Andrew Pavitt

Andrew Pavitt came in today to talk to us about the running of his studio Big Orange, and the possibility of an internship there later in the year. The studio is based in what is now a very fashionable area of London, i was really suprised to learn that his rent is only £200 a month, and that you can easily rent space in a crappy run down warehouse for as little as £50 a month; id thought the idea of having a studio as totally unnatainable at this point. A good location is becoming less important due to websites and email, but if you are out in the middle of nowhere, youll have to work that little bit harder to gain notoriety. The 8 illustrators and graphic designers from Big Orange share their studio with the AOI. This provides the advantage of free membership, and legal advice whenever they need it. He said the main advantage of working in a studio of this size is being able to bounce ideas off other artists, which helps to erase any doubts or insecurites in your own mind. Everyone puts together for essential expenses such as computers, phones, cleaning etc. He recommended that when looking for a studio, pick one thats open 24hours, as its really important to be flexible for tight deadlines. Alot of clients, particularly big American ones, think theyre doing you a favour in commisioning an illustration, and will therefore expect the work done overnight if necessary, completely disregarding timezones.

The only disadvantage he could think of is is a social one: the dynamic of a studio depends on the people working there, for example someones taste in music or just a clash of personalities can create an unpleasant atmosphere. This is why most studios will prefer someone who fits in socially rather than someone who has a similar working style.

Later in the afternoon, i was able to show Andy my Fear and Loathing project, which he was really positive about, he said it looked like im enjoying doing it and that my works quite edgy and stands out alot. Which is kind of what im going for. And he loved the bat and lizard photos. He couldnt offer much advice in terms of the set designs im doing, as its totally out of his area, but suggested i contact a few places over summer and see if i can get either work experience or a job as an assistant to someone working in the industry. This is how he started work as a painter years ago, he warned that the pay is likely to be very low but that the experience is invaluable if its something you really wanna do.

When i mentioned that this projects really strayed away from illustration, he suggested that i could possibly use some of the photos iv taken and collage them, or put together abstract bits of them, maybe working over them or something. I might try this. But also i like the way its going...