sprung cleaned my website

It's been a whole year since I uploaded my website and it sorely needed an update of new work. As with any old piece of work you revisit I just couldn't resist tweeking things here and there.....so.....to a fanfare (of kazoos).....ladies and jellyspoons, may I humbly present www.matt-dawson.co.uk in it's 2008 look. If you remember the old site things aren't that different. I've just 'run the duster over things' here and there. Hope you like what you see.

IF (Mr.) Punchline

Short and sweet for this weeks IF post, that's the way to do it!

I've been working on a spring clean of my website for the last few days, hence the lack of posts. I hope normal blogging service (whatever that may be) will be resumed ASAP.

just one more book logo illustration

This is illustration for the justonemorebook.com request for logos for their site redesign. It was a fun quick brief to do and it's nice to help out interesting sites when you can. Pop over and check out all of their childrens book reviews if that's your kinda thing! It doesn't really show up very well but that's scanned text from a novel (Mobey Dick in fact...) to create the texture on the book loving octopus/alien type thing's skin. I liked the idea of words from the books manifest in the characters look... not that visable as I said, but I know it's there at least :)


Just dawned on me I seem to have had quite a run on hour glass shaped heads, octopi and orange things... have to go in a new direction or I'll get boring!

PS. many thanks to onemorebook.com for posting my illustration and a link.

IF "Baby"

Not having kids myself this is very much the stereotypical view... so Pete and Helen, have I got it right ?

more worries...

I wanted another stab at this... not because I was unhappy with version 1... I've just enjoyed playing around with the graphic and narrative elements. I don't know what it says about my personality but this subject has been good fun to work with.

IF "Worry" or WHY worry...?

I've gotten out of the illustration friday habit and must admit that I have missed it. This weeks topic is "worry"... who cannot relate to that one! This chap has his concerns pressing in from all sides. I think I enjoyed doing the illustration more than he did!

Ten images for Ithaca "Dream"

Not far off a month since my last post... very much time to fire up the blog before it atrophies! I've been busy on something which I'm just not allowed to talk about... the plot thickens. I could tell you but then I'd have to kill you.

Something I've squeezed in which I can blog about is a submission for the Ten images for Ithaca competition. The Greek island of Ithaca has an annual themed poster design competition. The 10 best submissions get printed into 2 metre high banners and displayed on the Ithaca's promenade for the summer. Plus the three winners get a cash prize. This years theme is "dream". It's a really open ended brief, well worth a try... though the closing date is May 31st so get a move on! Hope you like my efforts. Who doesn't want to swim like a fish or fly like a bird...? (Thanks for the tip on the competition Kev, looking forward to seeing your poster...)

Louis B still hasn't made it across the channel yet, I must get on and give him a hand!

Bleriot in progress.

It's been far too long since I posted anything! Here are some very rough and ready glimpses into what I'm working on next. After a great week spent in Paris earlier this month I've been pushing some ideas around the old sketchbook.

If you are ever in Paris and want something off the standard tourist trail I can most heartily recommend the musee des arts et metiers, the museum of science and invention. Unlike many attractions in Paris it is free to get in and free of any crowds, and what is more it offers numerous large, comfortable leather sofas and free drinking water to the weary tourist! Amongst the many, many truely amazing exhibits is a beautiful chapel housing a magnificently presented collection of various forms of transportation (plus Bartholdi's original plaster model for the Statue of Liberty and Foucault's Pendulum). Hanging from the ceiling they have Louis Bleriot's original monoplane used to fly the English Channel for the first time. I've always been a big nut when it come to aeroplanes and seeing it got me thinking that I'd like to illustrate up the first aerial channel crossing.

These posts are some initial sketches with some very quick tone added just to check I'm headed in the right direction. For fun the background sepia on these posts is a modified section from a photo I took of Bleriot's plane wing. I'd like to make use of this texture for the final pieces in some way if I can.

le fermier est sur son tracteur

This is a tweeked version of a quick piece of work I did for my day job. The client decided they wanted a different stylistic approach so back to the drawing board on that one. Things came together quickly and I had fun doing the piece (such opportunities aren't always forthcoming in my present day job...) although I was holding back on the Frenchman a little bit (see thumbnail sketch). I thought it a shame to waste the work so here it is.

PS. Isn't Babelfish a wonderful tool for all those of us who were lost in GCSE French! While we are on the subject it's also a fitting tribute to Douglas Adams... sadly missed!

chocks away Phil!

My good mate Phil has taken to the skies and is but a feathers breadth from the cockpit. WELL DONE PIP! I bags the first passenger flight with you (after Tam of course).