Stop the world I want to get off!  Well OK maybe not.  In truth this brave new world of technology provides exciting and horizon-broadening new perspectives on the creative process and its commercial application.  As an artist illustrator who started working before email and the internet I often ponder, how do I fit into this ever-changing scene?  Information Technology has certainly changed the way I approach my working day.  A few years back it was either grind my heels firmly into the ground saying “artists need to stay pure and true to a purely hands-on design approach and not get involved in this baffling technology thing”, or embrace it completely and wholeheartedly in the hope it would take me to places I could only dream about.  For better or worse I chose the latter.

Perhaps the major combined impact of emails, the internet and digital communications technology is to shrink the world and speed up contacts between designers and clients.  Within one working day it is not uncommon for me to be sending sketches to a print publisher in San Francisco, receiving email of licensed visuals from a needlework company in Long Island, New York, discussing a licensing contract with a ceramic manufacturer in Stoke-on-Trent, and sending image contact sheets to a greeting card publisher in Moscow.  And yet all the time I have remained in my studio, following an 8 metre journey to work across the garden!

 Artwork published by Blossoms & Bows as part of a greetings card range

The Marilyn Robertson Portfolio

While I acknowledge the contemporary business world is an exciting place to work in, I do sometimes wistfully hark back to the good old days when time seemed to be on my side and deadlines did not loom up so fast.  I used to spend hours creating colour separations with acetate for print publishers. I would finish original artwork and leave it to the creative studios to produce transparencies. Nowadays I marvel that artwork very rarely leaves my studio whereas once FedEx often had me anxiously parting with my work sending it to an overseas publisher with fingers crossed, not only that it would arrive in time, but also that it would travel safely back in one piece and undamaged after their use.  Today I can get my client’s approval to a jpeg image and then, in just a few moments, send them a high resolution artwork file reproduced in house using the latest technology, over the internet by FTP (File Transfer Protocol).  In the twinkling of an eye (satellite?) the work is with them and ready to go. 

Similarly, I often have design meetings with ideas and roughs being uploaded and downloaded backwards and forwards and colours discussed with my ever faithful Pantone colour swatch to hand.  But with the ever-changing technological pace comes a certain amount of unease.  I always used to feel that having your work reproduced onto transparency gave you a degree of protection from copying and plagiarism.  In my experience the majority of professional photographers had an understanding of copyright issues and could be trusted to record your artwork without fear of misuse.  The publishing house had less direct access to your creative ideas and all important portfolio.  Today a disc full of images can be easily burned and passed on without a second thought about the person who has spent hours and often days creating the ideas in the first place.  It is this ease of access and scope for copying (either deliberate or inadvertent) which invariably leads me to feel nervous whenever I hand over a CD of new work. 

Freelance artists will identify with that sinking feeling when a great idea that you recall having created stares back at you off the store shelf under someone else’s name.  Maybe it was always thus, there is always a danger we look back with rosy eyed nostalgia to a mythical world when design plagiarism was unknown.  But now, with such easy tools available it seems to happen with frightening ease and the exercise of a questionable degree of integrity somewhere along the line. 

Nevertheless, deep down, despite occasionally wishing to stop this fast spinning disc world, I am drawn back to the challenge and constant stimulus of creating new design to meet my client’s need to make beautiful products that people will want to buy.  In the end, while you may sometimes have to swallow hard, you just have to get on with it, try to stay one step (or even just half a step) ahead of the game and enjoy the privilege of being creative.

A strong market has always existed for popular art to be used on a variety of consumer products.  Designs used range from Monet’s iconic lily pond paintings of his garden at Giverny, to the fictionalised and dreamy beach scenes created more recently by Jack Vettriano.  Such popular images tend to ride successive waves of popular acclaim, although for the best the tide never really goes out – they seem to have a semi-permanent home in the public’s affection.

Other art is more particular to its time and place, enjoying a rapid commercial ascent to its “day in the sun”, only to subside in popularity after the market has moved on.  For the art buyer each type of image has its place depending on the application and target market for the products under consideration.

My recent images of dancing might appear to have been inspired by the recent popular trend of celebrity dancing shows on TV on both sides of the Atlantic.  But in fact my inspiration arose from an accidental discovery of a Tango club in New York after the end of one of the Surtex shows!  Out for a post show meal with some artist friends we literally stumbled across a tango dance club evening at the Argentina Il Campanello Restaurant.  Serendipity indeed.  The music, the movement of the dancers and the costumes were all equally mesmerising. 

After an amazing and inspirational night I left itching to get back to my easel.  Whether my interpretation of the mood created ‘hits the spot’ is for others to judge, as too will be whether the image is short or long lived.  But for me this will remain a lasting image irrespective of how well it ‘trips the light fantastic’ in the art buying market. 

Coming soon to the web shop will be Catitudes mug and coaster designs!  Produced by Portmeirion Potteries there will be 4 designs in total to choose from.  Packaged in their own individual boxes they make the perfect gift. Watch this space!

I was given a book not so long ago by Louise my sister in law.  She was of two minds whether to give it to me, The book by Karen Kingston is titled ‘ Clear Your Clutter ‘   Of course!! I can see why she had reservations as I do not have too much of a sentimental attachment to many things,  my lifestyle & business I try and keep fairly organized. 

A life changing book

Never the less, this book got me itching to really cull…..!!!  I  registered on the web site www.freecycle.org and posted “offers” of picture frames and large box of sample greetings cards which I no longer needed. Various charities including the local hospice responded and my clutter was looked on as treasure & perfect for raising funds… Fantastic!!! I gained back valuable space in a corner of my studio - I am now on a ‘ de clutter ‘ mission. So thank you Louise I love this book!!

I hope on another occasion to write about my studio.  It was designed and built in the garden of our cottage situated in a village in the UK. I had a wish list for my working environment and space & light were important factors.  So keeping the studio clear of clutter is a priority.  They do say that clearing areas in your environment clears the air for moving forward - so watch this space….

Every year I attend the International Spring Trade Fair - a huge show featuring well established & new gift products from small to large corporate companies.  Many varieties of gift and interiors products can be seen ready to be selected by buyers from all over the world.  The buzz and eye opening array of “things” can overwhelm & make you feel dizzy .

This year the show opened on the Sunday with cautious optimism, the global economic climate being one major factor…… then the crazy UK climate decided to add to the drama it really snowed and settled !!  London came to a halt,  trains stopped running,  buses did not turn up. My sister in law June who works in the big city said London looked wonderful, a real picture. On the Monday we could not  leave our cottage the roads around became too treacherous to travel.  All the major effort  made by all those exhibitors - then this!!!  But against all adversity the show bravely went on - and I do know some had, in spite of it all,  a very good exhibition. With so much gloom of late just seeing companies striving and doing ok against adversity  gave me confidence and optimism..

………  and the silver lining to all this!!  kids had fun, families were seen out playing in the snow, reports of snowmen appearing in unexpected places. for example, sitting on benches in a park  - not to mention photographers having  a field day with the transformation of dull grey landscape into a magical wonderland

~  Next year with out a doubt the International Spring fair will be selling greetings cards, calendars & prints of snowy scenes not photographed in Austria but cold snowy Britain!!

Let it Snow

It was approximately five years ago that Jasper-the-Cat® strutted out of my studio to make a life of his own.  His feline friends Sebastian®, Leopold® and Thomas® soon joined him.  Since then I have been delighted to secure the license contracts on a variety of products, from prints, greetings cards, ceramics, place mats, even needle craft (if you wish to stock the latter, or to know who stocks the kits, then please check out www.designworkscrafts.com).  Take a closer view of Sebastian, beautifully stitched by Tina, by clicking on this image.

With all these new products it soon became apparent that the cats with a definite air of arrogance needed a range name -  The ‘cats-with-attitude’ became ‘ Catitudes‘ and soon after I set about Trade-marking the brand. 

As so often happens four felines soon became ‘More felines’.    Fleur, Sophia, Madison and Harry were soon strutting their stuff with the original four cats.  Others have followed and they keep attracting a bigger gang!  They really do seem to have jumped off the page and started a life of their own!

Several of the new cats have recently appeared as a range of greetings card range  under Marilyn Robertson Publishing; they are distributed in the UK & Eire by Scarlett Greetings.  We welcome Trade enquiries - to find out more please contact UK & Eire sales on 01305 340009.   If you would like to buy Catitudes greeting cards watch this space as we will soon be selling them from the web shop.

View all the new cats in our Catitudes gallery >

I hope you enjoy browsing these images - I look forward to hearing your views and thoughts about our feline friends.

Well the new year is here - 2009 has a certain ring to it and is with us for another 12 months. I look forward to, and I become aware of, the subtle changes in the quality of daylight, be it only by a modest difference so far. When my studio is bathed in a warm natural light I feel uplifted and want to spend good quality creative time at my easel - all of a sudden the unavoidable chores of doing my accounts and administration feel less arduous !!

I have now taken down the festive holiday decorations, vacuumed up all the little gold stars that I keep finding, and am filling the cottage with bowls of bulbs. Every new year there is a compelling desire to clear out clutter and clean, I know its all to do with new beginnings and fresh starts and blank pages all white bright and new My studio, situated in the garden overlooking open fields, is beckoning me ready to launch the new year with fresh projects and newly budded ideas.

I understand there’s a Solar eclipse due on 26th January and it is an unusual astrological alignment. I will make a special note of this as it is meant to be fairly significant. Maybe the world is on a changing path and we are all waking up to new ways - who knows!! Such a huge topic to think about!!

On a different note I must say I have been touched by the emails, phone calls and comments from family & friends and new contacts. I will be adding more to my blog as the year unfolds. I look forward to further news, views & comments…and some fresh images too!