrate the literary connections with Illustration, particularly in its relationship to the novel.
Our programme director Jonathan Gibbs has made a number of commissioned pieces for the Radio Times in illustrations for novels to be read on Radio Four. These are illustrations on a miniature scale, but with a vivid and particular role within the printed page. The House Style brief emulated this process, with the results comprising the design of a 2017 calendar to be launched in December 2016. Alan Walker of Allander Print visited the Illustration studio several times to comment upon work in progress for House Style, and the visual result has been made possible by him and Allander Print.
With many thanks to him for making this possible, the seventy or so postcards of all House Style illustrations have been displayed for sale at the Edinburgh Book Festival. Thanks must also go to Nicky Regan for her excellent design of the calendar and postcards, with thanks also to Alan Ramsay for designing and constructing the display stand.
All work is up, looking good and being admired by a curious audience of fellow graduates, educators and industry professionals.
There is much exciting work to see from institutions across the UK – wonderful to have so much creative energy concentrated in one place. How good that snacks are being offered to keep our group going!
It’s New Blood time again! Our students have packed a selection of their work and travelled down to London in order to showcase their talent and skill at this year’s D&AD New Blood Festival. Located in the heart of London, at the Old Truman Brewery just off Brick Lane, this annual event gives graduating design students across the country the chance to have their work seen by the creative industries.
During the next couple of days students will be given the opportunity to show their portfolios and receive professional advice as well as take part in various seminars and meet fellow creatives and potential future employers.
Our Graphic Design and Illustration students are currently in the process of setting up their stands and will later return to the private view, to which industry has been invited on their behalf.
It’s already looking great – but keep looking out as we’ll be posting more images once the setup is complete!
We would like to congratulate our MA student Ailsa Johnson, who has won this year’s highly competitive Penguin Design Award in the Children’s book cover category.
The task was to illustrate and design a book cover for ‘Emil and the Detectives’ by German author Erich Kästner, a classic novel for Children set in 1930’s Berlin. To see the original brief and the shortlisted entries and to read the judges’ thoughts please follow this link. Here is what one of the judges, acclaimed writer and illustrator of children’s books, Anthony Browne, had to say about Ailsa’s entry:
‘The design conveys a real sense of story, inviting us into the book – making us want to find out what’s going on. Very clever and very funny. Beautifully designed, this would attract attention on the bookshop shelves. I’ve never seen a cover that looks like this before’
Ailsa will be graduating from Edinburgh College of Art with an MA in Illustration this August and while we wish her best of luck for her future we have no doubt that a busy and very creative time awaits her!
Only 3 days left now! Here is another batch of emerging talent from Edinburgh College of Art -Illustration. Click on the Illustrators’ names to see more of their work.
Only 4 days left to see our degree show! Pop along and meet our enthusiastic graduates, have a chat and enjoy the fantastic views of rEdinburgh from the top of Evolution House.
Here are the next 8 out of 25 graduates, a click on their names will take you to their websites where you’ll get to see more work.
Only 5 days left to pay our degree show a visit and meet our enthusiastic graduates who are happy to have a chat and explain the process behind their work. You’ll be able to find us on the 4th floor of Evolution House.
In the next 3 blogposts we will be introducing all 25 graduates; please click on the Illustrators name to get to their website and see more of their work. Here are the first eight…
Our degree show 2016 is in full swing! Here are some images of last week’s private viewing where we were delighted to meet our students’ families and friends and catch up with graduates from previous years.
The degree show will be running until 5th June, 11-5pm with late night openings on Wednesday 1st June and Thursday 2nd June from 11-8pm. Come along, see some emerging talent’s fresh work and perhaps even pick up an affordable piece of art from our students’ degree show shop?
