Press
Thee Blog Interview. Setember 2011
http://diegoguevara.com/blog/2011/09/30/theeblog-qa-sessions-sam-green/#more-7688
Welcome Sam and thank you for accepting my invitation. I am a big fan of your work and I am truly excited to have you as a guest today. Let’s begin…
Could you please describe your work?
My work is a mixed bag really, I never felt it was important to settle into one signature style although you can see a few different visual strains developing in my folio. Essentially I draw detailed, realistic imagery that has a surreal, abstract twist to it. A lot of the work is quite playful and abstract, I think the work tends to be quite enigmatic in most cases.
How and when did you get started as an Illustrator?
It was during my foundation course that I realized I could be an illustrator, although I always had concerns about making any money. I had never considered any other job so just followed it through, it was a very natural process. I then went on to do a Bachelors in Illustration and then a Masters at Central St martins in London in 2005. We had a final show in the center of London which attracted many people, I was fortunate enough to be contacted by a few well known companies. I also joined an agency fairly soon after. Gradually my work became more exposed through various blogs and exhibitions so jobs became more frequent.
When did you realize you were good at it and that you could do it professionally?
I knew from a very early age that I had abilities and a natural confidence when drawing but I never had any confidence or ambitions to do it for a living. I had a very simplistic attitude towards drawing which was, I like it, it makes me feel good and everyone else enjoys it so I’ll keep doing it, nothing has change really. Even right up until my Masters I didn’t feel very confident about going out into the real world but it all clicked when I got my first commission that I could do it and make a living from it, I was very happy when I got that first pay check, it gave me my first real sense of validation about my work and I was excited about where it would go.
Who was your first client?
My first client was Random House publishers, they called me as soon as my final MA show finished and asked me to do a book cover.
Is there a ‘technique’ or process that characterizes your work?
I am fairly dependant on photographic reference for my images, I like to take elements from photographs and mix them together and then draw them, or create abstract imagery over the top. I work with a light-box in order to achieve accurate detail or just to refine a sketch. I work mainly with pencil and Photoshop.
What inspires your illustrations?
It really could be anything, a mood, an idea, a brief, music etc I find my own work feeds itself a lot. I would say that humour and surrealism often inspires me to create work, I have always been drawn to surrealism, the old idea of putting two random objects together in order to make something new, it’s all very instinctive really. I often look back to the past for inspiration, I like finding really old obscure design/illustration. I collect imagery online from various sources and have a slide show on my desktop to keep me stimulated.
I’ve always believed that working on personal projects that allow you to express your talent and creativity are crucial for professional artists, designers, illustrators, etc. Do you work on personal illustrations or projects often?
At the beginning of my career I would work obsessively on my own stuff all the time, of course I had the time because work was scarce. My personal work is the most important thing to me, it’s what has got me the attention in the first place. Companies want to see that you have had commercial experience also but the personal work has a more powerful effect on the viewer usually because it’s freer and more inspired I would say, it displays your own artistic vision and people are drawn to that.
Your impressive portfolio features many big league clients and commercial work. How does this type of work differ from personal work? Do you feel it constrains you (considering timelines, requisites, etc) or do you feel it pushes you to work harder and try new things?
Sometimes it pushes you to try other things and you get nice surprises and sometimes it ties you up in knots and it can feel restricting. For the most part it has benefited my work greatly, I have got to a point where I am actually fairly dependant on someone else planting a seed in my head so that I can do the rest, it’s quite strange really. A lot of the work I do, I would never even think of making myself but it does produce unexpected outcomes sometimes which is great.
You recently visited Japan -after the terrible earthquake that destroyed many cities and villages- How powerful was this visit and how did it impact you on a personal and artistic level?
The earthquake hit Japan 2 weeks before my flight, me and my girlfriend thought it would be best to postpone it for another month, even though it still felt risky because of the worrying nuclear developments but my heart had been set on going there for so long, so off we went. We didn’t go anywhere near the effected zones and didn’t witness the devastation or meet any of the victims. The rest of the country was very normal and there were no signs of panic. The strange thing was that we felt like the only tourists in Japan, there were no westerners there at all so we had it all to ourselves and it was probably the best trip I have ever been on. For art and beauty there is nothing like it, the Japanese were such innovators when it came to image making, composition, and printing techniques. The Edo period block prints with all their attention to detail had a huge influence on western artists and it’s no wonder because it’s so advanced and so stunning to look at. We went into antique stores that were selling these tiny, delicate illustrated books which were 300 year old. We were aloud to flick through them and they contained the most incredible ornate illustrations. I was also taken back by their striking sense of colour in their artwork, it’s no surprise when you witness the natural beauty that surrounds them and the way they harmonize this with the architecture, it’s quite breathtaking. I think the Japanese people are very sensitive and have an amazing sense of fantasy which imbues everything around them. I think my eye’s were being educated all the time whilst I was there.
This trip also inspired you to create an amazing new poster, which you recently released and is available for sale, benefiting the victims of this natural disaster. Tell us about it!
I was grappling with an idea for quite a while, and wanted to create a unique and powerful image. I was looking at the work of Shigeo Fukuda who is a legendary poster designer from Japan so his work had a direct influence. I wanted to incorporate the destruction and debris from the aftermath of the quake and take it out of context and make it look beautiful somehow. The Sumo represents the strength and defiance that the Japanese people usually display in these national disasters, the debris cuts through him yet he still remains uneffected by it. The type used was designed by London based design duo, Sawdust. The last part of the text on the poster says, ‘7 Fall, 8 Rise’ this is the literal translation of the Japanese Kanji symbols that come from an old Japanese Buddhist proverb meaning that you will fall down 7 times during your life but you must get back up 8 times. I thought this was a perfect message to accompany the poster.
Any other illustrators, past or current, that you admire or follow?
I don’t tend to look at contemporary Illustration too much any more, I’m much more interested in fine art and design right now. I do really love a blog called ‘50 watts’ which is great because they seek old illustrated books or prints from places like Romania and find these wonderful gems that you would have never seen otherwise.
Any advice you would like to share with other illustrators, students or artists reading this interview?
Get chummy with the graphic designers on your courses because one day they’ll want to commission you for work.
Any interesting projects you are currently working on now?
I have just completed a second front cover for a political magazine in Sweden called Neo. Both covers are totally different in terms of style and tackle meaty subjects. One is about Sex crime and the latest one was about human rights. I have also just finished work for a Pizza Express campaign which is due for release at the end of this month all over the UK.
Dazed Digital interview. August 2011
http://www.dazeddigital.com/artsandculture/article/11189/1/rise-sam-green
Sam Green is an illustrator from London. The Popshot Magazine has recently picked Sam’s image ‘The Aftershock’ from illustrations it has featured in the past two years and turned it into a collectable art print. Sam’s uniqueness lies in his ability to create images that carry astonishing energy. Unleashing the unruly, unconscious urges through the use of primitivism and gripping us to observe in awe the abstract detail reminiscent to the tranquillity of water – the drawings are simultaneously exciting and calming. Sam’s love for experimentation means he is constantly finding original ways to depict his subjects, never failing to amaze and always assuring a fresh perspective.
Dazed Digital: Which five adjectives best describe you?
Sam Green: Good, bad, brilliant, thoughtful, absent.
DD: Tell us about what you do and why you do it?
Sam Green: I make art for commercial and non-commercial purposes. I do it because I'm good at it and it gives me great pleasure.
DD: Your approach is very versatile. Do you have a favourite style?
Sam Green: My favourite ways of working change from time to time, I don't really have a favourite, it all falls under the umbrella of Abstract Realism or just plain old Surrealism if you like. I’ve always been interested in making images not creating a style.
DD: Where do you get your ideas and how do you develop them?
Sam Green: My ideas come from many different sources. I draw lots of rough ideas down on A4 sheets of paper and keep the most interesting drawings in folders for later use. I often just doodle a stream of consciousness and ideas grow in fairly abstract and organic ways. I use photography as a springboard for a lot of work and then add to it by improvising or combining random elements together to make something completely new. Ideas can come from anywhere. I do give great value to idleness and practising the art of visualisation, you have to rely on your own imagination and instincts a lot.
DD: Cure for a creative block?
Sam Green: Getting out of your workspace often helps and discussing your ideas with others.
DD: Who or what has been the biggest influence on your work and why?
Sam Green: I should think growing up fairly isolated in the countryside with an art teacher for a father had a considerable influence. The history of Western music and art has been a huge influence, mainly the artistic endeavours throughout the 20th Century. That sounds vague, but without it there would be no desire to what I'm doing now, there is just too much stuff to pick out. I guess I’ve always been drawn to the Avant-Garde, whether it's pop music or fine art, I like work that is strange, uncompromising and emotive.
DD: How is your personal work different from your commercial work?
Sam Green: Usually my commercial work is not as rewarding as my personal work. My personal work is far more experimental and probably a lot less palatable. My commercial work is very varied at the moment, using different drawing styles, ranging from character illustration to very detailed photorealism. Each project is different and I end up producing work that I would have never made without the clients involvement.
DD: Do you have plans to exhibit your art at a gallery any time soon?
Sam Green: No not soon, I would love to but I'm looking for a gap in my commercial activities so I can create some new work with an exhibition in mind. Watch this space...
DD: What artists do you like at the moment?
Sam Green: Daniel Sparkes, Killian Eng, Albín Brunovský, Luke Rudolf, Harry Clarke.
DD: Who is your favourite hero of fiction?
Sam Green: God, who else?
Text by Darya Antonovna Papko
08/10/10
Recent interview at Computerlove
http://www.cpluv.com/
Let's Talk, Sam Green
East London illustrator Sam Green has created a progressive body of work. (Photo: Per Gustafson)
By Matthew Newton | Senior Editor
Experimentation is at the heart of what illustrator Sam Green does, though the 29-year-old believes his work is tame when compared to the expectations he holds. His illustrative work, first rendered meticulously by hand then digitally embellished to achieve the desired effect, has been gaining widespread recognition in recent years. As a result, Green has been commissioned by clients such as Esquire, Random House, and Dazed & Confused, to name a few. Though he has aspirations to potentially pursue fine art in the future, his current focus is on tackling challenging new commercial work while retaining his childlike curiosity.
What attracted you to illustration, and why?
From a very early age I was compelled to draw images, and very much enjoyed observational drawing as well as designing characters and making comics etc., so it was a natural development. Around the age of 17, my artistic sensibility really took off when I was exposed to painters like Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, Warhol, and Basquait, and at that stage all I wanted to do was paint. It was when I enrolled in my foundation course that I fully realized my potential. I started to discover established Illustrators work, and I was really inspired to follow in their footsteps and become a professional creative myself. I looked at high-profile work and thought I could do it just as well and it excited me to think that my work would be exposed to a larger audience other than family and friends, although at that stage I naively thought I would become established much quicker than I have.
What's been the toughest part of establishing yourself?
It's been quite tricky to get a balance between being financially stable and getting the type of work I want. I've had to compromise my creative urges many times before by seeking various types of Illustration jobs that were for paying bills. I'm glad I've done this though, because I have acquired a broad range of skills, such as being able to draw up storyboards quickly, character designing, concept art, etc. I worked as an in-house illustrator for over a year and the money was fantastic, but by the end I was feeling frustrated that I wasn't making enough of my own work, so I went back to square one and started again. There has been a creative struggle also, and I think a pressure to be style specific. I've had agencies tell me that they would feel more confident about taking me on board if I establish a more consistent style before they "think" about representing me, which I think is just a waste of my time. I used to give myself a rough time with the work in the past, and get quite frustrated about other contemporaries gaining success quicker than me, but I'm a lot more Zen about it all now. I'm happy with my situation, a lot less self conscious.
Your illustrations are done by hand, then digitally embellished. Are there some elements in an illustration that are best done by hand, while others are better served by digital tools?
The initial drawing is very important, it's the backbone to an illustration. I spend a long time making sure the drawing has the level of detail I require, sometimes when there is not enough time I'll take short cuts and rely on the computer to disguise certain things. I use Photoshop to enhance atmosphere and alter compositions, whether it be with color, textures, or for the shadows and highlights. I will amplify certain details or remove them and generally clean up the drawing, the computer is now an important part of the process, it just makes life a lot easier.
I noticed that your work is comprised primarily of commercial commissions. Is client work your long-term goal? Or do you have plans to pursue other avenues, such as fine art?
I'm really embracing commercial work right now. I used to experiment a lot on my own, and felt this was the best way to push my work forward, but now I'm discovering that a client's brief or an art director can force me to make work that I wouldn't have made by myself. Occasionally it can backfire, but I find in most cases it enhances the work, even when I hate every minute of it.
My personal work is always going on in the background. I'm currently making work that is a completely different style and approach to the work you see on my website. There are many directions I can go with making Illustration, and I have always been a bit of a magpie when it comes making art. I intend to explore the various possibilities the best I can. I'll continue making my own art and would eventually love to start selling work in galleries.
Without deadlines imposed by clients, do you think your work would be different?
My work would be very different I think. Whether you like it not, the industry, to a certain extent, tames you and forces you to be commercially sensitive or make you think more about what people would buy into. With my own work there is less censorship or softened edges, it's much freer. I don't care about whether people wanted a trendy, easily digestible piece of art in there living room. I need to find this out for myself and actually do it first. It would be great to start making large paintings again. I haven't dedicated enough time to making my own work since my college days, hopefully I will find some time soon.
Who and/or what have influenced your illustration work?
I would love to be asked what 'doesn't' inspire me, because there would be plenty on that list and it would be much more fun to answer. Alas, here we go: musicians, directors, painters, comedians, relationships, nature, ugliness, beauty, hidden truths, fantasy, desire, escapism, hidden lies, cliches, outsider art, uncompromising mavericks and radicals, banality, needing money, killing time, impressing girls, a recent Picasso exhibition in Malaga, subcultures and oblivion, that about sums it up for the moment. Oh I forgot, I'm currently obsessed with spiders in my garden, this will undoubtedly have a huge influence on my work someday.
I would just like backtrack and talk about the Picasso exhibition I just went to, which was in the town he was born in. I'd forgotten how remarkable he was as an artist, I think this is because he's so embedded in the fine arts hall of fame alongside the likes of Dali or Turner, and you tend to ignore them because they are so overly familiar and obvious, you end up taking them for granted. But seeing his work for the first time probably since I was a teenager really reminded me how amazing he was, not only as a draftsman but as a thinker also, and it was this aspect that really grabbed my attention. His work symbolizes a type of creative thinking that is so raw and anarchic, it made me realize what I liked about art in the first place, and it really derives from that childish curiosity which I really hope I hold onto.
First, what doesn't inspire you?
Oh dear, I set myself up for that. How do I answer this without sounding too negative? I find people's relentless support of mediocrity quite uninspiring. It frustrates me that many people are satisfied with with what is handed to them and choose not to ask questions or think for themselves. Whether it be through music, art, or anything else, I demand that it takes me to somewhere I haven't been before, I like to feel things that are unfamiliar to me, it's good to be taken out of your safety zone and experience diversity.
I could list many things here. But I think one of the main things that I find uninspiring sometimes is yours truly, my own work ethic, and the occasional creative blocks that confront me, randomly and without reason. I happen to be fairly laid back about things, my lack of profligacy can sometimes bug me. I'm definitely not the type of person who needs to draw all the time, sometimes I wish I was though. Someone needs to lock me up in a room for six months, without Internet or social distractions, with just a pencil and a stack of paper, I think that could be the only way I would push my work harder, more efficiently. I would sacrifice my sanity though.
Second, regarding the Picasso and his "raw and anarchic" thought process, what do you think are the dangers of forgetting why you got involved with art in the first place?
I think you can become a bit of a slave to the process and loose a very raw compulsion to express yourself. I think I have lost a bit of that initial energy from when I was younger, and had the world in front of me and wanted to conquer it. But those desires were naive. The essence of that hunger was quite powerful and innocent, but I had yet to discover the reality that is competition. I'm more realistic about everything now. I think this question ties in with what I said before about making my own art. When I was younger, I didn't want to compromise at all. I rejected tutors' advice and wanted to do everything by myself. I think I would like to return one day to that kind of stubbornness. I think my work would enhance because of it, but this time I would be more disciplined. When I'm in a creative rut, I do tend to go back to the start and look at work that sparked everything off for me, just to remind me of how I felt.
Do you think childish curiosity is a trait that gets lost too easily?
Yes I do. Many people think growing up is all about removing that from the system, but I think you have to hold onto it. I gravitate towards people who still maintain it, they're much more fun to be around. There is a distinction between having a sense of your inner child and being immature. I think if you are a creative, having that sense of play and spontaneity is very key to producing exciting and original work. I mentioned before that I became quite self-conscious about my work. I think I'm re-teaching myself to be more childlike when I draw. A child doesn't have any critical analysis when they create things, they just get on with it, whether it's crap or not. The emotional attachment is in the process and the final result is always brilliant in a kid's mind. it's very hard to be like that again, but I'll keep trying.
12/02/10
Block Magazine. Fame issue.
http://www.theblock-mag.com/magazine/
(scroll down for article)
Tracing Fragments
Sam Green distorts reality for his surreal pencil portraits.
Words Carol Eid
If London-based illustrator Sam Green’s art were an animal, it would be a chameleon. Just when you think you’ve got his style figured out, Green changes colour.
“Most illustrators identify a style straight away and then they stick with it,” he says in a clipped English accent, then pauses to drag on his cigarette and adds, “but I’ve never been comfortable doing that. I’m just always restless when there are so many things I see in my work that I can imagine leading to other places.” Shuffling on his seat to put his three-quarter length tweed jacket back on, he asks me if I would prefer to be indoors – he has chosen an alfresco pub table on a sidewalk to talk of art, watch passers-by, and smoke.
The buzz about Green’s art has grown steadily since he graduated with his Masters from St. Martins College of Art and Design in 2005. But the illustrator, whose work breathes fresh air into traditional portraiture by combining highly detailed pencil sketches with digital embellishments, is modest about how he earned his current hot-young-talent status. “I owe a lot to the bloggers,” he says, referring to the attention he’s received from sites like Notcot, booooooom!, and Design You Trust. “It’s where most of my work comes from.”
The black and white piece that first caught the eye of online art connoisseurs, Treading Water, depicts a boy’s floating body dissolving into graphic squiggles. It is still his most popular piece today, with the highest number of hits on his website. It’s also the springboard for all his pencil work that revisits the theme of water. “I have always been interested in figurative art and portraiture and I just love the abstract quality of water,” he says. “With the fragmentation of the light, of the body, it’s just very dynamic and strong and I just love the abstract detail that it captures. It’s basically energy and it’s really fucking hard to draw.”
Green may love the challenge of translating water to pencil and paper, but his restless nature has led him to experiment liberally with style. It’s this flexibility that has landed him an array of commissions, from an animation for a giant-sized Zoetrope for a Sony Bravia ad with Ridley Scott’s advertising company RSA, to surreal, sharp pencil portraits for Esquire, Wallpaper, and Dazed & Confused magazines. Within the frame of a single work, conflicting elements are encouraged to coexist – a realistic drawing veiled by a surreal foreground competing with vibrant colours. Despite this multifarious approach, there’s an unexpected continuity to his art.
“Certain visual flourishes or aspects of my work always pop up,” he says of his signature stylized, pencil-drawn version of a brushstroke superimposed over an image. “It’s quite specific,” he adds, pointing to what he calls shard shapes, or abstract markings on a largely realistic portrait. “These are the kind of digital flourishes that people pick up on, otherwise it’s not that interesting if it’s just a drawing of a person or an object that’s being copied … I guess it’s the idea of distorting the reality and putting things on top that take it to another place or give the piece an atmosphere.”
Despite his current successes, Green’s plans for the future involve more chameleonic changes. “I’m not too comfortable with just being a portraiture illustrator,” he readily admits, alluding to ideas to merge his hand-made typography with images to make a graphic book. “I want to take my work into more exciting areas, and create worlds that still have that sense of surrealism.”
This much is clear: whatever world Green chooses to inhabit, he’s destined to stand out rather than blend in.
01/02/10
I have been featured in Title magazine No 06
http://www.titlemagazine.net/current.php
Title is a publication that explores innovative forms of art from artists working with various mediums in visual art, design, music and fashion. Based in Orange County, California.
Following article written by Garret Yim
When the common person is asked to define art tangibly, whether it be by a narrowing textbook definition, an example of a piece, or all around approach to creation, most would begin to describe it as having a sort of possession of clarity; a distinct line of sorts for which this art is able to flow across and present itself. While the work of Hackney, London based illustrator, Sam Green, may look like it can be characterized by a meticulous process of planning and thinking due to its high focus on details, especially to that of the realism ( and sometimes, deformity) of the human form, this is actually quite the opposite.
“I am too impatient to plan things, I work as fast as I can, people think I must be very patient to draw in such detail but I’m not at all, I’m very impulsive and just go with my instincts. I have never liked art that is too contrived or too skilled, which might seem like a contradiction when you see my work, I really appreciate more primitive forms of expression”
Not only instinctually, but without any influence does Sam Green try to press on with his own work.
“I think its good to block out external influences and try to evolve on your own and try to come up with original ideas, and then when it feels right sek out things that inspire you. I have always wanted creative independence and hopefullt I will gradually achieve this, but it takes a while... I am certainly influenced by people atritudes towards creativity more so than the actual work itself.”
Primitivism is perhaps a great wat to describe the work od Green. Although there is a great sense of craftsmanship in his illustrations, there lies a sort of raw quality in it as well; in one sense, his ability to contort and manipulate the human body. Equally emotive of both feelings of beauty, and even perhaps, suffering, his ‘Untitled’ works are perhaps the best in conveying the human form, as they go beyond the scope of familiarity that we associate with how human beings look, delving into something deeper, and more haunting. The human forms depict coloured shapes almost akin to that od organs and tissue matter, and the decay inside of us that we cannot see. Despite all this, some would take this statement with an ounce of contradiction, as they are perhaps the least ‘realistic’ in comparison to some of his other illustrations.
“It feels natural fro me to draw the human form, I think there is something direct and obviously familiar with the human body and face, and I find distortion and deconstruction of the human form very strange and powerful to look at”
Perhaps just as noteworthy are not only the human forms themselves, but also the specific people they’re portraying, as can be seen with his illustrations of the movie Wild Zero ( a Japanese cult zombie film featuring Guitar Wolf), Snoop Dogg and singer of the Fall, Mark E. Smith, Green is an avid fan of, and appreciator, of music.
"I really like anything that has an uncompromising sound and thats is different, I'm not sure what is happening at the moment, there seems to be so much talent out there but I still keep going back to musical movements of the 70's and early 80's, I love bands like Can, PIL, The Fall, Silver Apples, Stooges, Ramones....."
But even with the use of familiar faces, Green's illustrations are still highly innovative and appealing beyond one's own personal opinion of the musicians he's portrayed.
Vividly coloured or black and white, severely contorted or startlingly realistic, the images that Sam Green creates span the border, whether waling the line of the beautifully serene or the narrow pathway of the near avante-garde, they all retain an immense sense of individuality. Aspiring artists should take heed of what he has to say:
"Don't let the buggers get you down, keep on keeping on! relentless, force, talent, a dash of politeness and charm are all key."
26/11/09
Computer Arts 169 Inspiration Workshop
3 page article in the inspiration section of computer arts 169, where I discuss my working methods.
08/09
Computer Arts 164
'New Adventures in Colour'
{
http://diegoguevara.com/blog/2011/09/30/theeblog-qa-sessions-sam-green/#more-7688
Welcome Sam and thank you for accepting my invitation. I am a big fan of your work and I am truly excited to have you as a guest today. Let’s begin…
Could you please describe your work?
My work is a mixed bag really, I never felt it was important to settle into one signature style although you can see a few different visual strains developing in my folio. Essentially I draw detailed, realistic imagery that has a surreal, abstract twist to it. A lot of the work is quite playful and abstract, I think the work tends to be quite enigmatic in most cases.
How and when did you get started as an Illustrator?
It was during my foundation course that I realized I could be an illustrator, although I always had concerns about making any money. I had never considered any other job so just followed it through, it was a very natural process. I then went on to do a Bachelors in Illustration and then a Masters at Central St martins in London in 2005. We had a final show in the center of London which attracted many people, I was fortunate enough to be contacted by a few well known companies. I also joined an agency fairly soon after. Gradually my work became more exposed through various blogs and exhibitions so jobs became more frequent.
When did you realize you were good at it and that you could do it professionally?
I knew from a very early age that I had abilities and a natural confidence when drawing but I never had any confidence or ambitions to do it for a living. I had a very simplistic attitude towards drawing which was, I like it, it makes me feel good and everyone else enjoys it so I’ll keep doing it, nothing has change really. Even right up until my Masters I didn’t feel very confident about going out into the real world but it all clicked when I got my first commission that I could do it and make a living from it, I was very happy when I got that first pay check, it gave me my first real sense of validation about my work and I was excited about where it would go.
Who was your first client?
My first client was Random House publishers, they called me as soon as my final MA show finished and asked me to do a book cover.
Is there a ‘technique’ or process that characterizes your work?
I am fairly dependant on photographic reference for my images, I like to take elements from photographs and mix them together and then draw them, or create abstract imagery over the top. I work with a light-box in order to achieve accurate detail or just to refine a sketch. I work mainly with pencil and Photoshop.
What inspires your illustrations?
It really could be anything, a mood, an idea, a brief, music etc I find my own work feeds itself a lot. I would say that humour and surrealism often inspires me to create work, I have always been drawn to surrealism, the old idea of putting two random objects together in order to make something new, it’s all very instinctive really. I often look back to the past for inspiration, I like finding really old obscure design/illustration. I collect imagery online from various sources and have a slide show on my desktop to keep me stimulated.
I’ve always believed that working on personal projects that allow you to express your talent and creativity are crucial for professional artists, designers, illustrators, etc. Do you work on personal illustrations or projects often?
At the beginning of my career I would work obsessively on my own stuff all the time, of course I had the time because work was scarce. My personal work is the most important thing to me, it’s what has got me the attention in the first place. Companies want to see that you have had commercial experience also but the personal work has a more powerful effect on the viewer usually because it’s freer and more inspired I would say, it displays your own artistic vision and people are drawn to that.
Your impressive portfolio features many big league clients and commercial work. How does this type of work differ from personal work? Do you feel it constrains you (considering timelines, requisites, etc) or do you feel it pushes you to work harder and try new things?
Sometimes it pushes you to try other things and you get nice surprises and sometimes it ties you up in knots and it can feel restricting. For the most part it has benefited my work greatly, I have got to a point where I am actually fairly dependant on someone else planting a seed in my head so that I can do the rest, it’s quite strange really. A lot of the work I do, I would never even think of making myself but it does produce unexpected outcomes sometimes which is great.
You recently visited Japan -after the terrible earthquake that destroyed many cities and villages- How powerful was this visit and how did it impact you on a personal and artistic level?
The earthquake hit Japan 2 weeks before my flight, me and my girlfriend thought it would be best to postpone it for another month, even though it still felt risky because of the worrying nuclear developments but my heart had been set on going there for so long, so off we went. We didn’t go anywhere near the effected zones and didn’t witness the devastation or meet any of the victims. The rest of the country was very normal and there were no signs of panic. The strange thing was that we felt like the only tourists in Japan, there were no westerners there at all so we had it all to ourselves and it was probably the best trip I have ever been on. For art and beauty there is nothing like it, the Japanese were such innovators when it came to image making, composition, and printing techniques. The Edo period block prints with all their attention to detail had a huge influence on western artists and it’s no wonder because it’s so advanced and so stunning to look at. We went into antique stores that were selling these tiny, delicate illustrated books which were 300 year old. We were aloud to flick through them and they contained the most incredible ornate illustrations. I was also taken back by their striking sense of colour in their artwork, it’s no surprise when you witness the natural beauty that surrounds them and the way they harmonize this with the architecture, it’s quite breathtaking. I think the Japanese people are very sensitive and have an amazing sense of fantasy which imbues everything around them. I think my eye’s were being educated all the time whilst I was there.
This trip also inspired you to create an amazing new poster, which you recently released and is available for sale, benefiting the victims of this natural disaster. Tell us about it!
I was grappling with an idea for quite a while, and wanted to create a unique and powerful image. I was looking at the work of Shigeo Fukuda who is a legendary poster designer from Japan so his work had a direct influence. I wanted to incorporate the destruction and debris from the aftermath of the quake and take it out of context and make it look beautiful somehow. The Sumo represents the strength and defiance that the Japanese people usually display in these national disasters, the debris cuts through him yet he still remains uneffected by it. The type used was designed by London based design duo, Sawdust. The last part of the text on the poster says, ‘7 Fall, 8 Rise’ this is the literal translation of the Japanese Kanji symbols that come from an old Japanese Buddhist proverb meaning that you will fall down 7 times during your life but you must get back up 8 times. I thought this was a perfect message to accompany the poster.
Any other illustrators, past or current, that you admire or follow?
I don’t tend to look at contemporary Illustration too much any more, I’m much more interested in fine art and design right now. I do really love a blog called ‘50 watts’ which is great because they seek old illustrated books or prints from places like Romania and find these wonderful gems that you would have never seen otherwise.
Any advice you would like to share with other illustrators, students or artists reading this interview?
Get chummy with the graphic designers on your courses because one day they’ll want to commission you for work.
Any interesting projects you are currently working on now?
I have just completed a second front cover for a political magazine in Sweden called Neo. Both covers are totally different in terms of style and tackle meaty subjects. One is about Sex crime and the latest one was about human rights. I have also just finished work for a Pizza Express campaign which is due for release at the end of this month all over the UK.
Dazed Digital interview. August 2011
http://www.dazeddigital.com/artsandculture/article/11189/1/rise-sam-green
Sam Green is an illustrator from London. The Popshot Magazine has recently picked Sam’s image ‘The Aftershock’ from illustrations it has featured in the past two years and turned it into a collectable art print. Sam’s uniqueness lies in his ability to create images that carry astonishing energy. Unleashing the unruly, unconscious urges through the use of primitivism and gripping us to observe in awe the abstract detail reminiscent to the tranquillity of water – the drawings are simultaneously exciting and calming. Sam’s love for experimentation means he is constantly finding original ways to depict his subjects, never failing to amaze and always assuring a fresh perspective.
Dazed Digital: Which five adjectives best describe you?
Sam Green: Good, bad, brilliant, thoughtful, absent.
DD: Tell us about what you do and why you do it?
Sam Green: I make art for commercial and non-commercial purposes. I do it because I'm good at it and it gives me great pleasure.
DD: Your approach is very versatile. Do you have a favourite style?
Sam Green: My favourite ways of working change from time to time, I don't really have a favourite, it all falls under the umbrella of Abstract Realism or just plain old Surrealism if you like. I’ve always been interested in making images not creating a style.
DD: Where do you get your ideas and how do you develop them?
Sam Green: My ideas come from many different sources. I draw lots of rough ideas down on A4 sheets of paper and keep the most interesting drawings in folders for later use. I often just doodle a stream of consciousness and ideas grow in fairly abstract and organic ways. I use photography as a springboard for a lot of work and then add to it by improvising or combining random elements together to make something completely new. Ideas can come from anywhere. I do give great value to idleness and practising the art of visualisation, you have to rely on your own imagination and instincts a lot.
DD: Cure for a creative block?
Sam Green: Getting out of your workspace often helps and discussing your ideas with others.
DD: Who or what has been the biggest influence on your work and why?
Sam Green: I should think growing up fairly isolated in the countryside with an art teacher for a father had a considerable influence. The history of Western music and art has been a huge influence, mainly the artistic endeavours throughout the 20th Century. That sounds vague, but without it there would be no desire to what I'm doing now, there is just too much stuff to pick out. I guess I’ve always been drawn to the Avant-Garde, whether it's pop music or fine art, I like work that is strange, uncompromising and emotive.
DD: How is your personal work different from your commercial work?
Sam Green: Usually my commercial work is not as rewarding as my personal work. My personal work is far more experimental and probably a lot less palatable. My commercial work is very varied at the moment, using different drawing styles, ranging from character illustration to very detailed photorealism. Each project is different and I end up producing work that I would have never made without the clients involvement.
DD: Do you have plans to exhibit your art at a gallery any time soon?
Sam Green: No not soon, I would love to but I'm looking for a gap in my commercial activities so I can create some new work with an exhibition in mind. Watch this space...
DD: What artists do you like at the moment?
Sam Green: Daniel Sparkes, Killian Eng, Albín Brunovský, Luke Rudolf, Harry Clarke.
DD: Who is your favourite hero of fiction?
Sam Green: God, who else?
Text by Darya Antonovna Papko
08/10/10
Recent interview at Computerlove
http://www.cpluv.com/
Let's Talk, Sam Green
East London illustrator Sam Green has created a progressive body of work. (Photo: Per Gustafson)
By Matthew Newton | Senior Editor
Experimentation is at the heart of what illustrator Sam Green does, though the 29-year-old believes his work is tame when compared to the expectations he holds. His illustrative work, first rendered meticulously by hand then digitally embellished to achieve the desired effect, has been gaining widespread recognition in recent years. As a result, Green has been commissioned by clients such as Esquire, Random House, and Dazed & Confused, to name a few. Though he has aspirations to potentially pursue fine art in the future, his current focus is on tackling challenging new commercial work while retaining his childlike curiosity.
What attracted you to illustration, and why?
From a very early age I was compelled to draw images, and very much enjoyed observational drawing as well as designing characters and making comics etc., so it was a natural development. Around the age of 17, my artistic sensibility really took off when I was exposed to painters like Jasper Johns, Robert Rauschenberg, Warhol, and Basquait, and at that stage all I wanted to do was paint. It was when I enrolled in my foundation course that I fully realized my potential. I started to discover established Illustrators work, and I was really inspired to follow in their footsteps and become a professional creative myself. I looked at high-profile work and thought I could do it just as well and it excited me to think that my work would be exposed to a larger audience other than family and friends, although at that stage I naively thought I would become established much quicker than I have.
What's been the toughest part of establishing yourself?
It's been quite tricky to get a balance between being financially stable and getting the type of work I want. I've had to compromise my creative urges many times before by seeking various types of Illustration jobs that were for paying bills. I'm glad I've done this though, because I have acquired a broad range of skills, such as being able to draw up storyboards quickly, character designing, concept art, etc. I worked as an in-house illustrator for over a year and the money was fantastic, but by the end I was feeling frustrated that I wasn't making enough of my own work, so I went back to square one and started again. There has been a creative struggle also, and I think a pressure to be style specific. I've had agencies tell me that they would feel more confident about taking me on board if I establish a more consistent style before they "think" about representing me, which I think is just a waste of my time. I used to give myself a rough time with the work in the past, and get quite frustrated about other contemporaries gaining success quicker than me, but I'm a lot more Zen about it all now. I'm happy with my situation, a lot less self conscious.
Your illustrations are done by hand, then digitally embellished. Are there some elements in an illustration that are best done by hand, while others are better served by digital tools?
The initial drawing is very important, it's the backbone to an illustration. I spend a long time making sure the drawing has the level of detail I require, sometimes when there is not enough time I'll take short cuts and rely on the computer to disguise certain things. I use Photoshop to enhance atmosphere and alter compositions, whether it be with color, textures, or for the shadows and highlights. I will amplify certain details or remove them and generally clean up the drawing, the computer is now an important part of the process, it just makes life a lot easier.
I noticed that your work is comprised primarily of commercial commissions. Is client work your long-term goal? Or do you have plans to pursue other avenues, such as fine art?
I'm really embracing commercial work right now. I used to experiment a lot on my own, and felt this was the best way to push my work forward, but now I'm discovering that a client's brief or an art director can force me to make work that I wouldn't have made by myself. Occasionally it can backfire, but I find in most cases it enhances the work, even when I hate every minute of it.
My personal work is always going on in the background. I'm currently making work that is a completely different style and approach to the work you see on my website. There are many directions I can go with making Illustration, and I have always been a bit of a magpie when it comes making art. I intend to explore the various possibilities the best I can. I'll continue making my own art and would eventually love to start selling work in galleries.
Without deadlines imposed by clients, do you think your work would be different?
My work would be very different I think. Whether you like it not, the industry, to a certain extent, tames you and forces you to be commercially sensitive or make you think more about what people would buy into. With my own work there is less censorship or softened edges, it's much freer. I don't care about whether people wanted a trendy, easily digestible piece of art in there living room. I need to find this out for myself and actually do it first. It would be great to start making large paintings again. I haven't dedicated enough time to making my own work since my college days, hopefully I will find some time soon.
Who and/or what have influenced your illustration work?
I would love to be asked what 'doesn't' inspire me, because there would be plenty on that list and it would be much more fun to answer. Alas, here we go: musicians, directors, painters, comedians, relationships, nature, ugliness, beauty, hidden truths, fantasy, desire, escapism, hidden lies, cliches, outsider art, uncompromising mavericks and radicals, banality, needing money, killing time, impressing girls, a recent Picasso exhibition in Malaga, subcultures and oblivion, that about sums it up for the moment. Oh I forgot, I'm currently obsessed with spiders in my garden, this will undoubtedly have a huge influence on my work someday.
I would just like backtrack and talk about the Picasso exhibition I just went to, which was in the town he was born in. I'd forgotten how remarkable he was as an artist, I think this is because he's so embedded in the fine arts hall of fame alongside the likes of Dali or Turner, and you tend to ignore them because they are so overly familiar and obvious, you end up taking them for granted. But seeing his work for the first time probably since I was a teenager really reminded me how amazing he was, not only as a draftsman but as a thinker also, and it was this aspect that really grabbed my attention. His work symbolizes a type of creative thinking that is so raw and anarchic, it made me realize what I liked about art in the first place, and it really derives from that childish curiosity which I really hope I hold onto.
First, what doesn't inspire you?
Oh dear, I set myself up for that. How do I answer this without sounding too negative? I find people's relentless support of mediocrity quite uninspiring. It frustrates me that many people are satisfied with with what is handed to them and choose not to ask questions or think for themselves. Whether it be through music, art, or anything else, I demand that it takes me to somewhere I haven't been before, I like to feel things that are unfamiliar to me, it's good to be taken out of your safety zone and experience diversity.
I could list many things here. But I think one of the main things that I find uninspiring sometimes is yours truly, my own work ethic, and the occasional creative blocks that confront me, randomly and without reason. I happen to be fairly laid back about things, my lack of profligacy can sometimes bug me. I'm definitely not the type of person who needs to draw all the time, sometimes I wish I was though. Someone needs to lock me up in a room for six months, without Internet or social distractions, with just a pencil and a stack of paper, I think that could be the only way I would push my work harder, more efficiently. I would sacrifice my sanity though.
Second, regarding the Picasso and his "raw and anarchic" thought process, what do you think are the dangers of forgetting why you got involved with art in the first place?
I think you can become a bit of a slave to the process and loose a very raw compulsion to express yourself. I think I have lost a bit of that initial energy from when I was younger, and had the world in front of me and wanted to conquer it. But those desires were naive. The essence of that hunger was quite powerful and innocent, but I had yet to discover the reality that is competition. I'm more realistic about everything now. I think this question ties in with what I said before about making my own art. When I was younger, I didn't want to compromise at all. I rejected tutors' advice and wanted to do everything by myself. I think I would like to return one day to that kind of stubbornness. I think my work would enhance because of it, but this time I would be more disciplined. When I'm in a creative rut, I do tend to go back to the start and look at work that sparked everything off for me, just to remind me of how I felt.
Do you think childish curiosity is a trait that gets lost too easily?
Yes I do. Many people think growing up is all about removing that from the system, but I think you have to hold onto it. I gravitate towards people who still maintain it, they're much more fun to be around. There is a distinction between having a sense of your inner child and being immature. I think if you are a creative, having that sense of play and spontaneity is very key to producing exciting and original work. I mentioned before that I became quite self-conscious about my work. I think I'm re-teaching myself to be more childlike when I draw. A child doesn't have any critical analysis when they create things, they just get on with it, whether it's crap or not. The emotional attachment is in the process and the final result is always brilliant in a kid's mind. it's very hard to be like that again, but I'll keep trying.
12/02/10
Block Magazine. Fame issue.
http://www.theblock-mag.com/magazine/
(scroll down for article)
Tracing Fragments
Sam Green distorts reality for his surreal pencil portraits.
Words Carol Eid
If London-based illustrator Sam Green’s art were an animal, it would be a chameleon. Just when you think you’ve got his style figured out, Green changes colour.
“Most illustrators identify a style straight away and then they stick with it,” he says in a clipped English accent, then pauses to drag on his cigarette and adds, “but I’ve never been comfortable doing that. I’m just always restless when there are so many things I see in my work that I can imagine leading to other places.” Shuffling on his seat to put his three-quarter length tweed jacket back on, he asks me if I would prefer to be indoors – he has chosen an alfresco pub table on a sidewalk to talk of art, watch passers-by, and smoke.
The buzz about Green’s art has grown steadily since he graduated with his Masters from St. Martins College of Art and Design in 2005. But the illustrator, whose work breathes fresh air into traditional portraiture by combining highly detailed pencil sketches with digital embellishments, is modest about how he earned his current hot-young-talent status. “I owe a lot to the bloggers,” he says, referring to the attention he’s received from sites like Notcot, booooooom!, and Design You Trust. “It’s where most of my work comes from.”
The black and white piece that first caught the eye of online art connoisseurs, Treading Water, depicts a boy’s floating body dissolving into graphic squiggles. It is still his most popular piece today, with the highest number of hits on his website. It’s also the springboard for all his pencil work that revisits the theme of water. “I have always been interested in figurative art and portraiture and I just love the abstract quality of water,” he says. “With the fragmentation of the light, of the body, it’s just very dynamic and strong and I just love the abstract detail that it captures. It’s basically energy and it’s really fucking hard to draw.”
Green may love the challenge of translating water to pencil and paper, but his restless nature has led him to experiment liberally with style. It’s this flexibility that has landed him an array of commissions, from an animation for a giant-sized Zoetrope for a Sony Bravia ad with Ridley Scott’s advertising company RSA, to surreal, sharp pencil portraits for Esquire, Wallpaper, and Dazed & Confused magazines. Within the frame of a single work, conflicting elements are encouraged to coexist – a realistic drawing veiled by a surreal foreground competing with vibrant colours. Despite this multifarious approach, there’s an unexpected continuity to his art.
“Certain visual flourishes or aspects of my work always pop up,” he says of his signature stylized, pencil-drawn version of a brushstroke superimposed over an image. “It’s quite specific,” he adds, pointing to what he calls shard shapes, or abstract markings on a largely realistic portrait. “These are the kind of digital flourishes that people pick up on, otherwise it’s not that interesting if it’s just a drawing of a person or an object that’s being copied … I guess it’s the idea of distorting the reality and putting things on top that take it to another place or give the piece an atmosphere.”
Despite his current successes, Green’s plans for the future involve more chameleonic changes. “I’m not too comfortable with just being a portraiture illustrator,” he readily admits, alluding to ideas to merge his hand-made typography with images to make a graphic book. “I want to take my work into more exciting areas, and create worlds that still have that sense of surrealism.”
This much is clear: whatever world Green chooses to inhabit, he’s destined to stand out rather than blend in.
01/02/10
I have been featured in Title magazine No 06
http://www.titlemagazine.net/current.php
Title is a publication that explores innovative forms of art from artists working with various mediums in visual art, design, music and fashion. Based in Orange County, California.
Following article written by Garret Yim
When the common person is asked to define art tangibly, whether it be by a narrowing textbook definition, an example of a piece, or all around approach to creation, most would begin to describe it as having a sort of possession of clarity; a distinct line of sorts for which this art is able to flow across and present itself. While the work of Hackney, London based illustrator, Sam Green, may look like it can be characterized by a meticulous process of planning and thinking due to its high focus on details, especially to that of the realism ( and sometimes, deformity) of the human form, this is actually quite the opposite.
“I am too impatient to plan things, I work as fast as I can, people think I must be very patient to draw in such detail but I’m not at all, I’m very impulsive and just go with my instincts. I have never liked art that is too contrived or too skilled, which might seem like a contradiction when you see my work, I really appreciate more primitive forms of expression”
Not only instinctually, but without any influence does Sam Green try to press on with his own work.
“I think its good to block out external influences and try to evolve on your own and try to come up with original ideas, and then when it feels right sek out things that inspire you. I have always wanted creative independence and hopefullt I will gradually achieve this, but it takes a while... I am certainly influenced by people atritudes towards creativity more so than the actual work itself.”
Primitivism is perhaps a great wat to describe the work od Green. Although there is a great sense of craftsmanship in his illustrations, there lies a sort of raw quality in it as well; in one sense, his ability to contort and manipulate the human body. Equally emotive of both feelings of beauty, and even perhaps, suffering, his ‘Untitled’ works are perhaps the best in conveying the human form, as they go beyond the scope of familiarity that we associate with how human beings look, delving into something deeper, and more haunting. The human forms depict coloured shapes almost akin to that od organs and tissue matter, and the decay inside of us that we cannot see. Despite all this, some would take this statement with an ounce of contradiction, as they are perhaps the least ‘realistic’ in comparison to some of his other illustrations.
“It feels natural fro me to draw the human form, I think there is something direct and obviously familiar with the human body and face, and I find distortion and deconstruction of the human form very strange and powerful to look at”
Perhaps just as noteworthy are not only the human forms themselves, but also the specific people they’re portraying, as can be seen with his illustrations of the movie Wild Zero ( a Japanese cult zombie film featuring Guitar Wolf), Snoop Dogg and singer of the Fall, Mark E. Smith, Green is an avid fan of, and appreciator, of music.
"I really like anything that has an uncompromising sound and thats is different, I'm not sure what is happening at the moment, there seems to be so much talent out there but I still keep going back to musical movements of the 70's and early 80's, I love bands like Can, PIL, The Fall, Silver Apples, Stooges, Ramones....."
But even with the use of familiar faces, Green's illustrations are still highly innovative and appealing beyond one's own personal opinion of the musicians he's portrayed.
Vividly coloured or black and white, severely contorted or startlingly realistic, the images that Sam Green creates span the border, whether waling the line of the beautifully serene or the narrow pathway of the near avante-garde, they all retain an immense sense of individuality. Aspiring artists should take heed of what he has to say:
"Don't let the buggers get you down, keep on keeping on! relentless, force, talent, a dash of politeness and charm are all key."
26/11/09
Computer Arts 169 Inspiration Workshop
3 page article in the inspiration section of computer arts 169, where I discuss my working methods.
08/09
Computer Arts 164
'New Adventures in Colour'
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