Research for attendee's Hanbury - NO.3

Heart agency -

Heart was originally an illustration collective formed in 1994. Since then they now represent 35 International illustrators from France, Germany , Italy , the US and the UK. Illustrators can submit work to the in the form of a digital portfolio and a written submission of why they need representation. A agency in the future  could be useful, especially in the initial stages of my career. Heart have a good approach to promoting their clients as they advertise them across many platforms , such as Youtube and their website. But more crucially they have intent connections to other countries. This then puts the different illustrators in a position to contact each other, build networks, gain more contacts. It is a platform in which supports and promotes. The things I would like to know are, how dose the relationship between agent and client work? what are the fees/ are there fees? Contracts? Sales / commission numbers ? How do they pick the illustrators they wish to represent? Is there any other ways in which an illustrator could become represented by the agency? what kind of jobs to clients get? are there certain values or ethics that you follow in terms of the the organisation as a whole? How dose the communication work between agency and commissioner? How else do you promote clients and is there opportunity for the client to go to events are self promote?

Research for attendee's Hanbury - NO.2

It's Nice That -

It's Nice That is a bi annual magazine that believes in ' creating inspiration is for everyone and by championing the most exciting and enacting work...' https://www.itsnicethat.com/about The magazine was created in 2007 and since has grown across a wide range of platforms for example digital (website, Instagram, blog) and print , it reaches millions a month. But the main features it runs are the website which is updated daily , the bi annual magazine and a lecture program Nicer Tuesdays. The magazine works in collaboration with a group names Hudson Bec Group ' Exists to enable creativity to thrive.' http://www.thehudsonbecgroup.com The group is a collective of like minded companies and organisations that share similar values and purposes.  It's Values are:

• Make it happen (Be positive)
• Embrace the new (Be brave)
• Find out more  (Be curious)
• Everyone matters (Be Human)
• Work with others (Be collaborative)

It's Nice That also work with a group Anyways who are a creative agency in London. But between all of these groups the magazine is the pinical. The main thing that I would like to know from them is how do illustrators/designers become part of the magazine, How is it working as part of a collective group, how dose this influence the organisation. What other opportunities dose working along side these groups offer, e.g. nicer Tuesday , How do you measure the positive impact the values have? Publishing and editorial are areas that I am interested in and talking to them I will hopefully get an idea of how a magazine works in commissioning illustrators and how the keep an audience compared to broadsheets and weekly magazines that discuss political and social issues.

Research for attendee's Hanbury - NO.1

Anthropology-

Anthropologie another large company specialising in fashion and homeware. Their target buyer is the 'creative-minded woman, who want to look like herself, not the masses.' ' Our products offering consists of women's apparel and accessories, intimates and home furniture...'  They also cover products in beauty, gifts, and decor. They say that each caters to the lifestyle of 'our five muses: soft and delicate; boho chic; easy cool; elegant classic; and modern sporty. I like the mode of synthesis they have put in to ensure that they are making with the customer in mind first. The two that stand out to me the most are boho chic, which is based on bohemian and hippy dress influences. This is a style that I tend to personally find most appealing when I shopping for clothes and decor myself. Within their company, they are interested in sustainability. The store is connected to a wider company that house Urban Outfitters, Free people and Vetri Family. The clothing within Anthropologie for example dresses ranges from £100 - £400, shirts - £50- £90. The homeware £60 - just over £100. The products they sell are of a high-quality standard, so would last and the prices do place it on the higher end of the market.  I really like what the store produces and stands for. Their designs are contemporary and have a calming, comforting quality/ feel to them. It embodies all the qualities I look for when shopping for myself and I believe that it is a form of design that is up and coming.
I don't know much about the commercial sector, so I need to know the basics of that. How are designers commintioned? are the commissioned or is it a job interview situation where you have to bring a portfolio get selected to become an in-house designer? How do in-house designers work? studio space? Digital methods of communication?

Evaluation on collaboration with the refugee council.

This collaboration and project is a significant learning curve, not just for me as a practitioner but a person. The stories I was told were deeply personal and highly sensitive and as a person it made me reflect on my own life but as a practitioner I thought inventive print was completely the wrong way to tell these stories. The illustrations need to be minimal, barely edited, raw and simple. The message must be the key element to get through.

I did start off this project looking back now naively. I did have experience in running and organising workshops but never by myself. One key element that I wish I had more knowledge over was negotiating with charities over funds.  I thought that charities are organisations that don’t have much money so heavily rely on external donations but this is not always the case.  Some get substantial funds from the heads of the organisations and patrons. I am not sure where the refugee council stands within all this but I think I could have negotiated with then over the issue of fund. I am a student on a very limited budget with no external fund, so saying that I would fund materials and travel for the participants is something I should have thought about more and tried to get better funding for. The arts council could have been a good place to go for help with this.  

But this was the first time I approached with external clients by myself and it was daunting at first but once I settled into it became straight forward. It has given me a lot more confidence in working with future clients and not to be intimidated by the thought of meetings and negotiation. Collaboration was the best approach to take with the organisation as it allowed for everyone to have input to give the best opportunities to the clients. It was a shame that I couldn’t continue the project further but I was over ambitious at the start and thought I have more time than I did but this will improve with experience.

Overall the aims of the project where met. It was a privilage to have the workshops attended by the councils clients and it took a lot for some of the indivuals to attend and I hope they got something positive out of it , they definetly enjoyed them.