CameronKimJones: Design

2010-08-22T08:45:00.000-07:00

It is with tear-filled eyes I type this final fairwell to all things Blogger. Things weren't working out between us that great and when I found out Blogger was posting stuff on the internet with my best-friend, well, enough was enough.
Please find my new and improved blog here.
Thanks for the goodtimes Blogger.

Good as Gold

2010-04-27T07:44:00.000-07:00

Keeping with the theme of logos-that-I-have-done-recently is this little beauty for the boys down at Chalice. I quite like it; the simple colour scheme, open spacing, vague mining reference and the dynamic and useful motif. Almost makes me look like I know what I am doing.

Computer Luv'n

2010-04-11T21:28:00.000-07:00

Another logo. I likes it. But not as much as these guys like computers.

New Logo: Connect360

2010-04-06T23:15:00.000-07:00

Probably one of the better logos I've done recently, this one here is for a company called Connect360 which I did through my day job at Trilogy Advertising & Marketing.

Connect360 are a company that develop software of a similar nature to Skype, but of a much better quality and with a more 'business' approach. Once I know their landing page is up, I'll add a link to it for anyone who is interested.

eFolio

2010-03-07T23:29:00.000-08:00

As the countdown to the demise of my old website continues, grab a copy of my eFolio. It's the only part of the website I'm still quite proud of it and it's not actually part of the website. You can now find it on Issuu.

I Hate My Old Website

2010-03-04T02:07:00.000-08:00

With that in mind, here's a picture of it. Just letting anyone and everyone out there (you four people who actually read this in other words) know that I'm working away on a new site that might even be good. Don't want to get you hopes up, but it won't be as bad as the last one.

Hannah Raising Fun... and Money

2010-02-02T06:19:00.000-08:00

My friend Hannah is putting on a fundraiser and sure, it will be fun, but it's also for a good reason too. Basically, Hannah is skipping country, from dry, clean, safe Australia to the also steamy, dirty and dangerous Cambodia.

Why? Is she that obsessed with Rambo she want to go re-enact some scenes? Are banana prices getting too high in Western Australia? Does she have a thing for stir-fried cat? Maybe some of these are true, but the biggest reason is so she can help empower and heal young girls who have been exploited by the cruel industry of sex trafficking in the wake of massive civil war. Hannah has a massive heart for social justice and will spend a year over there living out of her own pocket.

As a result, she is fundraising by putting on a sweet event which I got to do posters for.

She's also a terrific artist and the art she sells helps her do what she does, so if you want to help her out. Do something you lazy slacker.

http://www.hannahhashope.com

2008 Graphic Portfolio: Part 1

2010-01-18T05:43:00.000-08:00

Another one from the archives, these are dividers for the sections on my printed portfolio. I'd either this portfolio important meetings or potential clients or, more likely, show people at the pub . Sometimes it ended up being both.

Instead of sliding these babies into a plastic binder I glue bound all the sheets together and then bound them again into an old UK street directory from the 1950's. It was falling apart and I picked it up for a few bob in one of the best charity shops I've ever walked into in a place called Luton. Probably the only redeemable feature of the little, grey town. But, I'll try show that in a future blog. Partly for suspense and partly because it's in a cupboard at the moment.

Youth Alive - All of the Above

2010-01-14T21:29:00.000-08:00

One of my first real album covers, back in 2004. The white was silver foiled and it looked quite pretty.

I Care Revolution

2009-12-15T06:25:00.000-08:00

Apparently getting stabbed, bullied, abused or victimised aren't as much fun as Fiddy Cent makes out in his songs. Luckily, some bright young sparks have picked up this and want to do something about these sorts of issues in London and the UK, please welcome to the stage, the I Care Revolution.

No, the I Care Revolution aren't a bunch of colourful, fuzzy bears who solve problems but blasting light from their tummies, but instead a group of young, talented, focused fellas and ladies who think that doing something is good idea. Working mainly in schools using music, media and their good looks, the team are really starting to see some headway in changing some mindsets about the way teenagers treat each other. It's something I would like to become a lot more involved in.

Now you may think what's a bunch of young punks in London got to do with me, but I metaphorically encourage you at knifepoint to check out their some of their short films and their website, which are so cool you could keep a side of beef fresh on them for a month...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyEOz94q5tk&feature=player_embedded
http://www.icarerevolution.com/

Cameron Kim Jonas

2009-07-07T16:12:00.001-07:00

You know, some people find it hard to cope with being famous. But not me. Instead I like to rock it out with my brothers. Or even write a few deep and meaningful tunes about my girl problems. At the end of the day I'm just your ordinary teenager who just wants party with one of the dudes.

Keep it real,

CKJ

4th Wall Productions

2009-06-16T08:39:00.000-07:00

My friend Harry has a very unique business ethos, one that I think, helps 'dodge' the problems of modern business. It first involves a complex series of checks to make sure any uneccessary work doesn't get done. Putting something on a 'to-do' list is a complete waste of time, so sometimes a 'filter' needs to be 'applied'. In Harry's case the 'factors' to examine before doing something include;

Will the task be excessively challenging?
Will the task encroach on any potential recreational benefits?
Does it really need to be done today?
Yeah. But, does it really?
Is it lunchtime yet?

Once these questions have been 'tackled', it's from here that he really make a decision whether 'to' go forward with a 'project'. And' it's not just in the 'decision making' that Harry's methodology's are 'unique'. His project briefing also adopts original 'solutions'. Take for instance the brief for the design above, which was worded "Hey man, we need a funky logo. Hurry up". To some, it may seem a 'lazy' and 'vague' brief, but once you discount this reasoning and look beyond the surface you can see just how clever the design brief actually is. A man as busy as Harry doesn't need to waste time meshing out 'unnecessary' details, and instead encapsulates only the very, very important specifics. Extra 'words' and 'information' wouldn't give direction, but rather take it away. It's not laziness, but actually a disguised genius. Harry doesn't do 'business talk', he 'talks business.'

On a serious note, the guys are at 4th Wall in Manchester are a really a talented bunch, including Harry, and it was a pleasure to work on their logo recently. The interia of the logo can be swapped in and out creating a very flexible, yet still recognisable logo. Perhaps, they do a nature documentary and for this they can swap the inside of the logo with leaves or something like that. It's like a logo that never gets boring. Well, that was my reasoning. Once they get their new website up and going I'll post a link below.

The Elusive 'Cool'

2009-06-02T15:43:00.000-07:00

What is cool? Whenever I work out what cool is, it moves. Like a bandana wearing leopard suddenly leaping away into the dark and morphing into cliché. It's an endless chase. Is the word 'cool' cool? Probably not. Should I hang onto it until it becomes cool again? Again, probably not. Are blogs cool? Certainly not. Is fashion cool? Broadly speaking and by definition, yes. So are fashion blogs, cool? It's that grey area where cool could be hiding. Perhaps they now just clichéd? Meaning they were once cool, but then got overcooled and are now uncool. Skulls for instance, was once an integral part of 2007/2008 fashion with the ability to turn an ordinary shirt into an amazing, friend-winning, door-opening wardrobe centre piece. But now every second shirt in supermarkets from here to south-east Asia has at least one slapped on the front.

Somewhere there must be some kind of board that tallies up what is cool and what isn't. Some kind of stock exchange that gains and looses points as things get cool and uncool. Constantly changing and moving yet still keeping a definite record of exactly how cool something is. Today I would have watched in awe as Eminem stocks dropped and Sacha Baron Cohen's drastically rose over last nights MTV Awards. But then again, knowing exactly what is cool probably means is not cool anymore.

Ghosts

2009-05-22T05:32:00.000-07:00

When I was a kid, I really wanted to call the Ghostbusters. I was pretty young and from seeing the movie I couldn't quite work out if they were real or not. I mean, the ghosts looked real, then they had the newspapers and all the publicity on the movie. So I thought that was real. And then, at the end they have them doing a parade through New York with all the people celebrating. All this added up to it being real. One hundred percent real. I just figured that sort of thing didn't happen in our city.

I never worked out the difference between documentary and film when I was young. Cartoons I knew weren't real, but live action film? Who knows? I had the same problem with Degrassi High. Are these actors or are they stalking kids with camera's. Sports films I often thought were real too and I really hoped Doctor Who wasn't real. But at least I knew Wrestling wasn't real.

Staines; Home of Ali G

2009-05-21T16:44:00.000-07:00

To celebrate me doing a wonderful poster for him, Pete McAllen will be supporting some bloke called David Gibb at the Hobgoblin in Staines. The beautiful scenery of the area might be familiar to movie-goers as its the back drop to the thought provoking movie, Ali-G in DaHouse. Should be a good night, unless of course you're deaf or you hate Pete. If either of these are the case, then avoid being at The Hobgolin, in Staines on Sunday the 19th of April.

www.petemcallen.com

More Newish Stuff

2009-05-20T16:40:00.000-07:00

Here's some more new stuff. I'm pretty tired, so I'm not gonna write much. If I could I'd love to update this blog daily but I don't have the time or desire to loose anymore sleep. No brief for the above work. I seem to come up with my best stuff that way. I find trying to be creative and also pay the bills similar to an endless spoon and egg race with no finish line.

It's a piece that looks at WWI trench warfare and was inspired by a lot of the history I've read on the subject. It's all pretty sad, realising thousands of people like you and me threw themselves at each other and machine guns and artillery in areas that are now empty fields around Europe. Each person had a real life, ambitions, dreams and a family somewhere and all that came to mainly unrecorded ends miles away from where they actually lived. Sorry to end on such a sombre note, but I think it's actually worth stopping and thinking about that.

Big Wide Space & Itty Bitty Typography

2009-05-19T06:03:00.000-07:00

It's a winner every time. Like pancakes on the weekend or a kebab on a late night, it never lets you down. Big, open spaces with very little going on and then there, in a corner somewhere, a little logo or some tiny writing. It always seems to look more sophisticated and stylish. I'm not sure why. It's easy to do, much easier than putting together some classified section in a trashy mag. It seems to say, "look at me, I'm so wealthy I'll take twenty pages to say what you would in one." But, it somehow works. Flick through a nice glossy magazine and then hold it up against your local TV guide and you'll find what I say is true.

It's with this in mind that I 'll also add it's always is the best page to design in any of my portfolio's. Above is the last page of my latest mini-portfolio and some minimal purists out there might rave and rant at me for corrupting the design by adding my little planet halo. But, I think, looking at the design now, it's probably the best page in the folio. Which is good, unless of course I want people to like all of the pages in my portfolio. So, what's the solution? I've decided to put together a portfolio of all the last pages of all my portfolio. Genius, pure genius. I'll let you know how it goes.

Holly

2009-05-03T14:06:00.000-07:00

This piece was done a few years back when I first started getting interested in wooden textures, muted tones and ridiculous sized and layered photoshop documents. I took this photo from a young photographer named Caris Bridge and a spent a sleepless night reworking it for some band's promo. Whether or not they used it is still in some doubt, but I still think it stands the test of time a nudges into one of my favourite designs. I've since gotten rid of the bands name and slightly reworked it not so long ago. A link to some more of Caris's work is below.

http://miss-caris.deviantart.com/

My Little Sis

2009-04-26T16:45:00.000-07:00

My brother, Christopher, took this. It made me a bit homesick so I've posted it up. Great tones, lens flare and dynamic action shot too. My family's great. I think this was taken in Moore River in Western Australia. Nice place in the middle of nowhere.

Kings of Leon

2009-03-11T14:51:00.001-07:00

If you listen closely to conversations in stylish bars all over the world, skinny jeaned, black shirted people everywhere seem to be saying the same thing, "Kings of Leon? Use to like their old stuff but now they've sold out". In a way it's true. Nowdays you're more likely to see them stuck to the front of a school girls folder than on a festival poster. And they have started making their music as catchy as an early winter cold, but I'm pretty sure we've all seen it coming. This pic was done in 2007 and even then they weren't a breakthrough act.

I figure most people, if offered the chance at being the worlds biggest band, would probably take it. Even if meant hanging out with their brothers all day. Give them a break indie kids, and let them be the inspiration to trailer trash that they deserve to be. I still think they're alright and maybe you should too.

This pic's been getting a fair few hits on my website too...

www.cameronkimjones.com

The New Formula for Cool

2009-03-09T18:03:00.000-07:00

The Nu-Rave movement seem to be in it's final death throws as everybody seems to wearing the stuff. Once only a scene for trendies, ex-electro's and Klaxons, now everybody seems to be into it. When your 14 year old cousin starts wearing this stuff you know fashion's done it's full circle. Someone go tell Late of the Pier that they've only got 6 months left of their career as I'm sure fashion's new style is just around the corner. Not literally, I live in Walthamstow, but figuratively I think something new is coming. Perhaps loosely based on hotpants.

It's also on Threadless if you care to vote...

VOTING OVER

Our Future

2009-03-09T18:01:00.000-07:00

I know, I know. It's a little bit naff. Like I'm some kid who dreams of a better future for my children, having rights to hug whales and live in cities where people all hold hands together. But, it was for competition with that kind of vibe. Plus it was a couple of years ago when I cared about things like being nice and respecting people's rights. Now days I'm more likely to write, "Your Future Smells Funny" or something like that.

Bright Colours and the Constant Changing Forest of Fashion

2009-03-02T16:17:00.000-08:00

I remember when bright colours were the new it thing again. Maybe they still are? I'm not too sure any more. Fashion seems to be a vicious cycle that repeats increasingly quickly. Changing more often than the numerous fashion and design blogs that are out there. I've learnt not to thrown anything out because no sooner than it's not cool, it's cool again. I got a flaired Safari suit sitting in a cupboard somewhere. So go ahead, laugh at these now, but just remember tomorrow they'll be cool...and then the day after they probably won't be again.

Another Self Promo Thing

2009-03-02T15:46:00.000-08:00

Like the title gives away, this is another self promo thing. This one, like some others earlier in my blog, is to promote my website. Don't know if it actually worked, but I do like them a lot. I tried to make it so when you clicked on them it would go to my website, but instead it sent you somewhere completely different. Go figure. I'm glad I didn't choose a future in web design or I might have been the first person to break the internet.

Whoops

2009-03-02T13:54:00.000-08:00

I did this a couple of years ago. A montage of images and illustrations I'd done. Spent a couple of hours arranging the elements and fine tuning the layers and constructing assymetric paterns and fine tuning the crimson colour scheme. Then, just as I was finished, someone come up and goes, "what's with the Nazi hankerchief ?" Sure enough, I slide my chair back and look at the screen, fold my arms and realise I'm staring at some kind of National Socialist propaganda. As a result, the one on my website looks quite different (link below), but this is the original and one I like the most.

www.cameronkimjones.com

Real Purty Flowers

2009-01-08T04:40:00.000-08:00

Another of those pieces I'm dragging out from the archives as I get some new stuff together. This was me trying to be abstract with a lot seventies music playing in the background. Their meant to be Daisies on a Warm Spring Day. Looks like the sort of thing you buy on printed canvases in IKEA. I did quite a few of these and might return to them if offered to by a card company or something. Peace man.

Australia & New Zealand: No More Fighting!

2009-01-06T17:53:00.000-08:00

It's not often you hear an Australian say something nice about a New Zealand. And if they do it's usually sarcastic. But this isn't. This is a proper tribute to New Zealand's Fourth Most Popular Folk Parody Duo to be posted on Threadless T-shirts. With another one in the works.

So, until they beat us again in the Rugby, I'm prepared to look a New Zealander in the eye again and work towards both peace and a brighter future. Peace brothers. Peace.

Gospelboy: 2007

2009-01-04T06:59:00.000-08:00

An early moniker I did artwork under. Kinda a flop but mainly because I don't think I pushed it enough. Plus I got tired of throwing every single element, picture and logo into a lot of the artwork. I was convinced messy was the new 'cool thing'. If that were the case than I think my bedroom was way 'cooler' than my artwork.

Burnt Stuff = Wicked Cool

2009-01-04T06:12:00.000-08:00

I love bizarre scenery. It's like eating too much blue cheese and going straight to bed, but with way less crackers. This place, a recently burnt down market in Midland, Western Australia is one of the top ten bizare places I've been and I was lucky enough to have borrowed a camera that day. Smelly, old burnt food, melted toys, thousands of smashed eggs and a security guard chasing me round.

Threadless, Such a Hoot

2009-01-04T04:57:00.000-08:00

Based on a mini jewelled statue, this little thing took me an entire night. I entered it into Threadless where public voting decided it would not become a T-shirt or a print. I think I have a love/hate relationship with Threadless. I love the fact lots of people get to see my work and that it could earn me some cash, but I hate the fact that it gives complete idiots the freedom to express their opinions about your artwork underneath. My mum used to say, "If you don't have something nice to say, then don't say nothing at all." That could be why she doesn't talk to me much.

Nevermind the Old Stuff

2009-01-04T04:26:00.000-08:00

I created this blog with the idea of putting new stuff on it. At the moment I'm working on a lot of that new stuff so I figured I could chuck a lot of old stuff on instead. This particular piece of stuff is a portrait I did of Kurt Cobain somewhere around 1999. If you don't know who Kurt Cobain was then you should probably slap yourself across the face with a large fish. Just a suggestion.

Think Before You Eat

2009-01-03T08:26:00.000-08:00

The destruction of wildlife habitats across the world is a serious thing indeed. But, with all the Media attention on the 'big players' in the environmental game, being the whales, elephants and panda's. Sometime the little guy gets left out.

The common apple worm is one of them. Day by day thousands of worms are left homeless and forced needlessly onto the street. And yet the media stays silent. The issues discreetly swept under the rug by politicians and government authorities. Why I ask? Would I be paranoid in thinking this could be...a conspiracy? I'll leave that for you, the readers, to decide. Hopefully the people at Blogger won't also be pressured by government authorities into withdrawing this thought provoking article.

Thank you, and remember...Think Before You Eat.

*This controversial drawing is also on display at Threadless should you want to vote for it (favourably please) then use this link...

HERE

New Portfolio...or a Rehash of My Older One

2008-12-04T07:27:00.000-08:00

Here's some samples from current portfolio, which gets changed more often than it gets looked at. In fact, I'd say I change my portfolio more often than my underwear. Which ether says a lot about my work ethic or a little too much about my personal hygiene.

This is an illustration I always slip into my portfolio. Should I find another four hours to draw a better and more recognisable rock star I would.

Here's a page directly out of one of my many portfolio's. The neat layout which I usually go with didn't do justice to the messy spontaneous content. It was like finding a Radiohead song on a Summer Hitz '08 complilation.

I did this a while back for Youth Alive WA. It was for some t-shirts and matched a CD I did earlier. They actually ended up being silver foil printed on black. Clichéd a bit now, but bang on the money back then. I accidentally bought the girls one with a plunging neckline.

My Website: Propaganda

2008-12-04T06:12:00.000-08:00

In an effort to bring a little bit of attention to my fledgling website I decided I would hire a team full of annoying people in red shirts and clip boards to bug anyone who walked past them on busy streets in the centre of town. This must work because they never seem to go way. But, after a little thinking and re-assessing my budget I instead had to come up with two other solutions;

Stand on the corner of a busy highway waving a piece of cardboard around to traffic, or...
Drop little advertisments on every facebook and myspace page I saw saying click here

I chose the second option and, if by chance, you were driving down Ocean Reef Road that weekend a saw a guy getting picked by police with a large chunk of cardboard it must have been someone else. Honest.