Chloe Isteed Illustration

I enjoy making books, and so I thought it would be a good idea to make some for this project.  I decided to stick to two colour patterns, using shapes taken from the garden. Each sketchbook will have a slightly different cover, making the buyer choose between them, or even buying more than one. I have used coloured thread to match the cover. I am also going to make sketchbooks using different colour combinations, including greens. As you can see from the prints below, I will use the similar shapes, but print them fairly randomly to make each sketchbook unique. This is a part of hand printing and making things by hand that I like. Each is more special because there will never be two that are exactly the same. 

For this project, I wanted to keep it simple. Inspired by the foam stamp workshop in the studio, I decided to try my own at home. I started with simple geometric shapes. I like patterns using these kinds of shapes. However, after asking for advice about my work, I realised that it was too simple, too generic. Anyone could make those shapes. I needed to find something more individual and relevant to me. I have been using the garden as my inspiration recently, spending sunny afternoons in the garden drawing. It was suggested that I try and take these shapes from the garden and make them into stamps, keeping my work abstract but giving it more meaning.  I have decided to make sketchbooks or notebooks, all handmade and slightly different. Although the brief asks for an edition, I wanted to emphasise the handmade nature of the books, and so I plan to print the covers slightly differently. However, I will use the same stamps to ensure they look like part of the same series or edition.

Priya Mistry is an illustrator and animator based in London. She uses bright colours and simple shapes to create minimal but bold illustrations with subtle texture. She likes to observe people in various environments, and uses this as inspiration for her work.  I am inspired by her work depicting the London Underground. It has been a topic that I have previously enjoyed exploring in my own work, and I would like to create more work in the future about it. I like the familiarity of the London Underground. I use it nearly everyday, and so there is always inspiration. I also like the idea of making images that people can relate to and feel a connection.