It was a real treat to find that a selection of my art work has been published in an iPhone app that presents Swedish illustrators and designers!
I’m represented by Illustratörcentrum (The Illustrators’ Centre), Sweden’s largest agency for illustrators and graphic designers. They’ve just released a free iPhone app Illustratörcentrum that presents Swedish art and design. The idea is to help clients find the perfect fit for their projects. There’s lots of inspiring art in this app and it’s fun to browse and see the wealth of different styles, ideas and techniques out there!
Tags: apps, art, design, illustration, inspiration, iPhone, software, Sweden, Swedish
iPhone photography: computer error
It started last weekend with a faint but ominous and mysterious flicker. Last Sunday there was an election in Sweden, and on Monday it was clear that the racist far-right Sweden Democrats won its first-ever parliamentary seats. Alarming and deeply depressing. And then my laptop gave up the ghost.
In the middle of all this mess, it was a HUGE relief to find that all of my art work that I’d backed up on Dropbox was safe and sound and that I could simply continue working from a different computer, without having to also recreate all the art work I’d already done, both on the commissioned work and on the new collection of Process Icons. (Yes, I’m using a referral link in this post. If you register and install Dropbox (for free) using the referral link, we’ll both get extra free space!)
I’m way too busy just now to even begin looking for the warranty for my laptop. In the meanwhile all of my e-mail, my bookmarks and RSS-reader are trapped on my broken laptop. This is why you won’t see much of me online, as well as why I might owe you a response to your e-mail. Please bear with me until I get the situation sorted out.
The moral of the story? “Always backup your data” and “there’s never a good time for a disaster”? My little disaster with my laptop is a catastrophe in my small world, but in the bigger picture, it’s a storm in a teacup.
Tags: backup, digital environment, Dropbox, resources, software, workspace
iPhone Photography: first touch of autumn
A first touch of autumn, when the sun gets caught in the oak tree, like amber. Like liquid sunshine. A few leaves stained with mustard and rust. Yellow and brown. Nuts and honey. Just a touch.
The comforting sound of the kettle. Tea or coffee? Rain. The first moonlit walk after a long string of cloudy days and nights. Lots of commissions and I’ve had to put the Process Icons on hold. I spent a couple of minutes, experimenting with lomography on the iPhone. The view of the park, a few leaves on the oak tree touched by autumn. Creative time just for me. Relief. A splash of expressive spontaneity that leaves a tangible trail. Just a touch.
Tags: autumn, ease, iPhoneography, transformation, view of the park
iPhone Photography: Cherries
I didn’t make it to the Farmer’s Market this weekend. I was too busy working on commissions. But I saw wood pigeons in the oak tree outside my windows. I heard the sound of acorns as they hit the ground. I saw the Big Dipper from my kitchen window. I thought of absent friends. Separated by time or place or death. I felt the scent of red sage and enveloped myself in the soft touch of my corduroy jacket. I cried when I listened to Jeff Buckley (it never fails).
I saw a rainbow and made a wish. I ought to have done some laundry and the freezer desperately needs defrosting, but I did none of that. In fact, I struggled to remember meals. Sleep. Instead I thought about the ancient Egyptians and their royal tombs and made sketches for my commissions. The scent of Calamintha brought me to Tuscany. Greek Basil brought me back to Crete. Then I bought two handfuls of cherries and put them in the brown bowl we bought in Barcelona. Travelling in my mind.
Tags: creative process, dreams, imagination, travel
Icon sketches: inspiration, mockups, drafts, ideas, palettes, mood boards
I’m having so much fun designing this icon for drafts and sketches! Perhaps because I love this part of the process myself. Gathering inspiration, finding reference, doing research, catching ideas that spark in mind maps and mood boards.
The texture I used for the Moleskine (image below) is the same as the one I originally designed for the leather wallet, briefcase, satchel, old book and folder icons in the Organizer Collection. I felt that it worked well for the Moleskine and that it helped make the icons fit smoothly together, connecting the Moleskine with other icons.
While I was working on the icon for “Sketches, Drafts”, I came up with several variations. First I felt I had to pick one, but then I realised that a lot of people probably have different kinds of inspirational material that they collect. There could be drafts of text or images or a combination. There could be textures and palettes. Or combinations. So, why not include all three!? I’m calling them Sketches/Drafts, Ideas and Inspiration but naturally you can modify their names so that they work for you. How could you make use for these icons?
Sketches, drafts, inspiration, ideas
[To be continued... ]
Did you miss the other parts of this series?
Tags: creative cycle, creative process, creativity, design, ink, Process Icons, sketch, texture
