The Drawing Book // Latest Campaigns & News
March 4, 2010
Joe Whyte sets fire to agency
Joe Whyte illustrated 100 frames of flames and made them dance for Kiln.
March 3, 2010
Poise in Pose
BMF commissioned Kim and James to execute a series of illustrations of the Ryobi Samurai throwing down its moves.
March 2, 2010
Frantz Kantor takes screamer on the chin
Frantz Kantor stepped up to the plate at a time when most people would have shy'd away from what needed to be done. He didn't flinch because he was too intrigued by why it was being done. It was a campaign promoting Dodgeball?!
March 1, 2010
Burgers make me emotional
John Shakespeare is the human mint when it comes to the emotional currency of a human being and a McDonald's hamburger.
February 8, 2010
Hitachi Hero
Gerad Taylor was commissioned by Hitachi to complete an illustration that is to most illustrators what a hot chip is to seagulls. It was to design a battle suit for Hitachi that looked so real that people would be demanding them at their local hardware store.
February 8, 2010
Beautiful
We started posting the beginnings of Robin Eley's 1.8 metre by 1 metre masterpiece 4 months ago. Well now it's finished and as expected, it's incredible.
February 5, 2010
Brave Billmund steps up
Billmund is one of the newest recruits to Drawing Book Studios and when he first came in and presented his portfolio we knew he had something very rare inside him. Storyboard artists are a rare breed of penman.
February 4, 2010
Johan and the 3 bears
Johan Potma's artworks are always adorned with charming characters of his creation. This time however Uncle Toby's wanted to see his take on the three bears.
January 11, 2010
Happy New Year!!
This first news story for 2010 is a cracker of a campaign from Chris Wahl for sportswear brand, Skins.
Click to see Chris Wahl give the grit to celebrity athletes>>
December 2, 2009
Reindeer rips apart the heart strings of people everywhere
For all Billmund's loud colours, dark shaddows and impertinence he sure can draw a reindeer cute enough to melt snow.
November 23, 2009
Just a moment?
Frantz Kantor unravels the untold story of the life of a stone.
November 13, 2009
Parisian Peugeots
It's not just the streets of Paris that are romantic but the way in which Robin Eley draws them.
November 1, 2009
What would you like to drink?
When asked to illustrate the kind of couple you'd like to be hosted by Otto's poster art is the perfect answer. His perfectly portrayed people are welcoming to say the least.
Come on in and view the happy couple just by clicking here>>
November 1, 2009
Look! It's the Goodyear Blimp
When you bring back something as big as the Goodyear Blimp you need imagery that conveys scale. Gerad Taylor can do amazing things in very little time and the latest campaign for Good year is a perfect example.
November 1, 2009
Illustrated Dreams
To remove your self from reality with no limitations is the dream of every illustrator and is most likely what has kept Frantz Kantor pushing his own boundaries in illustration for so long.
November 1, 2009
Harley Heart
Ken Taylor would probably get into painting a mural in grease and oil if client changes didn't require flexibility. Illustrating a 3m high anatomically correct heart out of Harley motorcycle parts is probably as close as he'll get.
October 13, 2009
Illustration stands off with Photography
This month saw illustrator, Ken Taylor and one of our favourite photographers, Andreas Smetana put their craft to the test in one of Melbourne's darker back alleys. We cringed and feared for both, but the result was something brilliant.
Please click here or on the image left to witness what happened>>
October 22, 2009
Stage 3 of Robin Eley's Olive Grove
Since the last update Robin has moved from a scale of A3 to almost one and half metres wide. Click to gain an appreciation of exactly how striking an image can become when an artist like Robin Eley is allowed to branch out.
Please click here or on the image left to wander through the next stages of Robin's Olive Grove>>
October 9, 2009
7ft high rampaging Zodiac
When the brief came in for someone to illustrate a giant red behemoth to be printed at 7ft high we knew one person was going to enjoy the brief more than any other illustrator. Chris Wahl did a great job creating the monster and is desperate to get his hands on one of the final 7ft high cutouts to scare the begeezars out of his unwitting dinner guests.
Please click here or on the image left to see Wahl's Zodiac>>
October 2, 2009
Lyrics often play muse to the greatest images
Next Friday the 9th of October Ken Taylor will have his illustrated translation of the Grateful Dead's Bird Song lyrics exhibited at the Gorker street Gallery in Fitzroy, Melbourne.
October 1, 2009
Anton Emdin fathers the Luxbet Shrewd Dude
This latest campaign for online gambling website, Luxbet is a great example of Anton Emdin's range and flexibility when it comes to creating a unique character to suit a specific personality.
Click to see the various stages of character development on the way to the final Shrewd Dude>>
October 1, 2009
Frantz Kantor storyboards Stayfree through research
Frantz Kantor is mostly known for his kooky 3D characters, but occasionally he likes to hit the accelerator and turn his wrist at storyboards.
October 1, 2009
Uncle Toby's PLUS Murray McKenzie
Murray McKenzie is a storyboard master. He has speed and figure drawing grace.
October 1, 2009
Let the Sunshine
Johan Potma’s oddball characters are put to work on this latest campaign by Ward 6 for UV sunblock. Click to see this latest campaign featuring a belligerent Aussie sun taking jibes at the sun loving public.
Please click here or on the image left to see Johan's Character Development of the final Sun>>
September 25, 2009
Robin Eley's Olive Grove stage 2
Last week's post showed you the various stages of Robin Eley's process leading up to the final composition. This week we show you the final detailed pencils.
September 15, 2009
For the first time we present a LIVE commission
Robin Eley is currently working on the largest painting he has taken on. Unlike other commissions the subject matter is not confidential and hence we will be able to keep you updated on Robin's progress with the painting as he reaches each stage. This week we present you with his original sketched concepts and the approved direction that will form the subject and composition of the final work.
Please click here or on the image left to see the beginning>>
September 4, 2009
Responding to the call to, "Pimp my portfolio!" we have updated all 15 images in Jeffrey Oley's portfolio
Please click here or on the image left to see the new work>>
September 1, 2009
Ken Taylor adds Rolling Stone Magazine to his list
A childhood dream of Ken Taylor was to illustrate for Rolling Stone Magazine. A killer full page portrait of Dave Grohl arm wrestling Pink in the September issue mark that dream realised.
September 1, 2009
Frantz Kantor masters yet another medium
The brief was not only to illustrate an anthropomorphic Panda and Octopus but to make them look like they were starring in their own paper cut diorama.
Click here or on the image left to see Frantz's illustrations>>
September 1, 2009
Mike Watt supported by Drawing Book
Every week we see at least 10 portfolios from aspiring Illustrators. Last year we only put 5 of those on the Drawing Book roster. We're harsh but we know what we want. Mike Watt has it.
August 14, 2009
Christer snaps photos of the Dinosaurs
As kids we're all fascinated by dinosaurs and for some the intrigue never subsides. Throughout Christer Erikkson's illustrious illustration career it has never left him and we can all be thankful for that as it means we get to benefit from some of the most incredible illustrations we'll ever see of that subject we all loved and love.
Click here or on the image left to peruse the prehistoric campaign>>
August 7, 2009
Joe turns blood, sweat & tears into something beautiful
Joe Whyte took on a huge amount of work which is featured in 10 pages of the September issue of Desktop Magazine. It is an absolute credit to him and testament to his talent that his final illustrations are so light, fluid and graceful in spite of the amount of work and the time in which it had to be done.
Click here or on the image left to partake in the fruits of Joe's labour»
August 4, 2009
David James brings Nicorette Ninjas to life
David James would never miss an opportunity to pit two dreary office workers against the wrath of a swarm of ninjas. Thanks to Clemenger BBDO he got his chance.
Click here or on the image left to view David's storyboards side by side with the final TVC»
July 16, 2009
Joe Whyte helps GPY&R get the Peloton up the mountain
This latest campaign for LG has given us the most belly laughs this year. Even when we read the script we were laughing, but now watching the final we're on the floor. We're sincerely glad we could help GPY&R get it into production and on the air.
Click here or on the image left to view the ad and laugh along with us»
July 15, 2009
Anton Emdin steps up for the State of Origin
Many illustrators have tried their wrist at modernising the design of Rugby League's beloved pests, the cane toad and the cockroach...
Click here or on the image left to view the pencils and final art for Anton's original designs»
July 10, 2009
Jason Paulos's Fancy frames for a French feast
We love working on great ideas and helping them get out of the imagination of our clients and into the real world. This latest campaign for Fancy Feast is a perfect example.
View Jason's illustration and the final TVC by clicking this link or on the image left»
July 3, 2009
Otto and Christer help Lowe, Sydney win the Gold UNDPI
The New York Festivals International Advertising Awards, now in its 52nd year, has announced its 2009 United Nations Department of Public Information Winners. And Lowe's online campaign for Genesis Energy has taken out Gold.
Drawing Book Photorealists, Otto and Christer illustrated all the trees, animals and backgrounds. Each tree had to be illustrated through several stages of maturity in order to give the site its interactivity via each member's tree growth. We're very proud of the boys efforts in this new digital media as they had to step out of their comfort zone of working for printed media and learn all of the web's unique challenges.
July 2, 2009
And we still can't get the song out of our head!
Chris Wahl put his incredible storytelling and characterisation to 303's latest campaign for Sakata.
View Chris's illustration and the final TVC by clicking this link or on the image left»
July 1, 2009
Gerad Taylor stars in East meets West
Different cultures have their own idiosyncratic artforms. M&C Saatchi needed an illustrator who could create poster images that were synonomous with Canada and India. After several Pints and a Vindaloo Gerad Taylor stepped up to the challenge.
View Gerad's pencils and final illustrations by clicking this link or on the image left»
June 24, 2009
Big shout out to all scraperboard suppliers
When he found out the government had banned the import of scraperboard into Australia Phil Holliday rolled up his sleeves, got out his pen and magnifying glass and put his head down. 2 weeks later Australia Post had their Sydney Swans commemorative currency.
Click here or on the image left to view Phil's illustrations for the Sydney Swans»
June 18, 2009
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication - Da Vinci
If you were asked to do this many icons for one of Australia's biggest brands and they only gave you one little line to do it you'd be forgiven if you dropped your composure. Not the case with Roman Stolz.
Click here or on the image left to view Roman's work for Woolworths»
June 11, 2009
Raw lines give Ken Taylor no where to hide
A series of detailed blue pen illustrations are not what you'd expect from seasoned rock poster illustrator Ken Taylor, but the chance to work on an animated TV commercial lured him in to help DDB Melbourne's latest campaign for APIA.
Click to view Ken's illustrations and stills from the TV campaign»
June 4, 2009
Ken Taylor rocks out the Razor's Edge.
A daunting commission from Clemenger Sydney on behalf of Gillette spawned some brilliant work from Ken Taylor -master of any brief asking for grunt and growl.
Click to view Ken's pencils, logo design and to view the website»
May 22, 2009
Alison Wallace, tames a classroom of little monsters.
Alison was commissioned to do one of many things she does best, turn children into mischevious monsters. The campaign was commissioned on behalf of Optus by M&C Saatchi Sydney. We are so proud of Al's work and the way n which she went about it that we have posted the process here.
Click to see Al's samples, pencils work in progress and final art»
May 11, 2009
Joe Whyte, the man with the nous for music fashion.
Joe Whyte helped BWM get a great idea through approvals for Telstra Bigpond's current campaign for their wide range of downloadable music by producing 3 layouts that carried the concept beautifully.
Click to see Joe's illustrations side by side with the final ads by BWM Sydney»
May 4, 2009
Gerad Taylor commissioned to illustrate 50s ads for future savvy Sony
Whybin TBWA in Singapore commissioned Gerad Taylor to work up two original images to depict people that were ahead of their time. The brief was a beautiful one with a really nice cheek to it and also one that allowed Gerad to deliver exactly what was need whilst working in his element.
Click to see the complete images side by side with the pencils that preceded them»
April 27, 2009
Chris Wahl Lends a Working Hand To Campbell's
Clemenger BBDO Sydney has pushed the boundaries of Soup advertising again. This time they parodied the action hero of the golden age of advertising to sell Campbell's Chunky soup. If you click the image left or the link below you'll see why Chris Wahl is the right man for the job when it comes to conveying comic style action.
Click to see stills from TVC side by side with the storyboards»
April 15, 2009
Don't think of Pink Penguins!
Optus's latest campaign featuring Pink rockin' out with an entourage of Penguins launched last week. To view the great storyboard frames illustrated by likeness extrodinaire Chris Wahl click on his illustration of Pink to the left or the link below.
Click to see stills from TVC side by side with the storyboards»
April 9, 2009
Rob Elliott plays Whale Whisperer for Optus
When we first read M&C Saatchi Sydney's script for Optus's Whale song concept we couldn't wait to see what the storyboards would look like. Then when we saw Rob Elliott's storyboards we couldn't wait to see what the final TVC would look like. Congratulations and thank you to the creative team who worked on Whale Song. It looks great.
Click to see stills from TVC side by side with the storyboards»
April 1, 2009
Joe Whyte makes music tangible
Behind Crimson Eyes, from Melbourne, Commissioned Joe Whyte to produce the Album Artwork for their new self-titled album, out now on Roadrunner records.
March 20, 2009
Chris Wahl spawns 15 super Heroes and Villians
To promote this years Creative awards Desktop magazine asked us to come up with a Super Hero or Villian for the 15 categories. Characters' appearance, costume and super powers were designed to reflect specific roles in the Advertising and Design industries.
January 20, 2009
Otto steps up to deliver water, majesty and beauty
The balance of realism and hyperbole in photorealistic illustration can be extremely hard to navigate unless you're in the hands of an expert. That's why P&O commissioned Otto to create a unique image to represent them in the best possible light.
January 19, 2009
When you want to add a retro flavour call in Russell
One of the first campaigns for 2009 involved creating over 30 characters and accessories for a Choose Your Own Future online game commissioned by BMF on behalf of the Commonwealth Bank
December 19, 2008
Christer actually enjoys a Christmas Card commission
When 303 commissioned us to do a Christmas card for Harle Davidson we arrived at the brief with the usual unease, but left with unbridled interest.
November 19, 2008
Burger attracts giant shark to Bondi
When Otto's poster of a giant shark in Bondi was released thousands of people ran screaming into Oporto shops. To see Otto's pencils and the final art as it was commissioned by Frontier Media click the image to the left or the link below.
November 7, 2008
Rob Coady draws the cutest ass kickin' kittens
When Mojo first briefed us on the kitten campaign we were excited from the words, "we open on..." This campaign was one where at every step of the way the promise of a really entertaining final production kept snowballing. Click the storyboard by Rob Coady to the left to see stills from the final TVC side by side with Rob's storyboards and then scroll down to watch the full production on YouTube.
November 6, 2008
Character master Chris Wahl creates Emma
Chris Wahl loves coming up with characters for just about any purpose our client can imagine. This time he put down his usual box of Zombie, Ghoul, Bikini and Werewolf tools and mustered up all the sugar and spice he could find to create Emma, the friendliest, most approachable, helpful character we've seen from him yet. Click either below or the picture to the left to meet Emma.
November 3, 2008
Frantz Kantor masters his most ambitious medium yet
The best thing about working with 3 Drunk Monkeys is the concept behind the brief. Almost always they challenge us to solve a visual problem that we haven't enountered before. This was especially the case when they asked us to create several illustrations that would transform a Melbourne tram into a highly decorated Indian bus to promote the current India vs Australia Cricket test series.
October 28, 2008
Drawing Book Studios... lucky enough to have Jennifer Wills
It is with great excitement and anticipation for the future that The Drawing Book announces that Jennifer Wills is now a member of the team. It has been 2 years since we sowed the seed in Jennifer's mind that we'd love to have her and finally she has come aboard!
Jennifer brings to The Drawing Book over 6 years of Art Buying experience at DDB Sydney, as well as the time she spent working in image licensing before then. She has hands on experience from the client side of the Illustration industry and has spent many late hours encouraging our illustrators through tight timings and ambiguous briefs. She is cool as a cucumber under pressure, but posesses the firey belly of the astrological ram that makes great things happen where ever she chooses to apply herself.
Jennifer tells us she is excited about stepping onto a steep learning curve, but we feel the same in regards to the one she has already put us on.
October 21, 2008
Gerad Taylor gives Australia a little bit of Bollywood
With the current Australian Cricket series against India came a campaign for FoxSports exclaiming that if you couldn't get to Bangalore Stadium then FoxSports would bring the game to you. Visually the 3 Drunk Monkeys wanted to reinforce that message by commissioning Bollywood style posters that would extol the game details just like Australians imagined the game might be promoted in India.
October 15, 2008
John Shakespeare holds the front page
Today even Karl Stefanovic's attentention was arrested by John Shakespeare's "picture" of Kevin Rudd that featured on the front page of the Sydney Morning Herald today. It was Shakespeare's 3D caricature of Kevin Rudd as Santa Claus that the morning show was drawn to
October 3, 2008
11 Drawing Book illustrators featured in Desktop Magazine's October issue
Congratulations to Chris Burns, David James, Chris Wahl, John Shakespeare, Jason Paulos, Frantz Kantor, Allison Wallace, Andrew Burchett, Gerad Taylor, David Carroll and Otto for being represented so well in this months Desktop Magazine. Thank you to Jo Spurling and her team for drawing attention to these brilliant illustrators whom we are so proud of.
September 16, 2008
Citibank character from Shakespeare with Love
Love Communications has just launched a campaign to promote a credit card from Citibank that helps pay itself off. Depicting this friendly card as a character with personality lead them to the Drawing Book Studio's 3D characterizer, John Shakespeare.
September 12, 2008
David James commissioned to add a world of character
GPY&Rs latest campaign for Arnotts has just gone to air using real characters to demonstrate flavour. Thank you to Dean Mortenson for commissioning David James to do what he does best in order to get this campaign through the client, research and finally on air. Click below to see David's illustrations side by side with the final product.
August 29, 2008
Leon the lovestruck chameleon
Otto was commissioned by Singleton Ogilvy & Mather to create a chameleon named Leon that loved Nestea with the passion of Peppe Le Pieu. We've posted two versions of Leon so that you can see just how brilliant Otto is when he is commissioned to portray an animal with human traits. Thanks to Gordon Higgins and Marty Bohte for such a great commission that put Otto in his element.
August 22, 2008
Latina Pasta adopts family of vegetables
Mark Poulier from GP Y&R Melbourne worked with Russell Tate to define 6 little vegetables with enough character to persuade kids to eat their greens. The packs boasting these 6 happy characters are now on shelf as modelled by Russell's daughter Charlotte in the thumbnail to the left. Click on Charlotte's photo for more information and pictures of all 6 characters.
August 10, 2008
Chris Wahl and Brandshop give birth to a beautiful bouncy Black and White TVC
The Brandshop Sydney commissioned Chris Wahl to storyboard up the first TV campaign for the new women's magazine GRAZIA. Melissa Turkington and Amy Wright needed a pack of beautiful women drawn and that's when Chris started to get excited. Click the thumbnail to the left to see Chris's storyboard next to Melissa and Amy's beautifully shot TVC.
August 8, 2008
Otto raises family of Gallahs for Optus
M&C Saatchi Sydney commissioned Otto to create a family of Gallahs in a photorealistic style but the trick was to define each member of the family's personality. Otto did a great job of portraying a proud father, doting mother and belligerant Emo son. Click the thumbnail to the left to see them all.
July 22, 2008
Frantz rolls out the time bandits for Optus
Frantz Kantor was put in his element thanks to M&C Saatchi Sydney's creative team who commissioned him to illustrate a cheeky elephant and his pair of raccoon accomplises. Click below to see more and for the creative team credits
July 15, 2008
Gerad Taylor's 60s Pin Up girl for OAK
Ian Masek and Lucy Edison commissioned a Pin Up girl to leverage OAK's proud 60's heritage as a way to promote the product's latest competition.
June 24, 2008
TVC and Storyboard comparison
Now thanks to Xtreme Information's meticulous archives we can show you our storyboard artists work next to the actual TVC as soon as the actual campaign has gone live to air. Hopefully this will help more people see what great work our storyboarders are capable of because up until now too often the talent of the storyboarders has been invisible to most people.
This week we feature Rob Coady's storyboards and a recent Smiths campaign.
click to see Rob's storyboards and stills from the TVC in a side by side comparison. »
June 10, 2008
Kantor and Holliday, a couple of characters
We are extremely grateful to Leo Burnett for putting so much character into AAPT's advertising, specifically Art Director Kieran Antill.
May 31, 2008
Rob Coady helps another campaign go to air
We love it when we see great ideas on the TV. Especially when what went to air is so close to what we were briefed to draw. That's when we know that we helped the Art Director's idea survive research.
May 29, 2008
6 Million Dollar Illustrator
A fortnight ago illustrator Russell Tate ran the half marathon.
Breaking the stereotype that illustrators stay locked in the dark room of their studio Russell completed the entire 22 km course in a time of 2hrs and 4 seconds. Just look at the photo, not only has he broken the stereotype, but he did it with a smile. In fact he looks much happier than his portrait he displayed on the singlet he specifically designed for the day.He has since said though that he has been relieved to have been kept busy since the race on one of our largest campaign commissions as it has given his legs a much needed rest from pounding the pavement. Stay tuned in a month to see this campaign when it's posted here.
May 15, 2008
TAB promotes Euro 2008 with Christer Eriksson
This month will see TAB venues adorned with Christer Eriksson's incredible Towers image.
Art Director Dean Mortenson briefed us to execute an image that portrayed the massive hype and popularity of the event by depicting a Euro game played on the largest scale imaginable.
May 7, 2008
Taking samples of artists' work off the website for presentations
To clients presenting illustrator samples from the website to clients. The easiest way to take work from our new site is through screen grabs. Just open up the image you like from the thumbnail and follow these steps for either mac or PC.
For Mac users just hold down: Command + Shift + 4 Then, click and hold with your mouse and select the area of the image and release. The image will be instantly saved onto your desktop. For PC users press keys: Alt + Print Screen This will take a screenshot of the currently selected window, not the entire screen like the normal screenshot function. This allows you to target that specific window that you have open and nothing else. No more cropping those screenshots to grab the content you were after. The image will be instantly saved in your clipboard file or on the desktop.
April 19, 2008
It used to be the way that Christer, Gerad, Otto and Chris were known to only have ink in their veins, but long before today they embraced the digital age. In their May issue Australian Creative talks to our photo-realistic illustrators who have taken this pixel injection and are now taking on the kinds of briefs previously reserved for retouchers. Check your local newsagent for the double page spread.
Mar 26, 2008
The first time the imaginations of Drawing Book, Red Box and Song Zu were let loose they ran to Mexico resulting in a bloody bedlam that left one man and his big bazooka standing.
From Mexico he fled to Germany for the plentiful porn and large lagers. What he didn’t expect was a crazed granny on a snail and a new born nazi to take him on. Watch it then vote for who goes free next time.