I am fully aware that it is a cliché to do a year recap and reflect. But that is also the charm of January. I am not one to turn my back on a new beginning. I rather enjoy the leaning into the new with a fresh perspective. The turning of a page, a new chapter, I find it all rather satisfying.
However, with that said, there is alway a great deal to learn by looking back. Part of being a creative is to keep evolving, and keep learning – and that requires some reflection. Spotting where there are gap’s in my folio. These highlight opportunities that I may have previously missed, new areas I can push my work into (should it feel like a good fit, although sometimes I don’t know this until I start. I guess there is also a lesson in there about pushing forward regardless, just to see whats over the other side…) And with this new year just starting I will spending some studio time doing just that.
Looking back, 2023 was without doubt a year of illustrated maps. Maps of cities and countries, and maps of neighbourhoods. A real mix of zooming in and out on a vast range of locations all around the world. Travel has been an ongoing inspiration for me, my life and my work, so illustrating maps felt like a good fit for my portfolio and me and my restless mind. Maps also blend some of my favourite skillsets – some of my hand drawn lettering with inky hand drawn iconography – a visual mix I enjoy working on.
2024 was the year of all things food. From drawing the ingredients, to fully cooked dishes (more challenging to illustrate than I initially thought…) To even capturing the farmers and chefs in action – the full scope of food – from farm to fork. I was thankful for these food briefs, as they had real scope, and reminded me just how intertwined food and travel really is. It is damn near impossible for me to separate a trip to Italy from a memory of sitting down at a trattoria where some of the most mouth watering pasta dishes arrive at your table. Followed by some delicious gelato whilst meandering (often semi lost) around the rustic narrow city streets. The tastes of a trip are often THE trip. During January its easy to crave some Summer and a memory of lying by a pool in the South of France sipping on a glass of chilled white wine and snacking on olives can feel painfully distant.
So 2025 I have some plans, both travel and food related. Blending together to make something delicious.. now that as a closing line. That’s cliché.
