123

•1.  “If you want to be genuinely inspired or influenced by what I do, then look outside the tiny and insignificant bubble that is contemporary illustration. Watch films, read books, look at other forms of art and design, learn about what's going on around you - anything that takes you outside illustration.”

•David Foldvari

•I find this really interesting. I read Foldvari’s interviews a lot as he is really inspirational to me, but I have picked this quote in particular as it really resonates with me. When I look at artists work for influence I always feel it does damage rather than good as I’ll either feel down because I’m no where near as talented (which I know is ridiculous) or my work will end up looking really similar which is obviously not good.

•2.  “Play!”

•Joanna Spicer

•One of the main things I have learnt this year is that in order to ensure you have the best outcome, you need to spend some time playing with the topic and experimenting before you go straight to the final realization creation. After having this advice towards the start of the year I enjoyed projects more and felt better about my work as a whole and my end product.

•3  “Our culture teaches us that there is a standard that is most desirable and that things that are imperfect are less desirable. You can also see this applied to the emotional realm -- dark, ugly, or negative emotions are deemed dysfunctional; if we are not happy, we need to take a pill to feel better. So we all grow up with some kind of ideal that really has nothing to do with our personal beliefs or reality (accepting what actually exists and saying, "I am not perfect, and that is okay"). Over time we create a set of standards that none of us can possibly live up to, and so we have a tendency to beat ourselves up or become critical with much of what we attempt (which leads to depression). The goal for me at some point became to examine those imperfections, in the emotional realm but also in my creative life. I used to become frustrated when I would make a mistake or when a drawing didn't turn out the way I had intended. This is a natural part of creating, but I wanted to consider what would happen if I approached it from the perspective that those imperfections are not just beautiful but actually the thing necessary to make my work unique.”

•Keri Smith

•I just love nearly everything this woman says, but this theory in particular attracts me as it is a problem for me that I really want to solve. I think I am critical of everything I do in my life and so I create some kind of self-fulfilling prophecy for myself where I’ve begun doing the wrong thing because it’s what I expect of myself. I want this to change and Keri Smiths books are one of the ways I’m going to work on these problems.