Snow Queen Trail

In the weeks leading up to Christmas, the Rose Theatre, Kingston has been presenting a range of special performances to celebrate their adaptation of Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen.

I was asked to create an illustrated map that would show the route of the four story houses, where the events are taking place. Using storytelling and songs, a group of travelling players are performing short adaptations of some of Andersen's fairy tales, creating a magical trail though Kingston's streets.

Click here to see more of my illustrated maps on my portfolio site.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Twiggy - Romantically Yours

Having worked on the latest release from Cliff Richard this summer, it was great to be asked to work for another British icon - Twiggy. Released by EMI, Twiggy's brand new album Romantically Yours marks a return to her music career with a collection of her hand-picked favourites.

I was asked to work on the artist's name for the CD cover and started by taking her signature as my original reference. Using a dip ink pen that was sympathetic to the line quality and flow of the signature, I fine tuned the letter forms and opened up the letter spacing to maximise legibility while trying to keep the spontaneity and character of the original.

To see more of my music work - click through to my word>music folder on my portfolio site.

Cliff Richard - Soulicious

Released by EMI, Soulicious is the latest album from Cliff Richard, a collection of duets featuring some of the most respected names in soul music, including Roberta Flack, Dennis Edwards and Freda Payne.

I was delighted to be asked to produce the album title, using sophisticated thick and thin curves to add a lyrical flow to the letters. The hand drawn lettering was commissioned to give a personal touch to the elegant cover design. More lettering and calligraphic swashes continue the style across the CD packaging.

You can see more of my music work by clicking through to the word>music folder on my portfolio.

We {Heart} Art for Teaching Tolerance Magazine

This month Teaching Tolerance Magazine features my hand lettered illustration on the opening page of its article, We {Heart} Art. The chalkboard style illustration combines word and image, using the opening copy to outline the affects on American pupils when vital arts programmes are cut.

This was one of several school-related options presented to the art director, who when he saw the chalkboard route, asked me to extend the illustration behind and around the opening paragraph to make a full page illustration, neatly combining the hand drawn lettering and typography.

You can see more of my illustrative work on the images page of my online portfolio.

One from the Archives: Bede's World

In the Spring I took a driving holiday through the beautiful landscape of Yorkshire and up into the North East of England. It was a nostalgic trip for me as I'd studied as an undergraduate at Newcastle Upon Tyne. While there I decided to take a look around Bede's World, Jarrow, a museum that celebrates the life and achievements of the Venerable Bede, a remarkable Anglo-Saxon monk, famous today as the first historian of the English people.

In 2000 I was commissioned to work on the lettering for the 'The Age of Bede' Exhibition in the new museum building. I'd never seen the lettering in situ, so it was a great thrill to see how well the exhibition had been put together with lettering, murals and models skilfully combined to make an informative and interesting tour through the Anglo-Saxon way of life in Northumbria.

The uncial lettering had to reflect this specific place and time, samples were provided by the museum so that I could fine tune the style to be as authentic to the period as possible. It can be seen throughout the exhibition on walls and panels - I've worked on a wide range of projects over the years but it's always a pleasant surprise to see my work reproduced at a large size and so well integrated into the overall design.

One from the Archives is one in an occasional series I'll be posting about jobs I've worked on over the years. If you have any suggestions of jobs you'd like me to talk about - just drop me a line!

The Olive Farm Series by Carol Drinkwater

Lately I've been working with Orion Publishing on a series of titles for Carol Drinkwater's books, the Olive Farm series. I was delighted to learn that Lara Harwood, one of my favourite illustrators would be working on the project. Lara's beautiful, lyrical watercolours are combined with my soft, linear lettering for a warm Mediterranean feel. I look forward to working on the next title in the series.

You can see more of my title lettering in my publishing folder on my online portfolio site.

Delta Sky Magazine

Delta Airways Sky Magazine asked me to produce some hand lettered titles and a map of Paris for their stylish article about contemporary French culture.

This casual, edgy style of lettering was developed using a marker pen and runs throughout the article as subheadings, highlighting the work and opinions of an eclectic mix of influential French celebrities.

The map of Paris has a deliberately simple, casual style, reflecting it's subject - the bohemian Left Bank and the new areas now populated by artistes and academics in the working-class districts of the city's East End.

Paris is one of my favourite cities to walk around, so discovering a new area to explore just gives me another reason to visit. If you'd like to see more of my maps - click through to my image>maps folder on my portfolio site.

Mapping the Dolomites

I was delighted to be commissioned to illustrate a map for the American Automobile Association, AAA Traveler Magazine.

The article describes a drive through the beautiful Dolomite mountains in Italy. Small spot illustrations mark the main towns along the way and the loose brush lettering was also used throughout the copy as a visual link between word and image.

I've travelled to Italy frequently over the last few years and was delighted to explore an area of it that's new to me - now I just need to visit!

You can see more of my maps on my image>maps folder on my portfolio site.

Jennifer Weiner Titles

I was asked to work on some hand lettered titles for talented designer/illustrator Lizzie Gardiner at Simon & Schuster Publishing. The lettering had to compliment Lizzie's stylish illustrations for an eye catching series of covers for Jennifer Weiner's latest novels. You may have seen the film of her book, In Her Shoes with Cameron Diaz.

The soft brush curves and playful flourishes give the lettering feminine appeal while still being bold and legible enough to stand out on the shelf. There's more in the set - so watch out for them in your local bookstore ...

You can see more of my publishing work in my word>publishing folder on my portfolio website.

BAA Welcome Campaign At Heathrow Airport

I've been working on the lettering for a series of large posters for a BAA Welcome Campaign at Heathrow Airport. The idea is for recognisable London characters to welcome passengers on their arrival - real people rather than models were used - this is a real Guardsman!

So far there have been 11 characters used - you can see the Carnival Queen and Chelsea Pensioner above, followed by the Doorman and the Policeman. I was asked to write the word Welcome in a style to reflect all their different personalities.

These posters can be seen along the Terminal 4 Travelator at Heathrow. So if you're flying into Heathrow this Summer look out for this eye catching series of cheery Londoners! See more posters in my word>advertising folder on my portfolio website.

Wishing you a Happy Valentine's Day!

This design is for a gift card for sale in Europe this Spring. You can see more of my greeting cards in the image>greeting folder on my portfolio site.

Talking Business!

Letter Exchange, the society for professionals in the lettering arts, has asked me to talk about my work this Spring. I'll be giving a brief overview of my career to date - concentrating on the fields of music, publishing, packaging, editorial, advertising and corporate design. I've been working as a professional lettering artist for over 20 years and have been commissioned by a wide range of clients. In that time there's been a radical change in the type of technology used which has meant I've changed from being primarily UK based to competing in a global market.

If you'd like to come along, the talk is on Wed 16th Feb at The Artworkers Guild, 6 Queen Square, London, WC1N 3AT. It starts at 6.30pm and tickets can be bought on the door - members £6, non-members £8 and students £4. I'll be sharing the evening with talented calligrapher Mary Noble who'll also be talking about her work. There will be drinks afterwards if you want to ask any questions or just say hello. If you've never been to the Artworkers Guild, this beautiful building is well worth a visit.

Hope to see you there!