Amelia’s Magazine | Diptyque Candles

Bands like Okkervil River are eminently missable. They’re so redolent of a slew of others, pill more about and if you’re not on friendly terms with their songs they’ll pass you by like so much jaunty, information pills pleasant Americana. They’re also a great illustration of why you should persist with music.

And that’s not some pious, try rockist view meaning you’ve got to put down what you’re reading, sit up, and pay complete attention. It’s just good to give things a chance to get beyond your initial scrobbler – which makes quickfire connections, comparisons and judgments based on an increasingly convergent shared knowledge-bank of 50 years of pop. It’s about checking in music’s hiding places for that spark that turns a casual recommendation from a friend into your favourite album of the year.

You need to listen to Okkervil River because the real star attraction is the lyrics of Will Sheff. Like a Prozac-ed Conor Oberst words tumble out of him in stanzas, cascading, beautifully chosen, but always controlled. “Although I put my lips to your face / trying to push his kiss out of its place / although my heart started to race / now it has slowed / I’ll let it go,” he sings on ‘Song Of Our So-Called Friend’.

Behind him five guys playing the alt-country instruments you’d expect stay out of the way. Childlike drummer Travis Nelson (who has excellent wiry drummer’s hair) and keyboardist and trumpeter Scott Bracket sing along with every word, like their own band’s biggest fans.

Six members is often a bad, self-indulgent idea but OR’s are always serving and augmenting their songs. The slow-burning ‘The President’s Dead’ segues masterfully into ‘Black’, which is a pretty straightforward three chord stomper but when Okkervillised it comes out yearning, wistful and layered. They’re like “partytime!” Wilco, Being There-era. There’s a touch of Arcade Fire in their scope and ear for an epic. This sometimes skirts too close to hokey, but with lyrics as good as Sheff’s they’ve earned their slide guitar solos.

On latest album The Stage Names, everything comes together during the final song ‘John Allyn Smith Sails’. All the words, all the fear, all the joy, all the themes that have preceded it fall into place when it morphs into something from a very famous album. It’s one of the most beautiful musical moments of 2007. Ruining it before you’ve heard it would be a spoiler on a par with that Planet Of The Apes video cover featuring the Statue Of Liberty.

It’s a transcendent moment tonight. They know exactly how good it is. They audaciously don’t even end the set with it. They’re rightfully confident. They may be America’s best band.

Why is it so great being 16? It’s an angsty, pill uncertain time in which you doubt everything, troche struggle with a bunch of new and confusing ordeals and inevitably puke down your top talking to the guy/girl you like at an underwhelming party. But we largely remember it with total fondness.

You needed to work your problems through to their logical conclusion, buy more about no matter how labyrinthine they seemed. You’d not yet developed the coping strategy for later life – blithely shrugging, saying “well, them’s the breaks” and getting on with it. We can all agree that that’s a far simpler and more practical way to deal with things, but Jamie Lenman of Reuben is stuck in adolescence. His last thought is his best, and he’s going to yell it at you. This is thrillingly vital. I worry for him.

Slightly overweight, borderline ugly, he’s preaching to a small and dedicated throng. It’s a metal crowd – everyone is either unfathomably young and infectious or crusty and old enough to know better. It’s like being back at your first ever gig. An unexpected obscure song, a friendly moshpit, loud, people screaming.

Lenman’s band expends tangible effort, like the best air guitarists. Drummer Guy Davis reaches Canty-like levels of inventiveness, buried under a relentless propulsive drumstorm. He sits up throughout, a skinny Rollins, if he shaved his head he’d be a nutter. Bassist Jon Pearce does a textbook tall man, long instrument, purposeful sway thing. The three of them look moments away from combusting.

They tick lots of my boxes. Inventive, heavy, melodic, loud, fast, screamy, catchy. These are mostly the wrong boxes for 2007. ‘Some Mothers Do Ave Em,’ with a gargantuan riff that Josh Homme would divorce Brody (remember her?) for, is tossed away, apparently unaware of its own greatness. ‘Let’s Stop Hanging Out’ is their pop hit – a problem, because like almost everything they’ve done, it’s structured as if written by an Asberger’s sufferer. It lurches from A to B via, like, 37, each section marginally better than the last.

This analysis is all very silly and waaaay too glowing for a band you could fairly dismiss as dunderheaded nu rock – big riffs, often-daft words, sometimes cheesy tunes. But there’s something elusive, weird and brilliant at work which makes it seem completely unfair that Reuben are playing a half-empty goth club rather than enjoying Biffy-like love and adulation at the Astoria.

Their tour DVD, documenting life in a band too poor to give up jobs at supermarkets, is the saddest music film you’ll see this year, including ‘Control’. There’s a purity to Reuben, because you feel deep down they’ve realised they’re never going to “make it”. They’re getting as much out of nights like this as they possibly can.

They will surely disappear within five years, but Lenman will be back, I assure you. He’s a genius, that kid at school who was amazing at everything he tried but strangely awkward. His songs, once you’re over their ever-so-slight similarity to a bunch of nu metal we all wish hadn’t happened, are like nothing else in 2007.

I emphatically resist that getting older means you need to listen to cerebral, reflective music. It’s patronising, and a denial of where you’ve come from. Reuben are funny, but they’re also extremely earnest, and that seems to be a dirty word these days. But why should we forget what it’s like to be earnest? Why are we ashamed of being heartfelt? Why is it ok to call directionless, indulgent “folk” beautiful and intelligent when loving heroically crafted “rock” gets you laughed at? By your early 20s these are questions that seem too unanswerable to worry about

It’s fair to assume that most bands are having fun; travelling around the country playing music and generally being outrageous on tour buses is fine work if you can get it. Kotki Dwa however sound like they’re enjoying it even more then everyone else, buy more about not only have they rummaged around the musical toy box but they’ve emptied the shop. Robin’s Clogs is a wonderfully crafted indie pop song, mind with slicing guitars not dissimilar to Foals except without the edge and with a squeaking synthesiser over the top playing out a melody as catchy as they come.

Kotki Dwa then are one of the new generation of British pop bands who are re claiming the fun in indie from across the Atlantic. Vocalist Alex, unlike so many of his contemporaries, is actually able to sing melodically and belt out fine vocals with a painfully delicate voice, sometimes sounding on the verge of tears, yet conversely remaining wistfully upbeat, lips smiling but eyes crying. You know the type. This is never more apparent than on B-side Halogen, which holds it’s own to make a single of two fine songs. Oh, and they can even sing in French.
New ways, more about new ways, site
I dream of wires.
So I press ‘c’ for comfort, information pills
I dream of wires, the old ways.
Gary Numan, ‘I Dream of Wires’

Not only an underrated Gary Numan B side, but the latest retro clothing shop to open off Brick Lane. On the opening night, I Dream of Wires offered a kaleidoscopic mix of vintage fashion and nostalgic trinkets creating an environment Mr Benn would have reveled in. Had he actually existed outside of television. (For those who were not raised on children’s cartoons, Mr Benn was my childhood hero and the eponymous character of the classic children’s television show. He tried on clothes and was transported to exciting and dangerous worlds through the back door of the dressing-up shop. Now you know.) The rails ached with an eclectic clothing range as a cropped Moschino jacket with candy-striped lining hung beside a fluorescent pair of ski pants and bejewelled sweatshirt. Carla created a strong look Gary Numan would have loved, pairing a vintage dress with animal emblazoned leggings. In the display cabinets, curious and peculiar ornaments were arranged, the sort your grandparents displayed lovingly on tabletops and shelves. The changing room was continuously occupied as treasures came back and forth to be tried on for size and, happily for all, there were no January sale style brawls. Visiting the shop was like being in my own Mr Benn inspired magical adventure, starting out in the wardrobe of my babysitter in the eighties and stumbling through to my Nana’s bungalow. With so many second-hand and vintage clothing shops located around Brick Lane, I Dream of Wires is sure to appeal to those who get kicks poking fun at retro styles to create eccentric, outrageous ensembles.

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In amongst the glut of sugar coated schmaltz vying for the rather hollow accolade of Christmas number #1 for 2007 is this rather lovely cut from Welsh Wizards Super Furry Animals. A gift it is indeed. The track will be available free to fans in download format, view complete with B side and artwork on Christmas day. It’s safe to say this won’t be troubling the upper reaches of the charts then, viagra but when did SFA ever sell any records? The band’s lack of relative commercial success is still somewhat perplexing.

It matters not. Never intended to be a Christmas single, TGTKOG is one of many highlights from long player Hey Venus! released earlier this year. There are no bells or lyrics about snow. Just Gruff’s gorgeous tones, a meandering brass line and some intricate harmonies. Nadolig Llawen.

Imagine you’re watching one of those American hospital dramas on TV. Perhaps it’s the Christmas episode or season finale, medicine either way something is bound to go wrong. And when the shit hits the fan it breaks down into a montage of various characters in their scrubs, and remorseful, shop head in hands. Then, think of the music that accompanies those tearful medics. It’s emotive, driven by acoustic guitar and piano, with mildly folky vocals and a healthy dose of strings. Deadman, by House of Brothers, is one such track. Both sad and uplifting, this song has been strictly tailored in the studio to drag listeners up to peaks and down into troughs.

House of Brothers is Andrew Jackson’s solo project and is vastly different from his work with Scarecrow and The Death of Rosa Luxemburg. When I read the name of this EP I instantly thought of Jim Jarmusch’s film of the same title. House of Brothers’ release has little in common with the black and white western. I suppose you could say it’s lyrically bleak but the upbeat arrangements prevent Jackson from plumbing the depths.

Although lacking the polish of the title track, the other material has the same guitar/piano/strings, or indie-folk, sound. They are too long and it’s hard to maintain any kind of enthusiasm by the final track, correctly named The Last Ballad.

This EP is also aptly titled, because it retreads a musical style, which doesn’t have much life in it. It feels a little tired, as though most of the effort went into the first track. And was that effort worth it? As Jackson sings, “Don’t want to rise and shine for the second time. Just leave me be.” Perhaps we should.

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Having already waxed lyrical about These New Puritans after seeing them live in September, viagra approved I was more than ready and willing to get stuck into their much anticipated full-length offering, pharm Beat Pyramid. After much to-ing and fro-ing with release dates, cialis 40mg it looked like this one was going to up in the air for some time, however news is that’ll hit shelves this January and if you’ve an MP3 player, turntable, cassette deck or CD car stereo, I urge you to go out and buy it in every format and play it at high volume wherever you go. This is not THE perfect album, if such a thing even exists, and I won’t and can’t vouch for its life changing properties. However, what this is, I’d like to hope, is the beginning of something great. An album that delivers some absolutely stompingly good tracks, interspersed with a few that never take off; however it’s all a matter of context. Reaching such heights of brilliance at some points, if they fall short for just a moment at others, it hits as a minor disappointment. The fact is some of their lesser tracks would put most ‘indie’ hits to shame. Not a bad position to be in.

Beat Pyramid starts as it means to go on. The opener, …ce I Will Say This Twice which is picked up again in the closing track, sets the scene perfectly for the rest of the album. A beautiful slice of 80′s inspired, sharply constructed electronica, vocals nothing more than a mysterious, androgynous voice stating ‘I will say this Twice’. At just 16 seconds long its peculiar hypnotic effect leaves you wanting more, the sudden end coming frustratingly too soon.

Luckily the stomping drums that usher in Numbers make everything better again. As with their live performances, the beat is king on this record and having seen George Barnett (ringleader Jack’s twin brother) do some quite incredible things with a set of drumsticks, I was more than pleased to see all that demonic, tightly controlled energy translate onto record. “What’s your favourite number/What does it mean?/What’s your favourite number/what does it mean?” Jack never lets up. Insistent repetition is very much the order of the day with TNP, words becoming a beat within themselves, not what is said but more the pattern in which it’s spoken, over and over until it loses meaning but never effect.

Swords of Truth’s distorted trumpets swoop in like the opening of a Dancehall track, the beat conjuring similar reference, it’s easy to spot those unexpected influences that transform this band into something far more interesting and complex than your average post-punk outfit. It would be easy to mistake their eclectic tastes for pretension (Sonic Youth, Dubstep, the Occult, David Lynch) but they’re all laid out here, grabbed and borrowed from seemingly disparate genres. When mention was made of hip-hop whiz kid J Dilla I had my doubts, but they meant it; his irresistible, inside out beats littered throughout.

And now onto Doppelganger. I first heard this track online and immediately spent a good hour trying to track it down and just own it. A stuttering, Timbaland-esque experiment in beat and rhythm, it’s sparsity and directness carried along by, what can only be described as a ‘jangly’ electro dreamscape, giving it a kind of futuristic grandeur and irresistible head nodding appeal. It’s very rare that a band actually creates anything new but Doppelganger is so wilfully unusual and unexpected that it becomes almost impossible to place. At points I’m reminded of The Fall, Aphex Twin, GGD, Klaxons but as quickly as the comparisons come to mind, they’re dashed aside. This is something else and I’m having trouble putting my finger on it. I gave up trying. Whichever way you read it, at its core is something that just works, ultimately making it the standout track of the album.

Infinity Ytinifnl, £4, mkk3, all march along in a similar vein, perhaps a little less instantly striking, they nevertheless continue that ‘new sound’ with some impressive angular rhythms. Aggressive, brash, disjointed, taut. Heard outside of the context of this album, they would probably have had me frantically scrambling for the volume dial. Instead I just sit back and enjoy.

Things come to an unusually melancholic close with Costume, all drawn out, languid keyboards harmonising with Jack’s slow, deliberate vocals as they rise and fall through what feels like one continuous chorus. Interruption in the form of George’s powerful stuttering, staccato drumbeat, take this track to another level. The obligatory ‘Downbeat Finale’ this is not.

So, we return to the beginning again with I Will Say This Twi…, this time just 7 seconds long and ending abruptly like a sudden pull of the plug. The album comes full circle and while none of the mystery surround TNP has been solved, as impenetrable and cryptic as ever in their themes, even their intent, what they do reveal is a unexpectedly accomplished collection of off-beat, otherworldly tracks that remind you that taking a risk sometimes pays off.

Candles – pillar, symptoms tea lights and especially church candles in wine bottles. I love them all. Once I bought a load of tea lights, visit web lined them up on the windowsill behind my bed and lit them, hoping to create a nice atmosphere in my squat (ok it wasn’t actually a squat, but we did have a beetle and maggot infestation – who thought these life forms could co-exist so happily?) This ambiance lasted for about half an hour, until my friend forgot they were lit and leant back too far whilst sitting on the bed. His hair caught fire. After this debacle I’ve been banned from candles just incase I drop out of University to pursue arson as a career. But fate was quick to intervene, as some delightfully scented Diptyque candles were delivered to Amelia and I got to spark up. Diptyque began producing candles in 1963, and in the ensuing 45 years it has cornered the candle market with its exotic wax concoctions and beautiful packaging. In time for Christmas and the New Year, Diptyque have produced three limited edition winter candles – Encens (incense), Gingembre (ginger) and Epicea (spruce). These are candles your mum will actually appreciate as a gift, and so will everyone else within smelling distance. With 60 hours of burning time per candle, this seasonal trio are sure to last through the festive period to deliver the perfect aroma to cure January blues.

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Amelia’s Magazine | Pick Me Up 2012 Special: An interview with fashion illustrator Jason Brooks

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

As a self-proclaimed lover of illustrating and in particular illustrating fashion, I eagerly made my way to this year’s Pick Me Up Contemporary Graphic Art Fair at Somerset House. Pick Me Up is a massively important date for anyone interested or involved in Illustration and Graphic Design, and was excellently reviewed by fellow Amelia’s Magazine illustrator Emma Block this year, most definitely worth a read, here as well as of course by Amelia herself.

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum All photography by Alia Gargum

It was it a perfectly sunny London day, and I had an extra little spring in my step as Fashion Illustrator legend Jason Brooks was going to be illustrating live alongside the other guest artists and designers. You might not immediately recognise Jason Brook‘s name but you will surely know his slick, feminine style. He now has an impressive and growing client list, including Virgin Atlantic, L’Oréal, Vogue, Elle, and The Sunday Times Style Magazine, where I first remember seeing his work in print.

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

I immediately approached the friendly-looking Jason Brooks who was chatting to visitors while illustrating, hanging up his work to create a makeshift gallery. I don’t know what I was expecting, but I certainly wasn’t expecting him to be so open and easy to speak to, willing to give his time and simply chat. While we talked favourite materials to use and the loveliness of ink, I noticed that he was looking at me very carefully, which is when he confessed that he was illustrating me. Moments later, a beautiful ink illustrated version of me was produced, created on a page from an old french dictionary. He had been illustrating visitors all day, drawing inspiration from them and selling the portraits to those who wished to take an original Jason Brooks portrait home. I cannot thank him enough for the long chat, and the questions he answered so well, the best of which are written here.

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

You’re one of the first modern-day Fashion Illustrators I remember seeing in print just as illustration made it’s massive (and continuing) comeback. What was your first big commission?

My first big commission arrived when I was in my early twenties studying Graphic Design at Central St Martin’s, which at the time was in Longacre in Covent Garden. It was an exciting place to be and every day there had an almost party-like atmosphere, buzzing with creative energy, conversation and ideas. One day a message arrived from Vogue (before e-mail) for me to come in with my portfolio as I’d recently won an illustration competition they were running. I was immediately commissioned by Vogue to illustrate a story about New Orleans which ran over about six pages and included a whole double page spread. I remember buying a copy from a newsstand as soon as it came out, feeling on top of the world. I used coloured oil pastels on black card for this first important commission, giving the work a very direct and vibrant look. I then became a regular contributor to Vogue under the wonderful art direction of Paul Eustace. I used it as an opportunity to experiment with different media and styles in print, including some early computer illustrations, so I was the first to use a computer to illustrate for Vogue back at the very beginning of the nineties.

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

You’ve drawn at Paris Couture shows for The Independent, which led to more catwalk illustrating for a range of publications like Elle and Visionaire magazine. What do you love most about drawing at the shows?

Backstage is the most interesting place to draw at a fashion show. Not only is everything much closer, but the variety of poses and activities going on provides a whole range of Degas-like subjects. Models sitting in front of mirrors being carefully made up, impromptu fashion shoots going on, camera crews, interviews and striking people are everywhere as subjects. Drawing directly from the catwalk is more difficult to do well because outfits are only visible for a limited time, but nowadays it’s easy to take lots of digital photographs and work up drawings later. I love the drama and art front of the catwalk at fashion shows too, the crowd is always fascinating. The fact that every catwalk show is a one off performance, with high stakes for those involved as well as ever-increasing production values can create really intense theatre, so I love that too.

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

What advice would you give to a graduate who wants to get some experience in illustrating from the catwalk?

I started off by working for magazines who would give me accreditation and passes to go to shows as a photographer, after a little prompting from me. I would then simply take my sketchbook instead of a camera. I think when you are starting out it’s all about first of all putting together a portfolio that you feel confident to show people, and then making appointments and really pushing your work out there. I would speculatively arrange lots of ‘go sees’ and then jump on a plane to New York or Paris and try to get work, but perhaps business was more often conducted in a face-to-face way at that time. Going to the Paris couture shows with the Independent began because their editor Marion Hume approached me after I left the Royal College of Art. Luckily, I had work and sketchbooks from travelling to different places that I was able to show, so I would also say that travel drawing is a great foundation for drawing fashion. As a graduate, or anyone for that matter, some catwalk shows are much easier to get access to than others, so if you are interested in drawing at shows it might be best to start with more accessible fringe and off-schedule designers at fashion week and then work up from there.

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

Thanks to the rise of digital design, a lot of Fashion Illustration has a slick, smooth, and sharp look to it. You were doing this long before it became popular. What drew you to this technique?

I was striving to create a look from using areas of flat colour for a long time before I started using computers on a regular basis. As with my Vogue commission, I used oil pastels to try to achieve this but I also really liked collage, cutting up books and magazines and experimenting with very flat gouache paint. Computers first came to my attention as a way of making pictures in the late 80′s and early 90′s, and once scanning drawings became an option I was able to combine my familiar drawing on paper with computer colouring techniques, and that particular look was born.

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

Your style is undoubtedly feminine and luxurious. Has this always been the case or did it develop gradually?

The luxurious aspect perhaps is just from my idea of drawing things that are well designed and have an aesthetic appeal to me, so it was never a grand plan, just something that has happened quite by accident. I suppose it has developed over time to a certain extent because my taste has changed as I’ve learned more about architecture, fashion, design, film and so on. Looking back, I think my work has also been a reflection of a glamorous time for the western world where mid-century modernism has really come back and been reinvented through magazines like Wallpaper and through the activities of a whole generation of tastemakers in all areas of design. I happen to love drawing women because I think they can create powerful images, so in all it has been fun for me to reflect our culture’s interest in luxury and design through my illustrations.

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

What are your favourite materials to work in and which digital techniques do you find yourself using again and again?

I love good old pen and paper. Biros are actually very subtle drawing tools, but I also use 4B pencils to draw out ideas and sketches which I then scan into my computer. I mainly use Photoshop and Illustrator to create my pictures digitally so I definitely still combine very basic old school technology – the dip pen, the pencil, etc. with the latest computer programmes. They are however all just tools, and I would be equally happy working in clay or building a sculpture out of sand on a beach.

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

This year was your first as a guest artist at graphic design fair PIck Me Up at Somerset House. What did you enjoy and what surprised you about the whole experience?

It was a great chance to simply play with inks and coloured pencils. I made about 30 pictures or so, scribbling in an old french dictionary and on pieces of coloured paper throughout the day, which made me really enjoy the experience creatively. What surprised me was meeting so many new people who were interested in what I was doing, it was really rewarding to have direct contact and chat to them about their creativity too.

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

You’ve had an impressive career so far, what do you think has been the reason(s) for your success?

Thank you, although I really don’t see myself as being successful yet. I guess any success I’ve had so far could be because I started at a very young age and have put a lot of effort and practice into my illustration because I enjoy it so much. I was fortunate in a way to have had a childhood without the modern phenomena of ‘screen time’ so I was able to immerse myself in my imagination through drawing worlds of my own instead of exploring ones created by other people. This lead on to college when creating work on paper was still very important, giving me the benefit of a ‘traditional’ academic art college experience with very little modern technology available unless I sought it out. I’ve always loved experimenting with all kinds of art forms and media, so when the digital revolution arrived in illustration and art I was very open to it and in a lucky position to be able to ride that particular wave from the beginning.

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

What can we next expect from Jason Brooks?

I’m just finishing my first book called ‘A Paris Sketchbook’, which is due out in 2013. It is an eclectic collection of my own drawings and illustrations and a homage to a city which I love, published by Laurence King. My dream is that it will be the first in a series of travel sketchbooks covering different iconic cities. Aside from this I’m involved in a number of commissions with different companies and brands around the world, which is a part of my work that I really enjoy because it gives me the chance to collaborate with so many interesting people, adding a sometimes unexpected variety to what I do. I’ve also just signed with a new agency in New York called Traffic, so that’s exciting. Recently, I’ve completed a new collection of artwork for sale on my website called ‘The Gelato Series’ – all about girls eating ice cream in retro, sexy colours.

Jason Brooks Pick Me Up 2012 by Alia Gargum

It’s fascinating to hear from someone who has managed to carve such an astonishing career in fashion illustration. What a lovely guy. Be inspired! See more of Jason Brooks’ work online hereAmelia

Jason Brooks portrait

Categories ,2012, ,80s, ,90s, ,Alia Gargum, ,Amelia’s Magazine, ,catwalk, ,Central St Martins, ,collage, ,couture, ,Covent Garden, ,Creativity, ,Degas, ,Digital Art, ,Elle Magazine, ,Emma Block, ,fashion, ,Fashion Illustration, ,Feminine, ,gouache, ,illustrator, ,Jason Brooks, ,L’Oreal, ,Luxury, ,Marion Hume, ,New Orleans, ,new york, ,paris, ,Paul Eustace, ,Photoshop, ,Pick Me Up, ,portrait, ,Royal College of Art, ,Somerset House, ,The Independent, ,The Sunday Times, ,travel, ,vogue, ,Wallpaper

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Amelia’s Magazine | Morphopolis: an illustrated computer game inspired by the natural world

Morphopolis computer game
Morphopolis is a visually stunning adventure game lovingly crafted by two architecture graduates and designers, Dan Walters and Ceri Williams. It was inspired by two other games: Machinarium and The Tiny Bang Story, with players taken on a lucid and fantastical journey of transformation and discovery that enables them to explore and interact with beautifully illustrated scenes to find hidden objects and solve puzzles.

Morphopolis computer game
Morphopolis won the Association of Illustrators Award in the Design category for New Talent and will be on display at Somerset House in London during October before touring nationally. I asked Ceri to explain the process behind their creation, and he was happy to oblige.

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Morphopolis is an independent game conceived and produced Dan Walters and myself. The production began in July 2012 and has continued as a part time project alongside professional work. Dan and I met whilst studying a the Welsh School of Architecture in Cardiff and he subsequently qualified as an architect before quitting the profession to become a games developer. He asked me to collaborate on a project last year since he wanted to work with an illustrator who did not have preconceptions about video game art direction.

Morphopolis computer game
We set about trying to create a game that would appeal to a broad audience regardless of age, gender or previous experience playing games. The narrative and tone for the game came from this starting point and we hope that the natural insect world taps into people’s innate curiosity and reminds the player of a time when they have peered into the undergrowth to quietly observe the bugs and beetles. This idea of looking closely at a micro world is a fascination that we think all people have shared at some point in their lives, usually as toddlers and children.

Morphopolis computer game
The game is a hidden object adventure, which is a genre sometimes known as point-and-click. Essentially its a bit like an interactive Where’s Wally with extra puzzles and interaction within the scenes. Players must uncover puzzles and find items hidden around the scene to progress in the game.

Morphopolis computer game
The game explores the idea of metamorphosis and increase of scale. Each chapter sees the character changing into a larger insect and therefore seeing more of this larger world that they inhabit. As the chapters progress the natural environment starts to take on a more architectural language with intertwined roots becoming huge cathedrals and plants becoming canopies. There is also this architectural quality at the smallest scale where blades of grass become skyscrapers and individual plants become huge landscapes.

Morphopolis computer game
The art style was developed to reflect this intricate and lush world. A number of ink washes and pencil markings where created to form texture layers used within the colouring process. To create the scenes large drawings were produced as chapter ‘blueprints’. These included the whole chapter with various scenes and the routes for character movement, puzzles and interactions. From these the various parts were traced off and turned into pen line drawings which were scanned before being coloured in Photoshop. Each element of the scenes were created as individual layers to allow for larger compositions to be made and the scenes to be grown organically. These images were then uploaded to an editing software which was created by Dan especially for this game. Components were added to scenes or composed to make animations and puzzles were added.

Morphopolis computer game
The game currently exists as an Open Alpha which is a playable but unfinished version available for purchase from our website. We are working towards releasing the finished version this year and hope to coincide the launch with an exhibition at Somerset House which shows the game alongside other winners of the Association of Illustrators Awards. While we finish off the game we’re incorporating as much feedback as we can get so it would be fantastic to hear any thoughts from your readers. (please do leave your thoughts below in the comments section x)

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Hear Dan and Ceri talking about the game above. Isn’t Morphopolis beautiful? You can get involved with Morphopolis here.

Categories ,Adventure Game, ,Association of Illustrators Award, ,cardiff, ,Ceri Williams, ,Dan Walters, ,game, ,Machinarium, ,Metamorphosis, ,Morphopolis, ,New Talent, ,Open Alpha, ,Photoshop, ,Point and Click, ,Somerset House, ,The Tiny Bang Story, ,Welsh School of Architecture

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Amelia’s Magazine | An Interview with Daniel McNaboe

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I’d like to start my interview with Daniel MacNaboe through an inquiry into the ideas, viagra order side effects views or politics that inspire his illustrations. Daniel is a graduate from the Illustration degree at the University of West England.

I’ve always been inspired by achieving some degree of realism in my artwork. Contemporary realist portraiture has been a continuing influence in the development of my work. I’m fascinated by the world around me. Both my mum and dad were always big on reading, cialis 40mg my dad would sit on the same patch of the sofa, reading the Guardian front to back for what seemed like hours each evening. His fascination with the world around him, simply his awareness of current affairs really intrigued me. I like to think he enlightened me to a lot of information. Always encouraging me not to take the things I have for granted.

Secondly I’m inspired by ordinary stories, I worked for a number of years during college and university holidays as a cleaner at the John Radcliffe hospital in Oxford. The job was a true life-experience. Not only the nature of the job itself, which consisted of working within sometimes distressing situations and environments. But also the people I got to know through working there. The cleaning staff comprised workers from all over the world, all with unique and amazing life stories that definitely affected the way in which I consequently look at the world. Their varying cultures, ideals, views really opened my eyes to a lot of things that in any other job I don’t think I would have been so fortunate as to experience. The many long hours I spent mopping floors, cleaning toilets and sitting on upturned mop buckets in cleaning cupboards chatting away with colleagues has continued to influence my thinking and motivations in regards to my artwork.

danielmacnaboe2

How do you decide which medium is best to represent your ideas?

I initially stick with what it is I know best, and from there let the ideas and aesthetics I’m exploring influence the mediums I use. I always begin with pencil and paper, and progress from there. I really enjoy printmaking, and spent a long time at University exploring hand-drawn and four-color photographic lithography techniques. I’m drawn to mediums, which complement my drawing, and general practical approach.

I allow the materials I use to help me form my ideas. I’ve always, for as long as I can remember been very much drawn to working with pencil and paper. It’s the simplicity of it that I get a kick from. I love rendering images onto the papers surface, in a similar way as to how I love watching a photograph develop in a dark room. I have a tendency to work slowly and methodically on each piece. I’ll never forget an art teacher telling me there are no lines in real life, and ever since have tried to avoid harsh, linear marks in my drawings when aiming towards realism. I tend to work softly and gently with my materials.

danielmacnaboethumb

What has been your favorite self directed illustration project?

The project I produced for my degree show at the University of the West of England. I chose to spend my last few months at university focusing on portraiture, this being a field I was keen to pursue after leaving University. Initially I was working through old family photographs for inspiration. I came across an image of my grandfather, a crisp military portrait of him in his first year as a U.S. Marine at age 18. What struck me was his youthfulness in the photograph. His innocence, and maybe naivety that was to be sadly short lived. It was interesting to me pondering that we were roughly at the same points in our lives, but under such different circumstances. Through consequent research I discovered he was deployed in the third wave of Marines onto the Japanese island of Iwo Jima on the 19th February 1945, and was incredibly lucky. Of the 340 U.S. Marines in his company only 17 of them, him included survived, many of them wounded. In one of my drawings for the project, I rendered from a photograph depicting my grandfather and a very good friend not long before they were both deployed to Iwo Jima. I learnt that his friend never made it off. On return to America after being disbanded he was awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in battle. In total 21,703 Japanese soldiers were killed on the island, and 6,825 U.S. Marines, with 29,909 American casualties over a 36-day period, a figure greater than the total Allied casualties on the D-Day landings. I decided to produce a series of images concerning his early life. From growing up as a young boy during the Great Depression in rural Illinois through to his time serving in the South Pacific during the Second World War. In a way the time I spent rendering these images allowed my to put my own life into some sort of perspective. What I seem to get most out of portraiture, whether it be portraits i’m working on myself or other peoples, is simply just gazing, trying to relate with the subject.
danielmacnaboe1

What was the thinking process behind the project?

Depsite living thousands of miles apart, I’ve always felt very close to my grandfather, and his experience during the war struck a chord with me. He is a quiet man, who is now 86 years old and very rarely mentioned his service. I was keen for the work to form a kind of homage to him. I guess the way I work is process based. I accumulate a collection of images that best convey what it is I want to express, and then begin rendering from them. As my work progresses it gives me more ideas as to how I would like to develop the work further. As I was working on the portraits of my grandfather I began to employ collage, Photoshop and printmaking to try and convey a particular aesthetic I thought was missing from the drawings. I loved the smokey aesthetic of the old black and white photographs I was studying, so I consequently decided to work with an assortment of soft-very soft graphite on smooth and thick off-white cartridge paper. I experimented with drawing in reverse with coloured conte pencils on black paper. Both techniques worked well. I also painted with Acrylic onto smoothly sanded gesso on Board. There were a couple images of the farmhouse my grandfather grew up in that I was keen to incorporate, and I felt the best way to represent this would be to move on to paint. Throughout the duration of the project I maintained a keen interest in the aesthetics of old documentation. I loved the qualities of the old military papers I was looking through.

danielmacnaboe2

I’d like to start my interview with Daniel MacNaboe through an inquiry into the ideas, viagra 100mg views or politics that inspire his illustrations. Daniel is a graduate from the Illustration degree at the University of West England.

I’ve always been inspired by achieving some degree of realism in my artwork. Contemporary realist portraiture has been a continuing influence in the development of my work. I’m fascinated by the world around me. Both my mum and dad were always big on reading, abortion my dad would sit on the same patch of the sofa, reading the Guardian front to back for what seemed like hours each evening. His fascination with the world around him, simply his awareness of current affairs really intrigued me. I like to think he enlightened me to a lot of information. Always encouraging me not to take the things I have for granted.

Secondly I’m inspired by ordinary stories, I worked for a number of years during college and university holidays as a cleaner at the John Radcliffe hospital in Oxford. The job was a true life-experience. Not only the nature of the job itself, which consisted of working within sometimes distressing situations and environments. But also the people I got to know through working there. The cleaning staff comprised workers from all over the world, all with unique and amazing life stories that definitely affected the way in which I consequently look at the world. Their varying cultures, ideals, views really opened my eyes to a lot of things that in any other job I don’t think I would have been so fortunate as to experience. The many long hours I spent mopping floors, cleaning toilets and sitting on upturned mop buckets in cleaning cupboards chatting away with colleagues has continued to influence my thinking and motivations in regards to my artwork.

danielmacnaboe3

How do you decide which medium is best to represent your ideas?

I initially stick with what it is I know best, and from there let the ideas and aesthetics I’m exploring influence the mediums I use. I always begin with pencil and paper, and progress from there. I really enjoy printmaking, and spent a long time at University exploring hand-drawn and four-color photographic lithography techniques. I’m drawn to mediums, which complement my drawing, and general practical approach.

I allow the materials I use to help me form my ideas. I’ve always, for as long as I can remember been very much drawn to working with pencil and paper. It’s the simplicity of it that I get a kick from. I love rendering images onto the papers surface, in a similar way as to how I love watching a photograph develop in a dark room. I have a tendency to work slowly and methodically on each piece. I’ll never forget an art teacher telling me there are no lines in real life, and ever since have tried to avoid harsh, linear marks in my drawings when aiming towards realism. I tend to work softly and gently with my materials.

danielmacnaboe

What has been your favorite self directed illustration project?

The project I produced for my degree show at the University of the West of England. I chose to spend my last few months at university focusing on portraiture, this being a field I was keen to pursue after leaving University. Initially I was working through old family photographs for inspiration. I came across an image of my grandfather, a crisp military portrait of him in his first year as a U.S. Marine at age 18. What struck me was his youthfulness in the photograph. His innocence, and maybe naivety that was to be sadly short lived. It was interesting to me pondering that we were roughly at the same points in our lives, but under such different circumstances. Through consequent research I discovered he was deployed in the third wave of Marines onto the Japanese island of Iwo Jima on the 19th February 1945, and was incredibly lucky. Of the 340 U.S. Marines in his company only 17 of them, him included survived, many of them wounded. In one of my drawings for the project, I rendered from a photograph depicting my grandfather and a very good friend not long before they were both deployed to Iwo Jima. I learnt that his friend never made it off. On return to America after being disbanded he was awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in battle. In total 21,703 Japanese soldiers were killed on the island, and 6,825 U.S. Marines, with 29,909 American casualties over a 36-day period, a figure greater than the total Allied casualties on the D-Day landings. I decided to produce a series of images concerning his early life. From growing up as a young boy during the Great Depression in rural Illinois through to his time serving in the South Pacific during the Second World War. In a way the time I spent rendering these images allowed my to put my own life into some sort of perspective. What I seem to get most out of portraiture, whether it be portraits i’m working on myself or other peoples, is simply just gazing, trying to relate with the subject.
danielmacnaboe1

What was the thinking process behind the project?

Depsite living thousands of miles apart, I’ve always felt very close to my grandfather, and his experience during the war struck a chord with me. He is a quiet man, who is now 86 years old and very rarely mentioned his service. I was keen for the work to form a kind of homage to him. I guess the way I work is process based. I accumulate a collection of images that best convey what it is I want to express, and then begin rendering from them. As my work progresses it gives me more ideas as to how I would like to develop the work further. As I was working on the portraits of my grandfather I began to employ collage, Photoshop and printmaking to try and convey a particular aesthetic I thought was missing from the drawings. I loved the smokey aesthetic of the old black and white photographs I was studying, so I consequently decided to work with an assortment of soft-very soft graphite on smooth and thick off-white cartridge paper. I experimented with drawing in reverse with coloured conte pencils on black paper. Both techniques worked well. I also painted with Acrylic onto smoothly sanded gesso on Board. There were a couple images of the farmhouse my grandfather grew up in that I was keen to incorporate, and I felt the best way to represent this would be to move on to paint. Throughout the duration of the project I maintained a keen interest in the aesthetics of old documentation. I loved the qualities of the old military papers I was looking through.

danielmacnaboe2

I’d like to start my interview with Daniel MacNaboe through an inquiry into the ideas, page views or politics that inspire his illustrations. Daniel is a graduate from the Illustration degree at the University of West England.

I’ve always been inspired by achieving some degree of realism in my artwork. Contemporary realist portraiture has been a continuing influence in the development of my work. I’m fascinated by the world around me. Both my mum and dad were always big on reading, page my dad would sit on the same patch of the sofa, reading the Guardian front to back for what seemed like hours each evening. His fascination with the world around him, simply his awareness of current affairs really intrigued me. I like to think he enlightened me to a lot of information. Always encouraging me not to take the things I have for granted.

Secondly I’m inspired by ordinary stories, I worked for a number of years during college and university holidays as a cleaner at the John Radcliffe hospital in Oxford. The job was a true life-experience. Not only the nature of the job itself, which consisted of working within sometimes distressing situations and environments. But also the people I got to know through working there. The cleaning staff comprised workers from all over the world, all with unique and amazing life stories that definitely affected the way in which I consequently look at the world. Their varying cultures, ideals, views really opened my eyes to a lot of things that in any other job I don’t think I would have been so fortunate as to experience. The many long hours I spent mopping floors, cleaning toilets and sitting on upturned mop buckets in cleaning cupboards chatting away with colleagues has continued to influence my thinking and motivations in regards to my artwork.

danielmacnaboe3

How do you decide which medium is best to represent your ideas?

I initially stick with what it is I know best, and from there let the ideas and aesthetics I’m exploring influence the mediums I use. I always begin with pencil and paper, and progress from there. I really enjoy printmaking, and spent a long time at University exploring hand-drawn and four-color photographic lithography techniques. I’m drawn to mediums, which complement my drawing, and general practical approach.

I allow the materials I use to help me form my ideas. I’ve always, for as long as I can remember been very much drawn to working with pencil and paper. It’s the simplicity of it that I get a kick from. I love rendering images onto the papers surface, in a similar way as to how I love watching a photograph develop in a dark room. I have a tendency to work slowly and methodically on each piece. I’ll never forget an art teacher telling me there are no lines in real life, and ever since have tried to avoid harsh, linear marks in my drawings when aiming towards realism. I tend to work softly and gently with my materials.

danielmacnaboe

What has been your favorite self directed illustration project?

The project I produced for my degree show at the University of the West of England. I chose to spend my last few months at university focusing on portraiture, this being a field I was keen to pursue after leaving University. Initially I was working through old family photographs for inspiration. I came across an image of my grandfather, a crisp military portrait of him in his first year as a U.S. Marine at age 18. What struck me was his youthfulness in the photograph. His innocence, and maybe naivety that was to be sadly short lived. It was interesting to me pondering that we were roughly at the same points in our lives, but under such different circumstances. Through consequent research I discovered he was deployed in the third wave of Marines onto the Japanese island of Iwo Jima on the 19th February 1945, and was incredibly lucky. Of the 340 U.S. Marines in his company only 17 of them, him included survived, many of them wounded. In one of my drawings for the project, I rendered from a photograph depicting my grandfather and a very good friend not long before they were both deployed to Iwo Jima. I learnt that his friend never made it off. On return to America after being disbanded he was awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in battle. In total 21,703 Japanese soldiers were killed on the island, and 6,825 U.S. Marines, with 29,909 American casualties over a 36-day period, a figure greater than the total Allied casualties on the D-Day landings. I decided to produce a series of images concerning his early life. From growing up as a young boy during the Great Depression in rural Illinois through to his time serving in the South Pacific during the Second World War. In a way the time I spent rendering these images allowed my to put my own life into some sort of perspective. What I seem to get most out of portraiture, whether it be portraits i’m working on myself or other peoples, is simply just gazing, trying to relate with the subject.
danielmacnaboe1

What was the thinking process behind the project?

Depsite living thousands of miles apart, I’ve always felt very close to my grandfather, and his experience during the war struck a chord with me. He is a quiet man, who is now 86 years old and very rarely mentioned his service. I was keen for the work to form a kind of homage to him. I guess the way I work is process based. I accumulate a collection of images that best convey what it is I want to express, and then begin rendering from them. As my work progresses it gives me more ideas as to how I would like to develop the work further. As I was working on the portraits of my grandfather I began to employ collage, Photoshop and printmaking to try and convey a particular aesthetic I thought was missing from the drawings. I loved the smokey aesthetic of the old black and white photographs I was studying, so I consequently decided to work with an assortment of soft-very soft graphite on smooth and thick off-white cartridge paper. I experimented with drawing in reverse with coloured conte pencils on black paper. Both techniques worked well. I also painted with Acrylic onto smoothly sanded gesso on Board. There were a couple images of the farmhouse my grandfather grew up in that I was keen to incorporate, and I felt the best way to represent this would be to move on to paint. Throughout the duration of the project I maintained a keen interest in the aesthetics of old documentation. I loved the qualities of the old military papers I was looking through.

Yesterday Bloom In Bloomsbury was held in Torrington Square in SOAS, stuff the gathering was held to get people involved and engaged with the Climate Change problem. Luckily it was held under a big marquee as we were subjected to a few downpours throughout the day.

BL

There was a Stall to get people involved with The Great Climate Swoop, viagra dosage the direct action to shut down Ratcliffe On Soar Coal Power station in 10 days time, doctor Outreach also got people signed up to transport to get down to Nottingham, which is going from all across the country at activist cut prices.

bl1

One of the aims was to also get people involved in the run up to Cop 15 in December where world leaders will meet in a ‘last chance’ conference to tackle Climate Change in Copenhagen. A people’s summit is being held on the 16th of December in the conference to show that we are not willing to let government agenda govern the proceedings, and that as a social movement we need to take a stand. Again Transport from across the country will be going and coaches are being booked right now to ensure we can all get there. Climate Justice Action. is an umbrella organisation that encompasses a broad range of activist and organisations that will have a range of details and contacts for the climatic event.

Bl2

A stall highlighting the problem of Agrofuels was also providing information to passers by, bio fuels are linked to accelerated climate change, deforestation, human rights abuses, water and soil degradation, and are still labeled by many NGO’s and government as an answer to conventional oil practice. There is ademonstration outside The Department for Energy and Climate Change in London on Monday the 12th to protest against the so-called ‘green energy’ Subsidies.

Bl3

There was also the SOAS food Co-op, which provides wholesale food and is run as a non-profit group set up by students. The bike maintenance workshop put on was also really popular. If you missed the event make sure you get down to Powershift being held over the weekend at the Institute of Education in London.

As the event wound down and we were outreached out, a group headed to the City University as a certain energy company, E.ON, were holding a talk at the student recruitment fair. The company is responsible for the planned new coal power stations at Kingsnorth, which combined would produce the same carbon emissions as Ghana. With the report by the Global and Humanitarian forum stating that three hundred thousand people are already dyeing already each year due to climate change, it isn’t a viable option.

Bl4

The group of activists stormed the talks, getting past the security guards who were holding a pretty tight presence outside the doors, quite possibly due to the continued protests against E.ON at student fairs last year.
While 3 burly guys jumped on one activist, the others handed out flyers to the bemused students woken up from the corporate PowerPoint slumber. An activist took to the podium to tell the audience what E.ON are really about, claiming themselves as a Green Energy Company while 95% of their investment is into non renewable energies is a clear sign of greenwashing and the corporate bullshit that students have to listen to.
Yesterday Bloom In Bloomsbury was held in Torrington Square in SOAS. The gathering was held to get people involved and engaged with the Climate Change problem. Luckily it was held under a big marquee as we were subjected to a few downpours throughout the day.

BL

There was a stall to get people involved with The Great Climate Swoop, buy the direct action to shut down Ratcliffe On Soar oal power station in 10 days time. Outreach also got people signed up to provide transport down to Nottingham, which is going from all across the country at special activist prices.

bl1

One of the aims was to also get people involved in the run up to Cop 15 in December where world leaders will meet in a ‘last chance’ conference to tackle Climate Change in Copenhagen. A people’s summit is being held on the 16th of December in the conference to show that we are not willing to let a government agenda govern the proceedings, and that as a social movement we need to take a stand. Again, transport from across the country will be going and coaches are being booked right now to ensure we can all get there. Climate Justice Action is an umbrella organisation that encompasses a broad range of activist organisations that will have a range of details and contacts for the event.

Bl2

A stall highlighting the problem of Agrofuels was also providing information to passers by, bio fuels are linked to accelerated climate change, deforestation, human rights abuses, water and soil degradation, and are still labeled by many NGO’s and government as an answer to conventional oil practice. There is ademonstration outside The Department for Energy and Climate Change in London on Monday the 12th to protest against the so-called ‘green energy’ subsidies.

Bl3

There was also the SOAS food co-op, which provides wholesale food and is run as a non-profit group set up by students. The bike maintenance workshop put on was also really popular. If you missed the event make sure you get down to Powershift being held over the weekend at the Institute of Education in London.

As the event wound down and we were outreached out, a group headed to the City University as a certain energy company, E.ON, were holding a talk at the student recruitment fair. The company is responsible for the planned new coal power stations at Kingsnorth, which combined would produce the same carbon emissions as Ghana. With the report by the Global and Humanitarian forum stating that three hundred thousand people are already dying already each year due to climate change, it isn’t a viable option.

Bl4

The group of activists stormed the talks, getting past the security guards who were holding a pretty tight presence outside the doors, quite possibly due to the continued protests against E.ON at student fairs last year.
While three burly guys jumped on one activist, the others handed out flyers to the bemused students woken up from the corporate PowerPoint slumber. An activist took to the podium to tell the audience what E.ON are really about. Claiming themselves as a Green Energy Company while 95% of their investment is into non renewable energies is a clear sign of greenwashing and the corporate bullshit that students have to listen to.
Yesterday Bloom In Bloomsbury was held in Torrington Square in SOAS. The gathering was held to get people involved and engaged with the Climate Change problem. Luckily it was held under a big marquee as we were subjected to a few downpours throughout the day.

BL

There was a stall to get people involved with The Great Climate Swoop, page the direct action to shut down Ratcliffe On Soar oal power station in 10 days time. Outreach also got people signed up to provide transport down to Nottingham, salve which is going from all across the country at special activist prices.

bl1

One of the aims was to also get people involved in the run up to Cop 15 in December where world leaders will meet in a ‘last chance’ conference to tackle Climate Change in Copenhagen. A people’s summit is being held on the 16th of December in the conference to show that we are not willing to let a government agenda govern the proceedings, and that as a social movement we need to take a stand. Again, transport from across the country will be going and coaches are being booked right now to ensure we can all get there. Climate Justice Action is an umbrella organisation that encompasses a broad range of activist organisations that will have a range of details and contacts for the event.

Bl2

A stall highlighting the problem of Agrofuels was also providing information to passers by, bio fuels are linked to accelerated climate change, deforestation, human rights abuses, water and soil degradation, and are still labeled by many NGO’s and government as an answer to conventional oil practice. There is ademonstration outside The Department for Energy and Climate Change in London on Monday the 12th to protest against the so-called ‘green energy’ subsidies.

Bl3

There was also the SOAS food co-op, which provides wholesale food and is run as a non-profit group set up by students. The bike maintenance workshop put on was also really popular. If you missed the event make sure you get down to Powershift being held over the weekend at the Institute of Education in London.

As the event wound down and we were outreached out, a group headed to the City University as a certain energy company, E.ON, were holding a talk at the student recruitment fair. The company is responsible for the planned new coal power stations at Kingsnorth, which combined would produce the same carbon emissions as Ghana. With the report by the Global and Humanitarian forum stating that three hundred thousand people are already dying already each year due to climate change, it isn’t a viable option.

Bl4

The group of activists stormed the talks, getting past the security guards who were holding a pretty tight presence outside the doors, quite possibly due to the continued protests against E.ON at student fairs last year.
While three burly guys jumped on one activist, the others handed out flyers to the bemused students woken up from the corporate PowerPoint slumber. An activist took to the podium to tell the audience what E.ON are really about. Claiming themselves as a Green Energy Company while 95% of their investment is into non renewable energies is a clear sign of greenwashing and the corporate bullshit that students have to listen to.
Yesterday Bloom In Bloomsbury was held in Torrington Square in SOAS. The gathering was held to get people involved and engaged with the Climate Change problem. Luckily it was held under a big marquee as we were subjected to a few downpours throughout the day.

BL

There was a stall to get people involved with The Great Climate Swoop, thumb the direct action to shut down Ratcliffe On Soar oal power station in 10 days time. Outreach also got people signed up to provide transport down to Nottingham, abortion which is going from all across the country at special activist prices.

bl1

One of the aims was to also get people involved in the run up to Cop 15 in December where world leaders will meet in a ‘last chance’ conference to tackle Climate Change in Copenhagen. A people’s summit is being held on the 16th of December in the conference to show that we are not willing to let a government agenda govern the proceedings, and that as a social movement we need to take a stand. Again, transport from across the country will be going and coaches are being booked right now to ensure we can all get there. Climate Justice Action is an umbrella organisation that encompasses a broad range of activist organisations that will have a range of details and contacts for the event.

Bl2

A stall highlighting the problem of Agrofuels was also providing information to passers by, bio fuels are linked to accelerated climate change, deforestation, human rights abuses, water and soil degradation, and are still labeled by many NGO’s and government as an answer to conventional oil practice. There is ademonstration outside The Department for Energy and Climate Change in London on Monday the 12th to protest against the so-called ‘green energy’ subsidies.

Bl3

There was also the SOAS food co-op, which provides wholesale food and is run as a non-profit group set up by students. The bike maintenance workshop put on was also really popular. If you missed the event make sure you get down to Powershift being held over the weekend at the Institute of Education in London.

As the event wound down and we were outreached out, a group headed to the City University as a certain energy company, E.ON, were holding a talk at the student recruitment fair. The company is responsible for the planned new coal power stations at Kingsnorth, which combined would produce the same carbon emissions as Ghana. With the report by the Global and Humanitarian forum stating that three hundred thousand people are already dying already each year due to climate change, it isn’t a viable option.

Bl4

The group of activists stormed the talks, getting past the security guards who were holding a pretty tight presence outside the doors, quite possibly due to the continued protests against E.ON at student fairs last year.
While three burly guys jumped on one activist, the others handed out flyers to the bemused students woken up from the corporate PowerPoint slumber. An activist took to the podium to tell the audience what E.ON are really about. Claiming themselves as a Green Energy Company while 95% of their investment is into non renewable energies is a clear sign of greenwashing and the corporate bullshit that students have to listen to.
Yesterday Bloom In Bloomsbury was held in Torrington Square in SOAS. The gathering was held to get people involved and engaged with the Climate Change problem. Luckily it was held under a big marquee as we were subjected to a few downpours throughout the day.

BL

There was a stall to get people involved with The Great Climate Swoop, cialis 40mg the direct action to shut down Ratcliffe On Soar oal power station in 10 days time. Outreach also got people signed up to provide transport down to Nottingham, which is going from all across the country at special activist prices.

bl1

One of the aims was to also get people involved in the run up to Cop 15 in December where world leaders will meet in a ‘last chance’ conference to tackle Climate Change in Copenhagen. A people’s summit is being held on the 16th of December in the conference to show that we are not willing to let a government agenda govern the proceedings, and that as a social movement we need to take a stand. Again, transport from across the country will be going and coaches are being booked right now to ensure we can all get there. Climate Justice Action is an umbrella organisation that encompasses a broad range of activist organisations that will have a range of details and contacts for the event.

Bl2

A stall highlighting the problem of Agrofuels was also providing information to passers by, bio fuels are linked to accelerated climate change, deforestation, human rights abuses, water and soil degradation, and are still labeled by many NGO’s and government as an answer to conventional oil practice. There is ademonstration outside The Department for Energy and Climate Change in London on Monday the 12th to protest against the so-called ‘green energy’ subsidies.

Bl3

There was also the SOAS food co-op, which provides wholesale food and is run as a non-profit group set up by students. The bike maintenance workshop put on was also really popular. If you missed the event make sure you get down to Powershift being held over the weekend at the Institute of Education in London.

As the event wound down and we were outreached out, a group headed to the City University as a certain energy company, E.ON, were holding a talk at the student recruitment fair. The company is responsible for the planned new coal power stations at Kingsnorth, which combined would produce the same carbon emissions as Ghana. With the report by the Global and Humanitarian forum stating that three hundred thousand people are already dying already each year due to climate change, it isn’t a viable option.

Bl4

The group of activists stormed the talks, getting past the security guards who were holding a pretty tight presence outside the doors, quite possibly due to the continued protests against E.ON at student fairs last year.
While three burly guys jumped on one activist, the others handed out flyers to the bemused students woken up from the corporate PowerPoint slumber. An activist took to the podium to tell the audience what E.ON are really about. Claiming themselves as a Green Energy Company while 95% of their investment is into non renewable energies is a clear sign of greenwashing and the corporate bullshit that students have to listen to.
Yesterday Bloom In Bloomsbury was held in Torrington Square in SOAS. The gathering was held to get people involved and engaged with the Climate Change problem. Luckily it was held under a big marquee as we were subjected to a few downpours throughout the day.

BL

There was a stall to get people involved with The Great Climate Swoop, order the direct action to shut down Ratcliffe On Soar oal power station in 10 days time. Outreach also got people signed up to provide transport down to Nottingham, case which is going from all across the country at special activist prices.

bl1

One of the aims was to also get people involved in the run up to Cop 15 in December where world leaders will meet in a ‘last chance’ conference to tackle Climate Change in Copenhagen. A people’s summit is being held on the 16th of December in the conference to show that we are not willing to let a government agenda govern the proceedings, cure and that as a social movement we need to take a stand. Again, transport from across the country will be going and coaches are being booked right now to ensure we can all get there. Climate Justice Action is an umbrella organisation that encompasses a broad range of activist organisations that will have a range of details and contacts for the event.

Bl2

A stall highlighting the problem of Agrofuels was also providing information to passers by, bio fuels are linked to accelerated climate change, deforestation, human rights abuses, water and soil degradation, and are still labeled by many NGO’s and government as an answer to conventional oil practice. There is ademonstration outside The Department for Energy and Climate Change in London on Monday the 12th to protest against the so-called ‘green energy’ subsidies.

Bl3

There was also the SOAS food co-op, which provides wholesale food and is run as a non-profit group set up by students. The bike maintenance workshop put on was also really popular. If you missed the event make sure you get down to Powershift being held over the weekend at the Institute of Education in London.

As the event wound down and we were outreached out, a group headed to the City University as a certain energy company, E.ON, were holding a talk at the student recruitment fair. The company is responsible for the planned new coal power stations at Kingsnorth, which combined would produce the same carbon emissions as Ghana. With the report by the Global and Humanitarian forum stating that three hundred thousand people are already dying already each year due to climate change, it isn’t a viable option.

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The group of activists stormed the talks, getting past the security guards who were holding a pretty tight presence outside the doors, quite possibly due to the continued protests against E.ON at student fairs last year.
While three burly guys jumped on one activist, the others handed out flyers to the bemused students woken up from the corporate PowerPoint slumber. An activist took to the podium to tell the audience what E.ON are really about. Claiming themselves as a Green Energy Company while 95% of their investment is into non renewable energies is a clear sign of greenwashing and the corporate bullshit that students have to listen to.
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I’d like to start the interview with Daniel McNaboe by inquiring into the ideas, symptoms views or politics that inspire his illustrations. Daniel is a graduate from the Illustration degree at the University of West England.

I’ve always been inspired by achieving some degree of realism in my artwork. Contemporary realist portraiture has been a continuing influence in the development of my work. I’m fascinated by the world around me. Both my mum and dad were always big on reading, advice my dad would sit on the same patch of the sofa, reading the Guardian front to back for what seemed like hours each evening. His fascination with the world around him, simply his awareness of current affairs really intrigued me. I like to think he enlightened me to a lot of information. Always encouraging me not to take the things I have for granted.

Secondly I’m inspired by ordinary stories, I worked for a number of years during college and university holidays as a cleaner at the John Radcliffe hospital in Oxford. The job was a true life-experience. Not only the nature of the job itself, which consisted of working within sometimes distressing situations and environments. But also the people I got to know through working there. The cleaning staff comprised workers from all over the world, all with unique and amazing life stories that definitely affected the way in which I consequently look at the world. Their varying cultures, ideals, views really opened my eyes to a lot of things that in any other job I don’t think I would have been so fortunate as to experience. The many long hours I spent mopping floors, cleaning toilets and sitting on upturned mop buckets in cleaning cupboards chatting away with colleagues has continued to influence my thinking and motivations in regards to my artwork.

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How do you decide which medium is best to represent your ideas?

I initially stick with what it is I know best, and from there let the ideas and aesthetics I’m exploring influence the mediums I use. I always begin with pencil and paper, and progress from there. I really enjoy printmaking, and spent a long time at University exploring hand-drawn and four-color photographic lithography techniques. I’m drawn to mediums, which complement my drawing, and general practical approach.

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I allow the materials I use to help me form my ideas. I’ve always, for as long as I can remember been very much drawn to working with pencil and paper. It’s the simplicity of it that I get a kick from. I love rendering images onto the papers surface, in a similar way as to how I love watching a photograph develop in a dark room. I have a tendency to work slowly and methodically on each piece. I’ll never forget an art teacher telling me there are no lines in real life, and ever since have tried to avoid harsh, linear marks in my drawings when aiming towards realism. I tend to work softly and gently with my materials.

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What has been your favorite self directed illustration project?

The project I produced for my degree show at the University of the West of England. I chose to spend my last few months at university focusing on portraiture, this being a field I was keen to pursue after leaving University. Initially I was working through old family photographs for inspiration. I came across an image of my grandfather, a crisp military portrait of him in his first year as a U.S. Marine at age 18. What struck me was his youthfulness in the photograph. His innocence, and maybe naivety that was to be sadly short lived. It was interesting to me pondering that we were roughly at the same points in our lives, but under such different circumstances.

danielmcnaboesilver for hobbs!

Through consequent research I discovered he was deployed in the third wave of Marines onto the Japanese island of Iwo Jima on the 19th February 1945, and was incredibly lucky. Of the 340 U.S. Marines in his company only 17 of them, him included survived, many of them wounded. In one of my drawings for the project, I rendered a photograph depicting my grandfather and a very good friend not long before they were deployed to Iwo Jima. I later learnt that his friend never made it off.

On return to America My grandfather was awarded the Silver Star for gallantry in battle. In total 21,703 Japanese soldiers were killed on the island, and 6,825 U.S. Marines, with 29,909 American casualties over a 36-day period, a figure greater than the total Allied casualties on the D-Day landings.

I decided to produce a series of images concerning his early life. From growing up as a young boy during the Great Depression in rural Illinois through to his time serving in the South Pacific during the Second World War. The time I spent rendering these images allowed me to put my own life into some sort of perspective.

What I seem to get most out of portraiture, whether it be portraits i’m working on myself or other peoples, is simply just gazing, trying to relate with the subject.

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What was the thinking process behind the project?

Depsite living thousands of miles apart, I’ve always felt very close to my grandfather, and his experience during the war struck a chord with me. He is a quiet man, who is now 86 years old and very rarely mentioned his service. I was keen for the work to form a kind of homage to him.

I guess the way I work is process based. I accumulate a collection of images that best convey what it is I want to express, and then begin rendering from them. As work progresses it gives me more ideas as to how I would like to develop further. As I was working on the portraits of my grandfather I began to employ collage, Photoshop and printmaking to try and convey a particular aesthetic I thought was missing from the drawings. I loved the smokey aesthetic of the old black and white photographs I was studying, so I consequently decided to work with an assortment of soft-very soft graphite on smooth and thick off-white
cartridge paper.

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I experimented with drawing in reverse with coloured conte pencils on black paper. Both techniques worked well. I also painted with Acrylic onto smoothly sanded gesso on Board. There were a couple images of the farmhouse my grandfather grew up in that I was keen to incorporate, and I felt the best way to represent this would be to move on to paint.

Throughout the duration of the project I maintained a keen interest in the aesthetics of old documentation. I loved the qualities of the old military papers I was looking through.

Categories ,collage, ,Daniel MacNaboe, ,illustration, ,Photoshop, ,second world war, ,University of West England

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