Amelia’s Magazine | New Designers 2014 Review: Best New Illustration & One Year On Textiles

Illustration by Adam Corns.

I sadly missed the first weekend of New Designers this year, but I made it to the second weekend and made a beeline for the illustration degree and graphic design stands.

I began with the Cambridge School of Art stand, which is always one of the strongest in show. These characterful horses are by Josephine Birch.

I adored this colourful patterned work by Francesca Esme Morris.

These wooden cutout guitars by Aleesha Nandhra feature lyrics and imagery from favourite songs.

Jess Bennett updated Snakes and Ladders with her Space Race board game, part of a project to ‘make space cool again.’

Louise Hall was inspired by the churches of East London for her London Bells series.

Hannah Kurz created these truly stunning illustrations for a book inspired by Nordic folklore.

This cute papercut card design is by Ella Catt at Nottingham Trent University.

I was most impressed by the monochrome artworks of Chris Worker, who gives a modern spin to the art deco style of Metropolis. This rocket is part of a stencilled visual history of spacecraft and he also did some amazing tarot card designs. A really awesome body of work, do check out his website.

I made a quick trip downstairs to check out the always impressive University of Brighton Design & Craft stand and discovered these samples of recycled plastics by Claire Evans, who explores new ways of working with used materials.

This interactive musical quilt by Holly Alexander blends new and old ideas together to encourage the act of storytelling.

Hayley Moisley developed her Gordon the Gorilla character as a learning aid, with interchangeable facial features to create different emotions.

Back on the top floor I discovered yet more talent amongst the Falmouth University graduates. These awesome animals and the crocodile lift the flap book are by Amy Clare Barden.

Katie Ponder was the deserving winner of an AOI award for her From the Rite of Spring series.

Joe Baines created this eye catching identity for the Sessions Surf Shop.

There is something no nonsense about the way that Falmouth put their identikit boards together and bed down at both New Blood and New Designers every summer, but I would really love to see what the students could do with a stand alone show in London one year.

Over at Plymouth College of Art Jordan Wray depicted a host of fish in The Element of Surprise.

Cute patterns featuring badgers, strawberries, foxes and mushrooms by Katie Turner would look great on wrapping paper.

Sam Thorne’s shouty lady is the best kind of optical madness.

People on their iPads everywhere, and fabulous brights (see top of the post). There was some awesome work on show from Adam Corns at Birmingham City University.

This tumbling pile of bunnies by Hollie Crooker is an astonishingly detailed bit of art.

Over at UCA Farnham I was introduced to the award winning work of Matthew Alker.

These plush dogs with lolling tongues are by Angelica Hood.

I was immensely chuffed to be gifted one of the best things I found at New Designers; Otro Mundo, a beautiful limited edition risograph zine by Libby Parra, printed by Ditto Press. Her otherworldly creatures are bathed in a neon glow as they wriggle across the pages.