Whilst researching examples of what had been done before, I came across these ambient/environmental graphics by Glorious Creative that give people interesting facts about Manchester that aimed to promote some of the great museums that Manchester has.

All images copyright Glorious Creative.

After 2 days of stress, caffeine, hard work and a very late night, I finally submitted my entry for a D&AD competition to design a poster to advertise their upcoming second lecture form their ‘North’ series.

The first D&AD North lecture was given by Greg Quinton, creative director of The Partners. This time it’s a joint lecture by Flo Heiss and Danny Brooke-Taylor, entitled ‘Two Worlds Collide‘, and centres on the merger of their two companies Dare and Miles, Calcraft, Briginshaw, Duffy, different companies, from different creative fields, with different backgrounds, coming together.

Image courtesy of D&AD 2011

The competition was exclusively for degree students from universities in and around Manchester and the North West, including Stockport College (where I’m studying), Manchester Metropolitan, University of Salford, University of Leeds and Shillington College.

One winner will be picked from each university who will each be given free entry to the lecture, whilst one overall winner will be picked by Flo and Danny who will win a years D&AD membership and a D&AD annual.

The pressure was really on in when it came to getting the idea formed and executed. Thankfully fellow entrant Tomm Warham was on hand to help keep us focused…

Thanks Tomm for the image

My entry centres on the Dare concept that the different backgrounds of the creatives working there lead to ‘free-range creativity’.

From their ‘about’ page;

This is a truly creative marriage. Designers, creative teams, copywriters and technologists are fully integrated, sitting amongst each other. And they’re supported by a range of other disciplines in a flexible creative development process. So ideas flow naturally throughout Dare.
It’s what we call ‘free-range creativity’.

Flo and Danny are represented as two eggs which I intended to be humorous, as opposed to serious. Anybody who’s taken a look at their twitter feeds @Floheiss and @deeebeeeteee for example will see they’re full of humorous thoughts and musings.

I just hope they’re not offended by my interpretations of them!

Finally I’ve had the opportunity to get to University of Salford’s Chapman Gallery and see the Frankophilia! exhibition that I’ve been talking about for a while.

The exhibition is a collection of drawings, paintings, sculptures and all other wonderful forms of creations collected together on one place to celebrate the life and times of Chris Sievy’s comic character creation Frank Sidebottom. Sadly, Chris died of cancer earlier this year and I created a Frank Sidebottom illustration to commemorate his death in my own little way.

After uploading it to my Flickr account I was contacted by Suzanne Smith, who informed me she was hoping to put together an exhibition of Frank-related artwork and asked permission to include my illustration. Naturally I leapt at the chance  and after several reworks of the illustration to, I decided to transfer the image to a t-shirt and submit that to the exhibition.

I wish now I'd changed the 'George' label to say 'Frank'

Unfortunately I wasn’t able to attend the opening night (which looked like amazing fun) and due to work and university commitments, have had to put off my visit until now. But I’m glad I managed to visit before it ends on the 18th Decmber. It’s possibly one of the most surreal places I have ever visited.

Many people have mentioned the eerie nature of seeing many interpretations of the same face staring back at you from every wall and corner of the room. It’s certainly a little strange, but at the same time comforting to know that although Chris is sadly no longer with us, Frank continues to live on.

The far corner of the room features a television (opposite a lovely, comfortable soaf) repeatedly showing Frank on the Channel M late night test card, playing his ‘fantastic keyboard’ alongside little Frank. Upon entering the room this was the first thing I heard; Frank’s nasally voice echoing about the gallery space and for a split second I forgot where I was and what the exhibition was all about.

Although I didn’t know him personally, it was very emotional watching him in all his glory, almost like watching a home video of a relative who’s passed away which causes a wealth of memories to come flooding back and overwhelm you.

Frank on the Channel M test card

But let’s not dwell on the sad nature of his passing, as the exhibition is a celebration of the life and the legacy of Frank Sidebottom that Chris has left behind.

One of the most amazing things about the exhibition is the vast amount of artwork that Suzanne has managed to gather together. The space is literally filled with Frank’s image, and it was only when I started to photograph every piece that I realised the collection was HUGE, with artwork in a variety of forms and mediums. Below is just a selection of pieces from the exhibition, but you can view all the images I took on my Frankophilia! Facebook album or in my Frankophilia! Flickr set, and see more via the official Frankophilia! Facebook group

Unfortunately I didn’t get the names of many of the contributors, or their websites so if your artwork is included below, please let me know and I’ll be sure to add credit and link to you.

Frankophilia!

Portrait of Chris Sievey

Frank Scarecrow...

... and in the flesh (so to speak)

"I am Frank Sidebottom and I live in Timperley..."

Frank in Fantastic 3D by Paul McCaul aka wetdude

Poor Little Frank...

Click this one for a larger version

A Frank statue in Timperley? Let's make it happen!

Tributes to Frank from visitors

From 17th November, the University of Salford’s Chapman Gallery is hosting Frankophilia! an exhibition of Frank Sidebottom fan art.

Earlier this year I created a little illustration to commemorate the sad passing of Frank’s creator and alter ego Chris Sievey, which was spotted on Flickr by Suzanne Smith, the Frankophilia! curator who brought the exhibition to my attention.

Suzanne has gathered together a variety of different Frank-themed artworks and creations from his fans, including photography, sculpture and painting. I’m creating a small range of t-shirts based on my illustration that will be displayed at the exhibition, which fans of my Facebook page will possibly have seen.

The Frankophilia! opening event is on Tuesday 16th November from 6:00pm until 8:00pm, and runs until Saturday 18th December with FREE entry for all from 12:00pm until 5:00pm.

For a sneak peak of some of the artwork on show, take a look at the BBC news website, and to stay up to date on the show be sure to join the Frankophilia! Facebook group.

Frankophilia! e-flyer designed by Wayne Marsden.

On Monday 21st June 2010, the legendary Mancunian comedian Chris Sievey sadly lost his battle with cancer, aged 54.

Chris was best known for his iconic and much-loved character ‘Frank Sidebottom’, an aspiring pop star who never let his (many) failures get him down. Through his work, performances and TV appearances, Chris put Frank’s home town of Timperley on the map.

Despite his many years in the business and his popularity with people of all ages, Chris died practically penniless and was sadly facing a state-funded “pauper’s funeral”. However, thanks to his generous fans and supporters, funds were raised in excess of £21,000 which ensured both Chris and Frank got the send-off they deserved.

This illustration is my way of honouring a Manchester legend, who will sadly be missed by all.

RIP Chris Sievey | 25th August 1955 – 21st June 2010