Caitlin Keegan: Snake Vase

Snake Vase, by Caitlin Keegan.
15% of the sale of this print goes to Farm Sanctuary.

Caitlin Keegan is a designer and illustrator from a small town in Connecticut known as the Home of the Wiffle Ball. She was a staff designer at Nickelodeon Magazine for nearly seven years and has created editorial illustrations for clients including The New York Times, Nylon, and Playgirl. Her work has been exhibited across the country and was recognized twice by American Illustration. Caitlin’s work is strongly influenced by her love of pattern, collage, and decorative arts. She lives and works in Brooklyn with her intern (dachshund) Ollie.



About the print:
I really like the silhouettes and the pictorial style of ancient Greek vases - so I was inspired by that, and tried to keep with the animal theme of my other prints. I also like the idea that the design wraps around, so that there is another unseen image on the opposite side.

This print was signed and numbered by the artist. It is a digital print using soy inks on 100 lb. cover paper.

PURCHASE $30!

What have you been up to since we last worked together?
Since my last print I've been working for Sesame Workshop as a graphic designer. I've also done a lot more pattern design and hand lettering. I recently finished an illustrated version of Shakespeare's Love Sonnets which will be out in December, through Chronicle Books. I'm very excited about that, since it's the first fully illustrated book I've done. I'm also working on designing my sister Sian's craft book, which will be out August 2012.

You've worked for Nickelodeon, Scholastic and Sesame Street. Is your personal work inspired by youth? If so, how? 
I think that maybe storytelling through images is the common thread between my personal work and the design work I've done for kids. I like an image to be a simple read, even if there is a more complicated sentiment behind it. I wouldn't say that any of my personal work is directly inspired by children, but I can see myself making more kid-friendly artwork in the future. I would love to do a childrens' book one day. Also, I look at a huge amount of kid-oriented reference for my design job (blogs, magazines, etc.) so I think all of that will eventually have to come out somehow in my own work.



How has your work developed over the last year?
I've been leaning a little bit more towards digital-drawing directly into the computer, but introducing some more tactile/real materials. I'd like to experiment with more of this. I've gotten more interested in type and lettering lately, too.

What is inspiring you these days?
My favorite recent discovery is this Taschen book, The Book of Symbols. It's my goal to start a website where I post my own illustrations of each symbol. I have ideas, and I even have the url - now I just have to do it!

Why did you choose to pair Farm Sanctuary with your print?
I'm choosing to pair my print with Farm Sanctuary for a second time. I think Farm Sanctuary has a mission that is fairly unique and specific even among animal rights organizations. And it seems like they're making a real difference towards something that I care a lot about.

Internship Opportunity

Dan Funderburgh for The Working Proof.

EDITORIAL INTERN, FALL 2011
10-16 per week, hours are flexible
School credit / unpaid
Starts September / Ends mid December

The Working Proof is an online print gallery and shop that brings together art + charity through a series of limited-edition prints. 15% of each print sold is donated to the charity of the artist’s choice. The Working Proof is located in the Prospect Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn, and we are currently seeking an intern who will provide us with curation, copywriting and office support.

INTERNSHIP RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Assistance with artist research and outreach.
- Assistance with interviewing artists, and editing interviews for our weekly newsletter.
- Preparation of artist editions for weekly print launch.
- Contribution to our blog (artist interviews and artist happenings)
- Assistance in brainstorming of new website features.
- Order fulfillment.
- Social media outreach (twitter, facebook)
- Attend/photograph/write up design events around NYC for the Sub-Studio Design Blog.

The internship will begin in mid-September (preferably the week of September 12th). We prefer that you work from our Prospect Heights apartment, but a scenario where you work partially from home is also a possibility. We are seeking an intern that can work 10-16 hours per week; those hours are flexible between 10-6pm, M-F.

QUALIFICATION MUSTS:
- Excellent written communication skills
- Knowledge and interest in what is going on in the art and design worlds
- Organized and efficient
- Proficiency in Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator
- Familiarity with Wordpress/Blogger
- Social networking enthusiast

Please send an email to me introducing yourself, including a list of your favorite artists, blogs, and websites, along with your resume and two short writing samples. If you have a design portfolio, all the better - please send us a link or some samples of your work!

Thank you for your interest!

Stacey Rozich for The Working Proof.

Merijn Hos: Trophy

Trophy, by Merijn Hos.
15% of the sale of this print goes to Doctors Without Borders.

Merijn Hos, who works under the alias Bfree, is an artist and illustrator from Utrecht, the Netherlands. He divides his time between working as a commercial illustrator and working on his own personal projects, exhibitions, and independent publishing.



About the print:
The print features an abstract trophy that is not at all for any particular event or finish place. The trophy is made purely to celebrate life in general. I think that a lot of people don’t know how blessed they are with what they have, and this trophy can be a little reminder.

This is a digital print on acid free, Neenah uncoated matte 100lb cover paper that is 80% recycled. It was digitally signed by the artist and was numbered by The Working Proof.

PURCHASE $30!

What has inspired you recently?
I am always inspired by daily life, the interaction between people, friends, music.

Why did you choose to pair Doctors Without Borders with your print?
I choose Doctors Without Borders because they do a wonderful job of caring for places in the world that can’t help themselves.

How have you seen art transform the world around you?
I grew up with parents that took me to museums and told me about art, so for me art has always played an important role in my life. So I can really say that it is important to realize that art and science have a great impact on society. It helps to create revolutionary ideas by thinking outside the box.

If you could pick one artist to mentor you, who would it be?
Dick Bruna. He happens to live in the same city as me - Utrecht - and I really admire the consistency in his design.

Who are some artists you think people should know about?
I recently saw a documentary about Ion Barladeanu, a tramp who made thousands of collages during the Communist regime of Nicolae Ceausescu.

Erik Otto: Refresh

Refresh, by Erik Otto.
15% of the sale of this print goes to 826 National.

Erik Otto is an illustrator, painter, and graphic designer living in San Francisco. Erik is interested in the past, but excited for the future. When he is not creating, he is either riding his bike or relaxing with his girlfriend, while thinking about the next thing he plans to make. When Erik is creating, he throws himself into the process, working quickly, and making the most of whatever he has at hand at the time. Working as an artist is always challenging, but Erik gets by doing a little bit of everything. Erik finds inspiration everywhere, but the underlying theme in his work is about a quest to be connected to a deeper source as well as the struggle to maintain that connection in such a disconnected world.



About the print:
Just like a snow globe that needs to be shaken up so all the bits swirl around and land in their undetermined new places, every now and then our lives need that same shaking up. A fellow traveler explained this to a friend, my friend told me, and now I am passing on this perfect metaphor.Refresh is about moving on from past ideas and moving forward with a positive and new outlook.

This is a four-color screenprint. Each print was signed and numbered by the artist.

PURCHASE $40!

A few symbols seem to work their way into your artworks on a regular basis - houses, circles, clouds/waves/fog? What do these symbols mean to you, and when did you first start working with them?
The house is about shelter and safety. A lot of personal struggles can be resolved through creativity, and it is said that in order to be creative one needs a place to do so -- the house is a symbol of just that (both physically and spiritually). The clouds and waves represent the constant and often uncertain movement that is happening all around us while the circle symbolizes a sense of stillness and peace.

You work in 2-D and 3-D. Do you prefer one medium over the other?
Both methods of practice continue to dialogue back and forth. Painting and drawing is my primary way to create, but I enjoy the challenge of thinking larger and more conceptually when it comes to the three-dimensional work and installations.



What have you been up to since we last worked together?
Where do I begin? Highlights include a 2-part solo show in San Francisco followed by a 3-month long travel stint creating artwork and gathering inspiration along the way. Built a school bus in NYC, built a ghost town in DC, relaxed in Arizona and Hawaii, and then backpacked through Peru with my partner for a month long journey. I expanded and remodeled the studio. I ended one company and started another and most recently, I have been doing a lot more outdoor installation work (with and without permission).

How has your work developed over the last year?
In short, I feel my direction, material selection, and execution have harmonized in this past year. I boldly stepped away from my comforts, built confidence in improvisation, and created more site-specific work with the mindset of thinking bigger than a typical gallery exhibition.



Why did you choose to pair 826 National with your print?
It bugs me out to see younger generations making such apathetic decisions simply because they don't know better. My print is about taking a confident leap into a new direction, but without a quality education, one might not even know there are bigger opportunities out there just waiting for them. Also, 826 National is San Francisco based - currently I am, too.

What is inspiring you these days?
Cycling, collaborative work in photography and film, permaculture, the beauty of uncertainty, playing drums, Breaking Bad.

Erik's previous sold out edition for The Working Proof: Gathering.

Sarajo Frieden: Back to the Garden

Back to the Garden, by Sarajo Frieden.
15% of the sale of this print goes to 826 National.

Sarajo Frieden is an artist and illustrator living in Los Angeles with her son. Raised in the wilds of Oakland, CA, she chronicled her family’s adventures both real and imagined, something she drew upon to illustrate Noonie’s Masterpiece, a graphic novel published in 2010 by Chronicle Books. Her work can be seen on lamps, pillowcases, teapots, journals, and the like. She divides her time between illustration and painting, which can sometimes involve collage, shaped paper and embroidery. Her artwork has been exhibited in a variety of cities including Los Angeles, Melbourne, San Francisco, and Rome.



About the print:
This piece, entitled Back to the Garden, is a bit nostalgic in that it refers to a place or time of innocence and beauty that isn't always easily attainable. We hear a lot about the environment under assault (and for good reason), but I think it's also important to connect to the beauty present in nature as a reminder to keep up the good fight in protecting it.

For me, one place that represents this kind of verdant, exuberant beauty is the Osa Peninsula/Corcovado National Park area in southern Costa Rica. It encompasses 13 different ecosystems such as lowland rainforest, cloud forest, coastal marine, and mangrove swamps. The combination of ocean, river, and rainforest is heaven to me. I wasn’t thinking of any one place in particular while working on Back to the Garden, but a combined memory of places (like this one) that I’ve been fortunate to visit.

Back to the Garden was printed on 300gsm Moab Entrada 100% cotton rag paper with archival pigments by POVevolving. Each print was signed and numbered by the artist.

PURCHASE $70!

What informs your work more, nature or the city? How do these two landscapes find their way into your work?
I think it all informs me one way or another.

What have you been up to since we last worked together?
I’ve been painting as much as I can, and of course working on lots of commissions.

How has your work developed over the last year?
My recent work is less representational and more abstract. It’s about pattern, color, geometry, and sometimes botanical/biomorphic references creep in. I’m continuing to develop the language and vocabulary of my paintings, for lack of a better way to put it.



Why did you choose to pair 826 National with your print?
I chose to pair this print with 826 National because thoughtful, creative thinkers and decision makers are one of our biggest assets, and 826 helps to nurture them. This is a way for me to give something back to this fine organization.

What is inspiring you these days?
Central Asian textiles, the quilts of Gee's Bend, Romanian folk costumes, exhibitions such as David Smith, Alexander McQueen, the textile work ofLouise Bourgeois, and a whole host of other things.

Sarajo's previous print for The Working Proof: Blue Water.