Stockton Giclee Prints Available

Ever passionate about celebrating and championing the area, Stockton Borough Council got in touch. They envisaged six illustrations celebrating Stockton's Townships: Stockton, Billingham, Yarm, Thornaby, Ingleby Barwick and Norton. These illustrations were commissioned for them to gift to connections and business associates, but also to promote the Townships themselves.

The evocative "Family Group" statue, sculpted by Bainbridge Copnall, standing among scattered leaves in Billingham Town Centre.

Even in the process of producing these illustrations, we found ourselves looking at these local destinations of ours with fresh eyes. From the tranquillity of Norton duck pond to the quiet drama of Yarm Viaduct cast against an evening sky, to the evocative "Family Group" statue, in Billingham Town Centre...a testimony to art's ability to turn our gaze to the overlooked beauty in our local communities.

Yarm Viaduct cast against an evening sky.

Thornaby Town Hall.

The Old Mill, Ingelby Barwick

Norton green duck pond, on a tranquil late afternoon.

Signed Giclee prints of the illustrations are available on our shop, on beautiful Hahnemuhle fine art paper.

Shop Safely Campaign

We were honoured with the challenge to create a social distancing and shop safely campaign for my home town of Stockton-on-Tees, for use in all the independent shops in the area, as well as high-impact signage for the High Street and Castlegate shopping centre, instructing residents how to shop safely. We brought the campaign to life on social media, by creating animated versions of the designs to share online.

We felt an earnest responsibility to other residents of the town to make the designs as memorable and accessible as possible. My client, Stockton BID, was also clear that they wanted the messaging to stand out, challenging me to come up with a concept guaranteed to catch the eye of local residents during the lockdown.

After bouncing some ideas around, an original concept began to form. We wanted the posters to provide people with concrete imagery that could be used to visualise the danger of Coronavirus, while also illustrating the recommended 2 metres distance between shoppers.

We wanted to create a campaign that could be understood by adults and children alike, with a higher level of accessibility and inclusivity for all. As most of us have found ourselves stuck in our homes during the lockdown, it occurred to us to use household objects, of approximately 2 metres length, such as a bathtub and a two-seater sofa, as a way to visualise the safe distance. This concept has the benefit of being easier to visualise than the less tangible ‘2 metres’.

We used illustrations of dangerous animals in household settings to visualise the very real danger of bringing coronavirus into our homes, and this conveys the message with gentle humour, without negating the serious nature of the message, and without resorting to using fear tactics. The designs can also easily be updated as the government advice eases and changes.

We created a series of eye-catching animations to share on social media, guaranteed to stop the scroll! Viewers are rewarded when they watch through to the end of the animations, at which point the striking imagery is explained in the statement "Coronavirus is Dangerous. Don't Bring it Home With You". The resulting "ah-ha!" moment is key when it comes to increasing the memorability of any message.

Owen and I believe that the best way to instruct is to entertain. It has been shown that alarming messages often have the opposite effect, causing people to look away from a design that makes them anxious. On the flip side, several studies have shown that humour increases the retention of information by up to 70%. This way, the reward for paying attention is the resulting smile. And besides, during such a troubling time, humour is necessary and in short supply!

This series works brilliantly as memorable posters, but what about creating a fun activity to educate kids about keeping a safe distance? The solution was to create downloadable colouring sheets for children, as a way of educating them about social distancing, without frightening them.

In addition to these social distancing posters, we designed high-impact signage to provide in-depth information about staying safe while shopping in Stockton.

It was a privilege to be involved in such an important project and to have this opportunity to highlight the importance of not just social distancing, but to demonstrate the real responsibility graphic designers hold as communicators. It's essential, as both a designer and a client, to understand what graphic design really boils down to; packaging a message in a way that sticks.

“Over the last couple of months, like most BIDs and local authorities, we were looking at a reopening strategy for Stockton Town Centre. I needed something a little more creative to suit our independent businesses.

Having worked with Abby before I knew she would be the best person to go to as her work is always first class. All I needed to do was to provide the brief, asking if we could be a little quirky and fun with the message, and Abby and Owen did the rest. The result is awesome and we are very proud to display the messaging in our businesses around the whole of the town centre. ”

— Jason Maxwell, Manager at Stockton BID

Stockton Borough Council Commission Official Illustration for The Globe

What do The Rolling Stones, The Bee Gees, Roy Orbison, Morecambe & Wise, T-Rex and The Beatles all have in common? Answer: they all performed at The Globe, Stockon's legendary entertainment venue! And while I probably won't be gracing the stage there anytime soon, I'm delighted to announce that I will have played a small part in adding to its legacy, by creating an official illustration of The Globe for Stockon Borough Council. 

The Globe is a stunningly unique venue on Stockton-on-Tees High Street steeped in a rich history of entertainment. It is currently being brought back to life by Stockton Borough Council. 

Illustrating this beautiful grade 2 listed building was no small task, as The Globe is considered to be of National architectural importance, but I was determined to do it justice. I was lucky enough to get a hard hat tour of the building during the ongoing renovation, which gave me some insight into what a breathtaking space it was, and will be again, once it reopens in 2020. 

My illustration features the Globe as it looked when it first opened in 1935. As the building has been through many visual changes since then, I needed to piece together a complete image of the venue by sifting through a modest archive of old photographs and architectural plans. 

A highlight of the illustration is the swanky car parked outside, which would have belonged to the local butcher that set up shop on The Globe premises back in 1935, and was reportedly a big fan of flash cars! (It's amazing what you can learn from speaking to those in the Teeside community who still have fond memories of The Globe and its many characters).

“Working with Abby on her recent Stockton Globe graphic illustration commission was an absolute pleasure. She is a talented professional, listens to the requirements of the client and brings her creativity to the process. Abby understands the value of the artwork and demonstrated originality as well as in-depth knowledge of the sector. She is committed to achieving the best outcome and worked incredibly hard for us, within a tight timeframe.”

— Claire Fawley, Economic Growth Officer at Stockton Borough Council

The illustration is currently available as an A3 art print (£8) and A6 postcard (£1), which can be purchased from Rediscover Stockton and Preston Park Museum. Postcards can also be picked up at the Hampton by Hilton. Further merchandise is likely to be developed in the future, so keep your eyes peeled!

All proceeds from the merchandise are going back into The Globe too. The money will go towards supporting The Globe community organisation, which will celebrate the building’s heritage into the future.

The Globe is set for a Grand reopening in 2020, soon to be the jewel in the crown of the Town Centre. I'll be celebrating by creating a second illustration of The Globe as it looks after the renovation is complete, making for a wonderful pair of past/present illustrations.

f you're interested in commissioning some original artwork that creates the perfect first impression, why not get in touch?