catching up to Susan

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Photo by Meagan Lewis

We’re looking back at issue #9. Our food and gardening-inspired issue is almost sold out. Grab your copy today. 

Susan Black was a contributor to #9 and one of the subscribers we profiled in that issue. We asked her what she's been up to since that issue came out and found out that she's been busy. Very, very busy! 

Susan's print "bold floral' is available in her Etsy shop. 

What’s changed in your work/life since 2011? 
WOW! so much—my creative career has really taken off since 2011. In January of 2012 I took Beth Nichol's & Kelly Rae Robert's e-course Hello Soul, Hello Business and it completely changed my creative life. It lit a fire in me where I'd thought a fire had already been burning fairly brightly. In May of that same year because of that e-course I created a promo/portfolio pdf mailer and sent it out to my top 25 dream companies. I heard back from the first of many within 30 mins of sending it out ! I now have close to 100 of my illustrations licensed with a variety of fantastic companies. I still keep an Etsy shop well stocked (as I do find Creative Directors still are searching Etsy for artists). I have a near daily photo blog of my life in seaside Nova Scotia.

I'm a bit obsessed with taking photos and carry my camera everywhere. I think of that blog as my visual gratitude journal as well as the place where I honestly talk about the struggles & triumphs of being a self employed creative person (and one that lives in a fairly remote though beautiful location). The online world has been crucial in my growth as an artist/designer.

Susan's print 'lost' is available in her Etsy shop. 

What new projects have you released since issue #9 came out?
I have over 30 images licensed on greeting cards with Madison Park Greetings and another dozen or more with Design House Greetings. I also have many of my designs licensed with MagnetWorks (garden flags, mats, yard signs). I was recently chosen as one of 10 artists to design three sizes of illustrated garden poles for Studio M (a gift & garden division of MagnetWorks). Plus, I'm super excited to have a brand new, top-secret Susan Black gift and home decor collection being released this summer with another fantastic artist focused company. My collage illustration can be found on all sorts of products from greeting cards to wall art. I consign my work in 2 fabulous curated Nova Scotia art/design gift shops—Inkwell Modern in Halifax and Dots & Loops in Lunenburg. 

Links
Daily photo blog
Portfolio blog
Web site
Etsy shop

You can see Susan's contribution to our floral gallery in issue #9, our food and gardening inspired issue. Issue #9 is our oldest available back issue and is almost sold out. 

"A woman at her printing press"

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Kseniya Thomas of Thomas-Printers on why she loves the business of letterpress:

We're commercial letterpress printers at Thomas-Printers, which means we primarily print others' designs. This provides us with a great variety of work: we've printed on sheet copper for napkin rings, printed corporate invitations for functions we're not allowed to talk about, and even printed a birth announcement for the son of a German princess. Germany still has princesses! So every day brings a new challenge, but that keeps me looking forward to work every day and to making whatever it is I'm printing look great. One of the best parts of my job is the printer-client interaction: talking to customers about letterpress, educating them about what we do and how letterpress works best, and working together to make a beautiful finished piece.

That's what draws me to printing: the communal nature of what looks like a solitary thing, a woman at her printing press. I love making things every day, interacting with my customers, and problem solving each new job's challenges. The fact that I get to work with antique machines, beautiful paper, and killer designs doesn't hurt either. I really believe in making things by hand, and keeping people involved with processes, and am thankful every time someone chooses a handmade invitation over one made by a machine in a huge plant. That choice not only supports me and the business, but also a whole ecosystem of other humans, from papermakers to plate makers to the postal worker who delivers the finished invitation. Choosing print is an increasingly important choice, and I'm hopeful that the relationships we've established will help keep printed things vital far into the future. 

The (other, so many!) great thing about letterpress printing is the community of printers. While we all have our unique methods and ways of getting ink onto paper, and getting that printed thing out into the world, we all share a love of the craft and a commitment to its continuance. A friend and I started Ladies of Letterpress about six years ago to help encourage the community of printers out there to come together and share knowledge—we now have almost 2000 members all over the world. 

UPPERCASE would like to thank Thomas-Printers for their ongoing support of UPPERCASE. As we transition away from ads in our print magazine, we are very pleased to have Thomas-Printers' ad on our blog sidebar. If you are a creative business owner and would like to advertise with us, we would be happy to hear from you.

Sidsel Sorensen animated music video

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I love it when really talented people introduce themselves! Sidsel Sørensen sent a nice message:

"My name is Sidsel "sizzle", and I am a Danish freelance illustrator soon to be based in London. I recently graduated from the Kolding School of Design in Denmark with an MA in Illustration. I am a big fan of UPPERCASE magazine; I happened upon it this summer in a little shop on the Brighton Boardwalk, and I was instantly charmed. I love the whole look of it, the quirky articles and the appreciation for illustration. It’s a beautifully atypical magazine." 

She has created an impressive master project, a full-length animated music video. "It is a hand drawn animated music video for the L.A. based band, Saint Motel. The animation illustrates and elaborates on the themes and development in the intensity and the atmosphere of the song. Based on tales from the Danish island, Fanø, it is a story in three parts about dreams and unrequited love."

Read more about her process for the video in this interview. 

Would you like to be featured on the UPPERCASE blog? Please follow the submission guidelines. I personally take a look at everything that is submitted.

spoiled by Angelina Sorokin

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A curious care package of things.

How sweet is this? We're blushing.

Angelina made our new address a work of art.

Now that we've been in our new studio for a few weeks, we're starting to get mail that hasn't been stickered over by Canada Post with mail forwarding information. This amazing package of goodies was sent by Angelina Sorokin. Thank you, Angelina!

Angelina makes these cool necklaces made from fishing bobbers. They're available in her Etsy shop.

Lettering prints and unique necklaces.

type tuesday: she choked on her words

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We would like to congratulate UPPERCASE subscriber Eva Schroeder for being part of the Australian Craft Awards. In this inaugural event, online viewers can vote for projects created by Australian craftspeople. Eva describes the process: "Judging will be based on a three-tier process," Eva writes. "The number of online votes from the public, votes from the industry and a panel of professional judges. I was encouraged to apply based on one of my pieces of work. The award, although just a piece of paper, would mean that I could be taken seriously!" 

"In making this piece, I wanted to experiment with paper, both as a 3D sculptural media and a form of bodily decoration, as well as a way to play with words and their double meanings. With this combination in mind, I developed the 'Choker' out of paper, using predominantly geometric shapes, the printed word, a little wire and a few sparkling beads." 

"Each of the chosen words featured on the baubles begins with the letter 'C' and references the definition of the negative way that humans can speak to/and are spoken to in life. These methods of communication can lead to the subconscious stifling of the spirit and therefore the 'choking effect'."

Eva would love your support: please vote here! 

issue #18: creative challenge by Shelley Davies

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submission by Shelley Davies

This submission is by illustrator Shelley Davies. Shelley also created a collage for the current issue's content page and you will be able to read more about Shelley in the forthcoming edition of Work/Life. Thanks, Shelley, for being such a wonderfully active and generous UPPERCASE subscriber.

Would you like to participate in this issue's creative challenge? Read the details in issue #18 or right here.

work/life life/work work/work life/life

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The third edition of Work/Life is nearing completion. All 100 artists have seen their spreads and now it is being read through by our copy editor one last time. Once I'm done the Photoshop work on the hundreds of photos and illustrations, it will be off to the printer!

The ultimate plan was to get the files done before I pack up my computer to move it to the new office. A month ago, in the midst of the flood and impending move, I didn't think it would be possible. This definitely feels like a victory in a difficult year.

Danielle Sayer made this fun animation of the Work/Life postcards inserted into the latest issue.  I love it when our readers create unexpected things like this! Thanks, Danielle. (And thanks to Jeff Rogers for his excellent cover concept and illustration.)

typecase shadowboxes

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Use this page file to print out if you don't want to cut up or glue your physical magazine.

In our current issue, we provided a page with an image of an empty typecase. Since this is our collage and assemblage-themed issue, we encourage you to glue and modify this page, take a picture or scan of it and send it to us!

Cornelis vanSpronsen shares the mementos that he and his wife have collected over the years. (Click to view the details.)

UPPERCASE subscriber Cornelis vanSpronsen writes: 

"I received my copy of UPPERCASE today and was immediately inspired to respond to the creative challenge on page 75. For many years my wife and I have collected special mementos that were both of great importance as well as those that were memorable for just a small moment in time. This is some of that collection. Going through these is like leafing through a photo album but only better because there are memories attached to these things that photos could never capture."
  

Emeli Reiart sent us this Instagram of a collection of sea shells:

@thebarnswallow on Instagram

More imagery on the The Typecase Shadow Boxes group on Flickr. 

show and tell toronto

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We're heading to Toronto for the National Magazine Awards (UPPERCASE is nominated for Magazine of the Year!) and we'd love to meet our readers.

Janine (publisher, editor and designer of the magazine) and Erin (publicity and marketing) are hosting a Show and Tell at Kid Icarus. Are you an illustrator, craftsperson, designer or a generally creative soul? Do you have an idea to pitch to us? Have you dreamed of being published in UPPERCASE? Bring one example of your work and share it with us!

(Or, just come and say hi. We're really friendly.)

Thursday, June 6
7:30pm-10:00pm

Kid Icarus
205 Augusta Avenue

Please RSVP to Erin by June 5th, space is limited!

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view-master

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Denise Newberry of CabinPress Studio was inspired by an article in our current issue written by Jonathan Shipley. She wrote in to share her childhood View-Master set:

"I LOVED the article on the View Master. I remembered having one while growing up and after grilling my parents on it's where abouts, it turns out they actually did pack it in a box with a lot of my childhood memorabilia and I found it today up in our garage! Not just the View Master but a ton of little discs, that are actually in superb and vibrant condition."

If something in UPPERCASE magazine conjures up old memories or inspires you to make something new, please share it with us and our blog readers!​