The Bologna Children's Book fair

As with the v&a illustration awards, if I were to work on an entry for this as part of my illustrative practises module then my work would have to be for the 2012 book fair (as entry for this years fair has now passed)

Competition Brief:

There is no set brief - this is open. 

Submission details

1. 5 original illustrations (fixed number), unpublished or published after 1 January 2009, in black and white or colour, produced using any technique, including computer graphics (in case of mixed technique, please send both original drawings and printouts of the ultimate artwork).
2. The illustrations must be based on the same theme and must be numbered from 1 to 5 (labels enclosed) in the desired order.
3. Maximum size for the artwork:
   > Fiction 32 x 42 cm (or 42 x 32 cm)
   > Non-Fiction 50 x 70 cm (or 70 x 50 cm) 
4. The illustrations must be on paper or flexible board, maximum thickness 2 mm
5. Work to be sent to: BolognaFiere - Illustrators Exhibition, Piazza Costituzione, 6 40128 Bologna – Italy  

Entry to the exhibition is free and provides the entrant with a pass to the fair which they have entered.

Competition deadline:

I'm not sure when the deadline is the Bolgona children's book fair exhibition is, but for this year entries had to be submitted by 1st October 2010, so I am guessing submission for next years fair will be around this time.

Illustrative practises module deadline - 11th March 2011

If I were to enter this competitiomn then I would aim to submit my finalised visuals for the illustrative practises module deadline. I do not feel that this would be an unachievable work load in the time given, and this would also allow me to make any ammendments I felt were needed to the illustrations at a later date than the illustrative practises module deadline if I wished.

What makes this competition particularly appealing is that the brief is similar to the macmillan Chiuldren's book competition - meaning that I could gain some experience of children's illustration, but the workload is not as large and I would have a longer time to work on this.

Competition judges

All artwork received by the stated deadline and meeting the specified requirements will be examined and selected by an international panel (whose decision is final), comprising five members (from publishing houses and art schools) appointed each year by BolognaFiere.

Competition prize - work is exhibited as part of the Bolgona children's book fair. The exhibition then travels to Japan and various other countries after this. Work is also placed within 2 pages of the annual of the event.

Having illustrations exhibited at this fair would be a great way to expose work directly to those working within the illustration industry and could help create new contacts within this - as well as providing career opportunities. I really like the idea that by entering I would receive a pass for the fair - this would be a brilliant fair to be able to attend, and could provide useful experience for the future.

I'm really tempted by this competition, I could potentially gain the most from just entering this competition as oppose to the others, as not only would I gain experience of producing children's illustration, but I would also have the opportunity to go to the fair even if my entry was unsuccessful.

If I were to enter, then I feel that the best place to start with my entry would be research into children's books within a specific age group. This would give me some sort of idea as to the complexity of imagery which is targeted at different age groups of children and how I should go about handling this, as well as how creating a narrative of sequences can be approached.

V&A Student Illustrator awards

Competition Brief:

There is no defined brief, 3 illustrations can be submitted and it is suggested that these might be either a sequence of images for a book or the preparatory sketches/roughs leading up to a finalised illustration (One animation may also be submitted along with the illustrations).

Submission details:

1. Entry into the Student Illustrator category of the Awards is via the Online Entry System only
2. Entries must have a clearly defined illustrative brief, which must be described on the competition entry form. The brief is open. Students may submit work set as coursework by their tutors or they may define their own imagined brief.
3. All images uploaded must be in the JPEG format, using the extension *.jpg
4. Images must be a maximum file size of 1MB and not larger than 900 pixels in width.
5. Animations must be no longer than 3 minutes in length

Competition deadline:

If I wanted to enter this competition then I would have to submit my entry for the 2012 student illustrator awards which I am presuming will have a deadline that is near the end of this year as it was for the 2011 competition, when the deadline was the 13th December 2010. 

Illustrative Practises module deadline - 11th March 2011

If I were to enter this competition then I would aim to have my final visuals (in a finalised drafted version) finished for the illustrative practises module deadline. The workload for this competition does not seem unachievable, and given that the competition deadline will be so far away, then it would be nice to have something finalised by the end of the illustrative practises module, which if I wanted to I could develop yet further later on. Another option would be to consider using part of my entry for another one of the competitions for this competition as well - for example if I entered the macmillan children's book competition then I could finalise 3 of the illustrations from this and submit these to the v&a student illustration awards as well.

Competition judges:

There is obviously no information on the competition judges for the 2012 student awards, but previous judges include rob ryan and others involved within the illustration industry. Having looked at some winning / commended pieces from previous years, there is a real different array of styles and content of imagery - suggesting that no particular illustrative work is favoured by judges.

Competition prizes:

The Student Illustrator of the Year will receive £2,000 and a trophy. The runner up will receive £1,000.

Winning and commended entries are also exhibited on the v&a website and in a competition exhibition. 

Winning this competition would be similar to winning the other competitions in that it wouldmean a great deal of exposure for work as well as the prestige connected with this. Unlike winning the d&ad competition, the great thing about winning a competition such as this is that is purely illustration based rather than also being related to the creative design industry. Having a commended entry would be a great piece to include within a portfolio as well as a self promoptional website. 

I like the idea of entering this competition as I feel that producing an entry would not require a great deal of work if this was combined with my entry for another one of the competitions I have researched. The idea of having a totally open brief which I can set myself also appeals as it means that I am free to produce any style illustrations that I wish to.

Cheltenham Illustration competition

Competition brief -

There is currently no brief available on the Cheltenham illustration awards website. However, having discussed this in our college sessions and with Phil, it seems that the brief is normally fairly loose, allowing you to adapt it to the imagery you want to produce.

The brief is to be released in Spring 2011.

Competition Deadline:

To Be Confirmed. (Summer 2011)

Illustrative Practises module deadline - 11th March 2011

If I were to enter this competition as part of my ilustrative practises module then I would aim to submit a completed rough version of my entry for the Cheltenham illustration awards on the deadline of the illustrative practises module. This would mean that if I really felt that the entry needed some further development then I could complete this after the deadline for illustrative practises, but that I would not have so much work to complete my entry that it would conflict with my final major study.

The fact that the brief has not been released yet is a bit worrying however, as it means that I can not start exploring this at the current moment. If the brief is not released soon then I will not be able to enter this competition as I will not have the time to complete the workload before the illustrative practises module deadline. 

Submission Details

* Up to five entries per person will be allowed

(As each entry will involve a sizeable workload, if I were to enter, I would produce one entry only)

* Entries will not be returned
* Contact address:The CIA, University of Gloucestershire, Pittville Studios, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, GL52 3JG Entries will not be accepted without entry fee (2011 fee TBA), paid online or by cheque
* Artwork must be supplied digitally on CD-Rom or emailed
* File format: JPEG high quality
* Include an A4 printout of the image for administration purposes
* Printable size of artwork: Up to A3 at 300ppi
Competition judges

* Judging of entries will take place in August by a professional committee, winners will be notified by telephone and email
No details of the judges are given (although previously judges have included Sara Fanelli) - in order to find out the types of illustrations which are stylistically favourd I quickly reviewed previous winning / highly commended entries. It seems that hand rendered illustrations are the most successful, making this an appealing competition to enter due to my preferance in this approach to my image making.

Competition prizes

The Awards are administrated by the University of Gloucestershire, UK
* An exhibition will be held on behalf of the University of Gloucestershire(exact venue and dates to be confirmed) The selected winners work will be showcased at the exhibition along with other commended images.

As with the other national illustration competitions I have researched I think that the main prize obtained in winning this competition would be the prestige and exposure gained from the experience. Having work exhibited within a well known illustration exhibition would be a good way to begin making contacts within the creative sector and has the possibility to lead to future commission / job opportunities.

As the brief has not been released i don't have too much of an idea of the expected workload, however, having discussed this, I suspect it to be quite sizeable. I like the idea of entering this competition purely through looking at previous entries which contain some really interesting imagery. I feel that presently I need to research a bit further into the previously commended entries in order to try and gain more of a feel for the competition and find out if I really want to enter.

Some more competitions..

I've found out about a few more competitions which I might enter -

1. Plymouth College of Art summer show poster competition
2. Cheltenham Illustration competition
3. V&A Student Illustration competition
4. Bolgona children's book fair (entry for this would be production of work to be entered into next years competition)

1.) Plymouth College of Art summer show poster competition 

Competition brief -

Design a poster advertising the summer show (exhibition of work by both FE students and FD2 / BA students) to be held at Plymouth College of Art this June (dates : Monday 20th - Wednesday 29th June). Included within the poster must be the following information:

1. Dates of the summer show - Monday 20th - Wednesday 29th June
2. Opening hours 9am - 8.30pm (Saturday 9am - 4pm)
3. FE Summer fashion show dates - Monday 20th - Tuesday 21st June
4. HE Summer fashion show dates - Thursday 23rd - Friday 24th June
5. Free Admission (except HE fashion show which is ticket only)
6. College address 
7. The College logo

(Details are available on the pdf document which has been emailed to all students across college)

Competition deadline 

All poster desings must be submitted by 5pm 12th February

I could easily produce an entry for this competition before the illustrative practises deadline, and this could be a good opportunity to get experience in entering a competition before  entering the another competition I have researched.

Submission details

Printed example of finished A3 poster

Editable Poster File 

Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign etc. This file should include separate layers/objects so that the design can be adjusted for other applications

Source Files
Original photographs or high resolution images used in the poster competition

(submissions to be made to the marketing office - either in CD or non digital (include layers of acetate which contain the separated pieces of the poster design) format.

Competition judges

Principal of Plymouth College of Art

As the principal is not a creative practioner by trade, then there is no way of gaining any knowledge as to the style of illustrative work which would be favoured. However, considering the brief, I think that my poster design would need to clearly communicate the summer show as well promoting my talent as an illustrator.  

Competition prize -

Kodak Playsport Zx3 Waterproof HD Pocket Video Camera

Entering this Competition

If I were to enter this competition, I would view entering this as a way to gain experience for one of the competitions I have researched. As the brief is open to the whole of the college, I would be competing against students in all different disciplines for the prize, rather than just other illustrators or designers. As this is a competition which is restricted to the college, it seems more likely that I may have a chance of winning or having a commended design, which does make entering more appealing.

By entering this competition I would not gain any of the exposure (or prestige) which could be created by entering the larger competitions I have researched. Although if I won my work would be displayed within college (and used to advertise the summer show) it would not be seen outside of an college context (I want to promote myself as an illustrator, not an illustration student). My work would be seen by individuals who are not a part of the college environment - as the poster is to be published nationally and regionally, but the number of these would be more limited than if I were to enter one of the other researched competitions.

An entry into this competition would be a good piece to put into my portfolio - and could be included within a self promotional website (particularly if I won / became commended). As this competition is not national, it seems that less work would to be involved - there is no need to supply any preparatory work with the poster. It would be possible to mind map ideas for this poster and produce something quickly so at least I could enter, but would not spend so much time in the design production that it would jepodize my other competition entry.

My top three competitions...

My top three competitions are as follows (not in any particular order)

1. Macmillan Children's book competition
2. Puffin children's design award
3. Design against fur poster competition

 1. Macmillan Children's book competition - 

I have always considered entering children's illustration, and experience on my work based learning module has concreted this in mind. By entering this competition, I would have an opportunity to experience what it would be like to produce a children's picture book. I would be abe to get some knowledge of the processes involved within children's illustration, creative problem solving I would need to undertake, and how it feels to work to a creative deadline - this would help further inform me as the whether children's illustration is a genre of illustration I want to be a part of.

It would also be a great chance to get some experience of the competition before my third year when I might want to consider re-entering.

Where to start - 
Research children's picture books (up to 5 years) and illustrators who specialise in this area, obtain full brief, begin mind mapping potential ideas and thinking about experimentating with different styles. Find information about the judges and consider how this may effect the stylization of illustrations and the story they portray.

Competition deadline - Tuesday 3rd May - Friday 6th May

Work to be produced - Illustrated children's picture book, in a hard copy.

2. Puffin Children's design award

This again is a brief which features producing children's illustration, but does not provide quite the workload of the macmillan children's book prize. Entering this competition would provide the experience of working to a set defined brief - the illustration produced must be of the story James and the giant peach - unlike the macmillan children's book prize the illustration produced will be of someone else's work and not mine. As before, children's illustration is a genre which I am particulary interested in, so entering this competition would be a good opportunity to get some experience in this area. This would be an interesting competition to enter as it does not focus on the illustrations within a children's book, but rather those on the outside, which mean something different althogether. Entering this competition would provide useful experience for possible final major study work in my third year.

The lesser workload of this competition does make it appealing as I know that there will be other work I am required to do whilst working on my competition entry (such as my final major study).

Where to start -
Read James and the Giant peach, research previous illustrations of this story, its book jacket and the book jackets of different children's stories. Consider how book jackets communicate stories to children. Find out information on the judges and look at previous winning entries, consider how this might affect style of entry. Mindmap potential ideas, begin experimentation - consider different mediums to use.

Competition Deadline - 15th April 2011

Work to be produced - Illustrated book jacket of 'James and the Giant Peach' containing  set blurb text. To be submitted as a digital file designed to the specified design template (B format, 198mm high x 129mm wide, spine 12mm wide) supplied in the following format:

• PDF
• 300ppi
• CMYK
• 5mm bleed
• Ideally colour managed to ISO Coated 39 or ISO Uncoated 29 (optional)
• Trim and crop marks to be included

3. Design against fur competition -

I am considering entering this competition purely because it piqued my interest. At first I dismissed this, but, as I read the brief I became more excited about the potential illustrative work it could involve. I like the creative problem solving element which it entails, although I must admit to this being an area of design / illustrative that I would not choose to produce a piece of work for. Working on an entry for a competition which is a bit different to any other work that I am doing would provide a new experience, which ultimately could prove invaluable. It also might help me to keep all off my work a bit 'fresher' as I will not be working using the same illustrative style / for the same illustrative purpose. I like the idea of facing a totally new challenge, although because it is something I've never really done before I may be puttting myself at as comparitive disadvantage to others entering the competition.

Where to start -
Research - previous winning entries (which will help to determine if any illustrative style is favoured by the judegs), the fur trade and how it relates to luxury goods, links on the design against fur website. Mindmap potential ideas and experiment with these - consider experimentation with photography.

Competition deadline - 15th April 2011 (Entry registration closes 1st April 2011)

Work to be produced - One hard copy of entry poster, no larger than A3 size (11x17inches US), printed at 300dpi, mounted on card.

A CD containing all of the following:

• Poster design in the original file format of the computer program used to design it (example: an Adobe Illustrator, InDesign or Photoshop file).

• Poster in both high resolution (2200x1600 pixels @ 300dpi max) jpg and pdf file formats.

YCN (Young Creatives Network) competitions.....

Competition Briefs...

There are lots of different competition briefs within the Young Creatives Network website - 17 in total, one of which I would be unable to enter as it requires a video / film entry. Having read the extract of each brief, it appears that each competition is centred essentially around producing a creative campaign or promtional piece for either a product, service, movie or company (this includes rebranding several well known products - such as green and blacks chocolate). 

I can't say that intially any of the competition briefs appeal to me - brand identity is not a genre of illustration / design which I interests me (it seems that most of these competitions would be more applicable to a graphic designer rather than an illustrator - not that this means that they should not be considered merely because I am doing illustration). 

Upon first reading the abstracts of some of the briefs, the Green and Blacks design campaign competition appeals to me the most, however, I'm not really sure where I would even beign with this. I feel that my lack of experience within brand identity and promotion would be my downfall, although it would provide an opportunity to try something new.

Submission Details -

This year, all submissions for the different competitions are to be done online - the online submission facility goes live at the end of January, if appropriate, a handheld item or physical artwork piece can also be delivered.

Deliverables

Please adhere to the following guidelines governing the submission of work:

• Artwork should be mounted on boards.
• Interactive work should be on a Mac-readable format on a CD or DVD.
• If you upload any interactive work you should supply a full URL and details of any plug-ins needed to view the work.
• Radio scripts should be typed, and any recordings should be submitted as a Mac readable audio format on a CD or DVD.Any additional support materials, written or otherwise, should all also be clearly labeled.
• Any models or other potentially fragile submissions should be carefully packaged to avoid damage.
• You may submit as many items as you wish.

Competition deadline 

The deadline for all the competition briefs is the 6pm 25th March 2011

Illustrative practises deadline - 11 March 2011

The competition deadlines are just under two weeks after the illustrative practises module deadline. This means that if I were to enter any of the competitions then I think that by the time of the illustrative practises module deadline, I would need to be able to submit finalised draft visuals of my competition entry - I would not want to be doing any major reworking of my illustrations at this point. These competitions would provide a considerable workload in a reasonably short time as their nature means I would have to spend a lot of time researching branding / promotion of products etc. in order to ensure my entry was suitable.

Competition judges

Each competition will have it's own particular judges who are part of the company setting the competition design brief. There don't seem to be any available images of the previously commended entries making it difficult to have any sort of fixed idea as to what may be expected from an entry.

Competition prizes

The prizes for winning include work being commended by the comapny which set the initial competion brief at an awards ceremony, as well as inclusion with the YCN awards annual. I can't see any other sort of prizes available - I'm not sure as to whether work would actually be used by the companies setting the competition briefs or not.

The key prize here seems to be the exposure work would receive within the design world, and the possible contacts that could be made from being commended. Being commended for a design entry could lead to future career possibilities within the particular company setting the competition brief. Attending the awards ceremony with a commended entry would be an opportunity to expose work to creative individauls in the design industry, and a chance to create new contacts / begin networking.

I've read the full briefs of several of the competitions, and must admit I feel a little out of my depth - I don't think I would really know how to start creating a promotional campaign or rebranding a product. I also feel that my lack of experience within digital software could really hamper me with entering any of these briefs. 

I think that entering one of these competitions would involve a lot of creative problem solving, as well as a good knowledge of target audiences of a brand/product etc. and what appeals to them. If I were to enter one of these competitions, I think that research of the brand that competition centres around would be key - Who are the audience? - Is the brand they targeting a new clientele? - What is of key importance with brand design and or promotion? - How could this most successfully be communicated?

Entering one of these competitions could definitely result in moving away from 2 - Dimensional illustration, something which I don not know how comfortable I am with.

Previous winners of the Design against fur competition...

Last year's design against fur competition focused on the trade in rabbit fur

Winning entry  (Chris Lishman and Jennifer Cheng - Newcastle College)

I'm not really sure how much I like this - the creative idea is very clever and had been executed well, I guess I would prefer something more hand crafted as oppose to an collage of different digital imagery. It does make me think that may be digital work is favoured, which would put me at a bit of a disadvantage as this is certainly not my strong point.

Second prize entry  (Georgina Martin - Plymouth College of Art)

This poster design was done by someone from PCA, which is really encouraging as it makes all the competitions I have been researching seem a little more possible to become a finalist within. Again this is a kind of digital collage, which seems to cement the preferance for digital imagery by the competition judges.

Thrid prize entry (Joseph Stayte - Gloucestershire College)

This is very similar to the second prize entry. Having looked at all these entries, I've come to the conclusion that a strong creative idea seems to be the key to being successful. All the images have been digitally produced (each one is a digital collage of sorts, with no hand rendered imagery present), which I must admit to being something which I would not do. I think I'd have to research the more previous finalists and see if this is an ongoing trend or merely one which featured in last year's competition. If the favouring of digital imagery is an ongoing trend, then it may be best not to enter this competition as this is certainly not a strong area for me.

Design against fur competition...

Competition brief -

For the 2011 campaign poster and animation competitions we would like you to focus your work on explaining the fur factory farm and the cruel reality behind fur. 

Students should produce an artwork that conveys, to potential buyers and wearers of fur, how and where fur is produced and the brutal suffering endured by millions of animals everyday - all for a frivolous fashion item.

We want you to explain the horror of the fur factory farm to potential wearers and purchasers of real fur items – whether that item is a full jacket, a piece of trim on a pair of gloves or boots or on a hat.

We want you to explain the reality of where that ‘luxury’ fur came from and to show the potential purchaser how that animal suffered and died, just to provide a frivolous fashion item.

• What’s required?

An eye-catching, thought-provoking design for a billboard poster for a city street You’ll have to catch people’s imagination, and quickly, as they pass by your design. Note: The artwork you supply should be maximum A3 sized for ease of judging & reproduction.

Here are some Top Tips from our judges:

1. The most important is a good idea.
2. Research your subject.
3. This is not a new issue, so the more unique your approach the more likely it will attract attention. Find a key truth or insight.
4. Distil your idea into it's best expression.
5. Explore the different ways you can express your key thought and then use the idea you feel is the most powerful. Sometimes thinking about your subject from a totally different perspective can offer up an original approach.
6. Think about where your idea will be shown i.e. poster/press ad /web. Context is very important and can offer original ways of expressing your idea. 

When I originally researched this competition, I wasn't that interested, however, having reread the brief several times, I've changed my mind. It's not something I would normally consider illustrating, but this competition has piqued my interest some what, it's a bit different, and may be that's why. This competition doesn't seem quite as complicated to enter as the RSA postage stamp competition or the D&AD design competition, which also makes it some what more appealing.



Although the final visual only needs to be a poster, I think that entering this competition may require quite a lot of back ground research before I began a design. Although I don't believe in the fur trade, I've never been passionate about this, so my knowledge is pretty limited. I would really want to research this a bit more, as I think it would help to generate some visual inspiration. This means that there could be quite a reasonable workload for the competition, however, it seems easily 'do-able' and quite a bit less than some of the other competitions.


Competition deadline -

1. Entry registration opens: 8 October 2010
2. Registration closes: 1 April 2011
3. Artwork to be submitted by: 15 April 2011

Illustrative Practises Deadline - 11 March 2011


The illustrative pratises deadline is about a month before the design against fur competition deadline. I think if I were to enter this competition, then I would try and ensure that I had a rough final visual for my outcome (having completed all research and experimental work) to submit with my illustrative practises module . This would then allow me plenty of time after this deadline to rework the outcome if I was not happy with it, but should also mean that I would not have too much work to complete the design as I would not want this work to interfer with my final major study.


The entry must include - (Submission details)


The Fur Free Alliance logo and the wording inFURmation.com must be included in your poster design.


Submission form: please download, complete, sign and include in your package;


One hard copy of your poster, no larger than A3 size (11x17inches US), printed at 300dpi, mounted on card. Please ensure you name and your registration number is written clearly on the reverse; and


A CD containing all of the following:

• Your poster design in the original file format of the computer program you used to design it (example: an Adobe Illustrator, InDesign or Photoshop file).

• Your poster in both high resolution (2200x1600 pixels @ 300dpi max) jpg and pdf file formats.

I've checked on the design against fur website, and the UK has a national group logo which would also have to be featured within the poster.


Competition judges -


There is not direct information about the judges, which means that the best way to gain an insight into the style of illustrative work which may be favoured would be to research previous winning / finalist entries.


Competition prizes -


First Prize - £500
Second Prize - £250
Third Prize - £100


Plus, the Top three finalists from each region will be entered for the Grand prize ($1000 prize money) and the People's choice award ($500 prize money).


The judges will also select 10 highly commended entries from each region.


The UK competition also provides students with the opportunity of winning the Persula Foundation Award, of inclusion in D&AD talent portfolio and having their work displayed at the Dreamspace gallery in London. 

Winning this competition provides would provide the opportunity to really begin promoting your work and yourself as an illustrator. The prestige and exposure of work which would result from winning this competition far overshadow the cash prize (which is also very nice!). Having work displayed in a D&AD talent portfolio and exhibited in the London Dreamspace gallery is a great way to really expose work directly to those within the contemporary creative industry - it would help to develop new contacts as well as lead to future work possibilities. Coming within the top three would also enable work to be entered into the Grand prize award and the people's choice award, which would be amazing (but seems impossible to consider..) - it would be a real credit to your talent as a creative individual.

Just entering this competition would be an opportunity to get some exposure outside of a college environment, as well as being something which could be included within a CV and self promotional website.

Having researched the design against fur website, I've noticed that all the previous finalists for the last  competitions are posted. If work were to reach within the top three final entries, then it would be great to link the entry present on the design against fur website this to a self promotional website gallery..

I'm really tempted to enter this competition. It's not something I'd normally consider, but it piques my creative interest somewhat. The problem solving element of the competition appeals to me - having looked at previous finalist entries, it appears that the creative idea behind a poster is paramount (although obiviously the design work must be of excellent quality too).

The only element which worries me slighlty is the seeming preference for digital imagery making up the poster design. Having looked at last years finalists - all of which used a collage of different digital imagery, I feel that I would almost be disadvantaged if I entered this competition as my digital software skills are limited, thus my imagery would mostly be hand rendered.

If I were to enter this competition, then I think as before the best place to start would be research - looking at more previous winning entries (and considereing the style of illustration generally favoured by the judges), as well as general research into the fur trade and how it relates to fashion and the trade in luxury fur items. There are several links on the design against fur website which would be worth exploring further, doing these bits of research would hopefully help to start triggering creative solutions and potential design ideas.

D&AD - Diesel design competition.

Competition Brief -

Create an illustrated interpretation of a musical track that is experienced by the viewer in an unconventional and pioneering way.

Choose a band or artist and create an illustrated response to two of their tracks - the target audience will be the fan base of the band / artist.

Considerations -

1. Work should show how illustration can be used as a powerful tool to reinvent and express music.
2. Work should show how illustration can be intergrated within music.
3. Consider how musicians are changing and developing the way they interact with their fans and how this may effect illustrations associated with their music.

I can't say that I find this brief hugely appealing. I must admit to not being very interested in the music industry, so I think i would find it hard to approach this brief with a great deal of enthusiasm. This is not a genre of illustration that I am considering entering so it does not seem as though entering the competition would be beneficial.


Submission details

Entries can be include either the static image, video, audio and interactive formats (full details given on the 'diesel' PDF file including the brief) 

If I were to enter this competition, my entry would be a static image - an illustration ( I don't have enough knowledege of the software needed to produce an entry in the other formats) so I have included the submission details for this.

(Static image) submission details

Digital files - 350dpi JPEG files, 24cm along longest axis, landscape format

OR - 4 x A2 / A3 boards including artwork, with surrounds.

Mandatory Requirements-

1. A short clear concie presentation of how the entry would be intergrated within the context of an unconventional music experience.
2. An (300 words max) explaination of how you decided to interpret the music chosen for illustration.
3. MP3s of the two illustrated music tracks.

ENTRY FEE - £12 for dandad members,  £17 for non - members

Competition Deadline

Entries will be accepted from Monday 7th february, the closing deadline is 5pm Friday 4th March

(upload all work to www.dand.org/studentawards )

Illustrative practises module deadline - 11th March 2011

The Illustrative practises module deadline is after the deadline for the competition, so if I decided to enter this competition, I would be able to submit a copy of the final design visuals for the competition on the illustrative practises deadline.

As the competition dedline is the 4th of March, then if I were to enter this competition, I would need to begin prelinminary work (research, experimentation etc.) soon. The workload for the competition is sizeable, and given the shorter time frame available for this competition in comparison to the others, being organised would be important. As with the RSA postage stamp competition, there are elements other than the final visuals which must also be submitted and considered meaning time would have to be planned effectively.

Competition judges

No details of the judges are present on the webpage or pdf document containg the competition brief - but as with the RSA competition, judging criteria is given -

1. Excellent creative idea
2. On brief
3. Excellent craft or solution

This is quite vague, which would mean that the brief is really quite open - there aren't any restrictions on choice of imagery or style (something which does appeal to me). The fact that there isn't any information on the judges means that it would be difficult to have any knowledge of what the best style/type of illustration would be most successful to use within an entry. However, research could be done into dandad - e.g. looking at previous issues and the website, this may help to give some insight as to the communication style being looked for.

Competition prizes

1. All prize levels - A certificate and work featured on the dandad website.
2. In book - (as above, plus) a name credit in the book of nominations, the right to use the dandad student award book badge.
3. Commendation - (as above, plus) work featured in the book of nominations and exhibited at key dandad events (including new blood), a ticket to the award ceremony and the option to register and showcase a portfolio on the talent section of the dandad website. A year's membership of dandad and the right to use the dandad student award commendation prize badge.
4. Second Place - (as above, plus) a student awards yellow pencil and the the right to use the dandad student award second prize badge.
5. First place - (as above, plus) the right to use the dandad student award first prize badge.

Unlike some of the other competitions which I have looked at, there is no cash prize for winning this competition, however, I think that the prestiege and exposure that work would receive from winning or being shortlisted more than makes up for this. By winning or obtaining a commendation, work would be directly exhibited to the very people that are looking for young designers and illustrators - this could open up loads of different opportunities. Going to the awards ceremony (and new blood if work was exhibited) would be a great way to start networking within the design industry and could provide some really useful contacts. As obtaining any prize levels means that work would be showcased in the talent section of the dandad website, then really reaching any prize level could potentially have implications on my career as an illustrator.

If I were to enter this competition, then I think the best place to start would be research dandad a bit more - by looking at previous issues of the magazine and the dandad website. I would also begin to listern to my favourite music in order to try and select the two tracks (by a certain band or artist) which I feel most inspired to illustrate.

Having said this, presently I feel that of all the competitions I have researched, this is the one that I am least likely to enter. The fact that this is not an genre of illustration I wish to enter and the shorter deadline than the other competitions make this less appealing, even though I do think that this has some of the best prizes.

RSA postage stamps competition

There are two different stamp design briefs within this competition -


Competition Brief 1 -
Celebrate the idea of 'firsts' and create stamps that inspire the nation whilst instilling national pride.


The 'firsts' set will consist of 6 stamps featuring the queens head present with a first class value. They must be the definitive size 20.3mm x 24.1mm.


Competition Brief 2 -
Celebrate the influence of British fashion in a visually exciting way that would be a joy to use on post.


Examples of initial starting points include -

1. Mary Quants mini skirts or Ozzie Clarkes flowing gowns
2. Cutting edge UK fashion - which designers are on the cusp of british fashion design?
3. Fashion inpired by music trends - for example the union jack dress
4. The legacy of UK fashion - fashion fads that still make an influence today.

The set will feature a series of six stamps each with the queens head and pertaining the value of 1st, 58p, 60p, 67p, 88p, 97p. Designs can be placed on to the templates provided or new recommendations for guideline sizes can be produced - maximum depth - 37mm.


Guidelines for both briefs -

1. The stamp designs must contain the queens head in correct relation with the stamp size.
2. Consider the small scale of a stamp.
3. Designs should combine clarity with detail.
4. Each stamp design should be visually distinct from the next.

The target audience is broad and wide ranging, including young, old, the general public and stamp collectors.


Submission details

1. Up to 4 x A3 boards showing final visuals and design process - one board to include the six final designs at 4 x actual size, one board to include designs at actual size.
2. A short type written piece of maximum 500 words (at 14 pt.) describing your solution.
3. Any models or mock ups to be photogrpahed and presented on one A3 board.
4. A sketchbook pertaining to the brief.
5. Students short listed for an interivew will be asked to prepare a 5 minute presentation.

Having first read this brief, I can't say that I am particularly excited by it. I like the idea of producing illustrations for stamps, but I'm not sure how inspired I feel by the design briefs of UK 'firsts' or UK fashion.
There seems to be rather a large workload associated with this competition as there are various pieces of work which must be submitted along with the final design solution.




Competition deadline -


Entry forms and fees - Thursday 17th February 2011.


Entries - Monday 7th March - Friday 21st March 2011.


Illustrative Practises module deadline - 11th March 2011.


The illustrative practises module deadline occurs during the submission period for the competition. This would mean that if I chose to enter this competition, I should be able to submit my final visuals for the competition in on the dealine of the module. However, as the final submissions deadline for the competition is the 21st March, then if I found that producing the final competition visuals for the illustrative practises dealine was impossible then I could aim to submit at least 4 of the final stamp visuals along with developed roughs of the other 2 designs.


Competition judges


The RSA website including the brief does not include who the judges are, it merely gives judging criteria

1. Design Craft
2. Inguenuity
3. Insight
4. Communication
5. Social benefit

As no details of the judges are givenit is difficult to know what style of illustrative or design work will appeal to the judges the most.

Competition prizes -

Royal Mail Awards
Value: £5,000 cash awards
Value: £2,500 internship at Lewis Moberly and/or Pentagram
Duration: 12 weeks
Location:  London

The prizes for winning this competition are probably the best that I have seen yet. Not only is there a large cash prize (£5,000), but from what I can understand from the interent site, the winning students also get £2,500 paid torwards an 12 week internship at Lewis Moberly or Pentagram (which after researching on the internet I found to be design brand consultancies) - here's a link http://www.lewismoberly.com

Although I think that having an internship at Lewis Moberly or Pentagram would be a really useful experience (- would provide contacts for future work, improve CV and possibly lead to further work within the companies) I must admit that working within a brand design company is not something which excites me as an illustrator, - this is not an area of illustration I am consider entering. As a result of this, I can't say that this part of the prize really appeals to me, even though I know it could ultimately be the making of a design career.

Possibly the best element of winning the competition would be the knowlege that hundreds of people all over the world are seeing the stamps which you designed - it would be a great way to promote yourself as an illustrator.

Even if design entries were to be shortlisted, attending the award ceremony for the competition with work which you have produced would be a opportunity for promotion of yourself as an illustrator as well as a chance to possibly start networking.

Having a shortlisted entry (or winning entry) on a CV could really improve chances gaining of future illustration commissions / work.

If I were to enter this competition, I think that the best place to start would be to research - there are several different links for further reading on the competition brief webpage, which would be a good place to start. After doing a bit of research, I could then decide which of the two briefs appealed to me the most (UK 'firsts' or UK fashion) - at the moment I think that UK 'firsts' appeals to me the most.

Previous winning entries of the puffin children's design award

Since I'm interested in possibly entering the puffin children's design award, I've just looked at the previous wining entries from last year.

Last year the puffin children's design award was to design a book jacket for Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.


1.) Winning entry - by Jurate Laugalyte (Anglia Ruskin University)

I like this entry and can see why it was selected. It's original and clearly illustrates the book, whilst being both appealing to adults and children. It would certainly be attention grabbing on a shelf in a book store.


2.) Second prize entry - Becca Allen (University college Falmouth)

I'm personally not really sure how much I like this entry - it is certainly original, but I'm not sure how much it would really appeal to children, and for some reason, the black circle which encases the title makes me think of a price sticker (but it does make the white text which sits upon it very bold and eye catching).

3. Third prize entry - Sara Dollman (East Surrey College)

This illustration is quite 'dark' for a children's book jacket - although I think it would appeal to children (but may be not so mcuh to parents). The illustration creates a contemporary take on Alice's adventures in Wonderland, which may make the book more appealing to today's generation of children. I'm not sure how much I like this book jacket design, the mixture of different imagery doesn't seem to sit well together.

Adult Penguin design competion....

The Adult Penguin design competition -

Competition brief -

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez

One of the twentieth century’s enduring works, One Hundred Years of Solitude has sold over 30 million copies worldwide in thirty-seven different languages.

‘Many years later, as he faced the firing squad, Colonel Aureliano Buendía was to remember that distant afternoon when his father took him to discover ice.’

Pipes and kettledrums herald the arrival of gypsies on their annual visit to Macondo, the newly founded village where José Arcadio Buendía and his strong-willed wife, Úrsula, have started their new life. As the mysterious Melquíades excites Aureliano Buendía’s father with new inventions and tales of adventure, neither can know the significance of the indecipherable manuscript that the old gypsy passes into their hands.

Through plagues of insomnia, civil war, hauntings and vendettas, the many tribulations of the Buendía household push memories of the manuscript aside. Few remember its existence and only one will discover the hidden message that it holds …

The brief

Your cover design should reflect the richness of Márquez’s writing to appeal to a contemporary, discerning, literary readership.
Your cover design needs to include all the cover copy as supplied and be designed to the specified design template (B format, 198mm high x 129mm wide, spine 26mm wide).

Tip:

The author name and the title are both immediately recognizable to the target market and as such are crucial elements in the design.
The front cover quote should help position and place the book for the market.

What the judges are looking for:

We are looking for a striking cover design that is well executed, has an imaginative concept and clearly places the book for its market. While all elements of the jacket need to work together as a cohesive whole, remember that the front cover needs to be able to work on its own and be eye-catching within a crowded bookshop setting. It also needs to be able to work on screen for digital retailers such as Amazon.

The winning design will need to:

1. - Have an imaginative concept and original interpretation of the brief.

2. - Be competently executed with strong use of typography.

3. - Appeal to a contemporary, literary readership.

4. - Show a good understanding of the marketplace.


5. - Have a point of difference from the many other book covers it is competing against.



Competition Deadline :

1. DEADLINE FOR ENTRIES
The closing date for entries is 5 p.m. on Friday 15 April 2011.
This site will accept entries from Monday 17 January 2011.

(Submission details are the same as those of the puffin children's design award.)

The judges -


1. - Joanna Prior - Managing Director, Penguin General


2. - Jim Stoddart – Penguin Press Art Director


3. - John Hamilton – Penguin General Art Director


4. - Guest Judge - David Gentleman (Illustrator)


If I were to enter this competition, then I think that it would be important not only to research previous winners of this award (as well as current illustrated book jackets of 'One hundred years of solitude.') but also the judges - a good place to start may be the illustrations of David Gentleman. Researching the judges may help to give me some insight as to the style / content that is favoured.


As with the puffin children's award, entering this competition alone would at least mean getting exposure of my work to the judges and other creative individuals (potentially many if my work is short listed), which may lead to further opportunities.

The prizes -

1. First Prize -
The winner of the Penguin Adult Prize will be invited to spend six weeks at Penguin in the design studio on a work placement, working with Penguin Art Directors Jim Stoddart and John Hamilton on live briefs. The winner will also receive a cash prize of £1,000. 

2. Second prize -
The winner of the 2nd Prize will receive a £350 cash prize.

3. Third prize -
The winner of the 3rd Prize will receive a £250 cash prize.


All the shortlisted entrants will be invited to an award ceremony where the winners will be announced, and at which an exhibition of all the shortlisted designs will be on display.

Winning this competition would provide a great opportunity to get some work experience that could lead to direct networking with those in the illustration and publishing industry - ultimately it could be the thing which sets up a career as an illustrator. The prestige of winning as well as the exposure work would receive during the awards ceremnoy and subsequent exhibition really does overshadow the cash prize (which obiviously would be useful too!).

However, just being short listed would be a great way to get work seen by those in the creative and publishing industry.

I am less tempted to enter this competition than the puffin children's design award for several reasons. One of these reasons is that I have never read the book which the jacket is to be designed for. Although I know in many cases that the illustrator knows nothing of the story that they are designing a book jacket for, I feel that in order to be able to develop a suitable image which I was pleased with I would have to have knowledge of the story. I would have time to read the story before the competition deadline, however, this would be an extra work load that I am unwilling to take on given that I already know the story of James and the giant peach which is the story featured in the puffin children's design award.


I am also interested in the genre of children's illustration, so therefore am drawn more to the puffin children's design award as oppose to the adult penguin award.  Entering a competition which is targeted at the illustration genre I would like to enter should allow me not only to enjoy the work more, but to produce a superior illustration as the brief is likely to hold my interest.