Overview

I am really diggin' Vacanthress's work. They have got some real illustration and design skill between the three of them. Plus they made some pretty kickin' Nikes I wouldn't mind having for myself.

Project Name:

Vacanthree

URL:

http://www.vacanthree.com

Artist/Creator:

Max Spencer, Mike Harrison and Craig Shields

Country:

UK

Tags:

Portfolio Design Organic Illustration NoPattern Drawing depthCORE NiceToMeetYou Cpluv

Max Spencer, Mike Harrison and Craig Shields

Max - http://www.monostation.co.uk
Mike - http://www.destill.net
Craig - http://www.surpy.co.uk

Biography

Max - Maximilian Philip Spencer is my full name, I'm 17 currently studying graphic design at my local college in a place called Leamington. I can't really remember how I got in to the field, but I do recall being given a Computer Arts magazine which instantly inspired me to try and create similar images, got myself Photoshop and started practicing. Then moved on to experimenting with mixed media a while back which lead to me drawing on pretty much anything I could find.

Mike - Well, my name is mike, I'm currently 22 and living and studying in Plymouth for a degree in digital art and technology, its fun. I got into the field through curiosity and interest mainly, then trying it out for myself, plenty and plenty of practice and experimentation and here I am today.

Where do you work? What do you do there?

Max - I work from a room in my house, doing freelance graphic design, illustration and animation. I also customize clothing and draw on objects such as lampshades.

Mike - I currently don't have a job because I'm a student and I live off my student loan! However I do get the odd freelance job now and again to boost the bank balance a bit.

How long have you been in this field?

Max - Around 2 years now.

Mike - I've been creating art for about 2 years now. I think it was after about a year of doing it as more of a hobby that I realized I love it and had a real passion for it, and wanted a career in design and illustration. I mean, that's everyone's perfect job isn't it? Doing something they love.

What role did (are) you play(ing) in the project?

Max - The roles are shared, we all experiment on and off the computer and create things, but we do have more set roles for other things, Mike looks after the site and I look after the public relations.

Mike - I am the "e;founding father"e; of Vacanthree. By this I mean that I conceived the idea for the project and brought the other 2 ultra talented guys on board because it wasn't going to be a solo project. As far as making work for it goes, I dab my oar into most of the things we create, as well as the site design and updates etc.

What was (is) your inspiration for this project?

Max - For me the project was a reaction to some of the joint portfolios and collaborative sites where the artists stuck to the same styles as one another, not exploring different areas. For the work on the site, the inspiration was found everywhere, from other designs/artists/illustrators to the everyday stuff around me.

Mike - My inspiration initially came from observing a few joint portfolio's popping up from people I know and thinking, that's a pretty cool jig. I didn't realize that I wanted something like that until a fair few months later, but I realized it had to be more than just a showcase of some artwork. For me personally it also came from wanting to experiment with more mediums and just go crazy with anything and everything. I wanted a place on the web to showcase that because my personal website is just for my artwork.

What is in your equipment/gear setup?

Max - I use a range of tools, it usually depends what I'm working on, for the more traditional things (like the customized Nikes) I used a range of pens and pencils, where as my illustration work is more mixed media based, using hand drawn and photographic elements, then composing them in Photoshop, which is run on a shockingly slow PC.

Mike - I currently run a PC, I won't bore you with specs because I don't know half of them myself! All I know is that it is up to the tasks that I throw at it and handles them adequately. I have most software/hardware that I need to make stuff including my trusty sketchbook and scanner, then Photoshop, illustrator and after effects are my most used applications.

What are some websites you visit daily?

http://www.depthcore.com/
http://www.etcetering.com/
http://www.ntmy.org/
http://www.cpluv.com/
http://www.facebook.com/
http://www.enure.net/feeds

Who's work do you most enjoy?

Max - It changes all the time, so I couldn't really pick one persons work.

Mike - Our work.

What advice can you share to people just getting into this field?

Max - Practice, practice and more practice. Don't be put off by criticism, build on it. Read lots of books on design and learn the basics. Passion.

Mike - I can offer the age old advice of be ambitious, practice, practice and more practice, experiment and find your own style but most of all just have fun!

Any other comments?

Max - We're always looking to work with great artists and designers, feel free to contact us for collaboration and banter. Thanks for the interview.

Mike - Thanks for the stupendous interview mate!

A few links that inspired Vacanthree: