Monday 24 March 2014

Retro love

On the Masters course they keep telling us to draw what we love drawing. Ultimately the passion you feel will shine out of your own drawings, or so they say. Well I have a love for retro art with simple block colours and cartoony drawings but I don't really draw in this way, I've has fads where I TRY and draw this way but it feels like I'm trying too much and it isn't really me. I thought I would put some pictures up of what I am on about.......

These are the graphic designers Marie-Claire Lefort and Marie-Francine Oppeneau who work under the name Lefor Openo who worked in the 1950s and 1960s. I love, love, LOVE their work but have never been able to find out much about them.





I love the colours and simplicity of the art. About 10 years ago I was obsessed  with trying to paint like this and re create the style, but I felt I was just over influenced by them a little too much.

 Derek Yaniger
This artist is current and is influenced heavily by all things retro. I really like his use of colour and the way he limits his palette to a couple of choice colours. He has a background in working for Cartoon Network and worked on characters I adored in my student years (Powerpuff Girls etc).





Ed Vere
Vere is a writer and illustrator of children's books and studied at Camberwell too (but in Fine Art)! I love Mr.Big and have read it thousands of times in school. Its style leans towards retro but is executed in a slightly more contemporary way.



Jim Flora
Another amazing retro artist, probably a very obvious one to name but I couldn't write this post without a brief mention. Have a look at his record covers, I am so envious of how he draws his jazz musicians.


I also found out that Floras son discovered unseen work hidden away in the attic, glorious woodcuts!


So there you have it. I could look at this style of work all day and not get bored. There's so much to see and so many funny expressions and characters up to adventures in the background. Although I've tried working in this style I don't feel its my own voice and I feel like I'm ripping too many people off, I wish there was a way I could combine some of the elements in my work, but I just can't figure it out!!