SCIP

The Vinyl Show

Sussex Contemporary Illustrators and Printmakers (SCIP) is a registered charity supporting the community's wellbeing by providing access to the arts and creative events in Sussex. In 2023, they curated The Vinyl Show, an exhibition of newly created artworks inspired by the favourite songs of some of the UK's best loved artists and illustrators.

Hello. Please tell us about the brief and commission.   Transmission: I've known Alice, Josie, and the SCIP team for a number of years. They host inclusive workshops, exhibitions, and community events, and are passionate about the power of contemporary visual arts to support mental well-being. It's a fantastic organisation, and I was honoured when they invited me to contribute a new artwork for The Vinyl Show, a print exhibition and fundraising event.

The brief was simple: create a square-format artwork inspired by a track of your choice. The hard part was picking just one song to visualise.

How did the music inspire the creative process?
Transmission: I love music and took the brief seriously. Maybe too seriously. I spent a long time pondering which song to select, as I wanted to visualise something with a personal connection and a strong visual metaphor. I eventually settled on Skylarking by Horace Andy, a Jamaican roots reggae songwriter and singer who now lives in London. The Skylarking album was originally released on Studio One Records in 1972, and its namesake was the standout track.

I based my artwork on the meaning of skylarking – to pass time by playing tricks or practical jokes; indulging in horseplay. I live in Southern Spain and decide to video-record the swifts and swallows that migrate here every year. They’re amazing and really playful when they fly and captured the spirit and frivolity of the song. I filmed their flight patterns and traced their movements to create block shapes for the cover artwork and typography.

What did you research when developing ideas for artwork?Transmission: I like to embrace randomness when developing personal projects. My work as a graphic designer is structured, precise, and detail-oriented, so I enjoy handing the decision-making process over to the randomness of life and observation. I didn't spend any time art directing the frame when filming the swallows flying in the street. I just looked for interesting patterns that I could later trace in Illustrator and develop into blocked shapes and typography. The colours were all dictated by the natural flowers growing outside during the time I was developing the artwork.

Please share an insight into the design development.