2016 marks the 30th Anniversary of The Organisation!
Cue the popping of champagne corks and hurrahs!
They have agreed to host Take A Look Sunday from June through August!
ILLUSTRATOR’S DO NOT MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY!
The Organisation is run by Lorraine Owen with the fabulous assistance of Richard Merritt, Pauline Mason, Jane Gelosa and Steph Vickery. They are an international agency with offices in London and New York and their client base covers every genre and age group within Book Publishing. In addition they supply artwork for use in Advertising, Magazines, Design, Packaging, Apps, Games, Greetings Cards and Art for Interiors.
The company is built on the ethos that every artist should have a distinct style. They would be able to stand out and would never feel that their unique style was being duplicated within the agency. Currently the maximum amount of artists they represent is 60 and they operate a policy of adding new talent only when someone leaves.
“Lorraine and her agency are pretty much publishing royalty; The Organisation work with some of the very, very best illustration talents, and it’s always a thrill to be working with one of their stable They are on our ‘go-to’ list for all new commissions.
Organisation agents without fail are a joy to deal with, and contribute so much more than simple deal-making.” STRAWBERRIE DONNELLY, ART DIRECTOR.
Here is Lorraine’s review for John Pirtle:
The artist has described the style as “Old School” and I would agree.
There is nothing wrong with the traditional water colour style but I find the palette very drab and dated. It would be lovely to see these scenes in bright, vibrant colours rather than the browns. How much nicer would the balloon look if it was bright red and yellow and seen from another perspective to give it more height.<
The drawing and characterisations are really lovely although the little boy looks strangely old – the hands and thickness of the neck look odd for a child. It would be nice to have seen a neck in the last two images as it makes him look a little “squashed.”
The little dog being brown doesn’t stand out enough and would benefit from being black and white instead or some other colour.
The artist has set up a lovely narrative with the 3 images and I’d love to know where the treasure map is going to take them – its like a scene from UP! The boy adventurer is like a mini Indiana Jones with his trusty pet dog and they have a lot of charm together, the first scene is adorable. If further scenes are done I’d like to see more interesting perspectives as well rather than scenes that are viewed at eye level.
These are very well drawn pieces which would be improved by a much more dramatic colour palette and possibly different perspectives.
Here’s a Little Bit About John Pirtle:
John Pirtle, is a freelance artist/ illustrator that comes from Wichita, Ks. He got his BFA from Wichita State University from Wichita State University in 2010. He has illustrated for local companies and have been a part of many art shows over the last several years. He’s currently working on a set of illustrations to be used in a Lecture series for Notre Dame University. He’s seeking representation from a art rep that has a need for a quirky look that is rooted in old school illustration. He mainly works with traditional medium. His full portfolio can be seen at http://www.johntpirtle.com/
Lorraine. Thanks for taking the time to share your expertise with all of us.
A Little Bit about LORRAINE OWEN:
Prior to the birth of The Organisation I had been Art Director/designer for a number of major publishers designing book jackets. I loved working with illustrators and I can proudly say that I gave a number of successful illustrators their very first job. After 10 enjoyable years I followed my passion for illustration and became a founder of The Organisation.
My main job within the company is now finding new talent and helping existing artists develop their portfolio by critiquing and supplying ideas for new samples.
Someone once said that if you love your job you’ll never work a day in your life and that’s exactly how I feel.
HOW TO PARTICIPATE:
If you do not have an agent and would like to be featured and hear what is working or how it could be tweaked to help you sell your work, then please send Two or Three SEQUENTIAL illustrations (Two/three with the SAME “story/characters”) to:
Kathy.temean (at) gmail.com. Illustrations should be at least 500 pixels wide and your name should be in the .jpg title. Please put ILLUSTRATOR PORTFOLIO in the subject area and include a blurb about yourself that I can use to introduce you to everyone.
Each Sunday one illustrator will be featured.
Talk tomorrow,
Kathy
Writing and Illustrating 
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