Illustration/art

I am reviewing a talk by David Kelley on how to build your creative confidence www.ted.com. David Kelley is head of a company called IDEO which has helped to create many icons of the digital generation, however what matters more to him is opening the creative potential of people and organisations.

People have fear of judgement i.e if you dont say or do the right things then you will be judged. This undermines the confidence and stunts creativity. He presents the example of a person who has a phobia of snakes. The test subject is told that there is a snake in the next room. By taking small steps to approach the snake i.e looking through a two way mirror at the snake, then standing at the door, eventually putting on a glove and touching the snake, they start to realise the beauty of the snake and are cured of their phobia. This is known as guided mastery. The test subject became more confident, this is known as self efficacy because they changed what they set out to do, changing their fear into familiarity.

In the talk he tells a story of a man who invented the MRI scanner. On visiting the hospital he was dismayed to find that children were terrified of the scanner and often had to be anaesthetised. By painting the room and scanner to look like a treasure island and pirate ship it took away the fear and created confidence for the child therefore lessening the need for sedation.

Creating confidence helps people to achieve better ideas by enabling them to do what they set out to achieve.

I agree with David Kelley that creating confidence helps to achieve better ideas as when people tell you that what you are doing isn’t good it makes you feel worthless and knocks your confidence. It is encouraging peoples confidence that makes them achieve their best potential.

I am reviewing a talk by Rory Sutherland on www.itsnicethat.com (life lessons from an ad man). Rory Sutherland is an influential creator and thinker in the field of marketing and advertising.

He puts the theory across that we can influence the outcome of things by changing the way that we see them especially when it comes to advertising. Also by changing what we think we see as value, can be just as satisfying to us as something that is of real value. For example, in buying a car, clever advertising eases your conscience and guilt by persuading you that if you buy an economical green model you are using less fuel and reducing carbon emmissions which is better for the planet therefore making you feel good because you think you are doing your bit to save the planet. 

The value of something can be tangiable, i.e it can mean any amount. Value doesn’t always mean more, less can be more if it has more value to the consumer. For example placebo medication; if people believe that the mediction is the real thing then they will think that it will make them better and quite often does because what people percieve to be good will work because the majority of people have been persuaded, therefore the value of the placebo is high.

Persuasion is often better than compulsion, for example, speed cameras with smiley faces have a better effect in making the driver slow down because they are rewarded by a smiley face by sticking to the speed limit. When they get a sad face it makes them feel bad because they know they are over the limit. Symbolic value means more than actual value. Products that have a high symbolic value are considered great. An example of this is coca-cola. Andy Warhol once stated that both the president of the USA cant buy a better cola than the bum on the corner as coca-cola is a drink everybody can enjoy no matter who they are.

In this post i will be looking at the work of four gig poster illustrators from the book ‘Gig Posters: rock show art of the 21st century’ which i have reviewed previously.

Alan Forbes is the first illustrator I will be looking at from the book. Forbes lives in San Francisco, and his influences are Rick Griffin, Leaf Hound, San Francisco, the documentaryWitchcraft 70,and Hoofed animals. The preferred medium/ method Forbes likes to use is brush and paper with all of his work hand-lettered and drawn, and he doesn’t use any computers at all for his work. Alan Forbes also likes to screen print his illustrations for his final posters. An example of his work is the poster above which defines Forbes style and how his ideas/ composition turns out. Alan Forbes illustrations consist of black outlines with limited use of colour which shows the detail within the black lines and makes his posters look effective and memorable. What I like about the poster I’ve chosen for the band ‘Buffalo Killers’, is how he gives the character (the owl) within the piece, personality.I am also drawn to the detail within the poster which gives the feathers texture but also adds a vintage quality to the piece. The colours used within the work reflect the image, and you can see that a lot of thought had gone into the choice of the limited colours used; the colours complement each other well. I particularly like the way that varying colours from the same pallette are used to such great effect to add depth and feeling to the work. Alan Forbes also has an extensive website where you can see more of his work www.secretserpents.com

The second illustrator im looking at is Allen Jaeger. Jaeger lives in New Orleans, Louisiana, and his influences range from music to toys, comic books and horror movies. The preferred medium/method Jaeger uses is silk screen printing. He does the printing on a press he has made himself out of wood. Jaeger also mixes his own colours using Ferent paints available from hardware stores and ink retailers. An example of his work is the poster above for musician ‘Hank Williams’ wich shows the detail he uses within all his work. The outside frame for the piece is all one colour appart from portraits within it. This reminds me of tea staining which is a medium that i use alot within my work which is one of the elements that drew me to the piece in the first place. The use of the horror theme is also what drew me to the poster. the fact that they are Zombie like and the way they are looking at the viewer makes it seem like the image is daring people to go to the gig. The colours of the outlaws are bold with the blacked outline, has this been designed this way  to depict our understanding of outlaws who are always represented as being bold?. The way the musician is drawn could be how the musician sees himself neither dead nor alive. I question with the depiction of the outlaws as either dead or dying is trying to show the viewer that crime doesnt pay. To add to this the four portraits of apparently normal individuals shows us that there are other ways to live your live other than as an outlaw, or are they to become victims of the outlaws. I feel that this poster presents many questiond from both the point of view of the outlaw and law abiding citizen, as a result i have viewed it many times and asked different questions of it every time. The website for Jaeger shows some of his work but could be improved as i dont think it showcases his work to its true potential www.allenjaeger.com

The next illustrator i am looking at is Drew Millward who did a foundation degree at UCLAN and a B.E.A honors at Leeds Metropolitan University. He started doing flyers and posters for gigs happening in leeds and decided posters were the type of illustration he wanted to continue with. The preferred medium/ methods he uses are pencil, pen, ink, photoshop and screen print. Things that influence Millward’s ideas can come from something he’s read, music, the random shape created by crumbling plaster and pretty much anything he finds. Themes he uses can come from a number of places, such as tattooing, anatomical diagrams, the occult, conspiracy theories, genetic mutations, rabbits, bears, and stuff that happens to float through his head. An example of his work is the poster above for an all day gig. Millward’s work looks almost tattoo like which is something that draws me to his work as tattoo illustrations is what im interested in. He also uses skulls and death within all his pieces which is his signature within his work. The colours he uses in his work wether they are soft or bold shades are presented in a way that doesnt distract the viewer away from the image and the detail held within his work. I feel that even though most of the themes dipicted in his work are dark they are delivered with a vibrancy and subtlety that softens the macabre tone to the work.

The last illustrator i am looking at is Justin Kamerer (angry blue) from Louisville, Kentucky. His work is influenced by military propaganda, horror movies, thick cynical sarcasm, humor, fun and zelda. The preferred medium/methods he uses are screen printing. Always playing with different paper, and pushing the inks to do something he hasn’t tried yet. The gig poster community has been a great resource for guidance and ideas, and friends for Kamerer. An example of his work is the poster above for the band ‘Swans’. Personally his work has influenced my own work and style as i am a great fan of detailed ink drawings and use this to showcase my style of depicting the images i produce. Again, the colours are kept quite simple which ensures that the eyes are not drawn away from the image created. His work inspires me to push my own boundaries and has influenced me to the extent that i feel i want to also produce the same sort of work he produces. This has also led me to consider what mediums i will be using next year and i would like to add printwork to my skillset which will ensure that i am left with a more developed and diverse portfolio of work. I have previously reviewed Justin Kamerer’s website and i feel it allows the viewer to develop an empathy and understanding of his work. www.angryblue.com