Ronald Searle 1920 - 2011

Portrait of Ronald Searle by Andrea Liggins

Ronald Searle, who died on 30 December 2011, was an illustrator extraordinaire. Born in Cambridge, 1920, he saw many changes and witnessed human behaviour at it’s worst. This gave him a unique way of visually interpreting our world. Superlative drawing skill was coupled with strong ideas, and powerful and often humourous assessments of the human character.

Searle drew from when he was a young child, and by 15 was doing a weekly cartoon for the Cambridge Evening News. Called up for duty in 1939, he was captured by the Japanese in 1942, enduring three years of imprisonment and hard labour. Determined to record what the prisoners were suffering – although forbidden - he would hide his drawings under the bodies of cholera victims as the guards were too afraid of the disease to search there.

Images 36 Results

The AOI is pleased to announce the selected entries for the Images 36 Publication.
Full details click here.

Congratulations to all those who have been selected this year!

AOI welcomes new Managing Director, Heng Khoo

Heng Khoo took over as the Managing Director of the AOI on 1st December 2011.

His previous role was Director of Development for Commissions East, the public art development agency for the East of England. Other recent senior posts include Director (Maternity Leave cover) at the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre and Operations Director at
Asia House.

AOI Portfolios - New Facebook Page

We've just launched our Facebook page at AOI Portfolios. We'll be keeping visitors updated with general site news and the latest image uploads from our illustrator subscribers. Do look in if you have a moment and if you have a Facebook account yourself please 'like' us!
Thanks to Jonathan Burton for allowing us to use his image as our profile pic.

Visit AOI Portfolios on Facebook

D&AD Awards 2012

D&AD celebrates and nurtures outstanding work in design and advertising. This year’s Awards mark their 50th anniversary.
D&AD is about brilliant commercial creativity, wherever and however it's produced. Whether you work in Design, Advertising or Digital there’s an awards category for you.

25 specialist juries mean that the top people in each specific field judge and award the work according to D&AD's set criteria.
The entry fees provide the funds for our international Education programmes, supporting and developing the future generations of creative talent.

The Yellow Pencil is recognised the world over as a symbol of the very highest creative achievement. Last year D&AD added the ‘Slice’ to honour those who are awarded at Nomination and In Book level. This year, as every year, the D&AD Annual will showcase the best work, providing an invaluable and unrivalled source of creative inspiration.

A Journey through Time, Design, Space and Advertising
To mark the 50th anniversary D&AD invite you to join them on a Journey Through Time, Design, Space and Advertising. Starting in 1962 you will voyage through our extensive Annual archive to showcase 49 of some of the very best shortlisted works from our first 50 years.
One new piece of work is revealed every weekday for the entire duration of the 2012 Award submission window.

Deadline for entries: 1 February 2012

Enter D&AD Awards 2012

New Varoom promotes illustration

Varoom has been re-sized and re-formatted, and as part of the AOI’s remit to promote illustration, we have sent out hundreds of complimentary copies to commissioners of illustration. All the commissioners in the AOI’s Client Directories have received a copy of the new look publication, and we hope that it’s combination of quality content, a diverse range of great imagery and accessible writing will stimulate more commissioning of illustration from these art directors.

With articles on the art of the speech balloon, digital animation and The Cloth, an 80’s design group responsible for a host of recognisable artwork, plus selections from the new team of contributing editors of the most interesting work in their fields, Varoom continues it’s exploration of illustration and the world it inhabits. An original bespoke artwork created by George Hardie on the theme of Change has made an intriguing cover, leading readers into a great publication.

Varoom 16 – the illustration report is available in selected stores, on subscription and as individual copies. Those and back issues may be purchased via the Varoom site.

Quentin Blake wins Prince Philip Designers Prize 2011

AOI Patron, Quentin Blake, was awarded the Prince Philip Designers Prize on 29 November. He commented ‘Illustration wants to belong in the design world. I hope this award may be a stimulus to young illustrators and a stimulus to my friends and colleagues who are working to set up the House of Illustration.’ Quentin is known for his successful characters including Mister Magnolia, Mrs Armitage and Clown, as well as illustrating for other children's authors like Michael Rosen, Roald Dahl and Joan Aiken, and he also became the first ever Children's Laureate in 1999.

The prize recognises an outstanding contribution to UK business and society through design. The shortlist included Ideo chief executive Tim Brown, exhibition designer Dinah Casson and Onedotzero co-founder Shane Walter engineer Cecil Balmond, medical prosthetics designer Saeed Zahedi, fashion designer Sir Paul Smith, milliner Stephen Jones and architects Sir David Chipperfield, Chris Wilkinson and Jim Eyre.

Quentin has been doing a lot of installation work and completed his biggest hospital project to date in Angers, France this year. The new maternity hospital, part of the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire, opened its doors to expectant mothers in October 2011. Drawings based on the theme of the mother meeting her new baby are on the glass facade, the foyer, the midwife station, the fathers' room and the delivery suites.

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