SEM 2 WEEK 07

Illustration Newsletter

Your job as an illustrator isn’t just about responding to briefs - that’s only half of it. The other half, and arguably the most important part, is play.

Now, we don’t mean mindless doodling or procrastination. When we say play, we mean serious work - the kind that helps you develop your voice, refine your skills, and uncover what truly excites you about making images.

Want to build a personal approach to illustration? You have to experiment. Try things out. Make mistakes. Follow creative tangents just to see where they lead. If you love a particular artist’s work, don’t just admire it - pick it apart. Figure out the process, the tools, the thinking behind it.

You should have side projects bubbling away constantly. A poster here, a book jacket there, an editorial illustration just for the hell of it. Maybe even an image with no purpose at all - just because you felt like making it. Every single piece teaches you something.

So when you reach the end of a semester, your project work should be just one part of what you have to show. The rest? That’s where you start to emerge.

The Week Ahead

Mon	Tue	Wed	Thu	Fri
Yr1 ILLU4060 \| am UCIA4020 \| pm	Yr1 ILLU4060 \| am Independent Study	Yr1 UCIA4020 \| 10-12 Independent Study	Yr1 No Delivery Independent Study	Yr1 ILLU4060 \| am Independent Study
Yr2 ILLU5050 \| am Independent Study	Yr2 Independent Study Independent Study	Yr2 ILLU5060 \| am Independent Study	Yr2 ILLU5050 \| am Independent Study	Yr2 Independent Study ILLU5050 \| pm
Yr3 Independent Study Independent Study	Yr3 ILLU6050 \| am ILLU6050 \| pm	Yr3 Independent Study Independent Study	Yr3 Independent Study ILLU6050 \| pm	Yr3 Independent Study Independent Study

Illustration Newsletter

As I mentioned in the intro above, we’ve only got four weeks of teaching left before Enhancement Week and Easter arrive. We also know that many of you like to use Enhancement Week as an early Easter break - so we wanted to give you a heads‑up now.
As part of Enhancement Week, on Thursday 26th March, there will be a free bus trip to Edinburgh, and we’d love to see as many of you as possible join us.
The day is yours to spend however you like, but alongside the shops, cafés, and delightful tourist‑tat emporiums Edinburgh is famous for, we’d really encourage you to make the most of its brilliant galleries and museums. They’re fantastic places to explore, get inspired, and - most importantly - draw.
So before you book your trains and buses home a week early, have a think about joining us for a day in Edinburgh first!

New module launch
ILLU4060 The Fundamentals of Drawing

This week sees the launch of a brand new, first year module - ILLU4060 The Fundamentals of Drawing; the prequel, if you like, to second year's ILLU5040 Drawing.
Students don't need to prep any special or new materials - but do be ready to, well... draw.

An Audience with... Emma Carlisle
Tuesday 10th March at 2pm

Welcome back to our 'An Audience with...' programme, a unique series of Q&A sessions featuring accomplished practitioners from the illustration industry. These sessions provide an invaluable opportunity to engage directly with industry professionals, ask questions, and gain insights into their work and creative processes.

The sessions take place on Tuesdays from 2 to 3pm (usually). Full details of the programme can be found within the top folder of every Blackboard module page and here.

To make the most of these sessions, you're required to research each guest artist in advance and prepare thoughtful questions to deepen your understanding and enrich the discussion.

The session can be accessed via the link below - please be logged in a little ahead of time

An Audience with... Emma Carlisle

Here's a little about Emma, from her own site