WHAT HAPPENED AT CHARACTERIZED LONDON 2013
We brought the CHARACTERIZED Tour to London, right smack-dab in the middle of StreetFest. Encompassing everything creative, StreetFest pulled together performers involved in all forms of street culture including live & DJ music, skateboarding, b-boying and live art/design. Our London winners were Team 1 - Aaron Jay & Aleksei Bitskoff for their awesome fire vs. water design!
TOURNAMENT ARTWORK // Theme : Clash & Collide
In this competition, the 3 teams of 2 designers were challenged to create two characters that serve as RIVALS or FOILS to one another. The competition was made up of 3 onstage rounds, each intended to create a product to be used in the following round. In the first 10-minute onstage round, competitors prepared a black & white sketch of their first Rival character. In the second 10-minute round, they prepared a second black & white sketch of the 2nd Rival character. In the final 15-minute round, the teams created a scene composition fully detailing a scene that features both characters and expresses their relationship.
TEAM
1
champs
Aaron Jay
&
Aleksei Bitskoff
TEAM
3
Stefano Colferai
&
Francesca Tabasso
CHARACTERIZED London 2013 Team 1
Aaron Jay
Illustrator, Freelance
randyotter.com
Hello! My name is Aaron Jay and I graduated from Coventry university with a 2.1 Honours degree in Illustration and currently reside in Southampton. For me Illustration is more than just a job, it is a hobby, a way to relax and a way to have fun. With every piece of work I create I try to portray the enjoyment and enthusiasm I have when making images I can be proud of. My strongest points are my distinguishable style that is easily recognisable and my real determination to be successful and make a name for myself in the creative industry, as well as this I have a strong ability for character design, from conceptualisation to bringing something to life on the page, this is in combination with a talent for colour theory and finding tones that work for a specific illustration.
With each project I approach I bring a defined and unique way of visualising and illustrating ideas that leads to images that can be intriguing, whimsical and always original, these factors I have found to be priceless for standing out from other professionals in this field of work. I spend nearly all my spare time creating images and sketching ideas, I am constantly refining and developing my style and skills as well as progressing with a range of different media and creative programs to ensure I am always producing my strongest work.
Aleksei Bitskoff
Illustrator and Creative Writer, ICKYPEN Studios
behance.net/bitskoff
Aleksei Bitskoff was born in Estonia, he always loved to draw as a child, covering his exercise books in doodles. He studied language and literature, preparing to be a school teacher, then moved to England to study English. After travelling around Russia and Europe his love of drawing brought him back to study illustration at LCC, then onto Camberwell for his Masters, graduating in 2010.
His influences include Russian illustrators and animators and Tove Jansson and the Moomin Trolls. His work has a unique sense of humour coupled with his spontaneous subconscious background doodles, drawn in dip pen and ink.
Alex is recently married to Anastasia and lives in London.
His illustration for the AOI's Transport For London competition was exhibited in the summer 2011 and his story Me and You gained 3rd place in the Macmillan Prize. He has also been highly commended in the Cheltenham Illustration Award. Clients include Templar Publishing, Andersen press, Pearson education, Muvizu.
Aleksei is an also an illustrator and creative writer for ICKYPEN creative studio, which creates awesome interactive educational apps for kids.
CHARACTERIZED London 2013 Team 2
Chent Sanchez
Illustrator / Character Designer / Animator, Freelance
chentdesign.com
My name is Vincent Fernandez-Sanchez, aka CHENT. I am a Visual Artist. I'm a French/Spanish, based in London, working with the world. Chent Design is the name of my creative studio.
My passion is to create images. My job is to communicate ideas. I am a self taught Illustrator, Character Designer, Graphic Designer and Flash Animator. I have worked with many prestigious clients on various projects over the years.
Andreas
sunnybones.tumblr.com
Sunnybones is the drawings, digital doodles and animationings of Andreas Polyviou. I have studied animation at Bournemouth University, worked as a freelance illustrator and animator for a number of years and I have spent the last three working as both these things in the games industry. Drawing and making images is something I have always done and will always do out of compulsion to take shapes and colours and symbols and memories, feelings, little half thoughts and all that stuff, the sound of a sunday afternoon, squish'em together, spread them around, cut them up with pens and pencils water and paint, a little taste of summer, a splash of smoke and computers, chips and screens whatever feels good and try and make some pretty feel good pictures out of the mess.
The future holds plenty I hope and foresee. I will continue to work on video games both professionally and on independent projects and will continue to work as an illustrator and all that entails, creating plenty and meeting plenty of nice people to work with along the way.
CHARACTERIZED London 2013 Team 3
Stefano Colferai
Illustrator
www.moleland.it
Ciao! My name is Stefano.
I draw frenetically whatever strikes my imagination since I discovered 'Paint' on my grandma’s Windows ‘94 computer.
Now the technology has evolved and i like to create characters that are the reflection of myself and of the emotions that this fantastic life usually gives me.
I do not draw only with computer.
I am currently working with plasticine to some self-productions, but i also got to paint on the windows of the most important cafè of my town and collaborate with NURANT, an Italian illustration magazine. www.nurant.it
I love anything produced with creativity and imagination, I love being self-ironic and translate on paper all the things that happen to me in a ridiculous way.
Right now i am working on the illustrations for a book called ‘ALI DI CARTA’ for ‘Associazione Tondo’ (a distance adoption association).
It 'a project about the smokey mountain in Manila, a mountain of garbage where people live.
At the same time i organize workshops for children based on the creation of illustrated stories, focusing from the study of character and the development of environments.
I’m inspired by the sun, my mother and spaghetti with butter.
I love the illustrations of Mauro Gatti, Parra, McBess, Jeremyville, but also the art of Haring, Pollock and Basquiat.
Francesca Tabasso
behance.net/francescatabasso
francesca-tabasso.tumblr.com
Hello! My name is Francesca Tabasso, I'm an Italian illustrator and character designer currently living in London. My works ranges from illustration to character design, storyboard and layout project, including graphic design and comics and animation projects. I love everything regarding illustration and design and, most of all, character design. I spend most of my relax moments drawing, filling a lot of sheets and notebooks and consuming a lot of ink pens and colored pencils. My style is particularly suitable, and definitely inspired by the children's world. I like to create simple shapes, funny situations and cute characters and create stories and worlds specially for them.
CHARACTERIZED London 2013 Team 4
CHARACTERIZED London 2013 JURY
Illustrator
adrianjohnson.co.uk
adrianjohnson.tumblr.com
Over the years, Liverpool born Adrian Johnson (b. 1974) has developed a unique and strongly identifiable body of work. His trademark economical, highly crafted, graphic work is constantly evolving, whilst always maintaining a healthy distance from current trends and passing fashions. Adrian's work has already led to a prolific working career and a client list which includes Paul Smith, Adidas, Stüssy, Monocle, The New York Times and Unicef. Attention to detail, humour and a simple timeless sophistication mark him out as one of the leading illustrators currently practicing.
Adrian Johnson has exhibited work in London, New York, Los Angeles and Tokyo. He has lectured at numerous colleges and universities across the UK, and was a judge on the D&AD 'Illustration' panel in 2010 and 2012.
After living in London for 15 years, he now lives and works in Lewes, East Sussex. He is married, with two children.
Direction / Animation / Sports Branding, Sweet Crude
fraserdavidson.co.uk
Fraser Davidson is an award winning director, animator & designer. He is the co-founder of animation house Sweet Crude Animation Project100 Frames, as well as founder and creative director of the sports branding agency Field Theory.
Design, Animation, Direction, & Affection
mutanthands.com
With over 9 years experience under his belt, James has worked along side many top names in the creative industry, BBC, Channel5, MTV, VH1, Nickelodeon, Sony, Nike to name but a few. His work shown all over the world; Pictoplasma, OneDotZero, Semi-Permanent, OFFF, has spoken at events; BD4D, Apple Store Regent Street and regularly in appears in design publications world wide; IdN Magazine, Shots, Computer Arts.
Most recently James is very pleased to have had the distinct honor of being selected for a Young Gun’s award by the Art Directors Club, New York.
Motion Graphics, Animation & Illustration
simontibbs.co.uk
Simon Tibbs is a design-driven freelance motion graphic designer and director. He enjoys the entire process of moving image from pitching and character development to animation and grading Based in London's Old Street he is one third of Sweet Crude; a collective of animators and designers producing motion graphics for advertising, broadcast and web.
Having graduated from Solent University with a First-Class Honours Degree in Multi-Media Design, 2007, he was fortunate enough to learn his trade at London's prestigious Mainframe. There he rubbed shoulders with his University heroes, including James 'Mutant Hands' Wignall and now business partner, Fraser Davidson.
During his career he has worked with clients including Sony, Nickelodeon, Nokia and Mtv to name a few.
Specialties: Character Design, Illustration, Motion Graphics and Animation.
Director, Cake
thiago.tv
eatcake.tv
Thiago was born in the jungles of Sao Paulo, Brazil, a young monkey keen to explore his surroundings and learn new skills. His mother discovered he had a flare for design and animation so stole a Macintosh from some tourists and gave it to him, from which he learnt all about animation and design. After learning to behave like a human he managed to find a job in design and worked in Brazil for 3 years. Then one day he managed to stow away on boat to London, England, ready to explore this new jungle and pursue his new life and career. Over the years he has had the opportunity to work with some really nice people producing work for Cartoon Network, Virgin, BBC, Channel 4, Microsoft, Pepsi, Nickelodeon, RedBee, SKY and Nokia to name a few… none of whom noticed he is in fact a monkey.
Currently, he has opened his own studio in London with fellow Spanish monkey David Pocull. They decided to call their studio Cake, to honour their favourite treat, where they bring fresh new ingredients everyday, mixing their skills in live-action and animation to deliver tasty cakes to their clients around the globe.
And if it isn't enough, he still find time to organise with James Wignall, the main event for Directors, Designers, Animators and Artists in London called See No Evil.
CHARACTERIZED London 2013 PARTNERS
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