Memories

We’ve told you plenty recently about artists who’ve recently agreed to work with us. I also have some great news about copy for the book. A few new pieces have just come in.

Firstly, thanks to Alastair Upham, editor of DVD and Blu-Ray Review. He’s with Future Publishing up in London and volunteered to work with Wendy Nichols on her story, about how she has fought off cervical cancer without chemo or radiotherapy. Earlier this week Simon Kirrane submitted the copy he worked on with Sarah Yates, who has survived leukaemia. Both of these stories just need to be subbed and then they’ll be ready.

Meanwhile, I’ve also been working with Frank Joussen, a teacher in Germany who loves writing in English. He’s done a great piece about a young lady called Romana Horn who was one of his pupils. It’s a very sad story as she died in the end from a brain tumour in 1997. Working on the story has been emotional to say the least as Frank has been back through his own thoughts and memories from the time, and has also been speaking to the Horn family who have allowed us to go ahead with the story. They’re pleased that Romana is still remembered. I can only think how hard it must have been for all of them when she was crying out for help, wanting to live.

I don’t want to give too much away and spoil the surprise when the book comes out, but there is some great stuff in Frank’s story that will inspire the illustrators who work on it. Our thanks go out to Frank, Alastair, Wendy, Sarah, Simon and the Horn family.

Pablo Alfieri is now confirmed as an artist for Memories.

Pablo is a graphic designer and illustrator born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. In 2002 he started the career of Graphic design in U.B.A. (University of Buenos Aires) when discovered his passion for design, illustration and typography. Since 2007 he has been working in local design studios like RDYA Design Group and Punga Visual Consorcio, and in January of 2008 he created “Playful”, a showcase of his personal works, a free space where he plays and has fun with colors, typography and geometry shapes, the bases of his creative work.

pabloalfieri.com

Radim Malinic from Brand Nu has also confirmed as a contributing artist. 

Radim Malinic has firmly established himself over the last few years as one of the most successful and prolific commercial illustrators working today. His sought after work has earned him reputation of one of the hardest working person in the creative industly with a who’s-who’s client list in the advertising world of household brand names. Based on his award winning work he has become renowned worldwide for the passion and intricate detail.

Brand Nu also provides free creative services to Macmillan Cancer Support so Radim is a perfect fit for the Memories project. We are glad to have Radim on board and excited to see what he produces for the project. 

brandnu.co.uk 

Plenty of news from us today. We’ve been inviting artists to contribute pieces for some of the stories in the book, starting with the ones by Anne Johnson and Kay Inglis – both very moving pieces. One of the first to confirm her involvement has been London-based Slovak illustrator Petra Stefankova.

I first came across Petra’s work when I was helping judge a new talent award for the now defunct Ten4 magazine by Channel 4. She was the winner in the illustration category and her 3D constructivist/surrealist style is really distinctive. It’s so interesting to look at and she manages to really exaggerate so many elements of the characters and settings she creates. This image here is her self-portrait, believe it or not. She also works in a flat vector style which is totally different and has plenty of character. You can see her work here.

Welcome on board, Petra.

In other news, our thanks go out to Simon Kirrane who has just submitted his copy for the book. He was working with artist and illustrator Sarah Yates on her story about her battle with leukaemia. Sarah is also going to provide an illustration for her ‘memory’ which is great news.

We are proud to announce our feature in this month’s Computer Arts Output section. Turn to page 19 and check it out! We would like to thank Computer Arts for their continued support throughout the project. Also thanks goes out again to Luke O’Neill for the use of his Memories graphic which is becoming quite iconic!

The Memories project has finally found a suitable beneficiary. The funds we raise from the sale of the Memories book when we launch next year will go to Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres.

Maggie’s is a perfect fit for the Memories project. The charity has six centres open already – many designed by top architects – and they provide support to people who have been diagnosed with cancer, as well as their families. At Maggie’s, visitors can come in and have a cup of coffee and a chat, read the array of literature, and perhaps even book in for a range of counselling options. It’s all about helping people cope with cancer in an imaginative and stimulating environment.

Four interim centres are also open, and four further centres are being built. The charity primarily works in the UK, but there’s an interim centre already in Hong Kong and a new centre planned for Barcelona as well. Maggie’s also has an online centre providing a community forum for people to talk about cancer-related issues.

Antony, Rishy and I met with Katie Tait and Marie McQuade from Maggie’s on Tuesday at their London centre which is on the grounds of Charing Cross Hospital in Hammersmith. We were really impressed by the open and friendly atmosphere there. The place is a design dream as you can see from the picture above – modern but comfortable. A lovely design ethos flows through all of Maggie’s print materials and products too. We’ll show you some more of that kind of stuff at a later date.

We’re going to do our best to promote Maggie’s in the course of our activities. And for their part, Katie and Marie sounded really interested in working with us and all the creative people we have on board for the project. Please check out their main website and their Online Centre.

This is a big step forward for the Memories project – we’ve found a great charity partner to work with!