Emily Royer Show at Yell Gallery

I don't get out to as many gallery show openings as I'd like, so it was especially wonderful to catch up with my old classmate, Emily Royer, at her recent opening reception at Yell Gallery in Philadelphia.

Emily and I were both Illustration majors at UArts (and even worked at my first design job together!), though we have since went very different artistic paths, Emily venturing more into fine art, and I going towards graphic design.

Have to share: One of Emily's senior year Illustration pieces from UArts

I was always impressed by her painting ability in school, and I continue to be in awe of her work. She has a great painterly style.

Detail of one of Emily's paintings

I especially love how she captures subtle (and sometimes awkward;) expressions and feelings in her paintings. She had a few that were inspired by old family photos, not the ones you'd frame and hang in your living room, but the ones that were captured when no one was posing.

Awkward Family Photo : I love how the people are positioned, you get the impression there's a lot of tension in this room

She has been busy painting these last few years, and had a pretty substantial body of work. I'm looking forward to her next show, keep up the great work, Emily!

Emily Royer, not posing for my photo

How to find FREE Photos for Personal or Commercial Use

Everyone knows how easy it is to do a search for a specific photo on google and instantly use any of images that come up for whatever purpose we see fit - but how would you feel if some stranger took the photos you shared of your kids, or your kitchen, or your dog Penelope and used them to promote their business? You'd probably be pretty angry - so why would you do it to someone else? Maybe you just don't want to spend any money - and that's totally fine! There are a TON of great resources on the web for photos that are free to use without any bad karma :)) The list below are are all sites that I've used myself while working on a bare-bones or non-existent budget.

Just a heads up: The first 3 sites require you to sign up for an account to download, which is no big deal - I always just sign up with my "junk" email address. It's also important to read the terms of use on each site/image to be safe before using any image in a commercial project! While 90% of commercial use will be fine, there is always a few scenarios (like re-selling the same image as digital download) that are not permitted.

This week's Free image on iStock 

1) iStock: iStock is the industry-standard site for stock photography, and I've purchased from them extensively, but did you know they also give away a Free Photo of the Week? Just click on PHOTOS in the top menu bar, then click on the FREE PHOTO OF THE WEEK image in the right sidebar. There is also a super cheap $1 bin of photos & vector art as well, and if you sign up for a new iStock account using my referral link, you'll get 10 Free credits ($20 value, $2 = 1 credit) and I'll earn a few credits as well for referring you (win-win!).
PROS: Super easy to search through, always high quality photography, available in large sizes great for print or web, 4 different free images per month. You won't have to credit the photographer when use the photo. And you can't beat the 10 free credit deal.
CONS: Free photos of the week are usually very specific images, might not be generic enough for your needs, you'll most likely need to check the site weekly and build up image overtime

"Walking" photo from Freerange Stock

2) Freerange Stock: Free Range Stock is made up a community of photographers that make their photos available to you for free, in exchange for revenue from ads featured all over the site. There is a decent sized collection of typical stock photos with many different subject matters, worth a look!
PROS: Great search feature & lots of different photo content. You won't have to credit the photographer.
CONS: Varying levels of talent in contributing photographers, lots of ads on the site

Ornate Tiles photo from CG Textures

3) CG Textures: CG Textures was started as a free database of textures for 3d modeling artists, but there is lots of useful content for graphic designers or other professionals . While you won't find any photos of people, there are tons of excellent images of flowers, animals, landscapes, buildings paint splatters and more. CG Textures just asks that you download respectfully, on an as-needed basis (no photo hoarding!). They do limit the amount of downloads you can make in one day. However the limit is very generous and I've never exceeded it.
PROS: High quality photos, & great selection of subject matter. Especially good site for illustrators & designers who want to digitally add textures to their work. No photo credit needed.
CONS: Photos are mainly geared to be used as a addition to another design, not as a stand-alone piece.

Totally free photo from Wikimedia 

4) Wikimedia Commons: Believe it or not, there is a community of artists that want you to use their work for free without any compensation in return - and it's huge, with over 20.5 million freely usable files and growing.  You're allowed to download, use, copy or modify anything on the site, as long as you respect the terms supplied by the artist (which may mean crediting them).
PROS: HUGE and I do mean HUGE database of images, with particularly good health, & science & historical images.
CONS: So big, it can be hard to navigate. Since anyone can contribute, there are varying levels of quality in the photos. If you are looking for very commercial looking stock images, this is not the best site. You also may need to credit the photographer, which may not be ideal for all commercial use.

Photo Credit: Hussain Didi on Flickr

5) Flickr Creative Commons: Flickr is another great resource for free-use photos. Since it's a gallery site geared towards people who are interested in photography (whether they are professionals or hobbyists) the quality of images is a bit higher & more consistent than Wikimedia.  There is a section especially for sharing public photo archives like what you might find in museums (mainly photos dated from the late 1800s-1950s) called The Commons. If you ever need a 1880's era shot of a baby posing on a chair, here's your goldmine.
PROS: Great selection of historical images in The Commons, and you won't need to credit the photographer. Some really great modern & artsy stuff can be found in the Creative Commons section. Very easy to share, download, or embed images in multiple sizes.
CONS: You will need to credit the photographer for anything used from Creative Commons & the multiple copyright scenarios can be confusing. 

Official US President Photo!

6) USA.gov: Yes, the government! Numerous government agencies have entire databases of images for you to use, and they are nicely organized on this site. You need a state map? Got it. Photo of the President? Just check out the US Government's photostream on Flickr. Picture of someone getting infected with the flu? Tons of those! Belt out a quick Pledge of Alligence, then go crazy at the USA.gov site above.  
PROS: So. much. stuff. All taken by professional photographers. And if you're a journalist or blogger, these photos are pure gold, with almost no restrictions. 
CONS: You can't use the president's image in a way that implies he personally endorses whatever you might be selling. darn.

7) Google Image Search: Yeah, I know I told you in the first paragraph NOT to use google image search, but I lied, you can. But only in a specific way- by adding a filter to your search. Search for the image subject, then click on> Search Tools, and choose> Labeled for reuse. Google will do a search of free images on wikimedia, Flickr, deviantart, clip art sites and more. Always click on the image and go to> Visit Site to get the exact copyright specs.

PROS: The world's your oyster.
CONS: You'll need to have a specific subject in mind before you search, no random browsing. Much harder to find images where no credit is required, since they get mixed together with ones with attribution (credit required) licenses.

Photo Credit: Brian Ochalla on Flickr

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go find some chocolate.

Kate Moross : Make Your Own Luck : Graphic Design & Illustration Lecture

Last night, I attended AIGA Philly's Lecture with Kate Moross, entitled Make Your Own Luck. The event was held at CHAD (Charter High School for Architecture + Design), so as a bonus I got to check out some of the senior work on display before the lecture started. It took me back to my own high school art classes ~ though if I had gone to a High School especially for design, I would have had a MUCH better time ;)

CHAD Student Work : My favorite self portrait -great colors!

CHAD Student Work: Look closely - the beautiful pattern on this purse is also the artist's initials - AB!

Kate's lecture was very entertaining, though it wasn't quite what I expected. She talked a little bit in the beginning about how she started off as a very young designer and how she eventually built up to paying gigs, but the majority of her talk focused on how she had moved on to making music videos, both using film and rotoscope (a technique where illustrations are drawn over film stills - if you've seen the film Waking Life, you know what I'm talking about). While she didn't talk specifically on "how to make it" in the graphic design/illustration world, it was obvious that she had become successful by being bold, social, working non-stop, and not limiting herself to one style or medium (like her move from design to film). Kate said that if she ever found herself not knowing how to do something, she would simply look up a tutorial on the internet and/or hire someone that could do it better than her.

Kate Moross sharing the concept sketches she made for a rotoscope music video featuring Disclosure and Mary J. Blige

Though I was slightly disappointed there wasn't more "How to make it" advice (she did say she had toned down that aspect of her lecture because she mistakenly thought the AIGA crowd would be old & not interested in that part, haha), her work and tireless enthusiasm was incredibly inspiring, and there was some really good music. I also bought a copy of her book: Make Your Own Luck: A DIY Attitude to Graphic Design and Illustration, which talks about all the subjects I missed in her lecture. I am only about 1/2 way through, but so far enjoying it. It is very nicely designed, has great colors and very gorgeous paper for the cover and pages. You can buy it on Amazon after March 31, 2014.

So now, freshly inspired, it's back to the drawing board (literally) as I work on a new side for my business.....I just need to be more brave.....here I go......   

Scenes from the Sketchbook Project Philadelphia 2012

At the end of August, I had a fantastic time attending the Philly stop of the Sketchbook Project World 2012 tour. I lost track of the number of sketchbooks I got to browse through - it was incredibly inspiring to see books with all different medias- drawings, painting, words, sewing, collage, digital and more. 

My tour buddy was super-talented Highlights illustrator, Chuck Dillon. Hi Chuck! Here he is creating some tour mail to send along to people at future destinations of the tour.

 And the first sketchbook randomly suggested for me to read was my own, lol, it was nice to get re-aquainted with it :)

One of the most clever books I checked out was "Forks & Spoons" by Steph Calinski. It was filled with Forks & spoons engaging in all types of social situations.

 

 This cool book from Spain had braille imprinted on every page

And my favorite book of all was by a woman who claimed not to be an artist, but filled her book with adorable drawings, collage, personal writings and inspiring quotes. This page says "a good book has no ending..."

See you next year, Sketchbook Project!

PS- There's still time to be part of the fun & sign up for the 2013 tour!

Brooklyn Art Library & 4x6 Exchange part 2

Last month, I was in New York city to see a show at Webster Hall and I figured I better make a quick stop at the Brooklyn Art Library and finally see the place I talk about so often.  I registered, got my library card and looked through 10 or so sketchbooks from the 2011 tour, created by artists living all over the world. It was a really intimate experience, I felt like I was snooping through people's personal diaries. I especially liked one from a college girl from Ohio, who took her time starting her sketchbook, then procrastinated working on it, then tried to hurry up and finish the entire 40 or so remaining pages in under a week (she failed, and apologized profusely to the reader for not completing it, hehe, it reminded me so much of someone I know ;)).

I highly recommend checking out some sketchbooks for yourself! If you're local to NYC, last year's books are available to be read 7 days a week at the Brooklyn Art Library on 103A North 3rd St. The 2012 books are touring the country from now until September (the Philly stop is Aug 23-24!). Check out the the complete tour schedule HERE.

I also did a little bit of quick life drawing on my trip- first I tried to draw some people from the concert - (I was by far the oldest person there - the vast majority of people were waaay under 18, that was a bit humbling, I guess I've reached the age when I'm supposed to start attending sit-down concerts, or better yet, enjoy televised ones from the comfort of my couch....?)

 

Next, I tried to draw people on the subway, but I don't recommend it, it was bumpy, hard to get a seat, and people don't seem to stay on for many stops (at least Philly is good in this aspect!). I also hate when I pick the perfect person to draw; someone who is visually interesting, is sitting in my view, and isn't likely to notice me drawing them (very important!),  then I start drawing them and they get off at the next stop, grrrrrrr....... I'm not asking for much, 4 minutes would be perfect!

(I think that last guy saw me drawing him and wasn't too happy about it...)

Last but not least, I got my art from the 4x6 exchange! ( Do you remember mine from March?) 

It's a cute collage piece done by artist Linda Peterson, who blogs at myartmylifeme.blogspot.com/. Interesting, both our pieces featured birds and have a similar color palette. If you saw them both together, you could probably guess that each artist would appreciate the other's work (or at least I hope Linda likes mine as much as I like hers!). I wonder if Art House planned this? 

(Linda's art above! She also has a lovely etsy shop Dear Hazel, with lots of cute things!)

House Industries Lecture

I was so psyched to attend the recent Philly AIGA House Industries lecture. I spent most of my college years lusting after the fonts in their beautifully designed catalogs, so it was incredibly amazing to see them in person. They are seriously the rockstars of type. (please excuse crappy photos taken by my cell phone in low light, they don't do their work justice!)

Rockstar poster design by House Industries for John Mayer!

The main focus of the lecture was to introduce their photo lettering service - PLINC. Instead of buying an entire font, you can now buy a custom "type setting" of up to 40 characters, (not including spaces) for just $7 (and potentially less if you sign up for a subscription to the service). Best of all, the type comes with few restrictions, meaning you can use it FOR ALMOST ANYTHING - making it perfect for logos, headlines, or where ever else you might need a unique font.

Below is a shot of PLINC in action:

 But wait, there's more! From now until April 15, you can download 3 type settings for FREE, using coupon code PHILLY (do I sound like an infomercial yet? ;)

For more information on how PLINC works, click here.  If I've already convinced you it's the greatest thing since Photoshop, then start using it now.

-If you are not already familiar with House Industries, prepare to be awed by their amazing work. And sign up for a catalog and some free fonts while your at it!

***UPDATE: Here are 2 quotes I made at work using my free type settings - (they will be sold as large wall decals at a national retailer this fall).

using "chicamakomiko"

using "whimsy"

Translating Fine Art for a Commercial Market

I recently had the pleasure of working on the cute stationery shown above, using art from the fabulously talented Tracy Nuskey-Dodson. I thought it might be fun to show you the steps I go through when designing products from new art.

Above is the original art created by Tracy. You might have noticed that it's a little bit different from the products at the top, this is where my design skills come in :) Ideally, when I design stationery products, I will use a "collection" that consists of a few different but MATCHING pieces of art and/or patterns. It's hard to create products from a single image or pattern. At minimum, I need one stand alone design and matching pattern to create a product, but I prefer more, 4 -6 pieces is better!  Tracy is more of a fine artist and doesn't necessarily create her art for licensing, but she has a large body of work with a consistent feel, so in this case the art director chose 2 matching pieces and I started working :)

 First, I got started by removing the background from the lady's head, little trees and house. Next I chose some coordinating colors - I thought the teal blue looked great with the pink,  I used the same pink from the hair, and I chose a light beige to complement her skin. After I had the colors I wanted, I turned them into patterns - obviously a polka dot pattern goes perfect with this art, so I made 2 in varying sizes. The third pattern I made was the newspaper collage. Tracey uses collage in her art, so this pattern matches well. 

After I have the matching patterns created, I started applying it to the products! It is INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT that you keep the style on multiple products consistent in size, font, etc. Years ago, as a new designer, this is one of the mistakes I made, but boy did I learn fast :) When my company creates products for a big retailer, often we will often have to follow very detailed style guides. I was the only designer working on this project, so I created a "style guide" in my head and applied it to every product I worked on. I created the simple one above just so you could get an idea of what I'm talking about. Real style guides are a bit more in depth and list pantone colors, several different label types, lots of rules etc. You can click on the photo above to enlarge it.

 Here is a few more examples of how I keep consistent styling on different products and labels. All together, I applied Tracy's art to 30 different products, then placed all those products in a catalog. If these products are bought by a retailer, then I will get to do production work on them. But that is another post for another time. So how was my first teaching post? I hope you learned something, because I have lots more information to share for any young designers out there :)  Also, if you haven't already, you can check out Tracy Nuskey-Dodson's site here. 

New Website! Yes!

Well, a lot has happened in the, eh month or three since my last post.... I designed my own website, plus another, the hard drive on my not-quite-two-month-old-love-of-my-life iMac died and needed to be replaced -causing me to lose a little bit of faith in apple, summer came out of nowhere, and I won two fantastic awards for my snowboard designs...sweet!

I have been creating some fun new stationery products at my job, PLUS a nice freelance gig designing graduation cards for a photography studio specializing in high school senior portraits, which I will share later.

But enough about my own art, I am in love with these posters which I found on vintageprintable.com (a great resource for public domain art -check it out!)