Summary

Soon it will be a third year of this blog and I am genuinely surprised what I have managed to achieve throughout all that time!

I have since illustrated a book ( Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt's Petits crimes conjugaux), contributed to numerous fashion websites, got commissions for many features in the biggest Polish glossy magazines and a first solo illustration show in UK!

So no wonder I am looking forward to 2011 - I have so many new ideas, new website is coming up in a matter of days and I hope I will be able to find new exciting clients thanks to it!

See you next year then! Meanwhile I am posting my last image from my horoscope series, Saggitarius (featuring an orange Hermes Leica! Nope, sadly the image is not based on my selfportrait.):

Cougars

The latest editorial commission dealt with a winter in a woman's life - the menopause time. It was a difficult task - I wanted to draw an attractive eldery woman ( as I think it is definitely NOT an end of the female attractiveness - just look at all these fab fiftysomethings like Carine Roitfeld or lady Amanda Harlech) with a flame still glowing in her heart, still beaing able to have a fabulous love life. Just in case the art director wanted to have one more cougar and another less cougar option, here are both ladies. This illustration was published in Zwierciadlo magazine:

How to illustrate immortality?

Two latest illustrations for an article about immortality... in the internet. As usual please click on the image to see all the details:

Let's start December

December started in Scotland with a massive invasion of winter - a blizzard wiped the world white today and should keep me home tomorrow so that I could finally sit down to preparing some Christmas cards for my family, friends and clients - yup, it is this time of the year!

I hope I will have some more time in New Year to pursue my personal work while mentaining a steady flow of ediorial commissions. Watch this space!

A Scorpio girl from my Horoscope series for Twoj Styl:

Back from Paris

I went to Paris for several days and now I am slowly accustoming back again to a much slower pace of Edinburgh (I think it must be the metro, throwing one into a frenzy or all these delicious things that my husband and I had there throughout our stay, mostly cheese and crepes Nutella- chocolat!). I have thought that a nice girl toying between a Chanel bag and a Hermes one would be a good illustration of my short trip to the capital of France - the image comes from my horoscope series for the Twoj Styl magazine.

Manicure

Since Barry M Nail Paint in 313 and Chanel's Rouge Noir are a staple in my Autumn manicures, it was a pleasure to prepare an illustration for an article in the latest issue of Twoj Styl magazine, talking about the most unusual manicures available on the market. The technique I was asked to illustrate originally comes from Japan and uses a special powder to buff the nails to a shiny perfection.

As usual, please click on the image to see all the details:

Listen to your grandma

One of my latest illustrations for the series of interviews in Zwierciadlo magazine - this time about support that young women get from women of older generations. My amazing mum sent me a huuuuge parcel with at least a dozen copies of various magazines that feature my work so I will be posting them one after another. Thank you mum!

Btw, speaking of women of older generations - a picture of my mum that I took this Spring in Edinburgh has just been featured on the most amazing blog dedicated to mum all over the world: The Pictures of My Mother. Please click on a link to have a look and read the story!

Familiar face...

...in Zwierciadlo magazine - they do that to all their collaborators at some point - a mini interview!

Here it is in print:

New Portfolio

My new portfolio book courtesy of Pina Zingaro and my husband + a completely new design of the website coming in December/January = watch this space!

The only thing is I definitely have to get more sheets!

The Second Virgo girl is a bit late...

I have honestly thought that September has 31 days so I would have some more time to post my second Virgo girl but to my surprise last month turned out to be one day shorter! I should have better counted my knuckles (you know, this old childhood game where you are counting your knuckles - first knuckle of you right hand is January with 31 days, then the gap between the first and second knuckle is February, then the third knucle is March with 31 days again and so on until December which will be your last knuckle of your left hand with 31 days to come).

To cut long story short here is the cute girl:

September and welcome in the Autumn

Autumn definitely has arrived and settled now in Edinburgh. I was meeting with friends yesterday at The Spoon Cafe Bistro and one of them looked throught a rainswept window of the cafe and commented: 'Yup, that is us, until at least early May'.

I had to run some errands in the city center for my other company today and the wind broke my umbrella in two. Luckily a Pound Stretcher was nearby (I used to buy sweet and beutiful expensive umbrellas from Harvey Nichols or Jenners but frankly I cannot see the point anymore) so I was able to get a replacement for £3!

The September Lassie has two incarnations; here is the first one of this month's Virgos:

August Girl - already!

I have no idea how it happened but it is middle of August already! So here is a joyful Leo girl for you now - for me, it is back to work! See you very soon after I have some well deserved rest...

July Girl

This month's girl in a bigger version:

Oldies but goodies - March Girl in print!

During my visit in Poland I have managed to take a picture of my illustration for Twoj Styl's Piesces horoscope in a March issue of the mag, that I have not got sent to Scotland for many reasons - finally here it is:

What's on - July edition

July is traditionally one of the busiest months of the year, when I am desperate to combine work with some much needed summer break. This year I have managed to fly for a short stay in Poland to help my mum with one of her balet events in Lublin (the poster for one of them is here), get involved in a big venue photoshoot and design of their brochure and then do some more illustrations!

I am very happy with the results and here is the latest sneaky peek at the July edition of the Twoj Styl magazine:

Summer has arrived!

Do you remember THIS post by any chance?

Well, the summer is here - I am wearing sandals and I have been baring my legs in summer dresses the whole week! It has also arrived in a solid, printed version of another set of illustrations published in Twoj Styl magazine in Poland which my dear Mum sent to Scotland. So here we go, please have a look (when you click on the image it will appear bigger):

Hairy girl gets less hairy

The illustration from the previous post. As usual please click on it to see it bigger!

Long long time ago...

I am back from Lausanne after exciting several days and even meeting several of my idols! I had a good look at what was available in bd in Fnac and several other bookshops and my favourite choice was a book about Friedrich Nietzsche! However, back to what I was to write about - some new illustrations came out in print in Polish magazines. You might even remember my posts about them from long time ago:

http://theillustriousillustrator.blogspot.com/2010/04/hairy.html

This is just one of them and here is a chosen version in the Twoj Styl magazine:

June Beauties in print

My fantastic Mum has just sent me another packet with Twoj Styl and my illustrations in that magazine!

Sorry to be absent so often from blogging and drawing but this June is my graduation month and I will be off soon to the opening of my first important group exhibition in Switzerland! More about that here:

http://www.sylwiakowalczyk.com/

Meanwhile - the girls in print:

14 thousand pounds

If I had that kind of money to spend I would have got David Hockney's lithograph of green palms splashed against a shrimp-pink background from Open Eye Gallery in 34 Abercromby Place, Edinburgh. It was the only print that is left unsold and in my humble oppinion one of the most striking (though a portrait of a troubled Brooke Hopper from 1976 was very impressive as well) ones that feature in this mini exhibition. Go and have a look until Saturday 12th of June!

I used to do quite a lot of lithographs at some point and I wished I had access to the workshop here to do some more, helas! Nothing like that exists in Edinburgh. In case I am wrong, please drop me a line!

http://www.openeyegallery.co.uk/

June beauties

A surprising heatweave was scalding Scotland for several days last week so I took the opportunity to slack a little bit with work and go to the beach with friends instead. They brought wetsuits and went for a swim while I aimed at a perfect Vettriano pose on the windswept shore scoffing some tasty barbaque.

We had tons of fun so now when it is raining I need to post a latest horoscope illustration for Twoj Styl's June issue - the Gemini:

May girl in print

Windmill in print

Windmill

Still in my pyjamas - I am working on a new illustration for Zwierciadlo magazine! Meanwhile I post my latest work published there last month - a copy of the magazine is on its way to me by post so fairly soon I will be able to show you how it came out in print!

May girl in a slightly naughtier version

May Girl actually had a different version originally, which I have toned down a bit - I gave up on the idea of a bull-piercing. I decided not to present her with a fringe either as she might have looked too much like a Highland Coo!

I just would like to announce that I have finally graduated after two years of MFA in the Edinburgh College of Art so now I will have some time to sit down and do some new promotional work!

Monsieur Chopin - the poster

When visiting Lennoxlove castle I saw a piano on which Chopin used to play during his visit in Scotland. This trip actually turned out to be a straw that broke the camel's (or rather composer's) back - he could not stand the climate and...Scottish ladies who were trying to convert him to the Church of Scotland!

And this is how the poster is going to look like (as usual, please click to see it bigger!)

Monsieur Chopin

One of the recent books that I have read is Chopin Prince of the Romantics by Adam Zamoyski so I was more than thrilled with a commision of designing (and illustrating) a poster for a dance performance by The Lublin Ballet Trust young dancers. They will be performing to Chopin's pieces but some of the dances will be definitely with a very modern twist. Funny how I have always considered Chopin to be a boring and too sweet but now when I actually do not have to play piano anymore, I find him to be very intelligent and powerful:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNIK1yaKr_4&feature=related

May girl

Another month, another beauty - this one is published in the May issue of Twoj Styl magazine:

Hairy

Another apetising summer subject - unwanted hair. A third illustration from my series is published in the April issue of Twoj Styl magazine beauty section!

I have succumbed...

and with a first day of Spring (unusual, I know!) I went and bought a tube of Perfectslim...

Here is the illustration in print:

The April girl in print

April Girl

A familiar face for Spring!

Naughty Bunny

So that all these chocolate eggs and bunnies would not gather in the area of your hips...

No more dimples

There were several manic days in our household lately as I was trying to finish all the rest of the Horoscope images for Twoj Styl before the end of the month and also my mum came from Poland for an Easter break visit.

I must be mad but I like to work on several commissions at once as it keeps me focused so much more! The only downside is not enough sleep, much less socialising and no time for any Spring shopping at all!

The latest published illustration is for a beauty article about cosmetic procedures which allow women to get rid of unwanted dimples - these dimples in female tighs and butt which us, girls consider not at all cute: a much dreaded cellulite. Definitely to be get rid of before summer!

P.S. My new haircut did not work exactly the way I wanted but it is a story for a different kind of illustration - definitely a less glamorous one...

Lace

Somehow lace is not my kind of thing in fashion - I am more drawn to what Phoebe Philo does for Celine. The more I was surprised that that lacy illustration still works for me even though a magazine decided not to use it in the end. Click on the illustration please, to see it much bigger!

A windy day

A Scottish Spring is extremely windy! No chance for a nice hairstyle today. Btw I have got finally my appointment for a haircut, it has to be something a la Kate Lanphear or nothing!

While I am at it...

I am currently working on a new commission for the magazine, so it would ne nice to show you the illustration featured in the current issue of Zwierciadlo magazine. This time it is about consolation and finding strength in ourselves to fight with a crisis - hence the idea of two 'selves':

P.S. My mum very kindly took some photos of the printed work on her mobile so I am posting it even though the quality is not the best...Sorry! I will take proper pictures when my copy of the magazine raches me - for now, just a little sneak peak to give you an idea how it came in print:

March girl

There is a girl that I have forgotten to show you - Pisces girl drawn for Twoj Styl's horoscope, published in the March issue of the magazine. My Mum is coming for a visit in couple of weeks so she will bring the whole stack of Polish magazines for me - cannot wait!

How it looks in print

I need some advice about storage of all the multiple copies of magazines that are publishing my illustrations. I guess the easiest way would be to scan all the pages and have them all as pdfs or tiffs. I will also have to invest in a new portfolio case as the old A3 one is way to bulky to store them and not to mention that it is very awkward to carry - I remember too well struggling with it in depths of a Polish winter and at the height of London summer. And apart from all that I definitely need a haircut!
Note that the illustration was used twice - once to illustrate the article, the second time to open the chapter. It makes me wonder should I have been paid twice?