Alison Garwood Jones

Know your tools

Originally published in May 2017 in Blog

Windsor and Newton Cotman pan set.

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Manly Man

Originally published in April 2017 in Blog

I called this one, Manly Man. As soon as I put my brush down, I heard the expression: “I’m not a doctor. I just play one on TV.” My friend Nichola asked how I made this drawing. It came about thusly: I went to a cafe (Tampered Press) with my cheap watercolour notebook and a […]

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CEOs push to publish

Originally published in March 2017 in Blog

I originally wrote this piece for Parcel Design’s Insights Blog. All artwork by Gary Beelik. When Bill Taylor co-founded Fast Company magazine in 1995, he used its glossy pages to imagine a better business world. But when Taylor, a leader in publishing and strategic change, announced that “it’s great to be an alumnus of print” in an interview […]

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We the people

Originally published in February 2017 in Blog

Drawing is more satisfying to me right now than writing. Writing requires a fuller understanding of people. Drawing lets you get away with suggestion. Weekend side projects. #TombowUSA #BlindContourDrawing

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Flesh tones

Originally published in November 2016 in Blog

The only thing I remember about colour mixing from grade school is: red + blue = purple. I’m guessing you also discovered that the result was an ugly, muddy maroon, not the Tyrian purple worn by Roman emperors. For that, according to Aristotle, I’d have to source some crushed shellfish. I only had a Prang […]

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We work for society

Originally published in October 2016 in Blog

“We work for society.” This is how my dad, Trevor Garwood-Jones (1928-2011), described an architect’s responsibilities to the communities they build in. Buildings house our existing emotions, but also create new ones — some drab, some inspired depending on the quality of the design. Beauty was key, in Trevor’s mind, to building empathy and a sense […]

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Colour variations

Originally published in September 2016 in Blog

I obsess over colour. I stare until I’m forced to blink. Then I stare some more. Do you see the atomic lift off in the yellow? Pure magic.    

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Accessible Design in Canada

Originally published in August 2016 in Blog

FIFTY YEARS AGO, graphic design meant two things: working in print and kicking out mind-blowing creative. Wait, make that three: insisting on your own vision. The brash antics of Madison Avenue’s “Big Idea” branding campaigns, personified by George Lois and his “my way or the highway” client dynamic, have long since been replaced by a […]

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In Conversation with Anita Kunz

Originally published in May 2016 in Blog

hen Anita Kunz was a five-year old growing up in Kitchener, Ontario in the early 1960s, she practiced drawing the usual kid stuff: horses, flowers, fluffy clouds. But making Crayola masterpieces for the fridge wasn’t enough. Anita drew with a stronger sense of purpose learned from her uncle, the artist and environmentalist Robert Kunz. His editorial illustrations […]

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Skillshare vs. Netflix

Originally published in April 2016 in Blog

My favorite kind of homework. Hardest letters: S, Y. #brushpenlettering #brushguide (h/t to our teacher, Miami-based art director, Andrea Campos) It’s no contest. Given the choice between, say, Scarface and a tutorial on brush pen lettering (above) or a primer on watercolour techniques, I’m going with the loaded brush. I think Skillshare is one of the biggest gifts […]

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