Santiago is back to share his step by step work process behind one of his recent posters, featuring the Portland hipster Bigfoot. Enjoy!

Materials: Pencil; Sumi ink and brush; Block printing ink; Roller; Plexiglass; X-acto knife.

1. Ideas

The challenge was to create a poster for a Society6 Portland poster series based on fun facts centering around Portland in Oregon.

One thing that is often associated with the Northwest is the mythical creature Bigfoot. Bigfoot is not necessarily associated with Portland, but I figured this is a place he would call home if he were given the chance.

2. Sketch

I always start with a light pencil or blue pencil sketch and then ink that. I don’t do to many preliminary sketches. There’s usually a very rough sketch just to get the idea and placement across and after that is final.

I sketch & ink the different elements separately and then assemble and color them in Photoshop.

I wasn’t quite happy with the first Bigfoot, so I drew another one on a separate piece of paper and then collaged them together.

3. Color and Texture

I create my textures with mono-prints or with ink. For the river texture I made some wavy textures with mono-prints. I rolled some ink onto the Plexiglas and made some wavy strokes with a brush.

I then transferred the ink to a piece of sketchbook paper.

Colors don’t really matter at this point, I usually change colors in Photoshop.

For the clouds I cut out some cloud shapes, rolled ink on the Plexi, put clouds face down on ink, place another piece of paper on top of cloud, cut out and then scribble on top of that sheet. The scribbles are transferred onto the cloud cut outs.

The bridge and hand lettering were done with Sumi ink and brush..

Once it’s all been scanned and composed in Photoshop, I start playing with color by applying color to individual layers with layer effects.

The multi-colored rain was a bit much so I toned it down and ended up with a more subdued palette.

And there you have it!

ⓒ Santiago Uceda, 2010

Excellent, thank you Santiago!

MoonApe on Twitter.

Santiago is back to share his step by step work process behind one of his recent posters, featuring the Portland hipster Bigfoot. Enjoy!

Materials: Pencil; Sumi ink and brush; Block printing ink; Roller; Plexiglass; X-acto knife.

1. Ideas

The challenge was to create a poster for a Society6 Portland poster series based on fun facts centering around Portland in Oregon.

One thing that is often associated with the Northwest is the mythical creature Bigfoot. Bigfoot is not necessarily associated with Portland, but I figured this is a place he would call home if he were given the chance.

2. Sketch

I always start with a light pencil or blue pencil sketch and then ink that. I don’t do to many preliminary sketches. There’s usually a very rough sketch just to get the idea and placement across and after that is final.

I sketch & ink the different elements separately and then assemble and color them in Photoshop.

I wasn’t quite happy with the first Bigfoot, so I drew another one on a separate piece of paper and then collaged them together.

3. Color and Texture

I create my textures with mono-prints or with ink. For the river texture I made some wavy textures with mono-prints. I rolled some ink onto the Plexiglas and made some wavy strokes with a brush.

I then transferred the ink to a piece of sketchbook paper.

Colors don’t really matter at this point, I usually change colors in Photoshop.

For the clouds I cut out some cloud shapes, rolled ink on the Plexi, put clouds face down on ink, place another piece of paper on top of cloud, cut out and then scribble on top of that sheet. The scribbles are transferred onto the cloud cut outs.

The bridge and hand lettering were done with Sumi ink and brush..

Once it’s all been scanned and composed in Photoshop, I start playing with color by applying color to individual layers with layer effects.

The multi-colored rain was a bit much so I toned it down and ended up with a more subdued palette.

And there you have it!

ⓒ Santiago Uceda, 2010

Excellent, thank you Santiago!

MoonApe on Twitter.

He gets it just right when it comes to minimal colour choice and the gradients created through texture.

ⓒ Grant Coghill, 2009

MoonApe

They also put together various illustration books that have been published through working with several well-known illustrators including Jeremyville, Skwak and Jon Burgerman.

James Joyce, Get Involved Print, 2009:

As Concrete Hermit make available a range of exclusive t-shirts and art prints to the Tate Modern shop, I’ve asked the founder, Chris Knight, some questions regarding the work he does and what he thinks of contemporary illustration in today’s market.

Juju’s Delivery, Record Eater Print, 2009:

What is it about your shop and gallery that makes it unique?

What we set out to do is to showcase artists whose work sits between the boundaries of illustration, graphic design and fine art; so we might hold an exhibition of sculptures by an illustrator who is usually known for their drawings or we might produce a t-shirt by an artist better known for working on books. It’s about being open creatively and trying to provide a platform that allows a bit of freedom and a challenge.

Because we produce our own products and have regular exhibitions I suppose we are trying to do a little more than passively consume whatever the prevailing trend is.

Phil Ashcroft, 2009, We Stride Worldwide Exhibition:

Juju’s Delivery, Boxergirl Print, 2009:

Is there anything in particular in terms of style and content that stands out to you when choosing illustrators to work with?

I look for anything that interests me, but I always try to look for something unique or different in the work of an artist. If they believe strongly in their work, they have their own style that tends to come through. I’m really looking for anything that is innovative, exciting and original. I’ve tried not to stick to a certain style; fashions come and fashions go but I’m interested in originality.

Andrew Rae, 2009, Tate Modern Series:

What are the benefits of your illustrators’ network on your site?

The network was an attempt to engage with our audience a bit more. It’s free to join and people can get involved in exhibitions and publications that other members are running. They can post up some images of their work and get feedback, or ask questions about anything, how to prepare a file for a screen printer or how to get some work experience. It’s all grown quite organically so far.

We have some plans about where we’re going to go with the network to make it a really useful resource and a source of inspiration for anyone interested in or involved in the fields of design illustration and art.

Richard Hogg, 2009: Off the Wall Exhibition:

What’s next in terms of the shop and gallery exhibitions?

We’ll be hosting a show as part of the Icon design trail in September and we’ve got Chris Bianchi and Robert Rubbish who worked on Le Gun exhibiting in October. Then we are planning a big Christmas show in conjunction with Creative Review magazine.

Next year we are going to be doing a few shows out at bigger venues and on the product side we’ve got some more big collaborations planned along the lines of our recent project with the Tate Modern where we curated some exclusive T-shirts and prints for them. Then of course we are seemingly constantly developing our website and the next version should be bigger and better than ever!

John Slade, 2009, Space is the Place:

Where do you feel commercial illustration is heading, particularly under current economic conditions?

Commercial illustration will continue to replicate itself until it eventually disappears and we will wave as all the people who say “it’s nice, but can you make it a bit more like this artists work whose blog I’ve just found” are rounded up and sent off into space to explore Mars, a planet that is a little bit like Earth, but not quite as good as the original.

Thank you Chris, and all the best with Concrete Hermit!

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Having a degree in Fine Arts, Mar did not have the chance to get into screen printing whilst at university. However, since then, she has been introduced to the process by friends working at a screen printing studio. Because she wanted to learn new things and avoid sitting in front of the computer as much as possible, she began working with screen prints in this way.

Mar describes her process as follows:

‘To draw the illustrations for the screen print process I use freehand. I don’t usually make sketches for this kind of work. I have an idea and I play with it for a little while in freehand to find the right shapes and the colors. After that I prepare each ink separately.’

I asked Mar if it was difficult/expensive for illustrators to get their work on screen prints. Her response was that it is possible to hire a professional service to get these done for you, but to lower costs, it is best to order large quantities of prints. An example of a company that can do this is here.

Mar prefers to use a studio to print her own series of prints, particularly as it is less of an industrial process, more enjoyable, and the process is prone to inconsistencies, which adds to the quality of the work.

It is also possible to print your own work at home and there are numerous cheaper alternatives. For example, the London Graphic Centre or Ryan Screen Systems provide low cost equipment such as frames and squeegees to get you started at home.

A relatively cheap and compact machine from Japan called ‘Print Gocco’ is another fun way to get your illustrations screen printed at home. They are no longer being manufactured, but the machine can be find through several outlets, including ebay. A great tutorial on how to use one is found here.

Malota has plans for more prints in the future, and is working on more prints for her exhibition in Mexico in August, 2009. Moon Ape wishes her the best of luck!

Prints, postcards, custom toys and more can be bought at her shop.