'It's Nice That' website is such a useful hub for everything design based - not just illustration but across all major industries and practices. I find this helpful for my own research and interests as I can easily explore current and up-to-date work from an endless variety of artists and designers. I like how the website doesn't seem to only follow conventional/traditional workings within the industry/practice categories, but also seems to have an 'open' approach to everything contemporary, which is great for becoming inspired and perfect if you also take an interest in the weird and wonderful stuff out there.
This website is a great tool because as well as being able to search the whole site for specific interests using key words etc, each article/page/video has links to other pages which might be of interest. This is great for getting the inspirational juices flowing and you are more than likely to stumble across works new to you, that you would never have thought of looking at before.
Not only does this website showcase such a huge variety of current artists, designers, conventions, festivals, exhibitions and gallery openings etc etc across all practice areas of interest to me, it also has a large number of really interesting interviews, tutorials and videos with people of interest. These aspects of the website really help me to understand and get a good insight into how practitioners work within their chosen industry, their methods, inspirations etc and help to push my research further when investigating into my own practice and interests.
Product
- Stickers
- Food packaging
- Clothing
- CD/vinyl album artwork
- Posters
- Flyers
- Skateboard decks/surfboard
- Cards (Greetings, Birthday, Gift, Thank you, etc)
- Stamps
- Business cards
I have always been really interested in music and how illustration/graphic art goes hand in hand with the industry. Having something visual to associate with your favourite tunes and promote it wether it be logos and branding, album artwork or even projected artwork/holograms used in conjunction with a live gig / set all add and in a lot of cases influence our music driven culture. This is huge deal and I have a lot of respect for illustrators and designers aiming their work at this niche market and making it big.
Publication
- Newspapers
- Zines
- Handbooks
- Fiction/Non-fictional Books
- Children's Books
- Magazines
- Manuals
- Comic Books/Graphic Novels
- Encyclopaedias
- Scientific Journals
Zines are perfect for an artist/illustrator/designer to try something new, express themselves and publicise themselves creatively simply because of how low budget and easy they are to produce. Zines are entirely unique with the content, text, layout and format being down to the person/collective creating it which makes them so interesting and and different from larger more commercial publications like national/international magazines. Documenting work this way is something I am interested in in my own practice and is a great way to develop ideas as well as collaborating with other practitioners. With zines its not about the money to be made - its about the content and work itself and thats what makes this small scale publication so engaging.
Place
- Street Art/Graffiti/Murals
- Shops/Shop window design/Boutiques
- Galleries
- Billboards
- Studios
- Bookshops/Libraries
- Markets
- Festivals/Conventions
- Exhibitions
- Cafes/restaurants
Bookshops and libraries are great when it comes to satisfying that creative buzz or researching into different practitioners or areas of illustration/design. Flicking through physical printed publications in these places is something I love to do when on the hunt to try something new, become inspired or look into a new illustrator I have found. Information is easy to come by these days with the internet around, but there is something about exploring a book shop or library that makes the task a lot more fun, and more likely to come across something new and exciting at your actual fingertips.
Online
- Illustration/Art/Design Websites
- Practitioners websites/blogs
- Collective online portfolios
- Online shops/boutiques
- Online exhibits
- Magazines/publication websites
- Fashion based blogs/websites
- Gaming websites/blogs
- Food websites/blogs
- Agency Websites/blogs
Examples:
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Etsy
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Owen Davey
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The Central Illustration Agency
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| Fecal Face |
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| Pinterest |
Illustration agencies (e.g The Central Illustration Agency) are something I have always known about but have only recently looked into in depth. Despite this, they are now a tool I couldn't live without and I use them regularly to update myself with what is going on within the industry and research in depth into the illustrators making a successful living from their practice. That is my aim after all - to be successful therefore working for an illustration agency is obviously an avenue I could take and this interests me greatly. Large agencies have such a wide variety of illustrators, animators and designers being added to their books that there is always someone new to be found - it is really quite addictive to look through and keep up to date with once you get started.
