Project updates

It's been a while since I blogged. But it's not for wanting, I assure you.

The last few months have been very busy. And, as the homepage of my site would suggest, there's going be an update of work coming very soon. But perhaps, not this side of Christmas.

I love working on identity work and there's quite a few on the go at the moment. A ground-breaking estate agency in Mayfair (my words, not theirs), a Kingston-based holding company, an interior design & construction consultancy in Hampton Court and a personal trainer in Baker Street. I'm also working on a couple of websites and, of course, the annual Christmas project, which I'll be sending out in the next week or so.

So, and I say it to the four or so people following this blog, keep your eyes peeled. There'll be some new work coming soon!

26 Treasures

'26 Treasures' is a new project from writers group, 26.

Over the next month, and along with a selection of fellow writers from 26, I'll be selecting a single item from one of the vast and wonderful collections at the V&A museum, London.

I'll then write a poem, a story or whatever feels right in bringing my chosen piece to life. So, it's my view on the item. In just 62 words - no more, no less.

It's a wonderful project and I already have an idea as to what I'll write about. One of the amazing, Sixteenth Century, chintz fabric dresses from the South Asia room, perhaps. But, we'll see. That's just what caught my eye when I was at the V&A earlier this year.

Watch this space folks!

Interview by Mat Dolphin

The boys at Mat Dolphin recently asked me to take part in their 10 questions blog series which, of course, I was delighted to do. You can read the blog article on their site, here.

I first came across Mat Dolphin, an independent design agency based in London, having seen them on Twitter. I really liked their website, which was packed full of work pieces but also playful ideas and blog posts. Their 'One plain, One fancy' idea is fab. As are their inspiring and, at times, distracting, Tweets. (Distracting because you just have to read them!).

So, if you're part of the Twitterati then you need to follow @MatDolphin.

Typography with a twist

Earlier this week I ventured to Epsom, Surrey. Not for a flutter on the horses but to hold a typography session with the graphic design students. And what a top-notch day it was.

The focus was on 'typography with a twist' where I shared my own work and the work of others; great brand identities from the likes of The Chase and Thoughtful Design, as well as Noma Bar, who's work is hanging next to mine in the 'More is a Bore' exhibition (see below).

I've always wanted to do this and I never thought I'd get so much out of it. The level of thinking from the students was superb and the sketch books were brimming with rich ideas. All of which I hope will be tweaked, developed and entered into each of their folios.

And, I'm hoping to go back. But this time, perhaps, to set a live brief. Something a little more meaty. But first, the end of year show which I'm rather excited about going to. (Rather impressively, the students have a good friend in design legend Vaughan Oliver who is working with them on live projects).

You can view the UCA design blog here. Keep a beady eye on it.

Less is more. More or less.

Tomorrow sees the grand opening of 'More is a Bore' - a new exhibition from The Ship of Fools gallery in The Netherlands. And, my `tache posters will be hanging from the walls of the converted cigarette factory in The Haag, along with work from, no less, the great Noma Bar and Anthony Burrill. The exhibition focuses on minimalist graphic art and will run from the 7th May until the 24th June. I really love the work of Noma and Anthony and I'm rather chuffed that the wonderful people at The Ship of Fools have included my work in this, their latest event.

To find out more about the exhibition visit The Ship of Fools gallery website.

It's all going on

Just happens to be all going on at once!

I've just finished two new projects, my Little Book of Spam and a new poster commission. The Little Book of Spam was actually a 2009 project but it took a little while to sort the artwork and get if off to print. (The day job takes priority and it got really busy pre-New Year). It came back a few weeks ago and I'm really chuffed with how it looks. I also treated myself to a lovely heat sealer so the books come complete in silver bags. You can see the project here. I do still have copies left, and they're free. So let me know and I'll pop one in the post.

The next project I've just finished is a poster titled 'Brighton Rocks'. It's for a customer in Brighton (naturally) and it follows the same clean, minimalist approach to my typographic `tache posters from 2009. Some images of the artwork can been see here.

As for other projects on the go right now, it's a huge privilege to have been selected to be a part of this year's Free The Word festival with writers group 26. 50 writers from 26 were selected and paired with 50 international writers (whom have suffered in some way for their craft) in a project hosted by Internation PEN. I'm paired with Moroccan journalist and editor Ali Lmrabet whose tragic story will be shared in a 50 word piece of copy I'm due to write very soon. Nigh on all of the selected writers from 26 are full time (professional) writers - so no pressure!

Finally, I've been granted access to the Beta version of Newspaper club, which came just at the right time as I have a project which I'd love to print on newspaper stock. I'll let you know how it goes. The early runs look amazing, so I'm desperate to give it a whirl.

Barnardo's new advertising campaign

Barnardo's have always created great adverts. Adverts which communicate the lives of those they strive to help. And their recent TV spot titled ‘Turn Around’ is nothing less than brilliant.

The ad builds upon the great press campaign which ran earlier in the year, where hard-hitting copy and brave art direction shared the stories of children who had been given up on. Indeed, they won many awards but that comes secondary to the role they played in delivering a clear and direct message to the masses.

The new campaign, launched just a few weeks ago, uses laconic narrative, similar in style to that of a text message, to tell the story of a young girl. The film uses the trademark Barnardo's sepia tones and cleverly uses the same eight scenes to tell a story of two halves; the young girls transition in and out of various and troubling situations.

Visit Barnardo's website to read the true story and find out about The Teens’ Speech this Christmas day.