Paul J Bartlett - response 2

Chloe,

I don't think the personalised URL is necessarily important to a client, but it is easier to remember and cleaner to fit on say, a business card.
I have been working as an ad agency/design shop art director for eight years or so, and have only been freelancing for a few months. It's been going well, but I have gotten all of my projects through either referrals/people that I know or sending my website link to creative directors via email... but again, that's all been more
design/branding work than illustration, which you are solely focused on, right?

Illustration has been something I've squeezed into my projects at work or done for fun on the side, so unfortunately I can't offer you much advice in the realm of being a successful freelance illustrator. I don't know if you're familiar with the book "How to be an illustrator" by Darrel Rees, but it's a good one to check out.

As for a critique on your art itself, my main comment is "more." More more more. There should be at least ten strong pieces to show your range or how you push your style in different ways. Maybe you're working on that... I'm most interested in the stitching/mixed media stuff. I like the lady bug and the mouse. I think the contrast of the chunks on white works better than the ones with painted backgrounds (the uganda stuff) which kind of flattens out. The scarab I think is not especially strong as an illustration and the type on that poster brings it down even more. I'd cut that one from your book. (Hope this isn't too harsh, just one man's opinion). But yeah, with the stitching stuff, I think you've got something there, I'd just like to see you push it farther. And don't be afraid to use the computer more to clean things up (rough edges or bits of dirt around the lady bug). I love seeing raw, gritty textures but if it doesn't look purposeful (like a bit of frayed edge in one spot on the ladybug) then it just looks like something extra the scanner picked up. Love the detail of the lips on the ladybug. As the father of a two-year-old girl, I can totally picture a children's book in the style of your ladybug and mouse. Reminds me a bit of the great Eric Carle. http://www.eric-carle.com/home.html

So... not sure if that was helpful/annoying/what you had in mind. But please keep pushing yourself. And let me know if you'd like to keep this conversation going.

By the way, did you ever make a Wizard of Oz cover?

Best,

Paul


--
PAULJBARTLETT
ART DIRECTION / DESIGN / ILLUSTRATION

608 444-1504 pjbart.com <http://pjbart.com/>

Paul's comments about the URL looking cleaner are definitely true. I think I would feel more professional and proud to have my own URL, it would be like making this thing official. As for the amount of work he's gained from the web presence, it looks pretty slim, it seems like the old phrase of 'it's not what you know but who you know' applies here. The amount of experience and no doubt contacts he's accrued over that time is vastly helpful too.

This theme of 'more' has cropped up more than once in feedback, not just from professionals currently working in the industry but from tutors too. Good job I've got some competition stuff lined up to do on the side of college work this semester. I think what tends to happen with me more often than not is if I haven;t spent a certain amount of time on a particular piece of work I don;t think it's going to be any good. The Wizard of Oz re-covered work that Paul relates to further down in his email only took me three days to produce however because I had to push myself in order to meet the quickly advancing deadline. I really like the finished product, as for others opinions, as yet I do not know, it's just been me working away in my study on it (hopefully the critique will be more positive than critical though).

Again there is this flux between designers preferring the painterly stuff against the mixed media work. Here Paul Bartlett prefers the mixed media work where on Wednesday Paul Reardon preferred the painterly work. Though I do agree with the critique on the characters working well on the the white chunks, the ladybird and mouse are my favorites of that technique too. I like the scarab which he doesn't think is overly strong, I think it just needs something more doing with it, though the comment on the poster and type is wholly agreeable (I do struggle with type being an illustrator anyway, I need to employ a typographer to do those bits for me). I enjoy working with the stitch so I'm glad he likes that part.

I'm not used to working with the computer so much as I prefer to work manually, but the comment about utilising software to polish the images is true. I looked on my website earlier and the dirt that the scanner picked up on the ladybird is quite embarrassing. I need to get round to taking that off and polishing it, pronto! Being compared to Eric Carle is a certain compliment and I'm not too coy to accept that - cheers!

If Paul would be interested in keeping our dialogue up I'd be into that, I need as much help as I can get now I'm about to embark upon the difficult journey of transition from undergraduate to graduate. So a big thanks to Paul for his feedback, it is exactly what I was looking for, there was nothing I felt that was harsh there only honest! Honesty is the best policy, I can't learn anything from praise, I'm only seeking criticism.

Paul J Bartlett

Recently, I've been looking at The Fox is Black website and have compiled a sketchbook of work in hope of entering the re-covered competition for The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Me being me, and struggling like a lemon, posted a few questions on the website and Paul Bartlett was considerate enough to guide me on the right path. (His submission is awesome by the way, how I think I stand a chance next to work like that I'll never know!)

As surprised as I was that somebody was so kind as to offer me some advice, and I was clearly inspired by his work, I decided to take a sneaky peek at his website. The quality of his work is obviously very high and this made me start thinking of the quality and finish on my work. Ok, he's been in the business now and had agency work for eight years, but still these things need to be put into perspective.

I made the decision to email him and congratulate him on his awesomeness (though coming from me means nothing really I guess) and to see if he would be available to take a look at some of my work for constructive feedback purposes. Again to my surprise, he replied - almost straight away too! His work does vary from mine; on his web presence 'about' section he describes himself as 'a freelance art director, designer, and illustrator with eight years of agency experience. I specialize in big ideas and thoughtful executions that make people take notice and feel something. If that sounds good to you, let's talk. I am able to work from my home studio or your place of business.' Not only does his work vary from mine, his confidence levels do too. And why not, he is a freelance artist in need of work like the rest of us.

Weighing this up, it shows that my confidence needs to rocket a few notches if I’m to make anything of this dog eat dog business. I think that this will happen by showcasing my work more though this is a catch 22 operation. I’m not confident enough to showcase my work, but it is only by showcasing my work and gaining some feedback (and hopefully some appraisals) will I be able to move forward and gain that confidence in the process. Additionally, the quality and finish of my work needs to be improved. Although I like the organic quality that some of my ‘rougher’ pieces offer, some of them need a good polish. For example there are a few pieces I have uploaded to my website which need a polish, ragged edges and patches which could use a rubber etc. But most importantly, I need to stop comparing my work and my working method to others. I’m finally starting to find my way of working, so I need to wear some blinkers for a while to stop me wanting to imitate others ways of working which I sometimes feel look more aesthetically pleasing compared to mine. Paul Bartlett’s work is fantastic, but he is clearly more of a photographer, whereas I am more of a collager and stitcher, the two are completely separate and I need to support my own work and my decisions.

All in all, a big thank you is owed to Paul for boosting my confidence in the world of illustration (is not in myself), it’s good to see that there is a support network there, especially for newbies like me who really do need it! And keep up the good work dude!

Copy of the email I received for the honourable Mr Bartlett:

paul bartlett

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To Chloe Jones

Chloe,

Thank you for reaching out and thank you for the compliments on my work.

I think it's a brave move to ask a stranger for advice. I'd be honored to take a look at your stuff.
Let me know where to find it, and I'll get back to you when I can.

Planning on updating my site with a "Book Covers" section soon. I also submitted entries to the Dracula and Romeo & Juliet contests, but I didn't do backs and spines for those yet... I think the Dracula one in particular freaks people out. :) But it SHOULD. Dracula is a scary dude.

Good luck with school.

Best,

Paul

Kareem Rizk

---

From: Kareem rizk [mailto:kareemrizk04@yahoo.com]
Sent: 29 March 2011 06:03
To: Chloe Jones
Subject: Re: You work

Hi Chloe, Sorry for the late reply - things have been very busy. Thank you for your interest in my work. Please find attached my answers to your questions. I apologize for not answering question 2. I didn't fully understand the context of the question. If you'd like to reword the question in a bit more detail I'd be happy to send an answer to this question as well. kind regards, Kareem --------------- Kareem Rizk Website: www.kareemrizk.com My Blog: www.kareemr.blogspot.com --- On Thu, 17/3/11, Chloe Jones wrote: From: Chloe Jones Subject: You work To: info@kareemrizk.com Received: Thursday, 17 March, 2011, 11:48 PM Hi Kareem, I am currently studying in my second year towards my illustration degree. I have been looking at your work recently for inspiration. I was wondering if you could spare a few minutes to answer a few questions for me please. You seem to use a lot of collage in your work, do you have a large resource or do you find it as you need it? Recently, I have found that older elements that have less ‘meaning’ in a modern society convey an idea better, would you agree? Do you prefer to put your work together manually or digitally? Why? Was it difficult for you to get your name ‘out there’? How did you combat this? Do you get a lot of commissions or do you tend to work more on editorials? Do you prefer to collage or are there other techniques you like to play around with too? Thanks for your time and keep up the amazing work! Kind Regards Chloe Jones Avoid the traffic with the AA’s new traffic and travel advice line. Just call AA Roadwatch on 84322 from your mobile 0906 88 84322 from a landline. *Charges apply, visit theAA.com for more information. This electronic message contains information from The Automobile Association which may be privileged or confidential. The information is intended to be for the use of the individual(s) or entity named above. If you are not the intended recipient, please delete this e-mail immediately. The contents of this e-mail must not be disclosed or copied without the sender's consent. We cannot accept any responsibility for viruses, so please scan all attachments. No changes to Terms and Conditions of trade can be accepted through e-mail communication. All changes to Terms and Conditions must be in writing evidenced by a director of the company and in hard copy format. The statements and opinions expressed in this message are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the company. The company does not take any responsibility for the views of the author.

1. You seem to use a lot of collage in your work, do you have a large resource or do you find it as you need it?

Over the last few years I've collected quite a large resource of materials in the form of magazines, books, brochures, pamphlets, catalogs, postcards and found paper. I'm always adding new materials to my collection. and most of the imagery and elements for my work comes from here. But often when I do freelance work I will need to source new imagery as I need it because I can't always find the right imagery in my collection.

2. Recently, I have found that older elements that have less ‘meaning’ in a modern society convey an idea better, would you agree?

3. Do you prefer to put your work together manually or digitally? Why?

I prefer to make handmade (analogue/manual) collages. I started out this way because I had a growing appreciation for traditional mediums and tactile art in general. Only a fraction of my work is digital and this method originally started as an experimentation later on in replicating realistic texture and layering with a digital medium. There are some techniques and effects that I use consistently throughout my digital work which are much harder and sometimes impossible to achieve with traditional techniques. However, there is something a lot more personal and organic about handmade work that doesn't exist on the digital platform. The process of working manually is more natural and it can often be meditative. The feel of the paper, textures and layers also adds to the experience and almost ritual of collecting materials an arranging them on the working surface.

4. Was it difficult for you to get your name ‘out there’? How did you combat this?

I knew early on that visibility was key and I knew that visibility could only come from consistent promotion of my work. I basically just set out to get my work seen in as many places as possible. In the beginning all of my visibility was only on the internet. Very shortly after I started making collages I started promoting my work online. I created a personal website with a large collection of my work, I submitted my work to numerous online magazines and blogs and I did several mail-outs to a growing contact list of galleries, print sites, forums, blogs etc whenever I added major updates to my website. This way I made sure that I was off to a good start. The internet is a powerful tool and it provides great opportunities for many artists. So I basically used what I could to the best of my ability.

I also gained a lot of knowledge and ideas about promotion through doing a lot of research. I looked at how other artists were promoting their work in their respective fields and I basically observed their methods as a model on which I could base my own approach to self promotion.

5. Do you get a lot of commissions or do you tend to work more on editorials?

By now I've probably done an equal amount of commissions and freelance work. But over the last few months I've been putting a bit more focus on promoting myself as a freelance illustrator with two major illustration agencies. My reputation as an artist and all that is associated with that has been continually gaining momentum so rarely do I have to seek out opportunities - they come in almost continuously. Doing more freelance illustration however requires that you are a bit more proactive in seeking out work. So over the next few months I will probably have done quite a bit more editorial work.

6. Do you prefer to collage or are there other techniques you like to play around with too?

I'm a collagist so my main medium of course is collage. But when I started making collages in 2006 I immediately started experimenting with various other mediums and incorporating these mediums into my work on a regular basis. The most common of these mediums have been oil pastel, acrylic, pencil and solvent transfers. My technique of using solvent transfers involved brushing turpentine onto a carbon photocopy, placing the photocopy face down onto the working surface and rubbing the back of it. The black carbon from the photocopy was then transferred onto the working surface and it would dry within a few minutes leaving a reversed image. This technique was very related to printmaking.

As I started working on bigger pieces I needed to find ways of reproducing imagery on a larger scale. This is where I introduced acrylic transfers. This process involves a laser photocopy being brushed with a thin layer of Gel medium and left to dry which creates a transparent film over the photocopy. The photocopy is then soaked in warm water and the wet paper is rubbed off the back. What your left with is a thin transparent film with the laser toner image embedded onto the surface of the film. This film can then be pasted onto canvas while any air bubbles are smoothed out. This technique is useful for creating overlay effects with acrylic paint and textures underneath. This technique is also especially ideal for multiple photocopies tiled together to make a much larger version of an image.

Here is some of Kareem's work:

As you can see, Kareem works in a similar way to Eduardo Recife. Kareem however, does tend to have a more graphical approach with composition playing a huge part in his work. I really like this way of working because it is giving a new life to old elements. I have continued working in this way recently but adding paint too. Mainly as backgrounds but also some painterly elements are emerging too.

The top image of the bird is lovely. Kareem has really considered the layout and exactly which elements to use. I still have a habit of using the first bird for example that I find rather than sifting through images of birds to find the 'perfect' one. I like the roughness of the images I think that it gives them depth and meaning.

Jessica Horrocks 3

Here is some feedback that Jessica Horrocks gave me on my finished editorial piece:

Jessica Horrocks

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To Chloe Jones

Hi Chloe,

This looks cool! I like the stitching and handmade textures. The only thing I would suggest is perhaps lightening the background a little so that the cat stands out more and contrasts with the background, because it's a really nice element :)

On 26/03/2011, at 7:00 PM, Chloe Jones wrote:

Hi Jessica!

I have attached a copy of the work that I am currently working on in response to a coffee magazine article. The coffee is called Kopi Luwak and the idea is that there is a cat in Indonesia (where the coffee comes from) who eats coffee berries, these pass through the cats digestive system and out of its anus and these are then washed, dried and made into coffee beans which sells at £50 per cup.

I wanted to incorporate Indonesia themed colours and patterns and also the idea that 2+2=5 as you wouldn't expect this to come through a cat.

If you could possibly spare the time to offer some feedback it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you again for your kind responses :)

Chloe

Rudy Gutierrez

Rudy Gutierrez

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To chloejones2@live.co.uk

Attachments, pictures and links in this message have been blocked for your safety.

Show content | Always show content from rudygut@optonline.net

Hi Chloe,
Thanks for checking out my work!
Where are you studying? Can you send me a link to see your work or 
some jpgs?

1- I do use white but it is not always as prevalent because of the 
high saturated color that I have tended to use. White tends to make a 
color chalky and more pastel oriented which wouldn't work as much for 
the intensity that I have been going for.

2- I like to create kaleidoscopic pieces where there is a clear point 
and then elaboration on that point. i love the idea of improvisation 
on some of these pieces combined with a solid idea and then having 
fun seeing where it goes. Then it become about controlling the 
imagery with pushing and pulling element so that they don't obscure 
the idea but reinforce it. Sometimes it works and sometimes I have 
failed at it! However, there are many pieces where I want simple hard 
hitting simplicity or subtlety as well.

3- I don't have a set way of working. Somteimes it is dark to light 
and the opposite. In She Plays with the Darkness it was about 
capturing the mood and drama of a particular story that this painting 
was done for. It was a book cover. The story was about a woman who 
dance with rock paintings in a cave that came to life. Magical and 
moody.

4- I see art as an extension of who I am and illustration is an 
outlet that allows me to reach big numbers of people. Having said 
that I would say that everyday life, my loves and hates inspire what 
I do. I am very influenced by many artists, everyday lives and music 
has always been a big inspiration.
I feel that as an artist with a "gift" I have a responsibility to 
uplift and inspire others and to speak for those who maybe cannot.
there really isn't any blogs that I follow but I do think that it is 
important to constantly feed yourself by reading, watching movies, 
listening to music that speaks to you and generally choosing to view 
listen and watch things that will feed you in a way that will inform 
you and your art.

Much light to you and your art,
Rudy


On Mar 22, 2011, at 10:51 AM, webmaster@altpick.com wrote:

> This is an e-mail sent from a user of the AltPick.com web site:
>
> Sent from the altpick*com web page at:
> http://altpick.com/rudygutierrez
>
> -----
> User's Name: Chloe Jones
> User's E-mail: chloejones2@live.co.uk
> User's Telephone:
> -----
> This User's Message:
>
> Hi Rudy!
> I've been looking at your
> work recently for
> inspiration on an
> Indonesian themed
> project. The colours that
> you use are striking and
> fit well with what I'm
> doing. I'm currently
> studying in my second
> year towards my
> illustration degree and
> wondered if you could
> help me with a few points
> please?
>
> 1. You don't seem use a
> lot of white, is there any
> reason for this?
> 2. You don't seem to give
> yourself any space at all,
> the images are always
> really loaded, is there any
> particular reason why?
> 3. Do you work from a
> dark background to light
> or from a light
> background to dark? For
> example on 'She plays
> with the darkness' the
> background is particularly
> dark. Is there any reasons
> why?
> 4. What influences your
> work and are there any
> blogs you follow etc?
>
> Thanks very much for
> your time, if you have the
> time to reply it would be
> greatly appreciated, I
> understand that you are
> probably extremely busy.
> Thanks again
>
> Kind Regards
>
> Chloe
> - - - -

Katharine Asher

Katharine Asher

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To chloejones2@live.co.uk

We've added this sender to your safe list. That way you can always see what they've sent you.

Dear Chloe:

Please refer to my own site

www.kathywyatt.com

if you go to Figurative ..TRADITIONAL

you will see my earlier work which was far more 'loaded'/ realistic.

I much prefer the spontanaeity that water colour gives me .... and I continually evolve my style to stop me getting bored and to keep in lines with trends.

Watercolour ...I use both tubes and blocks - W&N is my preference

What medium I use depends on the job, and the effect I require.

My advice is

• Never stop life drawing
• Never be satisfied with what you are doing
• Revisit your childhood and 'play' with different mediums

good luck K

Chloe Jones

To howdy@illustrationweb.com

Howdy Katharine!

I'm currently studying towards my illustration degree in my second yea. I have been looking at your work recently as I struggle with representing the figure. The way that you can manipulate the shape to do with it what you want/need is fantastic! I work similarly in that I have a lot of white space and use a minimalist approach. I was wondering if you could spare a few minutes to help me with a few points please?

1. Is there any reason that you work with a lot of white space? Are you scared of overloading your image etc.?

2. You work with watercolour a lot, is this your preferred media? Is there any reason why?

3. Your images are very fluid and suggest movement, do you ever work without this quality?

4. Do you work with watercolours from a palette or from tubes? Is there any easier option for you?

5. Do you always work so minimal? Do you have any images hwere they are completely overloaded?

Thanks for your time, I appreciate that you must be extremely busy. If you could manage to respond it would be greatly appreciated and help me towards my studies.

Keep up the fab work) :)

Kind Regards

Chloe

I like the fluidity of Katharine's work. The use of watercolour gives a great sense of movement, which my work does lack. I am drawn the Katharine's work because similarly to me she uses a lot of white space with minimal work. Also, I have a tendency to add eyes to everything I do to turn them into cute characters.

I like the piece of advice where she says not to ever be satisfied with anything that you do. Keep on developing and churning out work to find its true potential.