It's called doing your work

"You make good work by (among other things) making lots of work that isn't very good, and gradually weeding out the parts that aren't good, the parts that aren't yours.  It's called feedback, and it's the most direct route to learning about your own vision. It's also called doing your work.  After all, someone has to do your work, and you're the closest person around.

               ~David Bayles & Ted Orland

                  (from Art and Fear: Observations on the Perils and rewards of Art-making)

Julie Van Wezemael

I just came across the work of Julie Van Wezemael, a young Belgian illustrator based in Ghent.

I'm intrigued with her blend of painting and collage overlaid with embroidery. 

She also makes prints, including some images in drypoint in her portfolio.

Her inspiration is drawn from both literature and nature, with elements of narrative hinted at.

The two images above were inspired by Fernando Pessoa's poems.

In addition to her blog, she has some of her work on flickr. Wonderful... go take a look!

Camilla Pentti

Camilla Pentti is another artist/illustrator/designer from Finland.

Her work includes illustration and graphic design, as well as patterns... I just love her way with compositions, her eye for the natural world, the loose and vivid splashes of colour, and the linework:  sensitively rendered yet with great freedom too.

She has also done illustrated books, and recently won the Rudolf Koivu award for her book "Lehmä jonku kiljessä oli luukku". I would love to see a translation!!

Born in 1979, Camilla studied graphic design at the University of Art and Design at Helsinki, where she still lives and works.  She has even been involved in a collaboration with Napa, the fantastic Finnish gallery/publisher/agent/shop. An illustrated map created by Camilla is due out in about a month!

For her, "Working is best when it feels like play — when the joy of inventing and discovering something new is there."

Amen to that — and thank you, Camilla!!

Hanna Konola

I really like the work of Hanna Konola, who lives and works in Helsinki.

(Magic, a poster for Fine Little Day)

Her palette and the simplicity of the forms I find soothing yet engaging, with a timeless feel to them.

As well as creating prints (in silkscreen and in monoprint), she also does posters and editorial illustrations.  If you want to check out more, she has a site, a blog and a shop.

(This one is Sokeri, from Kauniste)

Zeloot

Eline Van Dam — better known as Zeloot —is an illustrator/artist from the Hague.

She works in most areas of illustration from editorial to advertising to music and toys...

She has created images for a broad range of clients, working with the New Yorker, MTV, Heineken, Hasbro and countless others.

But she is most famous for her gig posters. Think "Summer of Love" and Haight-Ashbury (the golden age of) reborn with a fresh 21st century European sensibility.  Far out!

And she is prolific— it was hard to choose just these few to show!  If her website is not enough for you, there is also Lezilus, her agent's site, as well as this interview.

Enjoy yourselves... and try not to get lost!

Zabala!

Madrid para niños:  imagery by Javier Zabala

Also: Javier Zabala video-- see sketch books and demos.

Hot enough for you?

To mark the arrival of the hot sultry days of summer, I give you some of my favourite suns.

Lionel Kalish (formerly of Push Pin Studios)

Sun Family, by Martin Romero

detail of beautiful quilt, seen on zoe's flickr

Poster for music festival, by the great Celestino Piatti, from Graphis Annual 67/68 (via sandiv999) 

Mladi Muzikanti, illustrated by Jan Herink (1987)

...and finally, a somewhat shy sun by Antonio Frasconi 

(for Overhead the Sun, woodcuts for Walt Whitman poems, 1969.  Via VBMKL)

Stay cool this summer!