Computer Arts Gallery: May 2010

Tom Pearson
Location Manchester, UK
Job Illustrator
Contact www.madebykatari.co.uk

When he's not indulging his love of character design, freelance illustrator Tom Pearson can be found developing his portfolio under the alias of Katari. The 24-year-old Mancunian graduated from Salford University with a BA (Hons) in graphic design last year - and hasn't looked back.

"Throughout my degree, a growing sense of feeling creatively restrained combined with a love of character design eventually led me down the illustration route," he explains. "Modern artists such as Peskimo and Tado have been a huge influence in helping me see contemporary character-based illustration as a career path."

Pearson enjoys mixing likeable, almost innocent-looking characters with hidden shades of a more sinister nature. "I'd eventually love to be able to create my own vinyl toy and see one of my characters come to life," he says.

World of McDonald's Pearson produced this large-scale design for a recent competition held by McDonald's. "I used to be obsessed with the characters covering the walls at Maccy D's, and liked the idea of creating something that might provide the same sort of entertainment to a kid today," he says.

Tom Pearson
Location Manchester, UK
Job Illustrator
Contact www.madebykatari.co.uk

When he's not indulging his love of character design, freelance illustrator Tom Pearson can be found developing his portfolio under the alias of Katari. The 24-year-old Mancunian graduated from Salford University with a BA (Hons) in graphic design last year - and hasn't looked back.

"Throughout my degree, a growing sense of feeling creatively restrained combined with a love of character design eventually led me down the illustration route," he explains. "Modern artists such as Peskimo and Tado have been a huge influence in helping me see contemporary character-based illustration as a career path."

Pearson enjoys mixing likeable, almost innocent-looking characters with hidden shades of a more sinister nature. "I'd eventually love to be able to create my own vinyl toy and see one of my characters come to life," he says.

Good, Bad and Ugly An experiment with seamless vector patterns in Illustrator, Pearson is particularly pleased with the sense of "controlled chaos" evoked by the project. "It was my first piece of work in this style," he says.

Jack Richardson
Location Cambridge, UK
Job Graphic designer
Contact www.standinginafield.com

Despite having a background in fine art, Jack Richardson says his work has always edged towards graphic design. Based in Cambridge, he lists alternative culture, extreme sports and his rural upbringing among his primary influences.

While he admits that an obsession with "the simple and the complex" often shines through his designs, Richardson rejects the notion of having one overriding style: "At university I could never see a 'style' in my projects. It was about creating the best solution possible for the brief, and everything else would subconsciously come through. In the next five years I want to take the next step - to have worked with different clients and met new people in new places."

2010 Typography experiment A recent project to explore typography "from a new angle", this font is based on a series of rules and constraints. "My obsession with simple shapes and space played a part in the creation of this piece," Richardson grins. "It was also partly to do with a lack of funds to buy my favourite typefaces."

Jack Richardson
Location Cambridge, UK
Job Graphic designer
Contact www.standinginafield.com

Despite having a background in fine art, Jack Richardson says his work has always edged towards graphic design. Based in Cambridge, he lists alternative culture, extreme sports and his rural upbringing among his primary influences.

While he admits that an obsession with "the simple and the complex" often shines through his designs, Richardson rejects the notion of having one overriding style: "At university I could never see a 'style' in my projects. It was about creating the best solution possible for the brief, and everything else would subconsciously come through. In the next five years I want to take the next step - to have worked with different clients and met new people in new places."

FMP (Board sport design through the decades) Richardson's final major project at university saw him creating a visual guide for the three most popular board sports: snowboarding, surfing and skateboarding. "I documented popular traits in shape, colour, type and brands, before creating posters, deck designs and a guide book referencing my findings," he says.

Jonathan Budenz
Location Paris, France
Job Graphic designer
Contact www.thisisjobudenz.com

Paris-based Jonathan Budenz is passionate about all things design: "I love graphic design, type, photography and illustration," the 24-year-old enthuses. "I'm always trying to find a way to mix photography and typography into a graphic alchemy. I like to put elements in order and then disorder; to break them and fix them - and finally get a really good composition."

Initially interested in special effects, and later obsessed by poster art, it wasn't until his teenage years that Budenz realised his calling as a graphic designer. "A lot of my work is influenced by design from the south of Europe - from Alex Trochut, for example - but my inspiration comes from everywhere: books, paintings, TV, things you see on the street.

"I like to make visuals that are weird but elegant at the same time; a kind of 'abstract realism'. It's just the beginning for my style - there's so much experimenting to be done."

Freat A personal project, 'Freat' is a negative and humorous vision of food in the near-future that combines photography with typographic design. "The two pages are intrinsically linked," he says. "The text explains the picture."

Jonathan Budenz
Location Paris, France
Job Graphic designer
Contact www.thisisjobudenz.com

Paris-based Jonathan Budenz is passionate about all things design: "I love graphic design, type, photography and illustration," the 24-year-old enthuses. "I'm always trying to find a way to mix photography and typography into a graphic alchemy. I like to put elements in order and then disorder; to break them and fix them - and finally get a really good composition."

Initially interested in special effects, and later obsessed by poster art, it wasn't until his teenage years that Budenz realised his calling as a graphic designer. "A lot of my work is influenced by design from the south of Europe - from Alex Trochut, for example - but my inspiration comes from everywhere: books, paintings, TV, things you see on the street.

"I like to make visuals that are weird but elegant at the same time; a kind of 'abstract realism'. It's just the beginning for my style - there's so much experimenting to be done."

In the Between This is Budenz's interpretation of a near-death experience. "The concept was to analyse dreams and consciousness in the intermediate state," says Budenz. "It features peaceful or aggressive visuals, mixed with typography, natural and organic elements and various words."

David Bywater
Location Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA
Job Graphic designer/illustrator
Contact www.byh2ographics.com

David Bywater, AKA Byh2o, first become captivated by the graphic world aged 15, and has been "soaking up every texture, pattern and character" that's inspired him ever since. A firm believer in experimenting with new styles, he approaches each project differently and counts recording artists, production companies and local businesses among his clientele.

"I try to captivate viewers of my work with a sense of 'How did he do that?'" he says. "My style is bold, complex and catchy. The world is at my fingertips as far as textures and intricate complexities go."

As well as Steve Harrington and Meredith Dittmar, Bywater lists a range of influences, from Don Pendleton - the resident artist for Alien Workshop skateboards - to BerkVisual. "Part of being an artist is to be continually inspired," he reflects. "Being a designer means you get to create a perception of how the population sees a product, and that is ultimate power."

The Floozies Part of an ongoing branding project with electronic jazz group The Floozies, Bywater was commissioned to create an identity to the overall theme of 'music from outer space'. "I always try to incorporate spacey tones into their work," he says.

David Bywater
Location Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA
Job Graphic designer/illustrator
Contact www.byh2ographics.com

David Bywater, AKA Byh2o, first become captivated by the graphic world aged 15, and has been "soaking up every texture, pattern and character" that's inspired him ever since. A firm believer in experimenting with new styles, he approaches each project differently and counts recording artists, production companies and local businesses among his clientele.

"I try to captivate viewers of my work with a sense of 'How did he do that?'" he says. "My style is bold, complex and catchy. The world is at my fingertips as far as textures and intricate complexities go."

As well as Steve Harrington and Meredith Dittmar, Bywater lists a range of influences, from Don Pendleton - the resident artist for Alien Workshop skateboards - to BerkVisual. "Part of being an artist is to be continually inspired," he reflects. "Being a designer means you get to create a perception of how the population sees a product, and that is ultimate power."

Wakarusa 2009 Bywater's Wakarusa 2009 poster is a personal piece commemorating the annual music festival. "It's what people call 'LOL' artwork - the act of making your own artistic rendition of an event and then offering it in a limited amount," he explains.

David Carron
Location St Louis, USA
Job Graphic designer/Illustrator
Contact www.avadav.com

Predominantly self-taught, David Carron opted out of the traditional college route into the industry, choosing instead to pursue his career by concentrating on his portfolio. "It may not be the best way for everyone, but it's been beneficial for me," he says.

Since then, Carron has worked for a number of companies - including Beatport and Agency BBH - and is now freelancing under his creative identity, Avadav. "My style consists of a mixture [of] authentic, traditional illustration and vintage design elements. I like to use vivid abstract expressions and movement to capture a sense of flow when viewing each piece," he says. "I try and give my images an organic feel, to let the viewer decide where to look."

Lounge "My friend Cyrill Clunev helped kick-start this project with some of the main colours and bubble foundations," explains Carron. "I created a few objects in Illustrator to flow around the main model, and generated much of the vapour and bubble effects in Photoshop."

Cigna Spine
Location London, UK
Job Graphic designer
Contact www.cignaspine.com

With everything from three-dimensional paintings to an installation of handmade gothic kites inside his portfolio, one thing you wouldn't label Cigna Spine as is conventional. The London-based creative has been exploring a diverse range of paths - including running a T-shirt business with illustrator Ian Stevenson - since graduating with a BA in graphics from Camberwell College of Arts. "Over the last few years, I've rediscovered my love for painting and started creating a series of stylised designer landscapes, which I aim to exhibit later this year," he says.

Asked to design an album and two single covers for band Stained Glass Heroes, Spine created a visual theme that would run across the project via four abstract shapes. "I drew out the plans in Illustrator, printed them and built miniature models to ensure they fitted together correctly," he explains. "I commissioned a set designer to build the shapes, and worked with photographer Becky Maynes to light and shoot the band and design elements - first in a studio and then on location in a woodland in Essex for the video."

Circumstance All the typography for Stained Glass Heroes' Circumstance was created in Illustrator, while Spine produced the sky using acrylic, air brush and paper. "I then brought all the elements together in Photoshop and tweaked away until they were just right," he explains.