- New drawing inspiration -
- pretty -
- this is so true at the moment, being a small business owner, cash flow is king -
November 21st, 2011 | 6 comments
| Every creative writes one of these at some stage |
So, I’ve been thinking A LOT about what I’ve been doing in my career lately (it keeps me up at night sort of thinking). In the last couple of months there have been some major changes. I’m completely and utterly on my own now – no design partnership and no partime job for security. It’s just me and my freelancing business. I do however, have amazing friends and family to keep me sane and this has been most helpful, especially when I play the ‘what am I doing’ and ‘do people actually like my work’, which is completely irrational. I know that there are people out there that really do appreciate my skill. But sometimes it gets a bit tough and all you want to do is act like a child that can’t have another piece of candy because the whole picture becomes to over whelming to cope with logically, sometimes it’s easier to be a big pain in the ass – although I’m not sure for who.
I guess most of my thinking and concerns (about my decision to brave being a freelance illustrator/graphic designer) have been about, how can I sustain my small business for further years to come. I seem to be doing okay for now but, I guess at one point I’d like to own a house or travel and maybe even have kids. I’m certainly not expecting it to all arrive at my door – it’d just be nice to earn a moderate living for the thing I love doing the most. SIMPLE! Right!
My partner Tom is also a creative, going through similar motions as myself, so it’s not like we have each other to rely on for a full time income and for that added cushy security padding for when things get tough. It’s just us, our practices and our cat for cuddles.
I read a lot of books and blog posts regarding freelance creative practices and how others have found balance, between life, work and cash flow. Some are liberating and some make me feel worse.
I’d like to share some that I have found helpful in hope that it may help others feel liberated too.
http://bentheillustrator.prosite.com/23231/240808/articles-by-ben/lets-start-a-new-illustration-industry
http://www.aoiportfolios.com/about/commissioners/guidetocommissioning.html
*The first link I can’t take credit for finding by myself Tegan Rose from Ink and Spindle posted it via facebook. :)
November 20th, 2011 | 0 comments
I love everything about the above image.
Audrey Horne from Twin Peaks is the best.
November 20th, 2011 | 0 comments
November 20th, 2011 | 0 comments
| Photo crazy |
I made a packed with myself earlier in the year, that this summer I’d take more photographs. I’ve always loved the idea of taking up photography as a hobby but, I’ve always found it quite intimidating and it’s certainly not as easy as it looks, which has also been a massive deterrent. But, in the last months I’ve found time and mustered up some unexpected confidence to snap a few things. I even ordered a toy camera from ebay it’s a Holga 135BC. It’s cheap, plasticy and reminds my of something you’d get in a show bag – it even rattles, I’m pretty sure it’s not suppose to. Yesterday, I got film for my new camera. Now I’m all set for the summer fun times and if all goes well, the next purchase will be a Olympus Trip 35 and then a real camera for my birthday.
Above is the beginnings of a small personal project. Basically, the idea is to snap pics of the local friendly cats I pass on my way home or to my studio – pretty simple. I thought it best to start small. Although, the first image I can’t really count as that’s my cat. But I just think it’s the best picture I’ve taken all year.
Tom, myself and the rest of the family went away last weekend for my sisters wedding. The wedding was held at Tarraleah lodge – which is about a 2 hour drive north – west of Hobart. We stayed at the logde for 2 nights which was amazing. The day of the wedding we went for a short walk in the wilderness. These are the snaps I took while we were walking. I hope to share some of the photographers pics (the lovely Sean Fennessy, snaps) of the ceremony once my sister receives them.
| Other News |
I’m excited to share that, I now have A3 size prints in my etsy store. At the moment there are selected open edition prints, I will be expanding on the range in the not so distant year of 2012. If there is a particular birdie you’d like at a larger size please feel free to contact me at – hello[at]beth-emily.com
please remember to replace the [at] with the standard @
*The birdies look amazing at this size.
Click here to go to my etsy shop!
I’ve also veeerrryyy slowly been rebranding. I feel my illustrations have out grown my previous brand. So it’s time to shed the old and bring in the new. My website at this stage has only received a minor makeover – new images and new works have been uploaded to share with the world.
See for yourself. It’s all a bit of a WIP at the moment. There will be more to show in the early months of next year. Stay tuned.
I hope everyone had a nice weekend – mine was spent pulling out weeds of your garden, I’ve got now got matching cuts and blisters. I also got the opportunity to play in the sun with fellow talented creative, Megan Perkins.
x BE
November 7th, 2011 | 0 comments
Thank you to everyone that came by my stall at the October Bowerbird Bazaar Markets. It was a super great market and I met some really great people even if it was a brief introduction, Megan Dell and Dawn Tan were among a few of the happy faces I met.
Jim Darling – Amazing art works.
The most important thing ‘Do what you love doing‘
Don’t stare at it for to long.
Admiring the craftsmanship in this here hair – so intricate!
October 18th, 2011 | 0 comments
| Visions of Earth |
Each month for the past 6 years National Geographic magazine has featured the most amazing photographs, in their magazine and on their website. The photos are apart of a series, Visions of Earth. Here are some of my favourites from the series that have been taken over the years. I’ve also included the original words, as they help with the storytelling of the image. – AMAZING!!!
Tanzania—After two weeks of in-mouth incubation, a school of perhaps 200 cichlid fry—each less than half an inch long—swim free of their mother, searching for a plankton meal in the cerulean waters of Lake Tanganyika.
Belarus—Naked on an 18°F day, Valentsin Tolkachev clears an icy canal for swimming. The 69-year-old started the Optimalists—a Minsk-based club with 200-some members—in 1989 to promote hale activities in rural settings.
Indonesia—See dusk in the Dampier Strait through a half-submerged lens and glimpse two distinct worlds. Under a cloud-slung sky, fishermen work on wooden boats. Beneath a mirror-calm surface, waters flash with baitfish.
Zambia—A lone bull elephant breakfasts at first light near the precipice of Victoria Falls. With the Zambezi River near its seasonal ebb, once submerged walkways—and fresh foraging possibilities—present themselves.
Kenya—Aimed skyward from photos atop a train, the eyes of women pierce a rooftop landscape in Nairobi’s Kibera slum. The display, part of a global art project, paid tribute to women from Africa, Brazil, India, and Cambodia.
United States—Seen from a satellite, the 2,600-acre “boneyard”—a 64-year-old depot at Davis Monthan Air Force Base, in Tucson, Arizona—looks like parchment lined with toy planes. The site stores some 4,000 aircraft.
United States—Like a glass sculpture forged in the Pacific’s eternal churn, a four-foot-tall backwash splash—the result of two waves colliding in the shallows near Kaena Point on Oahu, Hawaii—refracts the saturated glow of dawn.
South Africa—Green tree pythons coil when comfortable. Though this snake is a pet in Pretoria, the species is native to northern Australia and New Guinea. In the wild its coloration lends cover for a life spent mostly in trees.
New York City—Secret prize on the urban game board, a miniature garden brightens a Rockefeller Center rooftop seven stories above midtown traffic. Four gardeners labor eight hours a week to keep its lawn and hedges trim.
Weslaco, Texas—Ruffled, tiaraed, and manicured, twins Vanessa and Veronica Del Toro wait to leave for their quinceañera reception—the 15th-birthday party that, in Latino culture, marks their coming of age.
October 17th, 2011 | 0 comments
I’ll be here with my illustrations in Oct with my friend Megan Perkins.
Megan makes stunning enamel jewellery – See for yourself.
New things: I’ve now got A3 sizes available in some of my illustrations to sell at the Bowerbird Markets. So if your in Adelaide during the event come and say hello.
If I knew where this was I’d go there and never come back and I’d definitely have goats.
I’d live here as well.
October 17th, 2011 | 1 comment
| Finders Keepers Illustration |
Kingfisher for the lovely ladies at Finders Keepers.
You may of seen the new Sydney Finders Keepers poster online. I’m proud to say that’s my birdy and my design.
| Other News |
New Illustrations!
You may remember this pinecone image that I completed about a month ago. It’s had a little makeover.
I’m really into patterns textures and shapes at the moment as you can see.
|Signed and Numbered Illustrations |
Reflections
Another Deer
These two images will soon be available in A3 size at Signed and Numbered – look out for them in 2 weeks time.
For the time being Signed and Numbered has A3 sizes of the Night Owl. They look really great in the bigger size.
October 2nd, 2011 | 0 comments
This pic makes me miss the ocean.
Balancing act! It’s exactly how I feel at the moment. I’m feeling the pressure of looming deadlines, while trying to juggle new projects. All while, attempting to create new directions and inspiration for my own personal works. It’s been a challenging few months. But, as challenging as I have found this last month, I’m feeling a little sparkle slowly return and I’m itching to find the right balance between commission work and creative personal work.
Because, I thought I did such a good job of surviving last month. I decided to treat myself and buy some second hand leather goodies. These two skirts are new additions to my wardrobe. I’m not sold that I can pull off a long leather skirt, but you only live once.