Sharpies and Heels

I love receiving pressies in the mail and I received something really cool this week - Sharpie pens and heels!! Was so excited when I saw the heels, but then realized they were two left shoes, so I definitely wont be wearing them, lol  :)

Sharpie sent me the pack as part of their 'Anything But Paper' movement. Any ideas for what to draw on the shoes?? Something that would look nice in metallic markers...

Last free shipping for 2012

Hai everyone! Thank you to everyone who has ordered from my Society6 shop recently, I get so happy to think that someone loves my illustrations enough to buy a print or custom product! ♥

This is the last free shipping promotion for 2012, so if you were thinking of buying some arty pressies like iPhone cases, cards, prints or pillow cases then now is the time :)

Use this link for free shipping: http://society6.com/annecobai?promo=417336

Offer ends Sunday and excludes Framed Art Prints, Stretched Canvases and Throw Pillows with insert.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hands Up Poster #2

The second Hands Up poster in the series (see the first one here) I did as part of my Jump Mentorship.

Rock on!

Marc McKee

It's been a while since I posted any book reviews, but I haven't seen any art/design books that caught my attention. Apart from this one, of course. What caught my eye with Warning: The Art of Marc Mckee was the front cover, and the rest of the book is pretty darn awesome as well. It's by the same book publishers that published a book on Todd Bratrud (and I wrote a review of that book here) so if you love skateboard art then you just might love this book, too.

Art for Spine auction

Hi all!  I haven't been updating my blog as frequently as usual, as lately its been all about my Facebook page. Just want to share the news of the Art for Spine auction that's taking place in Brisbane tomorrow to raise money for spinal injury. A framed print of my Cross My Heart illustration will be going under the hammer as well as paintings, artworks, fashion and jewellery from other talented Australian creatives.

A worthy cause and I'm sure it will be a fun night! More info about the event here.

Frankette giveaway!

Recently I've been hinting about a giveaway on my Facebook page and here it is! The Frankette iPhone case is the latest product in my Society6 shop and I absolutely love how its turned out!

To go into the draw to win this case, become a fan of my Facebook artist page and follow the instructions! Click here to enter.

Entries close midnight Oct 31. Case fits iPhone 4 and 4S.

Photoshoot in progress

Make sure you keep an eye on my Facebook artist page as I will be posting an exciting giveaway very soon!

Tara Phillips

I recently discovered the amazing work of Sydney-based illustrator Tara Phillips. Her work has a ethereal feel and she creates worlds filled with air-brushed beauties. I love it! View more of her work here.

Brat Attack

Who hasn't felt like a brat at some stage in their lives? This was a project for my Jump mentorship to create a typographic poster based on song lyrics. The song is 'Prisoner of Society' by The Living End, and I was aiming for a punk DIY aesthetic with ripped up paper. I did a few brightly coloured experiments before I settled on the red, black & grey option.

View more work-in-progress pics on my Facebook Artist page.

Girl Skateboard

So awesome... a look into the Girl Skateboard art department, also known as The Art Dump. I would love to have a wall of fish scale skateboards  :)

Facebook Artist Page

Time to celebrate, as I now finally have a Facebook artist page!

I will be using it to post about my illustrations, work-in-progress snippets and also to post about other inspiring creatives. Kinda like this blog, only better!  ;P

Check it out here.

Catsi stickerssss

Catsi stickers - my fave one is the sticker that says 'everything will be ok'

Nothing says 'I'm busy and important' like this bag does!

I first found out about Catsi's sticker when a friend bought me one at the Von Krahl shop in Carillion City Perth. Well, being a bit of a sticker fiend I went to the shop myself to buy more, and I fell in love with the combination of quirky illustrations and hilarious messages. More recently, I received a tote bag in the mail from Catsi, which I think is pretty darn awesome!

You can view more Catsi designs on her Facebook page, and the tote bag can be purchased on her Etsy site.

Typographic Madness

A work-in-progress photo of the latest project I working on as part of my Jump Mentorship. Typographic! And I have my fave lettering reference that is The Lettering Book by Noelene Morris.

SURFACE Launch x Exhibition

I'm really excited to be part of a group exhibition and launch party for Issue 2 of Six Years Later Mag! (Remember I wrote about 6YL mag here?). 25 awesome artists who were featured in Issue 2 will be exhibiting their art, and I will have six prints in the show and available for purchase.

It's happening in Melbourne, so unfortunately I wont be there - wah! But for those in Melbs, the launch night will be this Thursday, August 23 at No Vacancy Gallery from 6pm onwards. Check out the event page here.

Two years and going...

A reason to smile!

My lil' blog has past its two year anniversary!! I started this blog as a way to display my work and share the process that went behind creating it. I also wanted to share the work of artists who inspire me, and to inspire and encourage others. With over 17,000 pageviews and readers from around the world, I am happy that I have shared my love of illustration and design with so many people.

Thank you to everyone who ever read, commented on or shared my blog posts  <3

iPhone cases, skins and art prints

Give your phone some rockabilly cred!

Yes folks, it's that wonderful time again when I offer  f r e e  s h i p p i n g  in my Society6 online store! Promotion expires Sunday August 12, 2012 at midnight Pacific Time. Offer excludes Framed Art Prints and Stretched Canvases. Click the link here for the promo to be activated.

David Vicente

Pin-ups, skulls, American cars, motorcycles... I am completely in awe of the work of French illustrator David Vicente. Check out his website here.

Jazz and Draw

The Dreamer EP cover I designed for Lily was featured on the Jazz and Draw blog! I was contacted by Philippe to contribute something to his lovely blog and since music and illustration are my two favourite things, of course I said yes! The Jazz and Draw blog is a great space to discover new music and artists. Check it out here.

And on the jazz theme, lately I've been listening to the music of Italian singer Raphael Gualazzi. He came 2nd place last year in the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest and his album Reality and Fantasy is the bomb. So good! One of my fave songs is A Three Second Breath - the chorus is v catchy  :)

Announcement

Free shipping thru Sunday worldwide at my Society6 shop! Check it out here.

Neil Gaiman Inspirational Speech

Yes, this video is 20 minutes long, but it is fascinating viewing for anyone in the creative field. I listened to it in the background while working on something else. SO INSPIRING!

Hands Up poster

New stuff! This is the latest piece of work I have completed as part of my Jump Mentorship. My brief was to make up an event with a theme that would work across a series of posters, flyers, and promotional material. I invented the fictional 'Hands Up' event as a series of uni band nights, giving an opportunity for talented young bands and musicians to play in front of live audiences and improve their skills. Each event that is held relates to a genre of music and features bands who play that genre of music.

My idea was for the series of posters to show different types of hand in all kinds of poses. They serve to connect the visuals with the event name 'Hands Up' as well as being a recognizable element that can be carried across a variety of mediums.

The last time I drew a hand on its own was the Zombie Turkey Hand I did last year (check it out here) and I had heaps of fun drawing this one. Maybe I have a fascination with drawing green hands??

Andreas Krapf

'Sweeet!' Were my thoughts when I saw the work of Andreas Krapf. I love the cuteness and storylines in his illustrations, the Ray Ban's ad is my fave. Check out more of his work here.

Wing's book reviews

Just want to share an awesome link for design and illustration book reviews! Check it out here. Also while you're at it, check out the fantastic work of Christopher 'Wing' King.

Free Shipping

Three words: Society6 and Free Shipping!

Yep, Society6 are offering free shipping thru Sunday, worldwide. Need a new iPhone case or some awesome artworks? Cool. Just check out the link here.

Aurora Lady

Cathedral of Rebellion by Aurora Lady

I love reading the Agent Lover blog, and they featured a lovely interview with LA artist Aurora Lady. They asked her if she has any advice for aspiring lady artists, and she gave an awesome reply:

Eliminate the static! Find a job that allows you to showcase and use your talents, and if you don’t have that job yet, create it. Don’t waste time on people who are dream killers—seriously, break off all ties from them and get the hell out. Be ruthless and use every moment to work on your art—even if you are working a desk job, have notepads next to you so you can write down every idea, and listen to podcasts that inspire you while you are pushing papers. Wake up an hour early to draw before your commute. Use your sketchbook at lunch and take notes on everything.  Talk to EVERYONE about what you are passionate about, and don’t limit your social circle to other artists! Your vision is needed and there is room for every sort of perspective. Look for opportunities to help others—ask what their passions are and connect people. Most of all, just keep going and don’t get discouraged. I mean that. It’s really, really easy to say I’m never going to get anywhere with this, and stop. That’s a sad way to live. If I had given up, I’d still be living in a podunk town, wishing I had had the guts to go balls to the wall and make money off my art.

You can read the rest of the interview here.

Six Years Later

Embossed and varnished cover - so nice!

Two of my illustrations are featured in Issue 2 of Six Years Later Magazine. I created Cross My Heart and Truth, Love, Beauty as separate illustrations but it was great to see them together as a spread, as the oval shapes were nicely symmetrical.

There are loads of creative individuals featured, so if you're in the need for some inspiration you can purchase issue 2 of 6YL here.

So Yoon Lym

Gee Hale

Left: Bruno Borges        Right: Carmel Seymour

Curvy Book 8

My Frankettes illustration is featured in Curvy Book 8! It's super cool to be in the book as Curvy has spent nearly a decade uncovering the world’s most creative female illustrators and artists. There's a ton of amazing artists in the book - I posted a few of my faves below...

Sonya Fu

Deb

Miss Van

Lower Dens poster

Here is the second project I have completed as part of my Jump mentorship. My brief was to design a poster for the band Lower Dens with a focus on abstract imagery. I usually like to draw people, so this was a great project for me to focus on typography and textures. Creating the 3D typography was much easier than I thought it would be - all I can say is that the 3D tool in Illustrator is the boss!

My original sketch and rough composition