What Do You Want to Do Before You Die?

The four guys from The Buried Life on the cover of their book

I'm currently reading the book What Do You Want to do Before You Die?

It's a really inspiring read of how four young guys formed a group called The Buried Life and wrote a bucket list of 100 goals. They ended up achieving most of them like playing basketball with President Obama and being on the Oprah show.

The rest of the book is filled with bucket list ideas from people all around the world. Reading this book is so inspiring, after reading some of the goals they achieved it reinforces that truly, anything is possible.

Also as a side note - I posted this pic on my new instagram account, to keep up with my illustrations and work please check it out here.

Bose Listen for Yourself finalist

I've been very quiet lately on my blog, but I have some exciting news to share! I entered my illustration mini-movie into a competition for Australian creatives held by Bose Electronics .... and it has been selected as one of the 12 finalists

I'm super excited as next month Guy Sebastian will announce the winner who receives a $20,000 grant to help take their talent to the next level.

If you have a spare moment to check out all the finalists (and vote for my entry!) visit https://www.listenforyourself.com.au/

Illustration Mini Movie

So for a while now I've wanted to create a short video showcasing my illustrations and how I create them.  Well, I finally did it and it's a 40 second behind-the-scenes peek at my vector illustrations and the stages of creation, from initial sketches, to digital layout, colour options and the final illustration.

I had a lot of fun making it, probably the hardest thing was deciding on a song to use! But I think Queens of the Stone Age is a perfect fit.

Note: Due to the song I put with the video, Youtube won't allow the video to play on mobile devices. If you're on a mobile and want to view the video check it out on my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=556098777828791&set=vb.274254949346510&type=2&theater

YOLO

Music is very close to my heart so I was super happy when YOLO Mag published my illustrations and an article about me in their latest Music-themed issue. Some great interviews in this magazine with legendary photographer Tony Mott and amazing illustrator Helen Green. 

Check it out here http://www.yolomag.com.au/magazine.html

Pinhole Zine

Thanks to Pinhole Zine who featured my Frankettes and Manic Cure illustrations in their latest issue. I love the book binding of these zines!

Back from the Printer

I got my new business cards back from the printer and I love how they turned out!

Below you can see some of my earlier concepts using the symmetrical mirror effect on my illustrations. I really like the mirror effect, I might use it again in future illustrations.

Mullet

Working on my updated business card, I needed a change from the old design. This new design is going to be a bit like a mullet hairstyle - business at the front, party at the back!

Happy Easter & Painted Eggs

Painting white gouache on boiled eggs

Finished!

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Easter weekend!  x

Westfield Portrait Booth

Hard at work!

Last weekend I was at Westfield Whitford City drawing portraits for the Autumn Winter fashion launch. There were activities set up all over the shopping centre, with free popsicles, games, manicures and style advice. 

My area was set up like a photo booth where I would draw quick stylized portraits. The client approached me with the idea of the portrait booth based on Tobias Gutmann's Face-O-Mat concept. I didn't know if I would be busy or not, but the illustration booth was super popular with people that day! It was so nice to see the reactions of people when seeing their portrait, for most people it was the only portrait they had ever had.

Inside the booth where all the magic happened

Inside the booth there were interactive buttons where you could choose if you wanted a b&w or colour portrait, plus other options. My favourite portraits were the family ones :)

 

All in all, I had a ball drawing the portraits! I don't think I've ever looked into so many strangers' eyes before, and for a digital vector fiend like me it was a nice change to work in an impromptu setting where there is no undo button!

Free Shipping and $5 off

 

It's that time again - FREE Shipping and $5 Off Each Item in my Society 6 Shop.

Make sure you click this link to activate the deal, otherwise the offer won't work: http://society6.com/annecobai?promo=7a1f0e

Catapult Mag

Cover image by Van Saro

Thanks to Catapult Magazine who featured four of my illos in their current issue. Cover image is by Van Saro. For a limited time you can view the mag for free here.

Prints & Papercuts

For the last week I've been busy organizing prints and frames (and getting lots of papercuts in the process!) for my latest group exhibition. I'm so used to seeing my work on a computer screen, it's really nice to see my illustrations printed in real life  :)

For those in Perth who want to check it out the exhibition it's at Walther Music, 115 Newcastle Street, Northbridge. Mon - Fri: 12:00 pm - 8:00 pm.

Visit the Occupy Pop-Up Facebook page here.

Colour combos

I've been meaning to re-design my business card for a while now, but designing for yourself is one of the hardest jobs! I'm currently looking at colour inspiration... I'm definitely liking the lime green  :)

Chantuese Lily

It's finally finished! I created this poster for a super-talented singer named Lily. I designed her Dreamer EP cover a couple of years ago. This project was a lot of fun to work on, as I love creating anything relating to music. It's a bit different to my usual illustrations as I usually focus on drawing just the face, but this time I have drawn the entire body as well as background details. It's good to challenge yourself and try different things.

I did two colour variations, the client loved both and decided they wanted to use both versions in the future. 

Which version do you like better - blue or purple?

Lily WIP

Finishing off the details before I add colour. I always work in black & white first for vector drawing so I can concentrate on the layout without being distracted by colour.

What we wish we knew before starting out as artists

Some really great advice from illustrators saying what info they wish they knew before starting out as artists. Read it here.

Fanciful hair and flowers

Some concept sketches for my latest illustration. Looking at flowers and crazy hair styles. Stay tuned to see how it turns out!

Take the Power Back

Hmmm, where's the next place we should take over?

Happy New Year everyone! I always like to do a bit of decluttering and get rid of old sketches and paper that I have accumulated over the years. It's also nice to look back on old work that I might have forgotten like this old illustration of Rage Against the Machine.

The original thumbnail sketch is below. This illustration was done years ago, so while I can definitely see it's in my illustration style the technique is not quite refined yet.

And I still love listening to RATM!