View from the Zoo

Adzif has just introduced their new line of writable wall applications. Made of vinyl with a rugged surface, you can write temporary messages on them with ordinary chalk. Above and below are four of a dozen animal designs that I have created for Adzif. The photo of my studio is from a shoot that was used to illustrate an article on back-to-school supplies and study spaces for kids. It seems the space could easily be transformed into a children’s playground though the kids better not touch my Mao Dunny or my Tintin rocket (on the shelves in the background) or any other of my toys.

These minicards (printed at moo.com) are the seeds of my new upcoming licensing collection – a dozen jungle animals presented on bold color backgrounds. They make great impact on cards, stationary and tableware. Below is my business card dispenser, a clown espresso cup that I designed for Ritzenhoff. In the background you can see that «Bad Design Kills» zombie created by Velvet Moustache.

Ice fishing season is slowing down and I’m dreaming of summer already. To tide me over, I found this ad (which doubles as a poster) in the latest Communication Arts magazine by Colle+McVoy in Minneapolis. Created for Takemefishing.org to encourage kids to check out the site, they hooked this illlustrator, too. Just to show you that you never know what you can reel in.
Derek Till, art director; Tim Blevins, writer; Mike Caguin, creative director; Aesthetic Apparatus, illustrator; Chris Peters, art producer. Via Communication Arts.

Congratulations to Erica of Raplapla (I talked about her line of baby animals) for winning the «Grand Prix» in the packaging category at the Grafika Awards 2008 for this gorgeous box, designed by Atelier Chinotto and illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault, all from Montreal. Raplapla also picked up an award of excellence for their catalogue. Monsieur Tsé Tsé’s name was indeed inspired by the tsetse fly because he puts you to sleep however, unlike the fly, he doesn’t bite! «Monsieur Tsé Tsé is made of organic cotton with embroidered eyes. He is produced in Montreal by members of a social integration organization and 10% of the profits from the sale of this product are donated to UNICEF. Oh, and he’s very soft!» You can buy Monsieur Tsé Tsé here.