High Five for My5

This month saw the launch of my5, a project I've been working on with Youthspace to promote dialogue surrounding mental wellbeing. Driven by Youthspace Youth Board - a amazing group of young people passionate about raising awareness of youth mental health and wellbeing issues - the operative word here is definitely with rather than for as they were keen to discuss their project, the 5 key steps they had come up with, and how we were going to turn them into something to share with others. Postcards for people to keep close and refer back to; colour was important, something that would make young people want to pick them up in the first place; symbols for ease of use and to make the steps memorable; clear communication of the message held within each step.

I loved the concept right away and found the campaign incredibly well laid out. Discover - Recognise - Energise - Socialise - Share. Simple. My visual ideas centred around different parts of the body, considering the attention we tend to give their physical health in order to convey the importance of doing the same with our minds. The descriptions of each step were also incredibly sensory, take time to listen, look around you, share a smile; all of these things are at our fingertips each day and don't require anything more from us than what we already have. It was this idea of connections between thinking and doing that fed into the illustration process, seeking to prompt action as well as self-reflection.

It was not only rewarding to work with the youthboard to realise their creative aspirations for the campaign, but also very inspiring personally to be around young people with such a clear vision and a universally empowering message. This is just the beginning for my5 but you can keep up to date with the project, including reading about the launch party in full, over on the Youthspace blog.

Agenda Bender

I've been working with mac birmingham's Cannon Hill Collective since October and it's almost time to showcase what they've been up to! Investigating when art becomes a political act and united by a desire to impart positive social change, this wonderful bunch have put together What's The Agenda; an eclectic festival of creative activity which asks the audience to engage as well as committing to some form of pledge for change; big or small; private or public.

Lord knows I'm already planning my launch party outfit, but for now check out the flyer I created for 'em. After much shredder fun what I've created seems suspiciously like Girls HBO combined with Klimt's The Kiss...

No? Just me then.

Something Fishy Going On

After a bit of an undesirable creative hiatus, waving goodbye to January felt ruddy marvelous and has brought with it a startling wave of productivity. Much has happened in the last few weeks leading to the launch of a new collaborative venture with artist chum SJI. That venture is Illustrated Brum; a platform for us to document the creative, cultural and social goings on we encounter to create an illustrated guide to Birmingham life. It's all very exciting, and if you want to find out the significance of this fish then have a root around:

#1 HOW TO: Begin

One of my biggest creative hang-ups is an inability to begin.

Starting a new drawing, a new article, a new relationship or even just picking up the goddamn telephone; taking the first step on any endeavour can fill me with so much excitement and dread simultaneously that absolutely nothing happens. In fact the very irony of struggling throughout January to begin a blog post about How to Begin is not lost on me, but rather validates the quandary we face so often; how to get past the starting blocks with an idea we believe in.

Uh-huh-huh

I draw this Christmas hunk-o-rama as a present for the biggest Elvis fan I know. The man's lips are gorgeous and should have their own pencil colour name in my opinion; sweet tomato snarl.

Happy Christmas everyone and thank you very much.

Pump Up The Volume

Little did I know when I signed up for VOLUME: Birmingham's Art, Book & Print Fair that I would be on crutches. With the help of some exhibition elves I carted prints, zines and various bits and bobs of both mine and creative comrade Kate Rowland to the new Library of Birmingham and took residence at a stall there for two days with a broken toe hidden under the tablecloth. Lots of nice people passed through, and some of them bought things, so I thank them for putting this smile on my face. N'aww.

BADASS

Me and Kate Rowland made a zine! It wasn't easy at first but it came together rather magically in the final week; me ripping the delivery box apart with glee upon it's freshly printed arrival like a schmuck at Chrismukkah. A long-time idea, the wee volume contains portraits of people, real and fictional, that we think are totes badass for various reasons. Fighting for freedom, education, their own families, everyone in here deserves kudos and respect, and we know we wouldn't mess with them. Check out my portraits of Marie Curie and Rosa Parks below; times and worlds apart but with the same spirit to challenge and make a difference. Booyah!

YES

Since moving back to Birmingham last year I've taken it upon myself to get involved with anything and everything creative and awesome that crops up, and I'd compare finding these as like a trail of bread crumbs; with each leads to more. Upon spying a paid role to work as a festival assistant at Eye Candy Festival, organised by Fused mag, I leapt at the chance to explore Birmingham's Southside and support the artists involved. The weekend mainly involved running round in the rain and painting chalk signs with the lovely Demi Nandhra which can't be bad, and I even got to take a spin in Flatpack's Vintage Mobile Cinema, pull a print with The Culture Cart and try my hand at depicting French icon Marianne at Le Truc's live portrait event. The latter was nerve-racking for me as a small-scale on-paper kinda girl, but boy did I get a taste for it!

My Marianne will remain on Le Truc's walls until next year's event, so go have a glass of champagne with her anytime ;)

Heisenbyng

On that Breaking Bad hype.

Yes Mr White. Yes Science!

Cannon Hill Lectures 2.0

As a new dawning of the Cannon Hill Collective approaches, I think it's about time I posted the new designs to accompany CHC's sister project; the Cannon Hill Lectures. A shorter sharper season of fortnightly sessions this time around, I drew on some of my particularly ballsy Two Word Pep-Talks to visually provoke a sense the adventure, discovery, and wonder these lectures conjure: a sense that anything was possible.

   

    

This time I focused on making the typography into a stronger part of the project's identity, opting for a 3-D block text that emphasises and places value on each word as an individual unit, even amidst such a playful multi-coloured palette. For me the postcards essentially almost designed themselves, each session linking to a different childhood dream occupation tucked away in my little noodle:

Getting You Creative Project Off The Ground - Tue 8th Oct

Knowing Your Audience - Tue 22nd Oct

Build Your Own Festival - Tue 5th Nov

How to not Give Up on your Creative Career - Tue 19th Nov

Skills for the 21st Century - Tue 3rd Dec

I would also like to cite Mr. Benn as a direct influence on this series, as each day when stepping out of his house he could be anyone he wanted, in any time or place, be it a medieval knight, lion tamer or an intergalactic space traveller dressed in purple. Like him we can choose our own path, and heaven forbid it should be a well-trodden or dull one.