Illustration for STRIKE! Magazine

I made some art for the newest issue (Nov/Dec 2014) of the wonderful STRIKE! Magazine, out in print now. It can be purchased online or at a fine establishment near you. (Seriously near. It's ubiquitously stocked.) In London it can be found at a horde of places including the Tate Bookshop, Foyles, the ICA and many more, and in shops across England, Scotland, Germany, America and Australia. See the full stockist list HERE.)

STRIKE! is an anti-profit, ad-free, independent, refreshingly lefty bi-monthly publication dealing in 'politics, philosophy, art, subversion, and sedition' for whom I was very pleased to work.

The theme of this illustration was surveillance, and as such, I made a full array of sneaky creatures.

Here be many spies. Many eyes. Many lies.

Also, several seals.

Full illustration:

 

Zoom view of part of illustration:

 

Zoom view of part of illustration:

 

My illustration right smack at the front of the magazine:

 

Nov-Dec edition magazine cover:

 

Illustrations + Animations for Artefact Magazine

Halloween is upon us, and I've made some aptly phantasmagorical illustrations for an article in London publication Artefact Magazine's upcoming debut print edition.

The illustrations accompany Paula Wik's article about the rise in hallucinogenic Amazonian plant ayahuasca's popularity - specifically in relation to creative circles - including a conversation with actor Finn Jones (Game of Thrones, Hollyoaks) on the subject. The article suggests a possible correlation in a search for meaning outside of the confines of modern life. In Finn's words:

"Ayahuasca stood out to me as something that was just truth. I think that’s why people are becoming more interested in it, too. More and more, the world is becoming entangled with lies. It seems we’re living in more of an inverted dream world. People want substance, people want to know the truth and by taking Ayahuasca you can hit a true nerve in yourself."

My illustration depicts a mind rising above the darker aspects of contemporary society to a more open, beautiful universe, as ayahuasca users overwhelmingly describe a reattachment to the interconnectedness of existence - and particularly nature - in their experiences.

Animated version of one the illustrations, which will appear in Artefact's online magazine:

Still version of the illustration for printed magazine:

Second animated illustration for the online article - a rather hallucinogenically surreal take on a screenshot of Finn and Paula's Skype conversation detailed in the article:

Quick illustration I made of a regretful stag on a stubbly hill on a sunny day.

BONGOPIX Illustration

I recently finished this illustration for wicked Canadian photography company BONGOPIX. It's a re-imagination of Green Day's classic Dookie album cover/poster in my own styling, as an epic wedding-themed disaster. It's detailed. Really detailed. Reeeeeeally detailed.

Some close-up detail shots:

Each element of the illustration was a little illustration in itself to create. Below are some of the drawings I made to use in the illustration. They're all parts of the final piece - see if you can spot them, eh?

Illustration for VICE Article

 Well hello, the internet. I've not posted here for a few months again - with due cause. It's been a very busy time, during which I've been working on a large variety of different projects - some professional and some academic - some of which I can now share, and others which must remain under wraps a bit longer in anticipation of their due release dates. In the last several months, in addition to various illustration, design and animation projects, I've also finished my Masters Degree, which was slightly time consuming. Now it seems I have a MA in Communication Design from Central Saint Martins. Hurrah.

I'll post various projects that I've been working on in the weeks upcoming, but for now, here is the most recently published of my illustration work - an editorial illustration for VICE, to accompany an article by Mike Diver titled 'Five Reasons Why the Wii U is the Hipster Console of Choice This Summer.' Accordingly, I painted Mario and Luigi as proper hipsters.

This is the final illustration, as was published:

...And here is an image of the illustration in progress - after the sketch was finalised:

Sneaky studio shot of the illustration mid-painting - messy desk, melting iced-coffee, and all:

Blog Catch Up: Animation in 'London Stories: 2014 Serco Prize for Illustration' Exhibition at London Transport Museum

My 'Our Town' animation (which can be viewed at Joymask's Youtube channel here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVNwz6hurUc) can now be viewed a bit more formally, too. 'Our Town' is on display through early April at London Transport Museum in the 'London Stories' show, an exhibition of 50 illustrations and 5 animations selected from over 1,000 entries for the 2014 Serco Prize for Illustration.

Several photos (of somewhat debatable quality) from the exhibition private view are yonder below. A lovely time was had by all, and I even got to wear a jingly little badge with the TFL sign on it that read 'Rebecca Hendin: Featured Animator,' which all felt very fancy indeed.

Blog Catch Up: Illustration for Passing Clouds

I also recently did the poster illustration and graphic design for East London venue Passing Clouds' bluesy, swingy, festive club night, The Cakewalk Cafe:

Blog Catch Up: Olfactory Illustration

I created an editorial illustration to accompany an article about the olfactory system by Apolline Saillard in the upcoming Central Saint Martins MA Culture, Criticism, and Practice + MA Communication Design collaborative publication. The publication launch will take place soon at the Whitechapel Gallery in East London.

 Colour + B&W versions:

Raw drawing vs. final piece:

Blog Catch Up: Integrating Knowledge Exhibition at Somerset House

I've neglected my blog rather badly over the last several months due to Masters Degree madness, but it's time for many-an-update going back through mid-2013! Firstly, some images from the Integrating Knowledge Exhibition my work was part of at Somerset House in spring 2013.

I worked with a small team of people from Central Saint Martins MA programme and the Kings College London research department to produce a project following the path through London outlined in Virginia Woolf's 'Street Haunting.' I created illustrations based on parts of the story, then superimposed the illustrations into relative locations along the 'Street Haunting' path.

A few of my illustrations, and images of them superimposed into the London cityscape:

The exhibition set up:

Animated Music Video for Joymask's 'Our Town'

I'm happy to present my first ever all-animated music video, created for London modern jazz/funk band Joymask's song 'Our Town.' I've been working on this animation for the past 5 months, so it's been a rather long time coming! During its creation, the animation was selected for the 2014 Serco Illustration Prize Exhibition to be held from early February through April 2014 at London Transport Museum (in Covent Garden). Mosey over to the exhibition if you're in London!

Timeout article about the exhibition: http://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/london-stories-the-serco-prize-for-illustration-2014

And of course check out Joymask online and at a venue near you.

'Our Town' Animation on YouTube:

(Select 1080HD option in video player to see full-quality video)

Selected Animation Stills: