Mique Moriuchi . Beautiful textural and layered Illustration.
In 1997 Mique Moriuchi graduated from Norwich School of Art, followed by a Masters in Sequential Design and Illustration at the University of Brighton.
Her beautifully crafted pictures are created by acrylic paint and collage. She loves colour, paper and pattern. This decorative style has lent itself perfectly to children’s book illustration. Mique’s style has an international appeal and My Village, a project for Gecko Press, was selected as one of the 250 outstanding new international books for Children and young adults for the White Raven Award 2009. Her work was also selected for the 2009 prestigious Illustration Exhibition at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair.
You can find some lovely felt toys in the shop Into The Woods as seen below and there’s more of Mique’s work can be seen here, on her blog and on Flickr too.
Kumi Obata . Contemporary Japanese Etchings
Kumi Obata was born in Kanagawa and now lives in Tokyo, Japan. She began creating etchings in 2000.
I’m never quite sure what it is about etchings that often capture my attention. Could it be their often stark black and white lines, their scratchy, slightly uneven textures or perhaps the small splattering of fine marks like iron filings spilling out onto the paper surface. I do find some of them quite intriguing, and they often have a ‘slightly precious’ quality to them. If that makes sense ?
Kumi’s current activities include calendars, illustrations, matchbox and book covers. Lovely delicate art.
Simone Rea . An Italian Artist and Illustrator
Italian Simone Rea is an accomplished artist and illustrator, born in 1975 in Albano Laziale where he lives and works today.
After studying at the Fine Arts Academy in Rome he showed an interest in illustration and participated in special courses organized by the Foundation Sarmede in Treviso. This way he started his artistic career by developing his characteristic 2-D graphic style. He creates surreal atmospheres, fantastic creatures, half human and half animal, represented by a subtle delicacy that is nearly melancholic.
His passion for art history and the world of illustration is reflected in all his works. The artists he likes most are Hieronymus Bosch, Toulouse Lautrec, Marcel Duchamp, Carll Cneut, Beatrice Alemagna and Lorenzo Mattotti. In 2006 he was selected at the competition Figures Futur in France with two illustrations inspired by Alice in Wonderland. In 2008 he was selected for the exhibition of Illustrators at the Bologna Children Book Fair and again in 2011. Last summer 2011 he had his personal exhibition entitled “Humans and other Animals” at La Casina di Raffaello at Villa Borghese in Rome.
There’s an interesting article from a site called Le Figure dei Libri here about the technical side to Simone’s work that I’ve translated from Italian. He explains how he builds up the textural surface of his work by painting a thin wash of acrylic. Then he rubs bitumen into the surface, removing most of it with chloramine and then rubbing it with sandpaper, before working back on top with paints.
Some creative and inspiring work.
Jim Field . Illustrator for cats, fish and the famous.
Jim Field was born in Farnborough and always wanted to create cartoons from an early age. Studying at Hull School of Art and Design and graduating in 2002, he started his career in the animation industry by working as a director for Partizan in London. Whilst also working as a freelance illustrator for editorial publications.
His first childrens’ book commission came about from a self promotional mail-out of five stinky fish landing on the right desk at the right time at MacMillan. His first picture book Cats Ahoy! written by Peter Bently won the Booktrust Roald Dahl-Funny Prize in 2011 and has been nominated for the Kate Greenaway award.
Jim lives in London with his girlfriend, three bikes and a good sense of humour.
And following on from my last posting about smiling more …. I saw this on Anke Weckmann‘s site and following it through to the pics of the rabbits (pictured underneath) also made me laugh out loud, top tip Anke.
Smile …. it’s a new year.
Do you find that January can sometimes be a difficult time ? Trying to refocus on work after a long break can sometimes be tricky and I’ve passed a fair few people recently, who have long faces, who perhaps are finding being back at work, just that little bit labour-some. Personally I’ve decided to try a different approach and in order to feel more positive, I’ve been concentrating on things that have made me smile already this year. In the vain hope that my post may spark a reaction and make those amongst you who are heavy hearted, perhaps see things from a new perspective and explore the positives around you, here we go.
The first smile came from a recent visit to Cobham in Surrey to stay with a friend’s parents. I came across Chatley Heath Semaphore Tower which is one in a line of towers that were used to send messages from the Admiralty in London to the navy in Portsmouth. It was used from 1822-1848, and restored by Surrey County Council in 1989. Such an unusual and beautiful structure.
Cobham itself is a lovely area, albeit a little ‘plummy’ and posh, but you can’t help but revel in the age and beauty of it’s architecture. I’ve never seen so much fresh mistletoe growing in circular bunches in the trees, and they also have a host of parakeets which squawk and twitter from the treetops everywhere you go.
Another lovely building was Cobham Mill, and I was lucky to find it in such amazing early evening light.
Another factor that been making me smile are the clouds, I took this on my way back to Manchester, what a great mix of colours and shapes.
Some of my Christmas and birthday presents also brought a grin to my face. It’s sadly official that I’m getting old when people are buying me socks, slippers and warm PJ’s and I’m liking it …. well who would say no to some Paul Smith socks like these lol. I even loved the Collier Campbell paper they were wrapped in.
Also this lovely rug, from the house I stayed in at new year, and a fun ceramic pot from some dutch friends, but bought from Rossoramina, Lucca, Italy.
A lovely smile maker start to the new year came out an idea from an old school friend of mine who now lives in NZ. He suggested that four of us gather our personal Desert Island Discs (8 fav tracks of our choosing that we’d select to take to a desert island with us). It was a hard decision to find just 8 tracks and mine, turned out to be … This Is Your Life, Banderas. Nho Antone Escaderode, Cesaria Evora. Downtown Lights, Annie Lennox. Fearless, Cyndi Lauper. Groove Is In The Heart, Deee-Lite. The Only Living Boy In New York, Everything But The Girl. Still, Great Lake Swimmers. And Dream Of Sheep, Kate Bush. My friend Chris, totally surpassed us all by creating a fab CD case and cover, taking most of the pics himself. It’s been wonderful having 4 new cd’s of friends music to listen to.
Last but not least, I smiled about 5 minutes ago at the sunset peeking at me as I typed this post. Pinks and oranges like I’ve not seen for a while.
What has made you smile this year ?
Genie Espinosa . Illustrator in Barcelona.
Genie Espinosa has been drawing since she was a small child. Based in the sunny city of Barcelona, she aims to put colour, fun and movement into her work in order to bring it to life and capture the viewer’s gaze.
She works traditionally and digitally and also helps to create 3d images, repeat patterns for T-shirts, E cards and Apps too. She illustrates for children and adults alike and also creates greeting cards and designs for other companies. Looking at her lovely work, I’m sure she’s kept pretty busy.
Genie is in love with her two cats, who share her home and often feature in her work. She usually designs using ‘Illustrator’ and later adds some details in photoshop (like shadows and textures) or sometimes with pencils. You can see more on her blog or say hi to her on Twitter.
2012 Happy New Year From Fishinkblog in Braemar
H A P P Y N E W Y E A R to one and all. Thanks for joining me again here in Fishinkblog-land. I hope this finds you well rested and in the mood for a fresh start in 2012. I thought I’d start my year off here with a glimpse into what I’ve been up to over the New Year as I’ve just returned from a stunning week away, staying with friends in a rented house in Braemar, Scotland. It’s a beautiful small village and if you get there, don’t forget to visit the lovely Braemar Gallery, which has a wonderful selection of contemporary and more traditional artworks. Cards and gifts in a friendly warm, welcoming environment, not to mention their stunning stained glass window and door.
The parish of Braemar and Crathie has been a playground of kings, nobles and the great ones of the land since the dawn of Scottish history. In the heart of the village lie the ruins of the great castle of Kindrochit (“The Head of the Bridge ”). Nearly a thousand years ago it commanded all the glens leading in and out of the area – Glenshee to the south, Aberdeen to the east, Lairig Ghru and Lairig an Laoigh to the north and Glen Tilt and Glen Feshie to the west. It was around this strategic bridgehead that the little village grew. Over a hundred years ago Queen Victoria chose Deeside as her holiday centre, taking Balmoral Castle as her highland residence in 1852, with successive generations of the Royal Family following her example. I think the lady who’s come to the local craft butchers in Braemar in her scottish tweed coat looks very fine indeed and the local sportshop has every type of walking accessory, thermal Chinese goose feathered fleece or fancy decorated hand painted ski that you should need for your outdoor pursuits.
I was staying in a large house with a fab group of friends. Loads of spacious rooms, good light and walks from the front door. The neighbouring houses give you a ‘wee glimpse ‘ into how lovely the area is.
We did get more than a fair smattering of snow and got out for some beautiful local walks.
This natural rock feature below was called the punch bowl.
The scenery as you can see was truly stunning and it’s a beautiful area for birch trees, which are one of my favourites. I love how their branches are so fine and feathery that it creates a misty look around the trunk, as well as their silvery bark and the purple hue to the new growth. You can see what I mean on the bottom of the picture of Braemar Castle below.
It turns out that we’re quite a bunch of Capricorns as two of the party had just had birthdays, two of us had a birthday whilst we were there (including me), and yes I know you forgot but I’ll forgive you this time 🙂 and another has a birthday next week. I was luckily sharing the house with some great cooks, check out the duck platter and gingerbread Christmas tree below. I even got a place name written out from one of the kids, how sweet. Time to relax, walk, chat with friends, play board games, build snow people and catch up on my sketchbook too, who can ask for more !
Many thanks to all who helped make it a special time away and I hope you had a wonderful holiday and don’t mind the first week back to your work quite so much. I look forward to spending 2012 in your good company.
Fishink’s Christmas Wishes.
As the Christmas Eve holidays get underway, I’d just like to wish all my readers …. a great festive break and a very warm and comforting time with their family and friends. Or alternatively, a rip roaring, happy escape, with as much beer, wine and chocolate that your cupboards will hold lol
I will be away from the blogging until after the first week in January so I’ll look forward to catching up with you all again soon. All the best Craig x
A.Richard Allen . Illustration for all seasons.
A. Richard Allen is a prolific illustrator with a range of styles. The images below come from Drawger, where I came across his work. It’s great that he shows us his sketches too.
Richard has worked for numerous UK and US clients in editorial, design and advertising including the Folio Society, Plansponsor, New York Times, Washington Post, WSJ, Utne, The Guardian, FT, The Times, The Independent, The Daily Telegraph, Esquire, New Statesman, Reader’s Digest, BBC Worldwide, Nokia , Siemens, Orange, and Greenpeace. The following images come from the Illoz site.
He has illustrated on such a diverse range of subjects from Penguin Books, Green Issues, to how children play and the plight of the Salmon.
I like the scratchy marks and the beautiful colours he uses in his work.
I love the amusing cat with the gun and cuckoo clock illustration. There’s even some Christmas inspired images here.
And he also has a fun children’s style, not unlike that of Quentin Blake. What a talented guy !
Folio Society have a small range of his prints available if you’re interested. If you like this style you might also like Tatsuro Kiuchi’s work here.
Sigrid Martinez . Spanish Children’s Illustrator.
After studying her art at Pau Gargallo School of Arts, in Badalona, next to Barcelona where she lives Sigrid Martinez today designs fabric for kids and illustrates books for children.
Apart from her fun and cad created work, there also appears to be a more painterly style.
As always, I love it when illustrators and artists allow us to see their sketches and ideas.
There’s more of her work here and here on Flickr, even some felt pieces too.
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