Notes from Symposium:
• We spend so much time in art school isolated on briefs that we forget that there is another real life experience that takes place with an art director
• Sophia Watts is a Junior Designer at Penguin Random House in the children's section of mainly Puffin books, YA and classics hiring illustrators for book covers and interiors.
• Arthur Carey graduated from Leeds Arts University in 2012 and now co-directs a graphic design studio called Polytechnic, which began in 2018, working across art direction, creative strategy, branding, print and websites, and aims to bring illustration into projects as much as possible.
• Matt notes that one of the interesting things about both Penguin and Polytechnic is that both are distinct in the work that is being done. As designers they both have different intentions but commissioning illustrators them you together.
• Arthur finds the first hurdle is talking to the client about the idea of illustration and presenting them with catalogues and books, rather using photography. Keeps links to LAU open. Georgia, the other co-director, studied at the RCA and keeps her link open to them. Maintains a closeness to practicing illustrators who are recently graduated. Talking with illustrators Polytechnic have worked with before allows them to find new illustrators to work with.
• Sophia tends to find illustrators through Instagram and Pinterest. She saves a list of people whose work she likes which gets whittled down per project. Still uses the same Pinterest account from uni where she learned to categorise in certain ways by colour and character.
• Arthur suggests Evernote but there is a risk of over-categorising and taking the joy out of what you do.
• Sophia believes it's important to be honest when communicating. Some deadlines can be very quick so a main question becomes "can you achieve this deadline?" It's better to know for production reasons if a deadline can be achieved. It doesn't mean you aren't reliable if you can't achieve the deadline and it's best to say something sooner rather than later. In publishing, reputation is really important. They always want to work with fast workers and nice people again and again. They are happy to wait for the work and to receive a nice cover than rush it for a deadline and receive something not up to a standard as the portfolio.
• Sophie agrees that they have already chosen you and your work and you shouldn't be scared to make the deadline work for you.
• From Arthur's perspective, he believes that a good project set up manages expectations between the client and the artist/photographer/web developer. The agency is ultimately facilitating communication between the artist and the client.
• Matt: Which platforms are preferred to communicate? Good habits or frustrations. What expectations are there from an artist/illustrator in terms of communication?
• Arthur facilitates visual updates, PDF and a phone call. They show the client the work when the time is right. A telephone call has become precious in the time of the video call.
• Sophia prefers speaking to people especially if they haven't met. Email is the usual form of communication and she has a very casual, chatty tone to put the illustrator at ease and to lower their barriers so they can feel more comfortable to raise concerns. Penguin works on stages: the rough stage and final artwork. Thursday mornings are covers meetings which everyone sits in on. Feedback cannot be given at this time as it has to come from everyone including marketing and sales.
• Matt notes that there's a thing about reputation and proving your credentials as a freelance business-person such as if you are a gardener or architect. That isn't present for illustrators or designers. Decency and professional tone of voice become the reputation. Being open and formal is a necessary approach. Begin with a very professional tone of voice in your correspondence but build opportunities to get to know you is commissioning you. What is the typical flow of work?
• Sophia can potentially illustrate the cover herself when given a project from art director, consideration for illustration. Any opportunity she illustrates her own covers. They do their own roughs with sketches and type. Begins to look for people through a mood board and start discussion. Someone is selected who then does their own rough. If there's a set or series of books and a visual language has been established, there's no need to keep going back and forth between roughs and the set can keep going. If it's a standalone book, Sophia likes to have the conversation of creative control with the illustrator so they don't feel the need to follow her rough and her ideas. There's usually a general idea and a few different versions can be born from that.
• Arthur's company tends to go for a very clear idea which they have been developing with the client, through small roughs, which is then taken to the illustrator. They provide the client with two options, the one they've Ben developing and the one that the illustrator has developed. Results in a small developmental stage for the illustrator as there are two options, of their own and one developed with the client, where one will be selected to work quickly. The illustrators idea becomes the "delightful surprise" option.
• Matt liked this approach that allows the illustrator to feel confident. Do you think an illustrator should give more than is asked in terms of roughing an idea stage if they feel it's appropriate?
• Sophia thinks that even if it isn't accepted, at least you've thrown some ideas out and she would like it if illustrators presented their ideas more openly more often. It opens more discussion and does some of the workload for her.
• Arthur agrees that it's showing some of your workings and can become a very useful tool for the client. His agency will decide whether it's useful or not. As long as it part of the agreement then showing as much of the process is useful. It gives a sense of who you are.
• Matt points out that an illustrator may seem at the bottom of the hierarchy but have been commissioned and as long as there is some scope in the brief can allow to push and pull.
• Sophie: Is an in-house illustrator a viable career option in publishing and editorial? How would you suggest navigating that role? Sophie visited a lot of studios last year where people said there weren't any in-house illustrators based there. It was a recurring theme of non-existence.
• Sophia has made it possible within her role as she likes to do illustration herself. Most of the people in her team have illustration backgrounds. When applying for the job, she knew very little about InDesign and learnt it on the job. It's a good mix of design and illustration. Her passion is for illustration, and not so much for design, but if she were to do illustrating all day it would drive her mad. If you work in a publishers and they know you have an interest and want to do in-house illustration, they will ask. It's easier for them as it's quicker for you to do it but it's only on occasion and not all of the time. We don't get credited incase we get poached by other publishing companies.
• Matt can only think of places where the output is so very specific, as Penguin or children's books or a greetings card agency, as having in-house illustrators. That idea of the illustrator as a contributor to the experience of how a book reads that credit leans into where it's activated.
• Sometimes they've had to Sophia name on something if a different person has done the cover and I've done the chapter heads inside. As a side note if you are wanting to work in publishing, do black and white sketchy interiors.
• Sophie: A question for Arthur - Is there a project with Polytechnic that adheres to your values as a studio?
• Some roughs from Kieran, in a project where illustration was given to a client. They were unsure at first but it was a great way to meet some of the objectives of their brief. In more of an applied sense they are gift cards for a bakery. Illustration on banners in the space. Postcards of different seasons of the year. The whole context of the project was to do content packaging, branding, typography. It made it so much more rich to bring in illustration. One of my favourite projects that was brilliantly received in the space and in rural Norfolk where the bakery is. It was a nice product arc because we went into it not sure how to implement illustration but we managed it.
300 Reflective Summary
There were a lot of important points raised in this discussion which I found very poignant and relevant to developing my emerging practice. The idea of decency, professionalism, and a professional tone of voice becoming the reputation struck with me as someone who is always trying to develop their communications with people and will be something I aim to improve after graduation. Collaboration used to always frighten me as I'm not much of a social person, but it isn't just the idea of two artists or illustrators coming together and working on a piece - it is honing social and communication skills, forging connections, meeting each other at a human level and finding opportunities within the context of working. I have never professionally networked at any kind of event or art fair or gallery, and tend to have feelings of shame about this because of being a mature student, but I do have networks that I have over the years through volunteering and campaigning that opportunities can exist within. Not needing to be in London for opportunities is reassuring. I often compare myself to a friend of mine who I did the Access to HE course with who went on to study and live in London. From the outside looking in, it does often feel like the place where everything is happening - when, equally, things are happening nationwide and locally. I will need to stay close to home in Manchester to look after my mum, who had a stroke in 2018
Not rushing the experience of graduation and the next steps felt prevalent and poignant. This is the confusing time, not knowing where I exist, and I don't want to rush into something I'm not ready for. The Master's feels like the logical next step to unpick more about my practice through a Fine Art lens. What can a painting be? What materials can be used to manipulate the paint across? I would like to work through some of the things Duncan mentioned when we talked in our meeting.
Privileges really stuck out to me as I realise that I am not a privileged person. I do not come from a privileged background, I will not receive some of the same opportunities that my peers do due my blindness and low income, and my near future is going to be challenging as a career. Reframing that into a positive of what opportunities could exist within that will be a challenge and something I need to work at to ensure I have an equal footing.
