Press Release: Businesses Unite with Roseberry Topping Artwork

Abby Taylor and Karen Parker, Communications Manager at Vintage Chartered Financial Planners.

'Two successful, local businesses, at different stages in their lives, have come together to celebrate the place that they call home.

To mark their 30th year, Vintage, Chartered Financial Planners commissioned Stockton-born artist Abby Taylor to create a bespoke piece of art featuring the much-loved local landmark, Roseberry Topping.

The piece will play a significant part in the brand refresh of the financial planning firm, who have been providing personalised financial advice to people across Teesside since 1988. In contrast, Abby is just beginning her career as a freelance artist and illustrator but has already enjoyed huge success designing pieces for Hartlepool Borough Council and Cleveland College of Art and Design.

The collaboration took shape after Karen Parker, communications manager had begun looking for someone to create an image for the updated Vintage website, and by chance stumbled upon Abby’s portfolio.

Of the project, Karen said, “Abby was the perfect choice. We support local businesses whenever we can, and her style was a lovely representation of our namesake, basing her work on vintage-inspired travel posters.”

“We’re passionate about local people and the local area, we wanted to create something that was instantly recognisable to those who love the North East and something no one else in our profession is doing.”

In 2017 Abby won the prestigious Tourism Potential award, has had her work displayed in several London exhibitions and been shortlisted for numerous competitions. The young artist has also been awarded commissions for many exciting upcoming projects, including her ongoing work with Vintage.

‌Abby said: ‘I am delighted to have been asked to work alongside Vintage on what’s been an exciting project so far. Roseberry Topping is a beautiful, and much-loved Teesside landmark and I really enjoyed capturing it in all its full glory.

It will be the first time my artwork has been used to shape a business’ identity which I’m thrilled about as it’s evident how passionate the Vintage team are about what they do and how much they care about the community and local area.”

Vintage, Chartered Financial Planners are based on Preston Farm, Stockton-on-Tees, provide financial advice to individuals and business in areas such as financial planning, retirement, investments, trusts, mortgages and insurance.'

Featured in The Northern Echo.

There has been an influx of interest in businesses wanting their own illustration of their place of work for decorative and promotional uses, or even to use on their own merchandise! If you would like to inquire about commissioning a bespoke illustration of your building or place of work, please email hello@iamabbytaylor.com or fill in the contact form on the Contact page.

Press Release: Young Stockton Artist Making an Impression in Print

Abby Taylor with her vintage-style illustration of 1 Church Street which now hangs proudly at CCAD

'A Stockton artist, who is now enjoying success through her new freelance graphic design business, has taken her love for her hometown and turned it into vintage style prints now on sale at a local independent bookshop.

24-year old Abby Taylor, a graphic design graduate from Cleveland College of Art and Design (CCAD), began working as a graphic designer in 2015 after gaining a first class degree at the university-level campus in Hartlepool, alongside working on freelance projects to develop her portfolio and client base and challenge her creativity.

After winning an art competition in Hartlepool in 2017 to create large-scale posters for the railway station with her partner Owen Smith, and receiving a further commission by Hartlepool Council, the success gave Abby the encouragement she needed to leave a job that was no longer fulfilling or challenging her, and go self-employed.

Over the past year, Abby has built up her graphic design and illustration business and is now taking commissions from local business and organisations across the Tees Valley, with clients including Tees Music Alliance, CCAD and the National Museum for the Royal Navy.

Following the success of the railway artworks featuring local Hartlepool landmarks in a nostalgic 50s style, the talented young artist took the concept and her fondness for Stockton to create images of its iconic town hall and high street.

Abby Taylor with Richard Drake and Melanie Greenwood from Drake- The Bookshop in Stockton

Abby explained: “Stockton is where I grew up and where I currently live so it holds a lot of dear memories for me. I was determined to pay my beloved town homage and decided to create an exclusive print, working with the same style of illustration that I have used for other clients, including Cleveland College of Art and Design and Hartlepool Council."

“Drake, a local independent bookshop, struck me as the ideal home for my prints. Having recently won The British Book Awards’ Independent Bookshop of the Year in the North category, Drake has a fantastic reputation and is a place I often visit. Throughout the year they hold author events, book clubs and activities to get children and adults excited about reading. It was the sense of community for bookworms that drew me in, and confirmed for me as the right place for my prints.

“The store is beautiful and cosy with an exceptional collection of hand-picked books. I went in and met with the owners, Richard and Melanie, proposed my idea and showed my existing work. When I asked if they would be interested in stocking artwork that depicted locations in Stockton, they said yes, they would love to, and I was over the moon!”

This is the first artwork to be sold at Drake and Abby has created the Stockton High Street illustration – available in both A4 and A5 – in her trademark vintage style.

Richard Drake from Drake – The Bookshop, said: “The clean style of the prints was something we really liked from the minute we saw them and we felt they were in keeping with the no-book products we stock. It’s also great to be able to support someone local as they are starting out in business.”

Abby has also created illustrations of CCAD’s campus buildings, including the new multi-million teaching facility, 1 Church Street, the existing teaching facilities in Church Square, and the former Post Office building in Whitby Street, which is undergoing a transformation into a studio and business centre for people working in the creative sector. The images from 1 Church Street are currently being used in a promotional campaign by the specialist art and design school across the UK to potential students.

With a number of projects on the go, Abby is looking forward to the future and reaping the rewards for her hard work. She added: “It’s been just under a year since I became self-employed, and although it has been hard – learning things like pricing yourself, and making sure all the paperwork is correct – it has made me so happy and I’ve been working with some great clients. Self-employment also gave me the freedom I needed to work on passion projects, like the Stockton prints.”'

This article or snippets of it have been in The Northern Echo, CCAD's Website and NEConnected.

First photo and copy by Kathryn Clapham at Elevation Marketing.

There has also been an influx of interest in businesses wanting their own illustration of their place of work for decorative and promotional uses, or even to use on their own merchandise! If you would like to inquire about commissioning a bespoke illustration of your building or place of work, please email hello@iamabbytaylor.com or fill in the contact form on the Contact page.

My Experience at Ladies, Wine & Design

Ladies Wine & Design is a concept which was set up by famous graphic designer, Jessica Walsh. She recognised there was an unbalance in the creative industry, as only a tiny percent of creative directors are women. The event started in New York and is now a worldwide concept and has spread to 130 countries and is still growing. These free events help offer mentorship and widen our networks. I personally heard about it on Instagram in May 2017, as the event was new to my nearest city, Newcastle, and had recently been set up by the amazing graphic designer, Juli Vignette. When I saw the Ladies, Wine & Design website I loved their ethos and sense of community, so I applied for a place at the Newcastle event right away. The meetings are monthly and are limited to a small group of six creative ladies.

I was open-minded at first, as I had been to networking events before, even a ladies-only one. In my experience, it tended to consist of groups that had been coming for years, so they would gravitate to the people they already knew, and it was normally such a random bunch of people, it was hard to understand the purpose of the event.

At the beginning of May last year, I had just left my in-house graphic designer role. I had recently finished the fantastic, large-scale project for Hartlepool Council with my partner, Owen. It consisted of 12 large vintage style travel posters on display at Hartlepool railway station. This was the springboard I needed into self-employment, as it gained a lot of media attention. I had current clients I was working with, but didn't have a proper website yet, as everything was happening so fast, although I had always freelanced, even while in education. I was feeling a little unsure at that point and was considering all options, including maybe working in a creative studio.

The first meet up was Chit Chat, which was just an open discussion for the group, this was a great introduction, and exactly what I needed. I got there a little too early, and Juli was so welcoming and I got a good vibe off her - she had even created handwritten name badges for everyone. The group was a mix of self-employed ladies, who either have a small team under their employ, work alone as a freelancer, or are themselves employed. A lot of them had worked in creative studios before, so it was really interesting to get their perspective and hear their input, especially when making the switch to self-employment. There was an air of honesty, and everyone seemed comfortable. With the casual chatting, wine and delicious cheese and crackers, it was a really enjoyable and informal experience. I got the train home feeling so positive.

The next meeting I went to was five months later, which was Portfolio Reviews with successful freelancer Mandy Barker, of Sail Creative and Fionn Andrews of Craft Agency (a creative and digital recruitment company). Also, yes, my full name is indeed Abigail.

I have always thought it is important to take criticism and be open to people's suggestions, and what better people to take suggestions from than a successful freelancer, someone I aspire to be like, and someone who recruits people like me all the time, and has seen many portfolios. I had my portfolio reviewed by Mandy and got to see other people's portfolios too. I got some great feedback on my work and realised how diverse the work in my portfolio was too, I received small but useful suggestions on the way I presented the work in my portfolio, which I took on board.

The last event I went to was Branding Yourself, I went with the intention of showing my website and getting the group's input on my brand. I had been torn whether to brand myself as my name or as a company name for a while. As you can see, I opted for my own name and decided to really embrace the fact that when you work with me, you are getting something that has been designed by a trained individual with a focused vision for your project, rather than something designed by a committee.  I decided to use the bold URL iamabbytaylor.com to drive this home. 

The special guest for this event was Sarah Tempest from Altogether Creative. It was fascinating seeing her presentation on how they came up with the brand name and image. it's often a side you don't see, all the unused logos and ideas they didn't run with, it was a unique experience.

Ladies, Wine & Design has been a really useful support network and has had a hand in my huge progress in my first year of self-employment, and have been there to give me a boost at more difficult times. Self-employment is a solitary endeavour and it's healthy and useful to find others in the same boat. Going it alone doesn't mean you have to go it alone! Through the friends and business relationships I have built through Ladies Wine & Design, I've been able to find a useful support network at an important developmental stage in my career. If you're interested in joining, check out their website and see where your nearest event is held and follow them on social media to stay up to date.

From these events, and speaking to other creative women over the last year, it really pulled away a facade for me. In my previous jobs, I have seen lots of amazing females in leadership positions, kicking arse at their jobs and being supportive of others. I thought there were minimal changes to be made for women in the workplace, apart from the obvious gender pay gap and some sexist job requirements/uniforms/remarks etc. in other companies.

It's important to remember, just because you haven't seen or experienced a particular type of inequality yourself, doesn't mean it's a myth. In the last year, I have spoken to women who had been asked if they plan to have children at interview, who had been denied going further up the career ladder because they recently got married and 'will be having kids soon'. I've also spoken to women who have never received remarks like that directly, but were prevented from being on the same wage as their male peers in the same job role.

Talking to other female creatives has really opened my eyes and made me realise how important events where women support each other are. You can always tell who the strong women are anyway, they're the type of women that would go to an event like this, and they choose to build each other up instead of tearing each other down. 

“We rise by lifting others.”

— Unknown

The Northern School of Art Makes an Impact with New Artwork

The Northern School of Art (formerly Cleveland College of Art & Design) required some illustrations of some of their buildings, most importantly their new multi-million teaching facility, 1 Church Street. The other illustrations were for one of their existing teaching facilities in Church Square, and the former Post Office building in Whitby Street which is going to be transformed into a studio and business centre for people working in the creative sector. 

I graduated from, then, Cleveland College of Art & Design, in June 2015 and was one of the artists of the recent artwork at Hartlepool Train Station, so it was fitting to create these illustrations in a similar style to show homage to that and continue to capture Hartlepool in this lovely vibrant style, as they were also involved in the train station project and want to celebrate their alumni's successes.

The Northern School of Art was recently awarded Gold in the Teaching Excellence Framework in recognition of its outstanding quality of teaching at its university-level campus in Hartlepool, making it the top art school in the UK. My experience at the university was fantastic, the facilities (such as computer suites and the print room) are easily available to everyone who studies there and the tutors I had were kind, knowledgeable and helpful throughout my studies. It was a delight to work on a project for an establishment that did so much for me when I was a student getting my First Class Honours degree in Graphic Design. I also like to support them by regularly giving talks to current students at college and university level, to give insights into my experience of the university, working as an in-house graphic designer and working for myself. 

The 1 Church Street illustration was presented to Professor Madeleine Atkins CBE, Chief Executive of the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) who officially opened the facility on the 8th November 2017, and copies were given out as invites as shown above. The three pieces have been framed and mounted and used as part of a display, but can be used for promotional purposes so may pop up on other materials in the future. The new building was funded by the Tees Valley Combined Authority, the campus facilities include flexible studio space, two seven-metre double-height studios for photography and TV or film work, a refectory area and galley, ensuring students can access the highest level of creative industry education in the north east and across the UK for many years to come.

Church Square is an existing facility that I frequented during my time there, it is right near the Hartlepool Church Gallery and is such a unique building with lots of detail. 

Whitby Street Studios is the first part of an ambitious multi-million pound project part-funded by the Tees Valley Combined Authority to regenerate a key area of Hartlepool is now underway, which will transform the area into a hub for creative industries. Called The BIS, the centre will encourage business start-ups in the creative industries sector and provide specialist support for them.

There has been an influx of interest in businesses wanting their own illustration of their place of work for decorative and promotional uses, or even to use on their own merchandise! If you would like to inquire about commissioning a bespoke illustration of your building or place of work, please email hello@iamabbytaylor.com or fill in the contact form on the Contact page.

Press Release: Hartlepool Borough Council Railway Station Artwork

Article by Hartlepool Mail:

”Twelve bold new pieces of artwork have gone on display at Hartlepool railway station.

The designs – by Cleveland College of Art and Design graduates Abigail Taylor and Owen Smith – show popular Hartlepool landmarks, including the National Museum of the Royal Navy, Greatham Beck, the Heugh Battery Museum and Hartlepool Marina. Abigail and Owen won the competition run by Hartlepool Council to create six pieces themed on key locations in Hartlepool-based on the hey-day of railway posters of the 1920s-1950s. Once they had won the competition the council commissioned them for a further six pieces.

“The new artwork looks great and provides a stunning welcome to the town. Hundreds of thousands of visitors pass through the station each year and this is a way to showcase some of the great attractions on offer in Hartlepool.”

— Councillor Christopher Akers-Belcher, Leader of Hartlepool Council

View fullsize

Pictured (L-R) are Abigail Taylor, Owen Smith, Councillor Christopher Akers-Belcher and Francis Fitzgerald, from Cleveland College of Art & Design.

The artwork was also used as the backdrop for the general election in June 2017

Owen, 26, said: “We worked with our photographs and sketches of the areas to create rough collages, in pursuit of the scenic compositions of the golden age of railway poster art. “We were able to pin down some compositions right away, while others took shape organically as we worked.”

The pair remember very well the day they found out they had won the competition. Abigail said: “We were sat in a busy pub checking emails on my phone and suddenly I just flew up out of my seat and started whooping! “Of course, then I had to explain to the table of confused faces that we had won the railway art competition we’d been telling our friends about, and before we knew it, everybody was buying us shots to celebrate! Everybody was really pleased for us, then we had a wonky walk back to the station, smiling our faces off!” She added: “It feels very surreal to see the artwork up at the railway station in Hartlepool “The largest we’d seen the artwork until that point was as A3 printouts! I guess most of all we were just incredibly pleased to be giving something back.”

“Having studied for three years at CCAD’s Hartlepool campus, and graduating in 2015, we regard the town with a growing fondness and nostalgia! Hartlepool is a place of modest beauty that will always be special to us. It was a pleasure to revisit those locations we frequented throughout our studies, and to stand back now to admire the view. ”

— Owen Smith

Further Reading

• Press Release, Hartlepool Life: Art Graduates on Right Track with Winning Designs

• Press Release, Hartlepool Mail: New Artwork Brightens Hartlepool Train Station

• Press Release, Northern Echo: New Artwork from CCAD Graduates on Display at Hartlepool Railway station

• Blog Post: One Year On - New Products and Hartlepool Council Catch Up

Snowy Photo: photography by Jennifer Jayne Toothill (moonjenphotos) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/moonjenphotos/