2020 has marked a serious dampener on Pride festivals, parties and parades around the world due to the Covid-19 pandemic forcing governments to restrict and even ban large public gatherings. Hundreds of Pride festivals have been postponed or cancelled, keeping in line with government guidelines and protecting the health and safety of the community. Distressed …
House of Illustration closes, will return as Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration
It’s a case of bad news, good news as House of Illustration, the UK’s only gallery and education space dedicated to illustration and graphics, has announced both its closure and also an £8m project to become the world’s largest public arts space dedicated to illustration. The renamed Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration will be a new …
Colour in Japan with this daydream of a book
Known for her dreamlike and vivid photography and illustrations under her alias Surudenise, illustrator and photographer Denise Rashidi has released her first book, billed as both colouring book and ‘travel adventure.’ Daydreaming in Japan utilises Denise’s calming and detailed illustrations depicting famous sights as well as the hidden backstreets of Japan, all spread out over …
Pixelmash promises easier pixel art and sprite animation
Pixelmash is one of the newest desktop apps for 8-bit art, and its latest build may rank it up with there the likes of aseprite. The 2020 version, released last week, allows users to paint or import high-resolution artwork and then non-destructively pixelise it, animate layers using transforms, and apply advanced layer effects with less time-consuming …
Boris FX brings Kubrick, Blade Runner cinematography to Photoshop
Boris FX Optics is now available as a plugin for Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Lightroom, and as a standalone application for macOS and Windows. The Optics toolkit features over 150 filters and thousands of presets designed by VFX industry veterans to correct, enhance, and stylise images in the Adobe suite. In addition to its lens filters, …
Will this creepy AI platform put artists out of a job?
How do you use Artbreeder, and should you use it? When discussions of AI and its effect on the labour force come up, the creative industry usually shrugs its shoulders. After all, how can artificial intelligence accurately replicate an artist’s singular vision? It’s an understandable stance, but recent weeks may have sent a little shiver …
You can soon create VFX with Netflix
A lot of your favourite Netflix shows utilise great VFX, and now a desktop-as-service platform from the streaming titan allows creatives to collaborate on visual effects work. Announced on the Netflix tech blog today is NetFX, which is described as “a cloud-based platform that will make it easier for vendors, artists and creators to connect …
Marvel at Mervyn Peake’s art from childhood to Gormenghast
The visual archive of writer, artist and illustrator Mervyn Peake (1911-1968) has been acquired for the nation by the British Library from the Peake Estate, comprising over 300 original illustrations, including drawings from his critically acclaimed Gormenghast series. Also included are original illustrations for his own books for children Captain Slaughterboard Drops Anchor and Letters From a Lost Uncle and …
New Ai Weiwei print ‘drops’ as IWM London reopens to public
Imperial War Museums (IWM) has announced that it will reopen its London-based branch on 1 August 2020, following three months of closure due to the pandemic. Visitors returning to IWM London will be welcomed back by a brand new addition to the museum’s iconic Atrium – a commission from the internationally renowned artist Ai Weiwei, …
Sex toy branding by AMV BBDO shows pleasure is ageless
TENA has partnered with femtech sex toy brand Je Joue to send influencers an intimate device which brings pleasure as well as improving pelvic floor strength, to demonstrate that wellness doesn’t have an age limit. Featuring beautiful illustrations and typography by artist Stina Persson, the #Ageless wellbeing packs will be delivered to influencers across the …