Rock Bird Prints takes off!
Our creative director, Nick, has launched his own illustration website, Rock Bird Prints, selling a gorgeous – and growing – collection of birds as high quality art prints. The prints are something he’s been working on for some time, but it was only when the COVID pandemic hit that he found himself with some free time on his hands and he turned his attentions back to drawing, photography and collecting reference to complete a series of compositions.
As Nick says:
“I’ve always been interested in illustration, but I’ve never quite worked out a style I feel most comfortable with. When the pandemic lockdown hit two years ago, it coincided with a difficult time in my own life. Everything seemed to get magnified big time and I realised that unless I found some hope and a focus I was seriously going to struggle. Getting out every day for walks in the Colney Heath countryside provided the tonic; it’s a special place and the fact you can walk in your own peace made me see nature in a totally new light.
I’ve long been fascinated by birds and so I used these quiet times out walking to look, listen and watch. I was also attending a weekly therapy group and the counsellors would encourage us all to walk with our heads up, not looking down. It’s amazing how a small thing like this can change the way you see and interact with everything. Over the weeks after lockdown, new people came into my life, in particular, a bunch of local birdwatchers who rekindled my interest in birds. I now regularly return to the studio with a headful of ideas to develop.”
Nick’s bird illustrations and prints are fresh and eye-catching. He puts each bird centre stage, framed by stylistic foliage or landscape elements, making it the sole focus amongst the rush of everyday life we live in. But what makes his birds even more endearing is the human names he gives them, adding personality and a touch of humour to each artwork.
Head over to www.rockbirdprints.co.uk to explore the flock!
Lift off for a new lager
Due to COVID-19, it's been a tough year for lots of our clients. Many of them have had to think quickly about how to adapt to different ways of selling and reaching their market. In August 2020, Wales' leading family brewer, Evan Evans, launched their very first lager. With their 250-year history of brewing beer, this marked quite a departure, but they knew that if they wanted to counter the dramatic drop in footfall in pubs, they needed to think innovatively and include a lager in their online sales offering.
And so Liberty was born. We were delighted to create the identity for the label, plus keg badges and box packaging. The word 'liberty' prompted some great ideas for designs, but to convey the idea of 'freedom' we decided to use the image of a bird in flight, set against a beautiful sky blue. The ideas of liberty and freedom strike a chord with many of us as we slowly make our way out of the pandemic. Here's to getting our hospitality industry back in full flow as soon as we can!
Watch out for a full case study in the new year. But if you're thirsty already and would like to try Liberty, head over to the Evan Evans online shop.
