CCSF

We have an interesting new brief.
I'm going to write it here as we recieved it... and then try and tell you how I'm thinking of approaching it!

Choose three random images.
Crop each image in 20 different ways - then choose one word from the following list:
Treasure, Velvet, Bold, Creep, Peep, Slip, Twist, Notch, Drip
And one statement from the following list
1. I've lost my papers
2. They scavenge and steal
3. Which woman? Whose child?
4. A most satisfying end
5. In short, they exist
6. A tiny fortune
7. He was walking around in circles
8. Two dead men got up to fight
9. Smoothing the all black surface

Finally, combine all elements in one of the following formats: Moving Image, 2D, 3D.

So..... Yeah. That's our last ever brief!
A bit of a strange one, but really exciting I think.

I was initially curious about the 'choose three images'... do they have to be our own images? Apparently not. This pleased me, as there's such a wealth of imagery that I love, it's going to be really enjoyable to choose some exciting pictures to work with.
I immediately knew I wanted some really elaborate, complex images. It's funny, because a few months ago I thought I'd settled into a style of working... clean lines, vector, simple blocks of colour...
But I'm starting to realize that just because some of my favourite designers work in that way, doesn't mean it's for me. My style of illustration has always been 'busy', and I've really enjoyed the last project where I produced those complex pieces... I want to see if I can continue working that way.

Also, if each image is going to be cropped in 20 different ways, I want lots of potential for variation!

So I started looking in the library, and thinking about the books that really interest me (I work there, so I really do browse every section on a day to day basis, not just the design section).
I was reminded of my love for maps and diagrams, which I know is quite a trendy area amongst designers at the moment (or so it seems), but it really is something I've loved from an early age.
In my childhood I used to draw elaborate (but crude) architectural plans for my dream house, create fantasy cities on my bedroom floor out of little boxes and toys...

Anyway, it's all well and good thinking about images I like, but they've got to relate to those quotes.
Another thing that's been interesting me recently is scale, and zoom... the idea of starting in the very depths of outer space, zooming in and in and in, to planets, earth, cities, buildings, streets, people, people's faces, skin, the cells in the skin, the atoms making up the skin... it's insane, when you really think about it, and incredible.

The images I've been interested in are, as I said, maps and city streets... but also, I found an incredible book of medical drawings, which was what made me think of the above 'zooming in' reference. I'm wondering if there's some way I can work further with this.

This has basically just been one long thought stream/ramble... But that's what this blog is about, I guess :)
Anyway, it would be quite a dull blog with no pictures, so here's a selection of imagery I've been enjoying. Sorry for the slightly low quality, they're just photos of books, I need to go back and get some high res scans.