After years of one-to-one tutoring James Sherrard set up Humanitas Learning. The new company's aim is to offer specialist tuition in English, History, Politics, Philosophy and Religious Studies from GCSE to undergraduate level. The one-to-one online lessons are provided by several tutors.
Read MoreBehind the screens at Virginia House
Virginia House students and young professionals accommodation in Worcester has a gym on the ground floor. With two large windows at street level the tenants felt a lack of privacy when exercising in the gym.
Read MoreHandcross school “mural” – an A* challenge
Earlier this year Handcross Primary School in West Sussex asked me if I could help with a somewhat unusual project. They were soon to open a new nursery and had a 3.5m by 1.75m wall space to fill with a woodland image with owls and hedgehogs. I accepted the challenge and we agreed to proceed.
Read More10 years of Christmas greetings for Sherrards
Every year since 2010 I have created the Christmas greetings illustrations for Sherrards Employment Law Solicitors in line with the visual re-branding we undertook back then. Here are all of them.
Read MoreVisit USA Association travel planner launched
Now that vaccines are getting approved and distributed Visit USA Association UK have picked up again the marketing of USA as a travel destination. Their annual Travel Planner has also this year been produced and is being launched these days.
Read MoreFeeling the quilt – new logo design
Hannah Bradley-Cohen has played around with cross-stitching since a child. After a serious illness she fell in love with quilting. This has now turned into a serious business – The Bespoke Quilter – and it needed a logo. She asked me to design one on a limited budget.
Read MoreCoronavirus: Kobolt and home office fully operative
These are extraordinary times with almost the whole world locking down to some degree. However, as I have a fully functional home office I can provide my services as I did before and will continue do for the foreseeable future.
I wish you all well – stay safe, stay healthy.
Taking part in another Harry Sherrard book design
Harry Sherrard has published another book after his first “Taking Part” about his 33 years in motorsport. This time Harry has delivered on a topic he also give public talks about: The Battle of Britain and Operation Sealion. More specifically it is covering 25 objects which played important roles in this particular part of the war.
Read MoreGreat Lakes – Great Job!
I have recently delivered full design and layout – and press-ready PDFs – of this year's edition of Great Lakes USA magazine. The travel guide has been printed and will be found at trade and consumer shows that Great Lakes attends and as an insert in EA Magazines distributed at airports on flights to the USA.
Read MoreNo design without artwork
Unless a designer is working in a bigger organisation where roles may be very much divided and specialised, then the designer also needs to be an artworker. A good visual for a logo, a brochure layout or web page (just to mention a few things a designer gets involved in) won't – or shouldn't – see the light of day unless it has been art worked properly for the necessary media, online or printed. That means final press-ready files for the printers or screen-ready for online or interactive use.
Read MoreHaywards Heath RFC getting bolder
This season we decided to make Haywards Heath Rugby Football Club just that little bit bolder. A few years back Tracey Spuyman; Press, Media and Communications Officer of the club, worked with me to rebrand the club visually with updated programme, posters and a brand new brochure promoting the club’s plans for a new clubhouse. We have worked closely ever since and we pushed the visual expression a notch further for this season with even bigger and bolder typography and more use of the club colours red and black with white. This is perhaps not a big change, more a gradual development, but it has certainly been noticed as Senior Programme Editor, Arthur Chopping, says: “Particularly impressed with the new design touches.” And perhaps the teams are getting bolder too? The 1st XV has had an impressive start to the season being top of the table with four wins out of four!
15 years of GBRf News magazine
It just occurred to me that I have designed and laid out the internal magazine for GB Railfreight for 15 years and counting (work on next issue starting soon). During that period GB Railfreight, a leading rail freight operator in the UK, has gone from independent to First Group to Europorte Group to currently Hector Rail. And during that time the 12 page magazine has gone through a number of re-designs too, to reflect the branding of the company.
Read MoreInspirators: New book design for Pete Cohen
Pete Cohen is one of the world’s leading inspirational keynote speakers and business coaches. On 9 April his 19th book, INSPIRATORS – Leading the way in leadership, was launched at an event at Institute of Directors in London.
Pete Cohen during his lively talk about leadership at the book launch.
I was asked to first design the cover and then to handle the whole book design and layout which includes a whole range of icons for topical content boxes. The layout was complex with body copy regularly broken up by the mentioned boxes, quotes etc.
Pete was very much involved during the whole design process and gave valuable input to the cover design.
Finished artwork was delivered before deadline.
See Print Design page for more images.
For now the book can be purchased at inspirators.me
Salute! New stock images portfolio
This photo is taken in Valletta, Malta, and is on sale at Alamy.com
Alamy stock image library has introduced individual photographers’ portfolios. I have just set up mine for the public to see. It has at this moment in time 850 images but loads more are in the pipeline. The majority of the photos are from travels but there are other topics like landscape, urban, stills and objects, conceptual and reportage which are organised in galleries.
I am also represented by Stockimo, a subsidiary of Alamy, for iPhone photography.
View my 70+ images here.
Kobolt for good
The partnership Woodhouse Creative LLP is closing down after 10 years of offering graphic design work to local, national and international clients. The services to these and any new clients are channeled entirely through kobolt. In that respect, nothing changes. “Woodhouse Creative is dead – long live kobolt!”
Logos fit for purpose
Kobolt has recently designed logos for two fitness coaching businesses; The Body Mind Coach and The Better Body Guru.
Read MoreHaywards Heath rugby club 60
Haywards Heath Rugby FC is 60 years old this year and I have designed an anniversary logo for them which will be used in various communications throughout the year. It will sit together with the club's crest.
I'm continuing to design match programmes and other material for the club which is having another successful season so far – after last season's promotion to London 2 South East.
New online shop for apparel, home and accessories
Kobolt has opened an online Artist Shop at threadless. It contains my own eclectic designs applied to t-shirts and other clothing, home goods and accessories.
I'm not an illustrator with a personal style and a single theme. In fact I'm not an illustrator at all.
I am, however, a graphic designer constantly on the lookout for new ideas. Most of them just pop out of the blue! They end up being fairly diverse and sometimes a little "far out" and I am trying to fit each idea into it's own design rather than attempting a "one style fits all".
My observations and the resulting artwork range from the slightly bizarre to the whimsical and quirky – and occasionally on the darker side of cheerful.
It is very early days, so visit the shop regularly to see more designs being uploaded as and when they are ready. The shopfront and product shots will be upgraded in time.
Go to: https://kobolt.threadless.com
FREE SHIPPING from now and until 15 December 2017 - terms and conditions apply.
Here are some mockup product images:
The entrance to the Oslo Opera House which is situated in Bjørvika harbour area of central Oslo with construction work reflected in the glass facade. ©Johan Siebke.
Another batch of photos on Alamy
Another 52 images have been quality checked and approved by Alamy and are now for sale on their website. This time the whole batch consists of photos taken in central Oslo last month. Many of them are of and around the stunning Oslo Opera House. This was opened in 2008 and the architects were Snøhetta. Extensive construction work is ongoing in the area as a part of the upgrading of Bjørvika and surrounding area.
To view the latest images on Alamy, click on the logo and search for "Oslo".
Case study: Farrier House
Stannary Solutions Ltd asked Kobolt to design an identity, website and promotional material for their new boutique student accommodation development in Worcester.
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