THOMAS NORMANPROFESSIONAL PRACTICE

‘If you wait, all that happens is that you get older’. -Mario Andretti

CONTENTS

ELVENSØ

ABOUT ME

INSPIRATION

FINAL MAJOR PROJCT

ONLINE

PORTFOLIO

AOI

SELF PROMOTION

COMPETITIONS

GETTING OUT THERE

MOVING ON

E L V E N S Ø

For promotional material and merchandise to be effective I needed a recogniz-

able, consistent identity. I felt it was important to create something that would set

me from any other illustrator so I decide to rebrand myself and create an identity

that can used almost as a company. I decide to take my mother’s maiden name,

which is Elvensø. This is very personal to me and thought it was a strong name

that would stand out. Also I really liked the image of the last letter Ø, so based

my branding and logo around this, which I think worked very well. It is a strong

iconic symbol that draws the eye and intrigues the viewer. I would say the banding

reflects me as an illustrator. It is very simple, but clean and bold as it stands out.

‘We communicate through art with symbols that transcend the bound-aries of time and culture’. -Richard Clar

Colour is a very important part of my illustration, which often draws upon

the natural world, botanical and scientific exploration. I can be found work-

ing with a mixture of watercolour, ink, pencil, graphite and pen and maybe us-

ing a computer as a final editing tool. This mixed media approach allows me

to experiment with mark making, keeping the energy within the illustrations.

In an attempt to energize and free up my work, I like to be messy in the ini-

tial stages of a drawing where I use my sketchbook, when I need to develop

the idea or technique then I like to refine the image for the final piece of work.

ABOUT ME

I have tried to move away from my old methods of working with a fine liner. I

believe I work best with mixed media often watercolor and pencil or pen. I start

quite free with the paints trying to keep the brush flowing around the page, high-

lighting and boosting the colours, then work back into the image with pencils

or pens, adding definition by crating bold marks which create a space of space

and texture that bring the image to life. Developing my technique and idea gen-

eration has been a journey of understanding what I want from my illustrations

INSPIRATION

‘When inspiration doesn’t come, I go halfway to meet it’.

-Sigmund Freud

When I think about what inspires me as an illustrator, I can easily say

that is the most obvious answer, my experiences. This can include any-

thing from things I see walking around or events that happen to me. This

is perfect as they are forever changing and will happen wherever I am.

It was not until my third year on this course I accepted and appreciated this. I

was always determined to find something more impressive or fascinating and

this was affecting my work for the worst. I realise now, that my documentation

and exploration of the simple things I experience intrigue others around me.

I have grown huge amounts as an illustrator during my time as a stu-

dent at AUB. Just by accepting my work for its simple nature, and em-

bracing my traditional methods and techniques, I have seen others can en-

joy it to and this has pushed me on to improve my illustrations and myself.

This is the perfect time to discover this, as my confidence levels have in-

creased dramatically and will spur my on through my final major project.

INSPIRATION

My final major project has been a long journey that I have enjoyed every step of the way.

Discovering new outcomes and techniques, which I have constantly adapted through

out my experiences, so I did not land on a final outcome half way through the project.

My project is based loosely around the idea of beauty in nature, including the common

species around us, which we don’t tend to notice, to the more extreme round the world.

By choosing a theme that inspires me ad one that is so accessible wher-

ever I am I have given myself instant access and inspiration to cre-

ate work. I love going out and exploring and documenting things I see

around me and this gives me endless inspiration. I want to also relate the-

ses drawing to information that informs me and helps me gain knowledge.

Displaying the work professionally become more apparent for this project. Sim-

ple things like using the same paper for the drawings and presenting the work in

a special way were taken into consideration and applied to a professional level.

Drawing on location affected my style compared to when I was be-

hind my desk. The illustrations become freer as I would work faster on

them, using bold marks to emphasis direction and texture making them

come to life, where as they would be more précis and two dimensional.

Not all of my time went to my authorial project. I had a few commissions that

broke up my time. I found it challenging to balance both at the same time

but enjoyed to whole experience and made me learn a lot whilst doing so.

FINAL MAJOR PROJECT

‘Too often today, art is treated as a business, which misses the opportu-nity to bring choice to the public’. -Kenn Backhaus

‘Too often today, art is treated as a business, which misses the opportu-nity to bring choice to the public’. -Kenn Backhaus

ONLINE

In the digital age it has never been so important for an illustrator to have an on-

line presence that showcases, markets and interacts on a variety of different

platforms. With this in mind it is vital my work was considered. The Internet is

a powerful tool and understanding how it can be effectively used is important.

My website will function like an online portfolio. A place to showcase strong

pieces of my work in a clean and simple format. I have enjoyed learning cod-

ing skills in order to present my images the way I want them. I chose Car-

go collective as my web host as it has a strong reputation amongst the

design world, by only taking on artists, designers and photographers.

WEBSITE

I use my blog to upload work in

progress, experimental pieces

and things that haven’t made it

to my website. It is an insight

into how I create my images.

People can also leave com-

ments so it is slightly more

interactive than a website.

BLOG

A place to network, share

ideas and interact with other

creative. People can see who

you follow, what you are talking

about, interested in and what

type of person you might be.

It visually relates to my web-

site using the same branding.

TWITTER

I use pinterest to easily store

all my online inspiration. I can

easily look back for reference

but it also allows others to see

what I am looking at. You can

tell a lot about a person by

their pinterest pins and it has

also told me a lot about myself.

PINTEREST

The quality and personality of a portfolio is a clear sign to any potential cli-

ent what they can expect to receive from you. Everything from layout, balance

and quality of print all portray what standards you will offer any future work.

Digital – A PDF format that can easily be sent and downloaded.

Analogue portfolio – A digital portfolio should not overshadow the impor-

tance of a good print based portfolio. Nothing is better than the quality of

a well printed illustration. I have a black A3 Prat portfolio that can be tak-

en to interviews and clients meetings that showcase the best of my work.

PORTFOLIO

‘Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of intelligent effort’. -John Ruskin

The 2013 Pick Me Up event was a great opportunity to sign up as a mem-

ber of the Association of Illustrators. This allows me to access business ad-

vice and assistance as well as discounted rates for events and art sup-

plies. Also by being able to pace the logo within my website, this will provide

clients extra assurance that the legal side of the business is considered.

I have subscribed to a number of illustration magazines as I hope to keep to

date with the ever change industry and the requirements that are needed.

AOI

‘Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of intelligent effort’. -John Ruskin

Self promotion is key in becoming a successful freelance illustrator, if no-

body knows about you, you do not get any work. As both technolo-

gy and illustration develops and changes over time, my promotion will be-

come and ongoing activity in keeping up to date with the modern trends.

I wanted some advice on the best way to push my branding through to its full

potential. After a meeting with The Observatory, an interactive agency with

a dynamic blend of marketing strategy, design and technology based in Jer-

sey, they suggested and number of simple and effective that would help do so.

I have recently had my first business cards printed at Moo.com and I am very

pleased with the results. The cards have a lovely finish and feel very pro-

fessional. I chose images from my recent projects as I wanted them to be

current highlighting my best work and also with my branding on as well.

Other items of self promotion include t-shirts, stickers and stampers, that all push

my brand I created for myself, so people will be able to indefinitely my work easily.

Organisation – I am in the process of building a database of contacts

too send mail-outs too and stay in touch with. This needs to be main-

tained so I can stay in touch with old clients and market to new ones.

Limited Edition Postcards – Producing something that people will not

want to throw away or think of as junk could be a clever idea. Produc-

ing a limited edition set of images means that I can show off my work

as well as encourage people to keep and hopefully use for future work.

SELF PROMOTION

I believe I had some success this year, although not winning I achieved a runner

place up in the Ormerland creative finds competition. The brief was to submit some

current work for a attest brief or project. Although I did not win, its good to know

my work is getting recognized, which gives me confidence in my own practice.

I am looking forward to presenting my portfolio to Gina Cross, who was

the Art & Design manager at The Guardian and is now the Director at

GAS Art & Design, who will advise me on my practice and help

give me advice to kick start my career as a freelance illustrator.

Having meetings with interactive agencies such as The Observatory, profession-

als like Gina Cross, guest lectures and tutors have all helped bring fresh opin-

ions to the table and make me understand my work from other perspectives.

COMPETITIONS

‘Remember, your definition of suc-cess doesn't need to be com-pared to someone else’. -Lorna Dockstader

Having work out in the public domain is the best way for my work to be seen by

companies and agencies that are looking for fresh, creative talent. I have been lucky

enough to be approached by a number of clients that either want to display and sell

my work. These are still being negotiated and planned but will be displayed by June.

The award winning company, 365 tickets, commissioned me to illus-

trate some of their best selling attractions, as they wanted a more per-

sonal feel to their images. This was a great experience as it taught me so

much about professionalism, commissioning, meeting deadlines and the

overall experience of seeing a commission through from start to finish.

Placing my work back into an environment gives the illustrations anoth-

er dimension. By allowing people to discover these items, it creates a

sense of realism over them, intriguing the viewer for a closer look. By do-

ing so they a random audience, create a talking point and bring them together.

GETTING OUT THERE

‘It’s not where you take things from – its where you take them to’. -Jean Luc Godard

It is now time to finish my degree and move on. The future is uncertain but yet full of

possibilities and I feel confident to tackle them head on. I am pleased with what I have

achieved in my final major project and it had provided me with a number of new idea

to take forward after I have graduated. Looking back at how my work has changed,

I am extremely excited with the possibilities of my future work. University will soon

be over but I believe this is the beginning not the end of my practice in illustration.

After graduating, I have gained some industry experience with a local de-

sign agency back in Jersey. I am always looking for ways to push my practice

in different directions as I hope to gain more experience not just in illustra-

tion but across the creative field from photography, film and graphic design,

as this will increase my potential to gain work. A focused effort in market-

ing, mail outs, competitions and exhibitions will help get me name out there.

After work experience I plan to move to Copenhagen to continue my practice in a new

environment. This will provide me with a set of new challenges and a completely new

experience, which will continue moving my practice forward. I enjoy being immersed

with like minded creative people who inspire and encourage me to develop my work.

My technique in my work has become stronger as I have slowly moved away from the

safe style I had when I arrived on this course. The concept behind my work still needs

improving but I feel that will come sooner rather than later. I finally feel that my illus-

trations have a completeness to them and my working process is more concise. I do

not wanted to fall back into my old ways of relying of safe illustrations after graduation

and I feel I can use it as a time to move forward and step up the level of my practice.

MOVING ON

‘Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy.’ –Norman Vincent Peale

www.elvensoillustration.com