Mr Men Series

Webs:
Mr Men and Little Miss:The official site for the originals
The Mr Men Show: The official site for the new series
Toonhound

Roger Hargreaves' Mister Men characters have been with us for more than 30 years. Their design is elegantly simple; bright geometric shapes with little hands and feet. Sometimes there are boots and maybe a simple hat as well.But most importantly, there is a quirk, an oddity or speciality about each individual that gives rise to their name. And it's not just limited to the men.In 1981, the Little Misses were born to accompany them, and there is now a Mister Man or Little Miss for every facet of human nature. Everyone has their own particular favourite - be it Mr Bounce, Mr Messy, Mr Noisy, little Miss Trouble or Scattterbrain, Mr Lazy, Mr Greedy, Mr Silly or any other members of the 80+ gang of characters.

In the beginning, however, there were just 7 Mr Men. They were "born" in 1971 when Roger's young son Adam asked him what a Tickle looked like. Joining Mr Tickle in the original line-up were Mr Bump, Mr Sneeze, Mr Happy, Mr Nosey, Mr Greedy and Mr Snow. The small 14x12.5cm books were an
instant collectible hit and the format has remained the same ever since. Sadly, Roger Hargreaves passed away in 1988, but the characters remain in the hands of the Hargreaves estate with Adam himself now holding the pen.

Over the years we've a lot more introductions, further books based on the existing Mr Men and Little Misses, regular annuals and large format editions and even special new arrivals and stories, like the seasonal Mr Christmas, a Little Miss Sunshine hair care promotion book and Mr Cheeky, who wasinspired by a Mr Men 30th anniversary competition winner. Over 100m Mister Men books have been sold to date, making the late Roger Hargreaves the second most successful author in the UK, after J K Rowling.

As for the tv Mister Men, well, they first appeared on UK screens four years after their initial publication, in 1975. The animated series was produced by Terry Ward's Flicks Films and it stuck faithfully to the original format, both in look and story. The films were narrated by Dad's Army star, Mr Uppity himself Arthur Lowe, and his unique indignant jollity suited the tone of the series perfectly. So perfectly, in fact, that many folks still consider this to be the definitive adaptation...

the 6th London international animation festivel

Web:LIAF

BEST OF LIAF09
Muto

The new short film by Blu
an ambiguous animation painted on public walls.
Made in Buenos Aires and in Baden (fantoche)

Blu Sketch Notebook

This is the best result of the london international animation festival.From Blu's website, I found that he had done graffiti around major cities in Europe like Berlin, Barcelona, Milano, Beograd. He painted them, photographed them, made videos with them, animated them. He had used walls and the surroundings as a whole, he had used them to created characters, to give life to those things, together with the technique of technology, he created art in a solid and vivid way.

I was then inspired by him, and felt passionate about making sketches, and thus turning my own characters into various media, they could be illustrations on my wall, they could be on badges, they could be on cards, on tees, they could also even be crafts.

Claire Richards

Claire Richard is an artist and illustrator. She illustrates children's books, paint kids portraits, design cards and make groovy toys. She paints with bright watercolours, oil paint and digital. Her art is inspired by childhood memories and kids she meets.

I came across her website by incident when I was actually researching Claire White, and I was then fancinated by her bright style.





These pictures are selected by myself from her online blog, I really like the light and bright colors she used, and there's a tone of innocence in her drawing that make me admire this style.

Web: Claire Richards Art Blog

Simplicity and complexity

Chongchong's website:

http://www.likefar.com/chongchong/index.html
http://www.chongchong.net/

Chongchong's idea about simplicity and complexity

The drawing process is about getting from simplicity to complexity, and the other way around.　

At first we draw with single lines, like lifedrawing or linedrawing. Soon we discover that the power of single lines is not enough as visual expressions, the sense of solid and reality is not enough. So we improved our tools and techniques, we drew from charcoal drawing, to gouache, oil painting, the expression since been enhanced, the documentation make drawings more like real photos.　

There's a difference between beginners and experts, that is, if they could draw deep down into a painting.However, these details can not be restrained, they are not delicate and careful depicting, but to find out the points that make you interested in, and to make them terrific. It is not only a sort of ability to find such points, and it's also the reason why personal art style has formed.
　
When you are able to draw into complexity, then you return to simplicity. The lines are still lines, however, with a totally different spirit. Because the simplicity is based on complexity, is based on dissecting and selecting. If there's no such process, simplicity is just simple, but with this process, simplicity is simple and deep.