Jed Root

Interview with Illustrator Judit García-Talavera

Our Illustration Director Christine Cavallomagno recently conducted an interview with Jed Root, Inc. artist Judit García-Talavera so we could learn a little bit more about her!

Christine Cavallomagno - Welcome to Jed Root, Judit! It’s great to be working with you! Can you tell us a bit about your work- what inspires you, and what you love about illustration? 

Judit García-Talavera - Thanks!! I'm glad to work together and to be a part of Jed Root! My inspiration generally comes from many different sources, from fashion magazines, to the internet (blogs,flickr, myspace), flea markets, fashion photography, music, old movies... I try to get inspiration from my daily life. Illustration for me is more like a language and I try to use it to illustrate situations, feelings and thoughts.

CC - When did you first decide you wanted to be an illustrator?

JGT - I started drawing when I was very young. I was always sketching and daydreaming, and in that way the process I've worked with has not changed very much. When I was studying art I was obsessed with the Impressionists and the sketches from classical artists like Rembrandt or Goya. With my first job as an illustrator, all of my dreams of life as professional artist started to come true. I knew this was the only thing I wanted to do for a living.

CC - You work in traditional media, creating images with beautiful watercolor washes, saturated colors and inks. How do you combine traditional materials with working digitally to produce your work?

JGT - First I start drawing with pilot pen and ink, then I add color, usually using watercolors, color ink and felt-tip pens, Then I scan the artwork into the computer to work on the image digitally. This method of working offers me a lot of freedom to compose and it also allows me to work really quickly so I can focus on the details.

CC - Your work seems influenced quite a bit by fashion and travel. Tell us a bit about the experiences that you’ve had, that appear in your illustration work?

JGT - I grew up in Tenerife, a volcanic little island in the middle of the Atlantic ocean. When I began study art I realized how far I felt from the rest of the world and the few possibilities that I had to become an illustrator if I stayed on the island where the options are limited. That was the reason that made me move to Barcelona. It's a cosmopolitan city which has an incredible cultural life. I get to meet interesting and creative people from all over the world. Their experiences, stories, and memories help me to give a background to my characters and my illustrations. For me fashion is art and I enjoy discovering new designers, new magazines, fashion editorials, but always as a spectator, taking inspiration from fashion and allowing it to inform my work.

CC - Tell us about a few projects that you’ve worked on, and why you enjoyed working on them.

JGT - A few months ago I started following some blogs in the internet. These blogs are written by girls where they post their pictures of what they where wearing that day. Some of them are really well-known, and these girls become "internet stars" or "web-celebrities". I'm intrigued by this phenomenon that normal girls are now a reference for thousands of people all over the world. I've done a couple of illustrations of some bloggers and now I've started to collaborate with a street fashion blog called Trendycrew. I illustrate the pictures they take and I enjoy giving my personal perspective to each photo.

New Prop Stylists

We would like to welcome new prop stylists and new director of the division Rachel King to the Jed Root family! Rachel joins us from Apostrophe where she was head of the prop stylists division for 5 years.  With her, she brings her talented stable of stylists: Sara Wacksman, Olivia Sammons, Rachel Haas, and food stylist Liza Jenow. Editorial clients for the roster include The New York Times, Harpers Bazaar, and Elle, while commissioned clients include MAC, Max Factor, Clinique, Estee Lauder, Calvin Klein, and Dove.

“We are excited and honored to be a part of the prop stylists division at Jed Root. I have always been intrigued by the powerful emotions that still life compositions can conjure,” says Rachel. “It has been said that still life photographs are made rather than simply taken. This happens through a strong collaborative connection between the photographer and stylist. The stylist’s job is to visualize and execute the photographer and client’s vision: turning inanimate materials and products into complex arrangements and detailed compositions that evoke an emotion.”

Welcome aboard!

Interview with Illustrator Matthew Woodson

Our Illustration Director Christine Cavallomagno interviewed artist Matthew Woodson for our blog!

Christine Cavallomagno - Welcome to Jed Root, Matthew! We’re so happy to have you on board! Tell us a little bit about your illustration career up to this point?

Matthew Woodson - I graduated art school in January of 2006. I spent all of my time in school sitting in front of cases full of taxidermy, and drawing comics on the side. At first, these two things didn’t amount to much when it came to the idea of a career. But within a month of graduating I was commissioned by Margetotes, Fertitta & Partners to work with them on the 2006 Perry Ellis Fall/Winter campaign. I had stumbled into a dream job without even knowing it. My job with MFP catapulted me into the world of illustration head first, and I basically haven’t put the brush down since; juggling jobs from large advertising agencies, editorial work, book publications, and album packaging.

CC - When did you first realized you loved to draw?

MW - I am sure I am going to answer this the same way that most artists do, by saying I can’t remember a time when I didn’t love to draw. Drawing has always been second nature to me; it is as reactionary as breathing, and as functional as writing. I can basically blame all of my inabilities with math and grammar on the fact that I wasn’t paying enough attention in class for the first 12 years of my schooling because I was too busy drawing dinosaurs.

CC - Where did you grow up? Does that setting ever haunt your work? That reminds me of your website, called Ghostco. How did you come up with that name?

MW - I grew up in southern Indiana, on the edge of Brown County in a house built by my father hidden in the woods. There is very little of my childhood surroundings that doesn’t permeate almost every piece I do. It seems almost funny now that drawing deer, trees and birds has become so chic, when those were some of the first things to grab my artistic attention as a kid. I have been facetiously explaining Ghostco as “to be within the company of the deceased” or “an organization of the non-existent” for years. And while it isn’t completely based on the idea of actual ghosts, it deals more with feelings of loss, and grief, and the ghosts of ideas. The word Ghostco has become almost a joke after evolving over the years. It initially started with my childhood obsession with ghosts, and then was then cemented into my psyche after being devastated by several deaths in my later teenage years. I used “Ghostco Enterprises” as a moniker in my early college years within my rather loose interpretation of graffiti, which nearly got me kicked out of school (wait, they don’t want you to draw on the walls in art school?). Then in 2003 when I finally buckled down to purchase webspace, Ghostco just seemed like the perfect name to use. It encompasses not only my work, but also how I lead my life.
 
CC - Your work often deals with dramatic environments in nature almost as much as it addresses human psychology and emotions. How do these inspirations come through in your commercial work and how do they inform one another?

MW - Dealing with human psychology is just an inevitable facet of doing figurative illustration. Psychology either through mood, palette, or human expression is the driving force behind my work. I don’t know how to draw a person without drawing an emotion behind them. It’s the connection between the artist and the viewer, and any piece of art or illustration lacking that connection just falls flat. But you can only get so far with drawing emotion through the figure, and that’s where natural environments come in. We have been personifying nature since the dawn of humans; it is part of who we are. The ability to show the same emotions through a resting figure, and a snow covered countryside is what I find challenging and inescapable when I start drawing anything.

CC - You’ve worked with multiple art forms including tattoo work, comics and graphic design, and have found illustration to be your main obsession. How do you approach these different media and what is it about illustration that you love so much?

MW - I guess really I don’t see a difference between all of these forms. Comics and illustration are basically the same thing in my eyes, except in one version you have to tell the story in just one panel. Tattoos (or at least how I handle tattoos) are really no different from illustration either. Yes, there is more of a sense of design that goes along with drawing for tattoos, but in essence I approach them in almost exactly the same way. As for graphic design, I have relied on simple palettes, curved edges, and dotted lines for years. It is basically just a simplified version of my illustration.

CC - Tell us about some clients you’ve really enjoyed working with. What are your favorite types of projects?
MW - I guess when looking through the last few years of my work, a client that I have really enjoyed working with is Type Records. Working with them has been a dream, and there is very little art direction given to me anymore. The process of making the album covers has become this beautifully intuitive thing. I basically sit down and listen to an album repeatedly, and just start drawing until I reach a visual that I feel fits the music. This is a practice I have been doing since I can remember; be it with music, literature, photography or movies. It is just very nice when I come across a client that also embraces that process. We have really created a strong working relationship over doing so many album packages together.

The Model as Muse: Embodying Fashion

The Costume Institute at The Metropolitan Museum of Art's new exhibit, The Model as Muse: Embodying Fashion, will feature work by Jed Root, Inc.'s Michael Thompson. Per the Press Release:

The Model as Muse: Embodying Fashion, the spring 2009 exhibition organized by The Costume Institute of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, explores the reciprocal relationship between high fashion and evolving ideals of beauty, focusing on iconic fashion models in the latter half of the 20th century and their roles in projecting, and sometimes inspiring, the fashion of their respective eras...

The exhibition features approximately 80 masterworks of haute couture and ready-to-wear.  Fashion editorial, advertising, and runway photography plus large-scale projections from feature films are used throughout the galleries to contextualize the fashion zeitgeist.

The exhibition opens next week at the Met on May 6th and runs through August 9, 2009.

 

Syndication Department Seeks Intern!

The Syndication Department at Jed Root, Inc. seeks an ambitious and responsible student for a summer internship. Applicants must be organized, independent and detail oriented. An interest and experience in styling and photography is very helpful. Duties include data entry and archive maintenance. Hours are flexible based on availability. Please fax cover letter and resume to Synd Dept at 212-274-0258.

In Memory of Louie Sibley 1967-2009

Today we received the very sad news that Louie Sibley has passed away while undergoing heart  surgery.

I first met Louie at least 10 years ago when he came into the office to show me his book. At that time, he was working with MAC Cosmetics, and was looking to branch out by assisting our artists on the fashion shows. I can still remember Louie entering the office wearing his hat and a big smile. He was immediately hired and worked regularly with Scott Andrew, Dick Page and a number of our make up artists. I received the pleasure of working with a great guy for years to come.

Louie will be remembered for his friendliness, his laughter and his extraordinary knack to always make himself available for me in a crunch! He will be greatly missed. Our sincerest sympathy goes out to his family and dear friends.

- Kellie O’Bosky-Haas and the entire staff of Jed Root Inc.

Memorial services are to be held on Saturday, April 25th, 1:00PM-4:00PM at:

Greenwich Village Funeral Home
199 Bleecker Street
New York, NY 10012

Jenny Mortsell Interview

Our Illustration Director Christine Cavallomagno was kind enough to conduct an interview with our new artist Jenny Mortsell so we could learn a little bit more about her!

Christine Cavallomagno - Welcome to Jed Root and welcome to New York! You plan to move here in the next couple of months from Stockholm- Tell us a bit about coming to New York to pursue your illustration career, and why you chose Jed Root to represent you.

Jenny Mortsell - My story is the same as many others, I came here for a week for new years 2008, and fell totally in love with the city, and when I got back to Sweden I just knew I had to go back. Which I did, I've been going back and forth between Stockholm and New York for over a year now. Especially if you come from a small country like Sweden, the energy, diversity and the "everything is possible" attitude is quite overwhelming, and addictive. I was without an agent since may -08 and took some time off commissions for some months. Just when I decided it was time for me to find an agent in NYC I found out you were starting to represent illustrators at Jed Root as well, and knowing how many great photographers you represent it was an easy choice to join you. I think we got in touch on Monday, I met you on Tuesday and by Wednesday all was settled, right?

CC - Yes, I think it went that quickly! I was incredibly impressed with your work- there wasn’t even a question! Jenny, what do you find yourself influenced by as far as visual media?

JM - "Found" pictures on the internet is my biggest influence by far. I'm really into Tumblr and Flickr, and ye olde Google image search too. And people who I don't know’s Facebook albums! I love when you stumble upon someone's collection of private pictures or movie screencaps or scans. I think I find any image that is very personal, or slightly taken out of context inspiring, I'm afraid much more than going to exhibitions and museums. I think it has something to do with that I don't like when people tell me what is "good" or what I "should/would like". When you go to an exhibition everything is already picked out and approved, on the internet there's this whole mish mash of fine art and complete trash next to each other and you constantly have to reevaluate what you like and why. I feel it's more honest that way.

CC - How did you get your start in illustration- what do you love about it?

JM - I have always loved to draw, as long as I can remember. And I think I've always known that I wanted to do it for a living, but it took a while to get the courage, of course. I studied art for many years, went to three different art schools before I even started art college, and then I took both a bachelor and a master in Graphic Design & Illustration. That's 8 years! After graduation I worked for almost a year with graphic design commissions together with some friends from college, but since no one paid us decent money and we were five people sharing an income, I was totally broke so I started to do more drawings of my own. I got such great response from the people I showed it to, so I decided to give it a serious try, and it went very well. What I love about it is the process. I enjoy working with Creatives very much, but when it comes to sitting down to create the work, I've always been kind of a lone ranger, so I spend much of my time drawing with headphones on in my studio.

CC - In your work, part of what is so compelling is the hand-drawn element. Your work is so lifelike, yet the process is such an intricate part of your work as well. Tell us a bit about how you work, and what your process is like? 

JM - I start with cheating (if you will), because I always have a photographic image to look at. I often use my own, or if it's a commission, I use images that are sent to me. But I prefer the ones with slight imperfections, or when  something has been caught in a moment- for example someone half-blinking, things that would be tricky to draw from a live model. That's the contrast I like. I think something interesting happens when you spend so much time and effort in doing a life-like drawing of someone making a funny face, or with the fly open, or with tangled up hair. I always use the same pencil, a mechanical 0.5 mm pencil (with a really good eraser in one end for all the mistakes I make). I usually look at the picture I'm drawing from on my computer screen, in that way I can zoom or rotate or play with the contrast when my eyes get tired. I use my fingers a lot too, to smudge the pencil and make shadings. Because of that my drawings are also always full of fingerprints that I have to retouch after I've scanned them... I don't do much with my drawings in the computer, besides spending far too much time removing dust and fingerprints from scans. I often get the question how long it takes for me to do a drawing. Ideally for a portrait it takes me a couple of days of pure drawing and one day for retouch, but more complicated motifs, with a detailed background or a lot of things going on requires more time.

CC - Can you name a couple of clients that you’ve worked with and why you’ve enjoyed working with them?

JM - The first magazine I ever had an illustration published in was a Swedish feminist magazine called Bang. I've done loads of illustrations for them since, and they've always been a dream to work with, always giving me a ton of creative freedom. I have also enjoyed working with NYLON, and I've had the opportunity to do many different things through them, not only for the magazine, but on various projects. For example, I've done a t-shirt print for NYLON/Urban Outfitters and a snowboard for NYLON/Burton. Working with the New York Times Magazine was also a really great experience. I like working with small clients like fanzines as well as on large advertising projects that will be all over town, equally, but for different reasons. To work under someone else's direction is a challenge that can be very rewarding. But by working on smaller projects in between it keeps my work fresh! So I like to do a mix of both.

Alexei Hay & Drew Barrymore for Elle

State of the Art, a blog by the editors of American Photo, recently posted some kind words praising Alexei Hay's underwater images of Drew Barrymore in the May issue of Elle. His editorial can be seen in it's entirety here!

New Manicurist Teresa Smith!

JRL would like to welcome our new manicurist Teresa Smith to the team! Teresa is the founder of the London-based "Nails at Work." She was the recipient of this years Nail Professional of the Year at the Professional Beauty Awards. Click here to see more of her work.

Check Out Our Illustrators!

Jed Root, Inc. is proud to announce that our Illustration site is officially live! Click here to check out some fantastic work by Jed Root artists Matthew Woodson, Jenny Mortsell, Judit Garcia-Talavera, and Kez Glozier! For more information on any of our illustrators contact Christine Cavallomagno, the director of our illustration board.

Matthew Woodson for Glamour