One of my all time favorite illustrators Laura Ljungkvist was so kind to send me a little preview of her new book "Pepi Sings A New Song". It is about Pepi the friendly cockatoo exploring his neighborhood in search of new things to sing about with his owner, Peter. I can just imagine little kids having so much fun looking at the cute objects on each spread, like the musical instruments here (below), while learning new vocabulary at the same time. This is definitely the cool book for all my friends' little kids! The book comes out on April 20.
Kidrobot's Fatale Dunny series is out today. You might have seen mine on this blog before, I really love this series not because I'm in it but all the ladies are very creative with their accessories! Here are some of my favorite ones, Koralie's (above) is my no.1 fave, it was love at first sight, I also love the custom Munny that she did for this show.
Mine (under the name CW)
Catalina Estrada
Amy Ruppel (I promise the front is very cute too but I love the wings!)
I've been a fan of Sanna Annukka's ever since I saw the illustrations she did for Keane's album about 3 years ago (a friend of the band's bought one of the prints which led to her first commission, to illustrate for their second album "Under the Iron Sea"). I revisited her new website and found lots and lots of stuff that I want to buy, especially the silk screen prints! Everything from the site is beautifully photographed as well, I'm happy to see the full range of her Marimekko line, I wish that the squirrel cookie cutter were available in the US ! And how cool is the invite for the launch of the line?! (Art directed by Chris Bolton) Go to her Press section and you will find a feature on her cute home from a Finnish interior design magazine- Deko.photos: www.sanna-annukka.com
While we're on the topic of running, it's a perfect day to post this animation that James Jarvis did for Nike, in case you haven't already seen it. Jarvis is my illustration hero from London who is also a keen runner, he admits that he prefers running over illustration! The character in the animation is actually James, and it's inspired by his personal experiences as a runner.
I like looking at Josh Goot's Spring 2010 Collection because it's like looking at cool graphics on ffffound. It's interesting to see how bold geometric graphics and bright colors are translated into apparel, I find them extremely appealing and cheerful, we all need some of that these days, don't we?!photos: style.com and ffffound.com
Another Scandinavian illustrator to look out for is Janine Rewell from Finland. Her style reminds me a little of Sanna Annukka's- they both like to use geometric shapes and Scandinavian folkloric elements in their works, but you will find more humor in Janine's work. I love the current trend of putting 2D illustration in a 3D setting, like the doll house (above), how adorable is that chandelier?!images: Janine Rewell
In the past I've mentioned about how boring US stamp designs are, so I am really happy to discover these King and Queen of Hearts stamps that were released in May. The drawing is referenced from 18th Century French playing cards but the design is retro- circa 70's. There are so many things to love about these stamps, like the Queen's crown, the heart motifs on the King's costume, and the sweet little "love" hand-writing! I'm going to a book of these stamps this week, which leads me to wonder how many stamps do you use per month? image: USPS
Mike Mills' album cover for Moon Safari was what made me become an illustrator, can't believe it's been 10 years! I get emotional when I look at it... image: astralwerks
Elisabeth's Fine Little Day is a great blog to start my day. Today she posted some old patterns that she did a few years ago (above) and I also found these beautiful artworks from Lula- her design crew in Sweden. Not only her works are inspiring, but I also love the way she takes photos of her works, her home, and people, I just love her sense of style! She used to have an Etsy shop and I wonder why she's not selling her fabulous prints there anymore?!images: lula and fine little day
Sophie LeBlanc's illustrations are so lovely and elegant, her works have appeared in magazines and advertisements in France and Spain. I can't understand French well but on her blog, she posts a lot of works from her shows and upcoming projects.images: Sophie LeBlanc
Fashion Wonderland by Victionary. This book features over 100 fashion illustrators whose works appear not only in print but also as art installations, interior decoration, product design, etc. The printed fabric cover is so gorgeous that you would want to display it on your coffee table.images: youworkforthem.com
I was reading IDN Saturday at a newsstand and saw these amazing illustrations for Keane's album covers and I immediately came home and did a search on the artist. Her name is Sanna Annukka, she's half Finnish and half English who lives in Brighton, England. She was commissioned to do illustrations for Keane's album right after she graduated from college a couple years ago! I love that she does her artworks digitally but always silk screen her prints because she likes the vibrant quality of the inks, I agree with that. Her style reminds me of folksy Scandinavian art but she's definitely original by adding contemporary elements to the nostalgic style. You can read about her here, and you can purchase her prints at her online shop! I really want that silk screen print in metallic gold! I am now officially a big fan of Sanna's and I cannot wait to see more great things from her!!!images: Keanemusic.com and sanna-annukka.com
One of my all time favorite illustrators Laura Ljungkvist was so kind to send me a little preview of her new book "Pepi Sings A New Song". It is about Pepi the friendly cockatoo exploring his neighborhood in search of new things to sing about with his owner, Peter. I can just imagine little kids having so much fun looking at the cute objects on each spread, like the musical instruments here (below), while learning new vocabulary at the same time. This is definitely the cool book for all my friends' little kids! The book comes out on April 20.
images: Laura Ljungkvist, thanks!
