Major Illustrator Crush

I've just discovered the work of London based illustrator, Charlotte Trounce, and i'm in capital L Love!.

Charlotte's work has a simple, childlike quality which is masterfully executed with a rigorous use of the elements of design. Eclectic colour use, form and texture are all used to cleverly guide the eye, and entertain the mind with an uninhibited sense of fun.

Charlotte's work has featured in the New Yorker and British Elle.

http://charlottetrounce.co.uk/

Freelance for hire!

So I just took the risk of my life - I quit my job in retail management and am now focusing my energies into developing my creative skills a a freelance Illustrator/stationery designer/Costume & fashion designer!

I am equally terrified and excited, but know that this i the type of work i'm MEANT to be doing. It gets me out of bed in the morning, and leaves me going to bed fully content at night. At 28 years old, I've been through enough to know what I need in life to live well, and to have my needs satisfied. I know what I can give, and what I am willing to sacrifice.

I have been drawing since i could pick up a pencil, and I was designing before I even knew what designing was. It comes naturally to me, being able to conceptualise matter, concepts; always trying to create rich and evocative visual experiences for people.

I am not saying that just because I have drawn since I was three that this gives me the right to call myself an artist. I need to make clear now that I am committed to trying to get better at what I do, always learning, evolving and improving. I am committing to a lifelong school of knowledge of design.

I never thought that a life like this was possible, but I feel fantastic.

I look forward to sharing my journey with you as my story unfolds!

The Paris I discovered

Have you ever been to Paris?

There's really no other city like it. A metropolis embellished through legend and myth – celebrated for its remarkable cultural history; its ectastic highs and melancholic lows, which seem to be palpable with the turn of every street corner.

I didn't really believe in its visual power until I went there. What I know now is that if you've got an eye for aesthetics, you will gain a kind of mental stimulation from dawn to dusk; the juxtaposition of intense beauty and questionable design, and the over arching narration provided by its diverse range of local and international inhabitants.

I remember my experience of Paris as scenic vignettes. I'm going to be dropping them into the blog weekly to share with you what it felt and looked like (to me). No doubt those of you who have been before may be familiar. The light and the varying seasons change how EVERYTHING appears.

- Nico

A Muse Of Our Time

I remember very clearly the first time I saw Tilda Swinton act on the big screen, thinking that she was the type of person that most Fashion Designers can only dream about dressing. Tall and lithe with a chameleonic ability to transform into any personality of her choosing, she's not afraid to explore identity, circumstance and the full spectrum of human experience through the craft of acting.

Not surprisingly, she soon after became the lead Viktor & Rolf's Fall 2003 collection, titled 'One Woman Show'. Viktor & Rolf are known for highly conceptual fashion collections which balance intellect with beauty.  Leading the show like a magnificent piped piper, a dozen or so models followed after, their makeup and coiffure mimicking the natural paleness and red head hair, which the actress is famous for. Luxury and design repetition forged a collection of excessive proportions. The garments, based on black and white design menswear classics, seemed to mutate, divide and blossom like flowers. 

In recent time past, Tilda used her acting finesse in collaboration with the director of Paris’s Museum of Fashion, Olivier Saillard, 'The Impossible Wardrobe'.  In the duration of a performance at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris, Tilda wore a simple muslin dress, protective gloves and beige pumps. Walking up and down a ground-level runway, she bought historical fashion garments to life by ‘performing’ them. A Schiaparelli evening cape, ceremonial tailcoat (once owned by Napoleon) and a Fortuny ‘Delphos’ dress were carried, clutched and draped across her form as she acted each out before a live audience.

Tilda is a true muse of our time, and it’s her reverence for the power of fashion that inspires a greater appreciation of her work and her ability to move between genres of performance at large.

Tilda is definitely a muse of mine.