Magic Feathers & Marching Bands

Lesley Barnes is a very talented freelance illustrator and animation director from Glasgow.

I was impressed by Lesley's work when I first saw it featured at Aqua-Velvet, and have since 

been following her varied creative pursuits. These include a pack of beautifully 

designed playing cards featuring four warring clans of animal and human characters.

The work in progress can be followed on her blog An Ace in the Pack.

One recent project which immediately caught my eye is a series of illustrations

inspired by The Firebird, a classic Russian folk tale that was also used as the basis 

for Stravinsky's ballet. I love the bold combination of strong primary colors,

rich ornamental motifs and modern illustrative techniques.

It looks like yet another strong case of the highly contagious "Russian folk bug"!

In her interviews on Aqua-Velvet and Pikaland, Leslie talks about her quintessentially British love 

for vintage Penguin covers, hot cups of tea, lady hats and the high ceilings of old Victorian houses. 

Her sources of inspiration include the great artists and designers Charlie Harper, Edward Bawden, 

Alexander Girard and Saul Bass, and the animation work of Yuri Norstein and Lotte Reiniger.

 A fun collaborative project initiated by Leslie and uberkraaft was devoted 

to creating the whimsical imaginary performers of Colonel Windpipe's Musical Brigade.

Another collaboration with the wonderful illustrator Thereza Rowe resulted in

the inventive Sesame Street-style animation 7 little houses.

 A very colorful flock of birds designed for Digital Artist Magazine.

 Magic cloack

 A long neck

Illustration for .Cent magazine.

And now, head over to vimeo to see some more of Leslie's lovely animated works,

especially the very elegant and typophiliac Herzog and the Monsters!