Eleanor Grosch’s playful arrangements of line and form are sleek, minimalistic experiments in geometry. Whether it’s an arched beak, a meandering tail, or the sleek lines of a bicycle, Eleanor’s illustrations rely on sparsely articulated lines to convey shape and motion. Her understated colors complement the subtlety of her forms and soften her sleek geometric compositions. Well-known for her unique modernist perspective on the feathered, the furry, and the scaly, Eleanor brings a designer edge and distinct mid-century aesthetic to all of her artwork.

Eleanor draws inspiration from sources as diverse as the Spanish abstract painter Joan Miro and modernist illustrator Charley Harper. In 2010, Harper’s estate asked Eleanor to redesign charleyharperprints.com. Eleanor’s prints have even appeared on the site alongside Harper’s work and that of Harper’s descendants Edie and Brett Harper.

Eleanor was named one of Print Magazine’s New Visual Artists of 2008. The New Visual Artist Review introduces and profiles thirty of the most promising rising talents in graphic design, advertising, illustration, digital media, photography and animation – all under the age of thirty. The competition is by invitation only with entrants being nominated by art directors, designers, critics and industry professionals. In the article, Emily Gordon writes, “Grosch walks a cheerfully nonchalant line between cute and cool, using [...] a menagerie of whimsical imagery.”

Always the ‘class artist,’ Eleanor began developing her style, and a fascination for animals, in her early teens. “I’d draw during class and then more when I got home,” she remembers. One thing that hasn’t always been constant has been her confidence in pursuing art as a profession. In an interview with Philadelphia Magazine, Eleanor recalls hearing a professor say, “‘In five years, only one person in this room will be making a living doing art.” As a fledgling art student, Eleanor remembers thinking, ‘It’s not going to be me.’ She jokes that, “My big goal was, ‘I hope one day I get a chance to make something for someone for free.’” Since then, Eleanor has learned that a confidence in your work is essential. “You have to have good self-esteem about your work. Assuming someone’s going to like you is a good start.”

Shortly after graduating from art school, Eleanor landed her first gig illustrating and designing a poster for the Orpheum in Tampa, Florida. “I used to dance there, and I remember seeing my poster up for the first time!,” she says “What a thrill!!” The design was for the first of many band posters, the sum of which ultimately caught the attention of an editor at Nylon Magazine. Since then, her work has appeared in magazines, books, products and packaging, as well as in corporate advertising campaigns. Eleanor has worked with clients such as Keds, The San Diego Zoo, Oxfam, Starbucks, Chronicle Books, Land of Nod, Urban Outfitters, and Shutterfly.

Eleanor’s first experience with licensing was when Keds launched a line of her shoes in 2006. Modeled in print ads by Mischa Barton, known for her role on the TV series The OC, the shoes flew off the shelves and Eleanor Grosch as an art brand had arrived with a splash. Since then, her work has appeared on a variety of licensed products, from Giro helmets and Alien Workshop snowboards, to wall art for Muralstick and stationery for Marian Heath and Tiny Prints. Her gulf-inspired luggage tags for Zehno also appeared in Print Magazine’s 2011 Regional Design Annual. Sale of Eleanor’s tags benefitted the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, a non-profit organization that advocates for Louisiana’s wetlands.

Marian Heath recently released a line of nine glitter-embellished greeting cards featuring Eleanor’s artwork, which they describe as featuring her “smart, hip aesthetic and trademark graphic style.” Her feathered friends are on trend in the UK as well, with seagulls and skimmers appearing on Printermakers cards by the publisher Art Angels. The biggest volume of card designs can be found at Tiny Prints with dozens of print-on-demand custom stationery and card products.

In addition to her work as an illustrator, Eleanor also runs Pushmepullyou Design, an online shop selling art prints, t-shirts, accessories, and housewares. Inspired by Dr. Dolittle’s two-headed llama, the name ‘Pushmepullyou’ captures Eleanor’s love of animals and her whimsical sense of humor. For all things Eleanor, from greeting cards and magnets to wallets and tote bags, visit http://www.merchline.com/pushmepullyou/.

Eleanor’s work has also been featured in Grain Edit, Design*Sponge, Philadelphia Style, Philly Mag, NYLON Magazine, and The Art of Modern Rock. Eleanor has been a guest speaker at the 2010 HOW Design Conference and at Dallas AIGA. Eleanor is also a recipient of the PETA Libby Award, which is awarded for the quality of animal-friendly products as well as the nominee’s enthusiasm for animals.

Wherever she looks, Eleanor is drawn to clean lines and striking colors. To see more of her work, visit www.justeleanor.com.

Click here for downloadable items – desktop wallpapers and a high-res printable letter sized promo.

Q&A with Eleanor Grosch

Use three words to describe your style.
Simple, bold, colorful

What is a typical work day like for you? How do you portion off your time?
I usually start at 8 with a nice breakfast and then get right to it; I find I’m most productive in the morning. Then I gotta move around a bit so I clean the house for about 30 minutes or go to the gym. Afternoons I usually need a break also, so I watch some TV for another 40 minutes or so in-between working. I try to stop at 5PM these days, but I find that I’ll often draw something in the evening.

A genie grants you three wishes. What do you wish for?
Probably a quick-travel system of some sort, slightly longer hotter legs, and a never-ending income stream for my Mom so she could retire right away.

What is your ideal assignment?
Anything where I get a solid concept. I love the challenge of conceptual thinking. You’re dressed like a mime on the front page of your website. What’s the story behind that? That came from a fun photo shoot with my friend, photographer Brae Howard. I think I’ve always loved mime makeup, so we went for a couple of shots with that look and it turned out to be my favorite photo. Plus, it makes me look fun, which I think I am most of the time!

What’s the best way to get over a creative block?
Do something completely unrelated – take a bike ride, do something physical. It usually straightens me out really well.

What’s one tip you have for other creative professionals?
Never, ever, stop making your work. Someone will like it eventually! I think the people who “make it” are those with staying power.

What is your favorite part of living and working in Philadelphia?
I love the small, cute scale of the city. It’s bike-able and walkable and has lots of the cool things that NYC has but in a cheaper and less tiring way. I’m just not cut out for a place like NYC, so it’s nice to live in a city where there’s a slower pace.

If you were reincarnated as an animal, which animal would you be?
Definitely a flightless bird. Probably an ostrich – big legs, long neck, fidgety. I’ve even been dressing like a female bird more and more lately: beige, gray, brown – dull colors for safety.

Do you have a favorite movie?
For the past 10 years, it’s been The Fugitve. We’ll see if something tops that…

I hear that you’re also a trapeze artist. How did you get started? Is it hard to balance your passion for trapeze with your illustration career?
N/A – I quit since I was so awful at it!

What are some sites you have bookmarked in your browser?
I love my brother’s blog: www.lifeisrealgood.com – he’s biking around SE Asia right now. Sounds very cool but very tiring and difficult. I love his writing style; it’s super funny with short sentences. Also, catalog-choice, an opt-out service for those annoying catalogs companies keep sending us all.

Do you listen to music while you work? What’s the best and worst type of music for getting things done?
No, I usually watch TV or have silence. Music, for me, is better for home-repair jobs. Sundays I get my little groove on to R&B while I’m painting or fixing or cleaning. So fun!

If you could be anything besides an illustrator, what would you be?
I would love to be a smart computer person or someone who does hard physical labor part time. Or maybe a house cleaner? I’m really good at cleaning.

What is your ideal studio like?
It’s my couch!

An American artist living and working in South America, Nate Williams’ recognizable “naive” style of illustration draws its inspiration from sources as diverse as nature, Latin-American culture, and his son’s drawings. Inspired by vintage silkscreen posters and the process of silkscreen, Nate works in layers of color and degraded texture. His art employs a condensed sense of space, repeated decorative motifs, and bold color schemes, creating an effect that is playful, folksy, and culturally dynamic. Nate’s memorable hand-made aesthetic is central to both his illustration and his hand-lettering. Drawing by hand and incorporating a strong sense of texture allow Nate to create his distinctly hand-crafted style.

Nate’s work has appeared in publications such as Wired, Business Week, Natural Health, PlanSponsor, Family Circle, Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and The Boston Globe. He has worked with advertising agencies including Wieden and Kennedy, BBDO, Leo Burnett, Modernista, Landor, Draft FCB, Clark McDowall, Chiat Day NY, Campbell-Ewald, Arnold Worldwide, and The Great Society, on projects for clients as wide ranging as Dell, Microsoft, Brooks, Taco Bell, United Airlines, XBOX, Nabisco, Kellogg’s, Cartoon Network, and Converse Shoes.

In 2011, the Los Angeles office of Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf commissioned Nate for a 40 foot mural inside their landmark Sunset and Vine location. The famous intersection, located in the heart of Hollywood, provided the inspiration for Nate’s silver screen-themed mural. Buskers, paparazzi, King Kong, and the Capitol Records building all feature prominently in the art. In an interview, the lead art director describes Nate’s mural as “one of the coolest things we’ve ever seen.” Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf created a video documenting the creative process behind the mural, from its inception to its installation. Click here to see the video and see the artwork unfold.

Book publishers have also sought out Nate out for his unique style of illustration and hand-lettering. In 2010, Puffin UK published a memoir titled The Truth About Leo about a ten year old boy living with an alcoholic father. Nate’s solution for the cover utilized childlike lettering in the silhouette of a bottle. His hand drawn lettering and illustration have also appeared on book covers for In the Space Left Behind (Harper Collins) and Little Gale Gumbo (Penguin). His award-winning series of art for As Aventuras de Tom Sawyer, published by Atica (Brazil), will appear in the 2012 HOW International Design annual.

Nate’s hand-lettering can range from colorful and naive to elegant and sophisticated. His chalk lettering, for instance, has been known to mimic the flowing script of bistro menus and recreate the adolescent doodles of high school chalkboards. He has created chalk lettering for Sierra Magazine, Everyday with Rachael Ray, Kellogg’s Special K (Leo Burnett), the Digits campaign (Arnold Worldwide), and more. Nate has also rendered corporate logos, type-based compositions for the Southern Poverty Law Center, and headlines for editorial illustrations in Middlebury Magazine, Today’s Parent, Natural Health, Family Circle, Natural Solutions, and others.

Designing art for product packaging is one of Nate’s favorite types of projects. His organic, richly textured and embossed artwork can be seen on the label for Tuck Beckstoffer’s recently released Melee wine. Nate’s folksy style complements the wine’s earthy and organic qualities. His packaging for Olive Green Dog’s all-natural biodegradable Superpoop bags add a splash of fun to Olive’s environmentally friendly message. The packaging has been popping up on a variety of websites, including – of all places – Justin Timberlake’s personal blog. You never know where you’ll see Nate’s work actually, his poster for Adult Swim’s Aqua Teen Hunger Force was spotted in the camp horror comedy Zombieland (it appears in the apartment of actor Jesse Eisenberg’s character in the beginning of the film).

Always coming up with new ideas, Nate has never limited himself to working solely for other clients. His entrepreneurial spirit has sparked concepts that have grown into book publishing concepts and art licensing collections for products. His fanciful WordUms collection turns childlike mispronunciations and creativity into whimsical characters like the Snailaphant, the Sherlocodile, and the Frankenfurter. Other children’s collections tackle subjects like gardening, science, and summer camp in fun and playful ways. With titles like Aegean Dreams, Everywhere Tomorrow, and Loco Morocco, Nate’s collections for adults combine bold patterns with whimsical cultural allusions. His work has appeared on products as diverse as Urban Outfitters wall art and pillows, Ecojot stationery, Mara Mi tote bags, and children’s puzzles for Mudpuppy.

An award-winning artist, Nate has been recognized by Communication Arts, Society of Illustrators, AltPick, 3×3, HOW, SILA, the Art Directors’ Club, American Illustration, ASBPE, DSVC, AAF, and AIGA. He has also been invited to speak at venues all around the world, from the 4th Annual Computer Arts Show in Sao Paulo, Brazil to a conference at the Society of Illustrators in New York. Nate has also hosted workshops at American Greetings’ corporate headquarters, the University of Buenos Aires, Montreal’s Sid Lee Agency, and more.

Nate believes the keys to creativity are curiosity, inspiration, play and discovery. When generating ideas, Nate believes it’s important to feed the subconscious, to record and retrieve inspirational moments, and to find patterns in ‘good ideas.’ Founder of Illustration Mundo, The Letter Playground, and most recently, The Proconist Mood Analyzer, Nate is passionate about engaging the illustration community in new and exciting ways via the web.

Read more about Nate and his ideas at n8w.com. Click here for downloadable items – desktop wallpapers and a high-res printable letter sized promo.

Q & A with NATE WILLIAMS

How did you become familiar with illustration? What did you do before you became an illustrator?
I’ve dabbled in illustration since college. I always loved making images, but never thought of it as an occupation that I could actually support myself with. After talking with some professional illustrators in 2003 I realized there were quite a few illustrators working full-time. I was an art director for online communications before I was a full-time illustrator.

As a former art director, what do you think makes a good AD? And how does an AD get the best possible work from an illustrator?
I think what makes a great Art Director is someone who can translate business and marketing objectives into something creative that helps achieve those objectives.

In regards to illustration, I think a GREAT art director has the following qualities:
HIRES THE ‘RIGHT’ ILLUSTRATOR – hires the right illustrator for the project and leverages the illustrator’s strengths instead of trying to change them.
COMMUNICATES CLEARLY – knows how to communicate the objectives and narrows the focus to a few key points. (3 bullet points is the best.) Is inspiring while remaining honest and articulate.
FAIR – airly compensates the artist for the work/usage involved.

What is a typical work day like for you? How do you portion off your time?
- Wake up and take my son to school
- Have coffee with my wife and figure out what I need to accomplish for the day
- I like to do all my brainstorming in the morning so I usually work on rough ideas in the morning from a cafe or park bench
- Go running, go to the gym, listen to music, podcasts, etc.
- Have lunch with my wife
- Answer emails, illustrationmundo maintenance
- Work on final illustrations
- Pick up son from school and hang out with kids
- Have dinner
- Relax with family, read, watch TV

What’s one tip you want to share with other creative professionals?
Enjoy life outside of work and your work will become better.

Your website Illustration Mundo has become one of the biggest resources for illustrators on the web. How do you see it growing and evolving in the future?
That’s hard to say. I like creating projects more than maintaining them. I realized this after I created illustrationmundo.com so when I programmed letterplayground.com and proconist.com I made them so they pretty much maintain themselves and I can look at them a month later and there is a bunch of new content. For the most part I want illustrationmundo.com to have the same objectives as when I created it, which was to give illustrators a platform to show their work and provide a tool for art directors with an easy way to find great illustrators.

In an ideal world, you would have an infinite amount of…?
Free time.

Do you have a hobby outside of illustration? What do you like to do when you’re not working?
I like to think of inventions, read, listen to podcasts, run, lift weights, watch MMA (mixed martial arts), practice Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, take walks with my wife, hang out with the family, learn about random stuff.

What is your ideal studio like?
I have my computer in my bedroom, but when a computer is not involved I like to work from park benches, coffee shops, buses, trains, etc. I think as a freelancer, your house will eventually drive you crazy and you have to take every opportunity to leave it and socialize.

What are a few of your favorite illustration blogs and websites?
I like Pinterest lately because it’s image based and you can follow people with similar tastes… it’s very efficient, you can see a ton of work with little effort.

Do you have a sketchbook? How do you like to keep track of your ideas?
I have tons of sketchbooks… but anything I really like I take a photo of and I use Evernote to catalog it. It makes finding that genius idea you had a lot easier to find and you can group similar ideas together regardless of which sketchbook they were originally in.

Your work is digital but always looks very organic. How do you keep that hand-drawn, hand-made quality alive when you’re working with a digital medium?
It ends up digital, but a lot of it is hand-drawn. I probably draw more than 50% of motifs, textures, letters, etc using a sharpie marker or painting with India ink. I reorganize these images in the computer, make compositions, change colors, etc. A lot of my work ends up silk-screened which has it’s hand made qualities of offset registration, imperfect printing, and textured surfaces.

How has the illustration industry changed since you became a professional illustrator? How do you see it changing in the future?
I think how we find inspiration is a lot more fragmented. Instead of relying on magazines and traditional sources of inspiration there are so many ways to find great art now. I also think humans are not used to processing so much information so we rely on word of mouth more and our friends to filter information for us. “What is worth spending our time on?” I think as we have to process more information and the world becomes globalized, images becomes more important because it’s one of the fastest ways to process information and can transcend language and cultural barriers. You can see this trend with how graphic user interfaces are progressing and with sites like pinterest, ffffound, etc.

What do you do when you’re looking for hand-lettering inspiration?
As the world becomes more mechanical it’s nice to see things that are more ‘human,’ asymmetrical and imperfect. I seek imperfection and randomness not only in hand lettering but in my art in general. My art is not just about speaking but listening and being open to the unplanned.

You’re trapped in a room with Julie Andrews from The Sound of Music. She’s singing These Are a Few of My Favorite Things… and now it’s your turn to pick up the verse. So, quick, what are a few of your favorite things?
My wife, kids, exercise, free time, sushi, laughing, sex, skyscrapers, dramatic weather, information, MMA.

Intricately drawn details and a light, mixed-media aesthetic are what make Hennie Haworth’s work engaging, eccentric, and inventive. Hennie’s hand-drawn lines give her work a charmingly irregularity, while her judicious use of decorative elements imbue her art with a sense of whimsy. Whether it’s a Tokyo street or a Parisian boulevard, Hennie’s eye for color, texture, and architectural detail lends a rich and intricate character to her scenes and cityscapes. Her handlettering has a similarly lavish quality, with letters swooping into languid patterns that are at times loose and naive, and at other times delicate and sophisticated.

Hennie’s work has appeared in books, newspapers, magazines, ad campaigns, packaging, on products and more. She has worked with clients as diverse as Bloomberg Business Week, Penguin Books, BBDO (South Africa), Samsonite (Japan), and Urban Outfitters (UK). Hennie’s work has also been honored by the Society of Illustrators in New York.

Her latest project has been a series of illustrations for the partnership between Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton. Hennie’s artwork features stylish ‘head to toe’ portraits set in the fashion capitals of New York and Paris. The illustrations were integrated into Marc Jacobs’s profile on the Louis Vuitton website.

Currently based in East London, Hennie loves the city but has also been influenced by her travels through Japan. Her series of Tokyo vending machines captures the condensed spaces and unique color schemes of urban Japan. She has worked on a number of creative collaborations with Japanese companies and organizations. In 2011, Hennie participated in a project called ‘One Thousand Cranes’ for Japan. She contributed patterned designs to the organization, which used the origami theme to benefit the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund. The project draws upon the Japanese belief that folding one thousand cranes will allow you to make one wish come true.

A series of Japanese vending machines and portraits of Kyoto people are two personal projects that sprang from Hennie’s travels through Japan in 2010. Hennie believes that “personal projects are very important and are often the work you’re most proud of.” She uses personal projects as a way of developing her skill set and experimenting with new techniques. Her portraits of Kyoto’s citizens explores fashion through the lens of Japanese youth culture. As Hennie meticulously details her subjects’ patterned tights and bunched up sweaters, she demonstrates her eye for detail. Hennie’s fascination with detail is one of her biggest strengths, but it also means that sometimes she tells herself that “it’s better to do less but do it well.” When working, Hennie always tries to balance the depth of detail with the charm of simplicity.

Clients from a growing list of countries have assigned work to Hennie, from South Korea to Sweden to China, the UK, Germany, Japan, South Africa, and Italy. She has worked with South Korea’s Hyundai Department Stores, and Systembolaget, a Swedish chain of wine and spirits retailers. Hennie’s handlettering has also appeared on packaging for the eponymous UK supermarket chain Waitrose, which commissioned illustrations for an exclusive line of holiday treats.

She has recently worked on motion projects, creating content for animated broadcast and online ads. Her work set the backdrop for a moving image spot by Joolz, an Amsterdam-based baby stroller company. These black and white line drawings were later reproduced as a wall mural in a Joolz retail store. Hennie’s animated trailer for Paul McCartney’s latest release, The Album Story, was recently featured at the London Short Festival. Produced with the help of talented Ali Assaf and Rob Tovey of the London-based Studio Show & Tell, Hennie’s illustrations and handlettered titles evoke the nostalgic and melodic qualities of McCartney’s music.

Hennie has also illustrated several book covers, including Michael Pollan’s In Defense of Food (Penguin), Julie Cohen’s The Summer of Living Dangerously (Headline Review), Alberto Ferrars’s B as in Beauty (Random House), Karen Phillips’s The Truth About My Name (Klutz), Andrea Gillies’s Las Amapolas del Olvido (Grupo Planeta), and How to Cook: Delicious Dishes You’ll Really Want to Make (Dorling Kinsey). Hennie’s cover for Klutz’s The Truth About My Name features dozens of handlettered names, stylized to resemble the names scribbled into schoolgirl notebooks. The book includes a variety of games and quizzes that help girls find the hidden meanings behind their first names. Her series of covers for Shannon Hale’s Books of Bayern series (Bloomsbury) feature decorative elements that evoke the aquatic and the fiery elements of each plotline. The Goose Girl, River Secrets, Book of a Thousand Days, and Enna Burning are available through Amazon and Bloomsbury.

Having a dual talent for illustration and handlettering have made Hennie Haworth an invaluable collaborator for a long and diverse list of clients. To see her latest work, visit her Magnet Reps portfolio or her personal website at henniehaworth.co.uk.

Click here for downloadable items – desktop wallpapers and a high-res printable letter sized promo.

Q&A with Hennie Haworth

What do you do when you have a creative block? What are your best sources of inspiration?
I find exercise is a great way to get past it. Taking a break, getting some air, and coming back to it later with fresh eyes really helps. I’ll just think about something completely different for a while, and that normally gets me going again.

I think inspiration can be everywhere you look, it’s just a case of being open minded.

What are some sites you have bookmarked in your browser?
I love having a look at Print & Pattern (http://printpattern.blogspot.com/) and Design Sponge (http://www.designsponge.com/).

What’s the last movie you saw and how did you like it?
Bridget Jones! But it was just on over Christmas. The last film I watched at the cinema was a Buster Keaton one called The General. It’s an old silent movie, and they had someone playing the piano live along to it which was really great. It’s really funny and the stunts he does are so clever – and dangerous when you think how long ago it was made, before special effects and all that stuff.

What is your biggest challenge as an illustrator?
There are lots! One thing I always have to remind myself is to keep things simple. I easily get carried away and clutter the page up if I’m not careful.

What is a typical work day like for you? How do you portion off your time?
I get up around 7 and try to go for a run. Then I come back and have breakfast, and a nice strong coffee! After that I’ll reply to all my emails, and then I start work on whichever project I’m doing. I find you have to be very flexible with your time as an illustrator. I always take a break for lunch, but the time I finish always varies – sometimes late into the night.

Do you listen to music while you work? What’s the best and worst type of music for getting things done?
I don’t really listen to music while I work, mostly I listen to Radio 4 which is all talking. The funny thing is that when I look at my drawings I can remember all the programmes I listened to.

How has your work changed since you’ve become an illustrator? How do you see your work progressing in the future?
Working for other people has taught me a lot about what works and what doesn’t. Having feedback from so many different art directors and designers on separate projects has been really beneficial. They’ll often suggest things I’d never thought of doing and it’s nice to be surprised when it all comes together.

In the future I want to make more time to do my own projects. It’s always a struggle but it’s really satisfying when something is all yours right through from the idea to the production.

If you could be anything besides an illustrator, what would you be?
Ooh there are lots of things, and I’m not sure how realistic a lot of them are, but I’d love to be a spy!

What is your ideal studio like?
Nice big windows and lots of friends working there too. I love being able to stop work for a break and catch up on all the studio gossip over a cup of tea!

What is one tip you have for other creative professionals?
Make sure you’re happy with how things are going – never get trapped into feeling like you’re stuck doing things you’re not interested in.

You studied illustration at Brighton University. How did a formal arts education shape your style and method of working?
I’m not sure. I guess I didn’t really know that illustration was something you could do professionally, when I started at Brighton – I just liked drawing. It was only while I was there that I saw what people did and realized I could too. So maybe I’d just be still doing it as a hobby.

What’s the best way to continue improving your skills as an illustrator? (Sketching, interacting with other artists, etc.)
All of that, and lots more. I wouldn’t know what the best way was, but there are certainly lots of good ways. Those two that you’ve mentioned, as well as trying new things, learning about all the things your materials can do – including the computer, listen to other people’s advice and try it out. I just try to make sure that I always look for what I find interesting; I think that helps me develop and not get stuck in any one way of working.

You currently live and work in London. Is the big city conducive to your creative process? What’s the difference between working in London and working in Brighton?
Living in London has certainly made me aware of how much amazing work is being done all the time by so many brilliant people. Both types places have their good and bad points. Brighton is much smaller so it’s easier to feel like you’re part of a community which can be very supportive, but London has so much more diversity and things happen much quicker. A bit of both would be nice!

A genie grants you three wishes. What do you wish for?
1. A brand new computer with a HUGE screen.
2. A studio in New York overlooking a nice park.
3. An illustration project that needed me to travel the world.

Emiliano Ponzi employs negative space in haunting, lyrical ways to spin telling conceptual narratives. His minimalistic landscapes are populated by metaphors that are Magritte-esque in their playful simplicity, while his anonymous figures, understated color palates, and unusual vantage points artfully balance emotion and concept. Emiliano’s conceptually driven compositions combine the universalities of idea and emotion with a strikingly clean visual language.

Emiliano is an international artist whose roots are firmly planted in Milan. If his stylish glasses aren’t a clue to his Italian heritage, then just take a look at his work. His textured backgrounds and crisply rendered figures are influenced by Beppe Giacobbe, his professor and mentor at the Istituto Europeo di Design in Milan. Emiliano also draws inspiration from fellow Italian Lorenzo Mattoti, whose work he describes evocatively as “mak[ing] room inside you like a high speed train.” Emiliano’s strong connection to Italy shapes and informs his perspective as an international artist.

Emiliano Ponzi’s clients include The New York Times, Le Monde, Time, The Economist, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Newsweek, Random House, Penguin Books, and Saatchi & Saatchi New York. He has received numerous honors, including the coveted Young Guns Award from the New York Art Directors Club, and medals of honor from Society of Illustrators New York, Society of Illustrators Los Angeles, and 3×3 Magazine’s Pro show. Emiliano has also received awards of excellence from Print, How, Communication Arts, and American Illustration. His animation for Amnesty International, “Voices for Freedom” has won multiple awards, including the gold medal in Society of Illustrators New York’s first annual moving images competition and top ten Best in Show in the Print Magazine motion competition. He has been featured and interviewed by Il Post, La Repubblica, Klat Magazine, 10answers, Bonsai TV, Illustration Mundo, Corriere Della Sera, Contemporary Standard, Boite, and Arskey.

Emiliano regularly works with international clients, and this requires his work to be accessible across a variety of contexts. Emiliano treads a line between unique expression and universality with each assignment. In his introduction to Emiliano’s monograph, acclaimed New York Times art director Nicholas Blechman describes Emiliano’s work as “universal without being generic” – high praise for an artist who strives to do just that. Emiliano tailors his work to an international audience and always strives to transcend cultural boundaries.

Sometimes when Emiliano has a creative block, he seeks inspiration by looking out the window of his studio. He likes to “look at everything that [he] can see, and imagine what [he] cannot.” This, in essence, is his role as an illustrator. Emiliano takes the everyday and infuses it with a sense of what is un-seen, a sense of what is hidden beneath the surface.

In an interview with Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, Emiliano repeats a favorite quote by Marcel Proust, saying, “The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.” As a conceptual illustrator, Emiliano finds new eyes each time he begins an assignment. He will often take a familiar element, like an apple, and re-contextualize it, making the known unknown and the familiar unfamiliar. These conceptual challenges are why Emiliano says illustration is “a job that needs to be reinvented everyday.”

Emiliano’s first monograph was released in late 2011. The book serves as a chronicle of his decade-long career as an illustrator. He titled it 10×10, after his number of years in the industry, and in reference to the 10x10m room where he began his career. The book contains over 60 images and original emails from art directors, clients, and friends. The images and accompanying text illustrate the growth of Emiliano’s career and his burgeoning relationships with notable clients. The book is currently on sale in bookstores and museums all around the world, including PS1 in New York and the Tate Modern in London.

For such a young illustrator, Emiliano has made remarkable achievements in a short amount of time. He has twice annually contributed artwork to Doctors Without Borders, and was twice honored to moderate the auction in his hometown of Ferrara, Italy. He recently designed the commemorative September 11 cover of Italy’s La Repubblica newspaper. He has also lectured and been the subject of a solo exhibition at Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD). His work garners praise from competitions and clients alike. Patty Alvarez, art director at Newsweek, has said about Emiliano, “Every once in a while you come across an artist who makes you want to jump up and down with excitement. Someone overflowing with ideas that are smart, sophisticated and conceptually on point. An artist who’s able to convey the right amount of sensitivity and humor with the simplest stroke. Except for drinking American coffee, there is nothing this superstar can’t do.”

If Emiliano could describe his work in three words, he would choose: minimal, communicative, and intense. To read more about Emiliano and his work, visit his site www.emilianoponzi.com.

Click here for downloadable items – desktop wallpapers and a high-res printable letter sized promo.

Q&A with Emiliano Ponzi

What’s the first thing you do when you are stuck on a project? What are your best sources of inspiration?
The word “inspiration” makes me think of a painter with his canvas painting a beautiful sunset from a French river shore. In reality, inspiration can’t be a daily workmate. Usually, and especially on tough projects, I need to come up with a smart solution in a couple of hours. So, I face the job as a math equation, and from that comes the creative spark. This sounds very pragmatic, but what I mean is, sometimes inspiration and intuition are feelings that can be produced by logical thought.

What’s the best and worst part of being an illustrator?
Well… besides the more common positive aspects of doing a creative job (being in touch with great pros, seeing our images on magazine covers and billboards), I love that every job is different and I receive topics as diverse as philosophical dissertations on Nietzschean theories, treatises on the political roots of the American constitution, articles on New Yorkers’ Christmas habits, and pieces on how many hours to sleep per night to keep yourself young. This is important because you have to be interested and informed about many subjects.

What is your ideal studio like?
Total white.

What are some sites you have bookmarked in your browser?
I tend not to bookmark websites for work, I try to have random inspirations.

Do you listen to music while you work? What’s the best and worst kind of music for getting work done?
When I have to come up with ideas, small noises can be disturbing because this is the most sensitive part of my work. When it’s time to go with the final/color version, I often listen to music or just keep the TV on the news channel… sometimes being a bit distracted with a flux of information helps you find different solutions. I did a great illustration once while listening a friend of mine complaining about his boss. But, this is not so common – usually not paying attention means a big mess.

If you weren’t an illustrator, what would you be?
Hmmm….difficult to say, too many sliding doors to pass through… on one hand I probably would have sold stuff, like real estate, on the other hand I would have been a therapist.

What’s one tip you want to share with other creative professionals?
An action I find very useful is taking the most meaningful jobs done in the last 6 months to a year and looking at them all at once to understand what solutions have been applied, how style has improved and how often the same concepts are recycled.

If you could have one superpower, what would it be?
Invincibility, the ability to recover after a big dinner with my family, the ability to teletransport myself to different places within the blink of an eye… tough choice

How influential was art school in your formation as an artist? Is it something you recommend to aspiring illustrators?
Art school was just a starting point. I discovered what illustration was and the available options of work, but the path I followed was completely redesigned once I faced the market.

Describe your creative process. How much work is done by hand and how much is done on the computer?
5% by hand and 95% by computer. I guess that makes it sound like I have a supertech AI that does all the work instead of me.
I brainstorm keywords and ideas with very messy sketches on paper, just to lock on a concept, and then I do a better and clearer version of the sketch directly on the screen before I color it.

You can only take three things to a deserted island. What do you take?
3 bottles of water. I suppose.

What is a typical work day like for you? How do you portion off your time?
That’s very difficult. It can be quite easy to overwork yourself when you’re a creative working in a field you enjoy. In part because having sudden ideas can require more time than scheduled, and in part because it’s easy to linger on the details. My best way to portion time is to schedule appointments or dinner meetings so I know I won’t have all day to work.

What’s your favorite place to go on holiday?
The best place is the one where people speak a different language and have different habits. This helps me have the perception of being elsewhere, not just physically but mentally. It helps a lot to unplug from my daily life and from my habits. Changing the food, the weather and the numbers on my clock really mean I can recharge.

You identify as a conceptual artist. How do you create the concepts behind your work? Did it always come easily to you?
I once read a quote by David Lynch – he said that to catch bigger fish, you need to go deeper. Behind an easy concept is often a hidden cliche. Creativity is the ability to create new things from a combination of memories, so the first ideas to appear are often those that we are very familiar with because we have seen them on TV, the web, daily life… To arrive at another level, we need to recognize cliches and set them aside. Sometimes it’s quite easy and sometimes it isn’t. I think it depends on how much we like the topic and how well we know that subject.

How has your work changed since you’ve become an illustrator? How do you see your work progressing in the future?
During the years, I’ve left behind the “horror vacui” attitude, the fear of empty spaces inside images. Very often we feel the urge to fill the page, all of it, especially at the beginning, because we find no sense in negative spaces. Working, I learned that those spaces have a big meaning, because emptiness gives sense to the other elements of the composition. The same for details, many of them look scattered at first sight unless they are read as one. This doesn’t mean you should create simple illustrations, but simplified illustrations. It means you add meaning and subtract the unnecessary and the obvious.

Gordon Wiebe is an illustrator and collage artist based in Toronto, Canada. His style is defined by expressionistic landscapes and figures constructed from collage. His distinctive characters have elongated limbs and bulky patchwork torsos, combining geometric forms with naturalistic curves. Gordon’s work is both conceptually driven and capable of evoking emotions as diverse as whimsy, joy, melancholy, and drama.

Gordon’s clients include Business Week, Asset International, The Globe and Mail, Harvard Business Review, HOW Magazine, and The Los Angeles Times. His award-winning illustrations have been featured in American Illustration, Society of Illustrators New York, Society of Illustrators Los Angeles, and 3×3 Magazine’s Pro Show.

Citing Philip Guston, Donald Judd, and Pierre Bonnard as some of his favorite artists, Gordon admires the cerebral and technically demanding qualities of fine art, but at the same time, sees himself as an artist working in the commercial sphere. He has said that his work “only becomes ‘real’ when it is printed and in context.” Piecing together the components of text, design, and illustration provides Gordon with a challenge that is much like an extension of his collage process – this interaction between forms and voids frames the basis of his personal art and his collaboration with clients.

Gordon’s latest personal pieces are collage-based interpretations of two classic films: Nosferatu (1922) and The Hustler (1961). The first film, an unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, features a bat-eared vampire villain. Gordon captures Nosferatu’s menacing stillness with dark features and an ominous glare. The Hustler, starring Paul Newman, tells the story of a small-time hustler’s journey to beating a renowned pool champion. Gordon’s use of line and gesture gives the collage a sense of movement that conveys the literal and figurative sentiment of ‘hustling.’

Gordon’s illustrations always begin with a sketch, but ultimately his work relies on spontaneity and the interaction of forms. His previous actions always inform the decisions to come: “To me, the different scraps and pieces that I bring together to create a collage are like collaborators – their contours and colours influence my decision about how each picture will develop and take shape, and what it will ultimately look like.” The medium of collage is crucial to Gordon’s creative process because it allows for improvisation within a range of found objects, giving his work an element of structure and of serendipity.

Gordon’s work has appeared in a number of media, such as advertising, magazines, newspapers, and books. In 2010, he illustrated the cover of Vivienda social en altura, a book written by author Sergio Ballen Zamora. Published in Mexico, the book deals with sustainable housing and urban development. He has also illustrated the cover of Statistical Panic: Cultural Politics and Poetics of the Emotions, a book published by Duke University and authored by professor Kathleen Woodward. The book delves into the ways that gender, race, and age influence the expression of emotion in American society.

Gordon’s advertising campaign work for the pharmaceutical company Merck promotes Gardasil, a new drug that prevents cervical cancer caused by strains of the human papilloma virus. His sensitive rendition targets a demographic of young women using bird imagery and a light colorful palette. The Above the Influence ad campaign, in conjunction with Partnership for a Drug-Free America, targeted a teen demographic and exclusively featured Gordon’s illustrations and hand lettering. The campaign aims to help teens stay drug-free by relaying facts and statistics about teen drug usage. In the images, Gordon’s use of speech bubbles for text doubles as a metaphor for darkened lungs. His conceptually driven illustrations often pair well with message-oriented advertising campaigns.

In July of this year, the HQ Bank of Taipei chose Gordon as the headlining artist of the annual Fubon Art Festival. His work was featured on a 25-story skyscraper at the center of Taipei’s arts district and he flown out to Taipei to attend the unveiling of his work. Dozens of volunteers wearing Wiebe printed t-shirts guided visitors to and from the sights while handing out Wiebe memorabilia such as fans, watches, buttons, and stickers. A tile-painting workshop for kids allowed burgeoning artists to paint their own versions of Gordon’s characters onto take-home souvenirs. The widely promoted event introduced Gordon’s work to a large international audience of artists, consumers, and art directors, marking an important milestone in Gordon’s career. For more information about the annual art fair and its contributors, visit the Fubon Art Festival home page.

Gordon has also contributed to The Lifted Brow‘s year-end World Atlas issue. The Lifted Brow is an Australia-based bimonthly journal that publishes art, music, and literature from a variety of sources. Past contributors have included Douglas Coupland, Sage Francis and Bodies of Water. Gordon chose to represent his native Canada in the World Atlas issue and submitted a piece about Canada’s diminishing marine populations titled The Last Fish.

In 2006, 2008 and 2010, the Taiwanese design magazine dpi featured Gordon with a interviews and multipage spreads that discussed his unique style and career trajectory. Gordon has also been featured in Juxtapoz Magazine‘s (issue #48) artist profile section alongside Kime Buzzelli, Insa, Marci Washington, Hanoch Oliven, Chip, Kagan McLeod and Aron Wiesenfeld. Later that year, Blanket Magazine asked Gordon and fellow Magnet Reps artist Ana Bagayan to collaborate with other illustrators on a collector’s edition poster. The poster joined several artistic styles into a patchwork quilt. To view and/or purchase the poster, visit Blanket Magazine’s online store.

Gordon’s work has appeared in art galleries in both the US and Canada. The print he created for the Tiny Showcase online gallery, titled “Oscillators and Insects,” sold out within a few hours of its release. A portion of each Tiny Showcase sale goes to the artist’s designated charity, and Gordon chose to benefit the Toronto Public Space Committee, a non-profit grassroots organization that advocates for shared spaces and protects them from privatization.

His piece Blue Bird was part of Power in Numbers, an online showcase moderated by the L.A.-based Nucleus gallery. Proceeds from all sales went to benefit the artists’ designated charities. Gordon’s painting of a weeping caged bird was placed on sale to benefit these various organizations. Originally an annual exhibition, the show has since evolved into an ongoing project. Visit the Power In Numbers website to support the artists and their causes.

Click here for downloadable items – desktop wallpapers and a high-res printable letter sized promo.

Q&A with Gordon Wiebe

What is your creative process? Do you usually begin with a sketch?
My process can vary depending on the end result that is needed. For commissioned art I will sketch/write whatever comes to mind, without a critical filter – shapes, colours, words etc… and then I’ll try and find the visual connections between these thoughts to produce a workable concept. If I’m not trying to make an image to accompany a text (personal work) I pick a spot on the blank page – glue down that first piece of collage and let the shapes, colours and their inter-personal relationships tell me what to do next.

What do you do when you have a creative block? What are your best sources of inspiration?
I wish I knew! When I’m in a tough spot I’ll usually got to a coffee shop. The combination of caffeine and the white noise of other people swirling around me usually gets my thoughts flowing. Or, the shower – I do some of my best thinking in the shower.

Who are three artists you admire and why?
Number one, for me, has always been Philip Guston. His painting and imagery is quite challenging and difficult for most – but, once you get a feel for what he was trying to accomplish, his work is endlessly rewarding. His brushstrokes didn’t just create things – they created and destroyed things, and themselves, all at the same time. That probably doesn’t make any sense – but, Guston taught me that that’s o.k.

Donald Judd has always been a favourite as well – cerebral and cold yet humane and human scaled work that I just love to be in the same room with.

And, Bonnard – I’ve been looking at a lot of late Bonnard again after a taking a break from him. In his later years I feel like he was really onto something about the depiction of space, our relation to it/in it, and the objects around us – time and space, memory etc…

A genie grants you three wishes. What do you wish for?
I’ve seen and read enough to know that there is some diabolical twist at the end of each wish – I’d probably spend a bit of time chatting with the genie to get a feel for the situation before I made any poorly thought out, fateful wishes.

In an ideal world, you would have an infinite amount of…?
Time? Time I guess. With time anything is possible and everything is.

How did you discover your style? What draws you to your particular method of illustration?
My style, just, is – I don’t really try to accomplish anything when I’m working – I don’t try anything – it just happens. If the composition calls for a cyan blue square with a little nick out of the top left corner to be placed at the bottom left of the page – who am I to say no?! Maybe I’ll challenge that blue square with a little pure red isosceles triangle snuggled up against it – what now? Who knows?! Find out next!!!

What’s the last book you read? How was it?
I’m reading “The Bicycle Diaries” by David Byrne right now. It’s a good, quick, little read about his travels through a variety of international cities – and, the thoughts that careen through his head while he bicycles around them. I’m a dedicated cyclist myself – it’s the best way to see and be in the city. I’ve never driven a car – and never will.

You have 24 hours to live the life of one fictional character. Who do you choose?
I haven’t read much fiction lately – I’m on a bit of a non-fiction kick. I recently read a book about whales/whalesongs/whale culture and communication. I think I’d like to try being a whale.

What’s your guilty pleasure?
I’ve just re-discovered an old friend of mine – Dr. Pepper. Half-flat Dr. Pepper.

Favorite holiday and why.
I’d have to go with any civic/non-denominational holiday – no baggage and they are always part of a long weekend.

What deep, dark childhood trauma made you decide to pursue a career as an artist?
Here’s a childhood story: when I was 6-10 ish (?) I was, like most boys my age, obsessed with Star Wars. I had all the figures and vehicles etc… except I didn’t play with them – I would obsessively draw each new toy as I got them and then play with the drawings instead of the toys. This drove my parents, who were spending a lot of money to feed my Star Wars habit, absolutely crazy. As a teen I would do the same thing with records – whenever I got a new record (albums with good covers I would buy on record – average covers on tape, or, eventually cd) I would immediately re-create the cover, at full size, in pencil and stick it to my wall.

What is your ideal assignment?
I like jobs where I get to work with the designer – where type is going to be laid over my image or where my image needs to take a strange shape to fit with a design or concept. Growing up in a pop/post-pop world – I find that my work (illustration work anyway) only becomes “real” when it is printed and in context.

What are some sites you have bookmarked in your browser?
In my bookmarks you’ll find a lot of political blogs + news sites for daily reading (I’m a bit of a political junkie), a bunch of synthesizer forums (skkkrrzzzzowwwwwwww) and a whole bunch of unorganized links to things that I mean to get around to reading but never quite do…

What’s the hardest part of being an illustrator?
Not having anybody to talk to at the water cooler. Not having a water cooler.

You just got back from Taipei’s Fubon Art Festival. What was it like seeing your art displayed on a large corporate skyscraper? What were your impressions of the city and how did you enjoy your trip?
Taiwan was a fantastic experience – the best I’ve had in a while. I’ve never really travelled alone – especially not to so exotic a locale – and I really enjoyed it. It was a lot of fun negotiating my way through a city, culture and language that I really had no idea about – I guess I like to travel the same way I make pictures – I just let it happen and let the situation dictate what happens next. I had a chance to get to know Taipei City from a variety of angles – the highs and the lows. I was also able to travel outside of the city a little bit – to the coast and into the interior – which was just beautiful. I’m a big plant fan and the tropical mountainous regions had many a fern and flora for me to fawn over.

Seeing my work on the bank building was pretty exciting. I first came across it by accident – I was walking around the city, not quite knowing where I was or where I was going, turned a corner and saw one of my faces poking out between two buildings – 4 blocks away and 25 stories in the sky! I spent a fair bit of time walking around the building and checking it out from different angles (and taking pictures for my mother – like she told me too – I’m not much of a picture taker). Inside the building was a little kiosk with information about the festival. The volunteer running the info desk was wearing a shirt with my image on it, selling buttons and watches and bags etc… with my image on them. Decorating the lobby was an inflatable balloon character of mine – it was all quite surreal. I had brought the original collages of the heads/fireworks/explosions with me to give as gifts to the people I was working on the project with and I wanted to give one to the volunteer but I had left them at the artist residence I was staying at. I returned the next day to give the gift – but the volunteer was gone. Was it all a dream? Or was it just lunch?

For Los Angeles illustrator Bella Pilar, work begins with a latte, a sketchbook, and a large stack of magazines. Her local cafe is her favorite spot for a dose of inspiration. Pen in hand, she flips through well-worn issues of Vogue to rev up her internal database of poses, prints, and silhouettes. Once an idea catches her fancy, she turns her thoughts to paper, sketching her signature, long-limbed ladies with practiced ease. Then it’s off to her studio, which she keeps well stocked with the tools of her trade: 29 tubes of gouache paint, 18 watercolor brushes, and plenty of Arches hot press watercolor paper.

“Drawing and painting have been with me as long as I can remember,” Bella says. “My mother started taking me to art classes on weekends when I was nine years old. I immediately caught interest and quickly discovered how happy it made me. I knew then that creating art would be a part of my life forever.”

Educated in fashion design at F.I.T. and Massachusetts College of Art, Bella’s first job out of school was as a window dresser for Macy’s in Manhattan. “I started out painting the makeup (using grease paints) on the faces of the display mannequins,” Bella recalls. “After that job, I moved on to painting real faces – working in New York and then L.A. as a freelance makeup artist. Now I paint faces on watercolor paper.” She moved to Los Angeles with her documentary filmmaker husband, and continued her work as a freelance makeup artist. While most makeup artists used photographs as a reference, Bella used her own illustrations. One of these illustrations caught the attention of a magazine editor, which ultimately led to her first editorial illustration job.

Bella brings her style to life with a paintbrush and a bit of gouache. Then, with the guidance of an art director, her work appears on the pages of magazines like Marie Claire, Glamour, Uomo Vogue (Italy), Vogue (Mexico), Hamptons, and Modern Bride (China). Bella’s client list is long and diverse, and, to date, her work has appeared in locales as varied as Dubai, Hong Kong, Germany, Latin America, and the UK. One glimpse at her body of work demonstrates the universal appeal of Bella’s illustrations.

Many of Bella’s campaigns have taken place in Italy, where her character Fleur acts as the mascot for the highly regarded retail chain La Gardenia. With over 160 stores, La Gardenia is Italy’s largest makeup and perfume retailer. Bella’s televised campaigns have aired throughout Italy, and her artwork has received national attention on multiple occasions.

The success of her line of greeting cards has made her Papyrus‘ all-time top selling artist and has brought her art into hundreds of thousands of American homes. Her limited edition greeting cards in particular have become collectors’ items, and fans bring them in for Bella to sign at artist signing events in New York and California. The range of products that Bella has licensed her art on has expanded to include tote bags, gift boxes, tee shirts, children’s toys, bookmarks, journals, and a line of fabrics. “I like to see my artwork on various products,” Bella says. “I hope to see many more products with my artwork on them in the future.”

Bella’s whimsical feminine illustrations have appeared in advertising and marketing campaigns for companies like Bloomingdale’s, Tiffany & Co., Timex, La Perla, and Lancome. “I love the variety of work I do, and I hope I’ll continue to grow in all areas.” Targeting fashion-forward women, Bella’s “By Invitation Only” campaign for Tiffany & Co. and fall designer handbag promotion for Bloomingdales called upon Bella’s talent for conveying glamour and sophistication. Her figures have been called “sassy and [...] coy” by some, “exquisite, exotic and chic” by others. Bella’s distinct style has also helped her woo corporate clients like Target, Viactiv, and Hewlett-Packard. Whether it’s releasing limited edition vintage tees (Target), announcing a yearlong partnership with the Susan G. Komen Foundation (Viactiv), or publicizing a web-based party invitation app (Hewlett-Packard), Bella’s illustrations have played an integral role in making corporate projects memorable, accessible, and successful. “To be in this profession, you must be confident, with a unique style of your own that only you possess,” Bella says. “I feel like I am always competing with myself, to improve each piece of artwork to be stronger than the last.”

Bella also works regularly with clients that target a younger demographic. In 2011, she illustrated the Petal Pushers series (Scholastic) by Catherine Daly. The books, designed for girls eight years and up, focus on four young sisters and their family flower shop Her illustrations have also appeared on magnetic paper dolls (Mudpuppy), children’s apparel (My Vintage Baby), and books geared toward teens (Chronicle Books). Bella’s cover for Sarah O’Leary Burningham’s How to Raise Your Parents: A Teen Girl’s Survival Guide captures the book’s tongue-in-cheek take on teen rebellion and family relationships. Bella’s fresh-faced illustrations have also appeared in a number of teen magazines, which include YM, Sweet 16, Girls’ Life, and Marie Claire. When asked about the source of her inspiration, Bella reveals that everything she does is dedicated to her two daughters. “This has a special place in my heart. Just like those art classes that my mom brought me to that molded me and my fascination with creative work, I hope to inspire my little girls.”

Bella has developed a highly recognizable style that has been noticed by clients and the media. In 2010, her Papyrus greeting cards were sewn into an ‘origami dress’ for Los Angeles’ Fashion’s Night Out. The dress was modeled by Project Runway finalist Rami Kashou and was featured on a number of fashion blogs, creating a splash among Los Angeles trend spotters.

In January 2011, Vogue Mexico and Latinoamerica published a four-page feature on Bella, describing her figures as, “graceful, feminine women with endless legs [and] swan necks,” “the ultimate personification of chic.” The interview coincided with Bella’s work for Vogue Shopping Experience, an all-day charity event that took place in Mexico City’s fashion district. Bella’s illustrations ran as advertorials in the Mexican editions of Vogue, Glamour and AD Magazine.

Then in February 2011, the Mexican women’s magazine Femina interviewed Bella for a full-page article about her career as an illustrator. During the interview, Bella stressed that individual style is what makes artists stand out from other professionals. “It doesn’t matter how many other illustrators there are out there looking for the same work. As long as you are true to your individual style, competition is never a thought. How can you compete if you’re the only one that does what you do!”

Bella Pilar’s love of fashion combined with a sweet whimsical aesthetic make her the go-to girl for the fashionista and girl-next-door alike. To see more of Bella’s work, along with behind-the-scenes images of her illustration process, visit her blog at junipervalentine.blogspot.com.

Click here for downloadable items – desktop wallpapers and a high-res printable letter sized promo.

Q&A with Bella Pilar

What’s the best part of being an illustrator?
I have a great excuse to hang out in coffee shops. I camp out with a latte at a window seat and sketch jobs on the days I am not in my studio painting.

Flight or invisibility?
Invisibility.

If you could change one thing about your studio, what would it be?
Can we make it bigger please.

What is your go-to karaoke song?
Hit Me With Your Best Shot, Pat Benatar.

Your ideal vacation spot?
Anywhere with new and interesting foods. It could be a fast paced urban jungle where I’m eating at the best restaurants or the most exotic street vendor foods standing on a busy corner. Or it can be a quiet desolate beach or countryside where I’m eating the local specialties in the peace and quiet. My dream vacation is a food tour of the world. We recently stayed on a farm in Sonoma where we milked the goats and collected eggs from the hen house. That next morning we were eating fried eggs and goat milk yogurt. Pretty ideal.

What do you do when you’re not working?
Hang out with my kids and husband.

What is one tip you want to share with other creative professionals?
I’m practical – buy in bulk. No, seriously. You never want to reach for that watercolor paper or that lead for the pencil, and find that… uh oh, there’s no more! And it’s 2 am! So all you fellow late night workers, keep a good supply of supplies in your studio.

Why gouache?
I find it soothing to paint with. I don’t struggle or battle with it. It’s quite comfortable and natural for me to express ideas in this medium. And I love the texture you can create since it can be transparent as well at opaque. Great for a good splatter.

Who are three artists you admire?
My daughters and my husband.
My husband’s drive and love for his filmmaking is quite an inspiration.
As for my two little girls – I scream with joy over every little art project they do. Each one is it’s own little masterpiece. The thing is, is that they see greatness in every piece they create, without hesitation or doubt. They are confident in all of their creations. I admire that.

What are some sites you have bookmarked in your browser?
www.epicurious.com Cant cook dinner without it.
www.etsy.com I mean, really, so much talent out there. I love to shop here late night when the kids are down.
www.illustrationmundo.com It’s all there.
www.pinterest.com Lots of eye candy.

Your favorite member of the ’80′s Brat Pack?
Molly rules.

You’re a born and bred New Yorker. When and why did you decide to move to Los Angeles?
I’ve been in Los Angeles much longer than I had ever planned. We moved here simply for a change of pace, a new experience. But its hard to slow down the pace of this New Yorker, and I basically jet back to NY every free moment I can. I live in LA, but my heart belongs to NY. You can take the girl outta NY, but you cant take the New Yorker outta the girl, isn’t that what they say?

In an ideal world, you would have a lifetime supply of…?
Chocolate. Rest. Love.

Toronto-based illustrator Graham Roumieu’s characteristic style, consisting of inked lines and watercolor washes, always accompanies an offbeat and often irreverent sense of humor. Whether it’s a bee flirting with a gardenia over a glass of wine, God asking Adam to become his Facebook friend, or a housekeeper vacuuming the tomb where Romeo mourns Juliet, Roumieu’s images consistently provoke both thought and laughter.

Roumieu regularly works with a number of publications throughout the U.S. and Canada. His clients include the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, Business Week, and the Washington Post. He has also authored and illustrated six books: Some Really Super Poems About Squirrels (Andrews McMeel), 101 Ways to Kill Your Boss (Plume), Cat & Gnome (Blue Q Books), and the cult classic Bigfoot series - Me Write Book: It Bigfoot Memoir (Plume), Bigfoot: I Not Dead (Plume) and In Me Own Words: the Autobiography of Bigfoot (Manic D Press).

His most recent publishing project is a creative collaboration with postmodern author Douglas Coupland, titled Highly Inappropriate Tales for Young People (Random House Canada). Coupland, who authored jPod, Life After God and the international bestseller Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture (which popularized the terms ‘McJob’ and ‘Generation X.’), are well matched in their irreverence and love of social commentary. In the book, Roumieu and Coupland combine their talents to create seven hilariously improbable tales, featuring characters like Donald the Incredibly Hostile Juice Box, Hans the Weird Exchange Student, Brandon the Action Figure with Issues, and Kevin the Hobo Minivan with Extremely Low Morals. The highly anticipated book lands in stores October 25, 2011.

In 2003, Roumieu published the first in a series of Bigfoot autobiographies. Written from the perspective of a jaded, egomaniacal ex-legend whose hobbies include terrorizing forest critters and composing screenplays, the books have quickly become a cult favorite. Bigfoot’s antics have inspired readers to write Bigfoot songs, make Bigfoot dolls, and even bake Bigfoot cakes. The very hairy leading man has thousands of followers on Twitter, where he regular charms fans with sayings like, “Secret to great smile is use Lee Press On Nails as veneers” and “Wearing two sashes and a cummerbund. It just feel right.”

Bigfoot’s charm stems from a stubbornly juvenile outlook that is by turns abrasive and endearing. In one chapter, Bigfoot admits that his less-than-eloquent speech patterns made him the target of bullying in high school. His confession accompanies a flashback of teenage Bigfoot tearing down the opposition (literally) at a high school debate. A decapitated head lies on the linoleum as two recent amputees cower in a pool of their own blood. Red ink, smeared and spattered throughout the page, vividly relays the relish with which Bigfoot dismembers his competitors.

Roumieu’s wildly energetic, and sometimes gleefully gruesome, brushwork sometimes seems at odds with his underdog sensibilities. In a recent interview, he says, “I think I have a tendency to gravitate to subjects that are sweet, naive and innocent in nature because it gives more impact when I inevitably throw them into situations that are bizarre, human and dire.” With Bigfoot, Roumieu has combined all of the above, producing a creature whose displays of ego rival only his bouts of crippling insecurity.

Roumieu’s 101 Ways to Kill Your Boss has been universally applauded and published in many countries worldwide. Imagine eviscerating your boss with a giant laser pointer, quitting your job via ninja courier service, laying a trap by way of urinal guillotine. Roumieu takes office politics to the next level with increasingly extreme tactics for boss-icide. His illustrations find the bizarre and the funny in even the most mundane office environments. Linked together by a deep yet twisted look into the human psyche, Roumieu’s work continually surprises viewers with its insight and its ability to elicit gut-wrenching laughter.

In addition to illustrating for publications and graphic novels, Roumieu has worked on a number of successful ad campaigns, including “Ink Amnesty” for HP, “Early Bloomers” for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Canada, and “No Peeking Event” for Sears. “Ink Amnesty” for HP featured an out-of-control squid character that warned against using third-party ink cartridges in HP printers. The Big Brothers Big Sisters campaign used Roumieu’s humorous peer pressure illustrations to encourage people to mentor a child though the Big Brothers Big Sisters In-School Mentoring program. The “No Peeking Event” for Sears took place in downtown Toronto and featured a 2,200 square foot maze, an electric train, ice sculptures and plenty of free giveaways. The event took place at a major Toronto intersection and went live right before the holiday season. Roumieu’s work for the well-publicized campaign was animated and projected on a several-stories-tall screen above the maze.

His work has been honored by American Illustration, Communication Arts, Society of Illustrators, Applied Arts, the HOW International Design Awards, the Advertising & Design Club of Canada, the Coupe International Design Competition, the SPD Spots Annual, and the National Magazine Awards. His site Roumieu.com was recently named one of HOW Magazine‘s Top 10 Sites for Designers. When he’s not illustrating, Roumieu teaches at OCAD University, Canada’s oldest and largest art and design school.

Click here for downloadable items – desktop wallpapers and a high-res printable letter sized promo.

Q&A with Graham Roumieu

Best way to end a long day of work?

Satisfied. Waist band full of money.
Wait. Wrong job.

Favorite way to spark inspiration?

Sometimes if I am stumped by something I…

If you weren’t an illustrator, what would you be?

Probably a gardener. When I was a kid I was obsessed by a show called The Victorian Kitchen Garden which was a BBC series documenting the restoration of a derelict manor house garden, and re learning techniques that resulted in people being able to grow tropical fruit in dreary English conditions.

When I was in college I spent some summers planting trees. Sometimes thousands in a day. That cured me of wanting to garden for a while, but it did eventually come back. It’s only been fairly recently that I live in a place that has a back yard where I can mess about with plants and to put it quite simply, I enjoy it quite a bit.

Why do you prefer ink and watercolor over digital media or other forms of traditional media?

It’s what I am used to and it best approximates what is in my head. Plus the idea of making something meaningful with a piece of paper and a stick covered in some stuff that stains the paper is pretty awesome. Trying to do the same thing with a machine that can also plot the orbits of spacecraft is pretty awesome too, but in my opinion, somewhat less so.

What’s the last book you read?

Hot Art by Joshua Knelman, a mind-blowing investigative book on the world of international art theft.

In your Bigfoot series, the protagonist is a narcissistic megalomaniac with impulse control issues. Is his story inspired by your own life experiences?

No, unlike Bigfoot, I am pretty much perfect.

What is your ideal studio like?

Self-cleaning, well stocked, workshop-like, prone to interesting visitors that bring me lunch and news of the outside world.

Who is the funniest person you know?

Funny ‘ha-ha’ or funny ‘hmmmmm’? Or both? Like that clown I know that is always muttering stuff about the government.

Which fictional character do you most identify with?

Sometimes, C3PO, sometimes, HAL. Sometimes Arthur Dent, sometimes Dave.

When did you decide to become an illustrator?

Aside from going to art school to study illustration, I think I kind of just became one. I do have a vague recollection of originally wanting to be an animator.

What’s one tip you want to share with other creative professionals?

If you’re moving the pen around and nothing happens it probably means it is out of ink or the cap is still on or you are holding it upside down or you have mistaken a hot dog for a pen.

Also, having the discipline to sit down and work at something until you get it right is a surprisingly rare trait in people, so if you have it, or feel you have the potential to have it, make use of it. Protect it like your life depended on it.

What is your guilty pleasure?

Teleportation.

What do you do when you’re not working?

Hang out with friends.

Look out your window. What’s the first thing you see?

Darkness. It’s night time. My own image reflected back at me. Hey there handsome. See question 6. (Wow! That there was some poetry.)

If Hollywood produced a movie based on your life, which actor would play the leading role?

Best decided by a winner takes all no rules casting call death match.

Catell Ronca’s use of striking hot colors, bold shapes, patterns and hand-lettering invites the viewer to engage on a direct emotional level with her unique illustrations. Inspired by international vernacular, her work reflects a window into her world, the very global city of London, and the many cities she has travelled to. Her art is alive with lush, vivid botanicals, environments rich with culture, and thought provoking characters that are gentle and playful, a little bit peculiar, and never lack a subtle sense of humor.

Her travels around the globe are a vital source of inspiration, she loves observing people on the streets and markets of London’s multi-ethnic neighborhoods (and listening to the various accents). Other inspirations include antique shops, car boot sales, markets (even supermarkets), fusions of any kind, contradictions, and interiors.

Described as elegant, impressive and delicious, her artwork was featured in Nicole Vernon’s recent posting for the hip London art and design blog The Young Bloods, which went on to say “Her illustrations span a wide variety of influences – everything from psychology and nature to cooking and cats – and she has a distinctive sense of intelligent narrative and wit. Combine this with a delicious colour palette and you’re getting close to understanding the charm and elegance of Catell’s images.” Lost At E-Minor‘s Ilana Kohn says “I’ve been admiring her colorful, deceptively simple illustrations and paintings ever since . . . I first stumbled across them.”

Born on Christmas Day to French and Swiss parents in Basel, Switzerland, Catell now lives and works in London where she studied illustration and graduated from the Royal College of Art. In short order she received an impressive commission to illustrate a series of six postage stamps with the of theme of Britain’s multicultural society and cuisine for the British Royal Mail. With the Queen’s approval of her artwork, the stamps were launched.

Catell has illustrated a number of book covers for respected publishers, both novels and children’s picture books. Her recent work for the The New York Botanical Garden included an animated tv spot as well as a number of other advertising and promotion materials. She has worked with a wide variety of clients in book publishing, magazines and newspapers, advertising and art licensing from the US, Britain, Spain, France, Italy, Switzerland and Japan. Her impressive list of international clients includes The New York Botanical Garden, Penguin, Princeton University Press, SpotCo, The Guardian, and Royal Mail. She finds time to teach illustration at universities in London and enjoys being able to guide the talent of future illustrators.

CATELL LOVES – Travel, she has been to: Switzerland, Italy, Spain, France, Scotland, Mongolia, Russia, Germany, Mexico, USA, Oman, Belgium, The Netherlands, Ireland, Hungary, Poland and Portugal. Color, coffee on a hot summer day, the dawn of each new season, the smell of cat fur, Purple Basil, Passion Flower, the Century Plant, artist Grayson Perry, collecting folklore ceramic bowls, blini with smoked salmon, The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai and Everything is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer, cooking, and two sweet cats.

PERSONAL WORK – Inspired by her travels in Mongolia, Catell has been working on a children’s book and is close to finishing. She has also set herself to the task of creating a series of posters that visually document many of the fascinating objects exhibited in small museums around London. The first being Henry Wellcome’s Medicine Man at the Wellcome Trust, which can be seen here.

AWARDS + PUBLICATION – Catell’s work has been awarded by a number of juried competitions including – Society of Illustrators 52, Association of Illustrators Images 30, and Society of Illustrators Los Angeles Illustration West 49. Her work has been featured in the art books The Exquisite Book (Quarry, edited by Julia Rothman), The Atlas of Illustration (Page One, Singapore, by Claire Dalquie), and Drawn In (Quarry, edited by Julia Rothman). She has been showcased on numerous blogs including Lost at E-Minor, Ape on the Moon, and The Young Blood Project.

Click here for downloadable items – desktop wallpapers and a high-res printable letter sized promo.

LINKS:
her site – http://www.catellronca.co.uk/
her portfolio – http://www.magnetreps.com/portfolio/artist/21/type/a/
her studio – http://www.magnetreps.com/studio/artist/21/
her store – http://catellronca.bigcartel.com/