KEEP PLAYING! When drawing becomes your ‘proper job’ it’s easy to forget to make work just for fun. New ideas can grow from experimenting, I find nothing is ever wasted. Polly Dunbar 2014 Illustrator and Printmaker Studied: Illustration BA at Brighton University Polly Dunbar studied Illustration at Brighton University, since graduating she has written and […]
Be confident (not to be confused with arrogant or egotistical). If you truly believe in your ideas and yourself, your clients and others will too. Lewie Evans, 2013 Designer & Founder — Lewie Evans Design Studio Studied: BA Hons Graphic Design at The Surrey Institute of Art & Design, Epsom Since graduating from The Surrey […]
Honour your mistakes: learn from them instead of destroying the evidence. If you don’t have anything to compare your growth to, you’ll never know how far you’ve come. There’s no use in being selfish or cruel – the world is small and this industry is even smaller. Be sincere, care deeply and don’t work in […]
Get into a good working routine and try to stick to it as far as possible, even when you don’t have any jobs on. By producing work when you’re not having to adhere to deadlines, briefs and clients’ wishes, you give yourself and your work space to develop and grow. David Biskup, 2013 Illustrator Studied: […]
Incorporate what you are passionate about into your work. It’s always good to approach potential clients if you like what they are doing with their business – chances are they will like what you do too. Always experiment with your medium to keep things fresh and original (don’t get stuck in a rut with what […]
I would rather make bad work and learn from it than make safe work over and over again because it was successful in the past. To me, experimentation and mistakes are an important part of the creative process. Anthony Peters Illustrator, Graphic Designer & Print Maker Anthony Peters is a maker of things, occasionally pretty […]
The more you create the stronger you become – trial many products at the start, this does need an injection of capital but that way you will amass a credible portfolio, you will assess which are your strengths and which appeal to the buying public. Do not follow the herd, take and make your own […]
The life of an illustrator can sometimes get a little isolated and lonely, but there’s nothing in the job description that says you have to work alone on a desk in an office space. Sometimes, it’s great to get out of the house and work somewhere else. I’ve created work on holiday in Prague, I’ve […]
It’s sometimes a hard job, a full time job, just waiting for that dream client to get in touch. All that pacing up and down that studio, all that stress, all those fingernails bitten right down. You’ve sent out all those samples, made those chirpy calls but they are taking their time to really find […]
“Don’t rest on your laurels” was written in one of my school reports once and it’s always lurking somewhere in my head. Helen Musselwhite 2012 Paper Illustrator and Artist Studied: OND/ HND Graphic Design and Illustration at Swindon School of Art For me, it all started with one of those bumper packs of felt tips. […]
Draw something new every day, keep your craft tight and keep evolving. Will Scobie 2012 Studied: Communication Design BA Honours at Northbrook Will Scobie is an Illustrator and graphic artist. He has been featured in various publications worldwide and has exhibited in London, Barcelona and Berlin. He has worked with the likes of Channel 4, […]
When things are slow or confidence is lacking don’t spend hours looking at other illustrator’s blogs and twitter feeds feeling depressed wishing you were them! Stay true to yourself and what comes naturally to you. Go draw and get your own ideas flowing. Clare Mallison 2012 Illustrator Studied: Illustration and Animation BA at Kingston University […]
Persevere and be patient. Some of the most successful artists and illustrators I know now are the ones who didn’t give up in the first couple of years after graduating. It can take a while to build a name for yourself but if you really want to do it you’ve got to be tenacious. Kate […]