Oldnik's Grimoire

An old logo I designed for myself, some 11 years or so ago ( by scanning my face with a light shining up from my chin to create the dramatic lighting effect, then vectorised)
So, in an attempt to dust up on my photoshop skills... am old book,an old logo (not quite so old!) some gold leaf and a bit of visual alchemy..... hey presto!
A Grimoire is a textbook of magic....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grimoire

I came across the term here:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0099437961/ref=cm_rdp_product_img

MUSIC POSTER

Random, non discript poster, fun with a graphics tablet (what did we do before wacom's?!!)
I really got into the hand drawn typo-zone on this one. This will atleast be a visual reminder to come back and knock up some more hand drawn posters/graphics.

Something I quickly knocked up while to demonstrate packaging design to my students while tutoring in 2002 (I think, my memory isn't what is was!)
Judging from the consoles mentioned in the packaging, it seems about right.

Kafka

My final major project from my 1st year Graphic Design. Kafka the movie! (I have tweaked it a little for the blog I must admit, but only a little)
As I was only proficient in photoshop at the time, with illustrator still a little bit new to me, everything was completed in Photoshop! These days, I mainly work in illustrator, but I do intend to get deeply immersed in photoshop again soon and discover many of it's new wonders!
 I digress, the poster was just one part of a set, consisting of an A2 Poster portrait, a landscape version, a CD soundtrack cover, book cover (movie tie-in indeed!) and a presentation case, which was made from vacuformed plastic, the lid, an embossed "K" made from hand sculpted clay.
 i did get a distinction for this project, if I may be as bold to say so, it still looks ok after 10years! (where does the time go?)
When I do actually get some time I am going to get back into film poster design, watch this space...........

Chicago Loop

My first trip to the USA in 1996, I flew out to meet up with a friend, pre mobile days and pre-internet (for me anyway) we had agreed to meet at Wisconsin University on a certain date at a certain time, after a long flight, landing in Chicago and a greyhound ride that journeyed thru early evening, dusk and then night, I was praying that my friend hadn't forgotten!
Out she stepped, just as I got off the bus! unfortunately BA had misplaced my rucksack, so I only had my hand luggage. ( I did get it back a few days later)
We spent the night at a writers house in the suburbs, one of my strongest memories is drifting off into a deep slumber, the warm sound of crickets, and a train horn in the distance.......... like the KLF's chill-out.
  We then went to a"Religious retreat"in Iowa, half expecting to be brainwashed and for it all to go down Waco style, I was mighty relieved when all my fears and preconceptions were dispelled, I had a pretty good wholsesome time!
We then spent a day in Madison, quaint and charming, before moving onto Chicago ( we passed over the Mississippi river at some point) staying at a retreat for reabilitating homeless, and people with drink and drug problems, I met some real characters I can tell you!, all were warm and hospitable, with many stories to tell.
 Crashing on a sofa by night and exploring Chicago by day, the first day we actually rode a tandem thru the Chicago suburbs towards a park for a game of frisbee football with our hosts ( I can't remember their names, so if you ever stumble across this blog, enlighten me!).
On another occasion, we went to a cool jazz bar, drinking excellent malty beers all night, listening to jazz.
I then have a vague recollection of cycling over to a bakery at dawn for fresh blueberry muffins....

  Anyway, I had with me a battered Olympus OM-1, I took this shot (or the one that this illustration is based on) of a train pulling out of the platform, long manual exposure, propped against the wall.
It reminds me somewhat of Entroducing by DJ Shadow, maybe because I took it with me on CD to listen to on my Discman, or maybe the blurred figure in the foreground, much like the cover of said CD.
This is another old illustration that was in need of rescuing, hard to believe this was all done with a mouse in Illustrator, by hand, no live trace in those days!

Vote Grizz

  I Know, I'm a little late with the OBEY Obama pastiches, but what the hell eh?!
Something left to rot in a hard drive given a new leese of life, if only for a short while.
Some good practice with the pen tool in illustrator at least!

Designs on your Soul

And so, it begins......
My first foray into blogging, forgive me......

I know, very heavy, less than subtle symbolism about selling your soul to the corporate world! I was young(er) and still idealistic!

Excavated from an old folder, created about 8 years ago as a piece of self promotion.
background photography is a mixture of medium format and the handsome devil (myself, ahem...!) was shot actually using a flatbed scanner as a camera... now hold that pose!
The type is a self created mashed up arial or similar, the rams head was from my old house in Sheffield.
I know what your thinking... who has a rams head just hanging around the house? Artists, musicians and designers that's who! I'm trying to find the original unflattened file so I can rejig it into a poster and give it a 2010 makeover.