Nigel Buchanan Illustration

Despot cover

2011-11-03T21:13:00.000-07:00

Here is the Colonel for the cover of The Week. This was done before he was captured so he needed to look shifty and nervous. Once again it was an overnight job. He has such a distinctive face and fashion sense that it could easily be kept super simple but still recognisable.

A couple of spots

2011-07-07T22:56:00.000-07:00

These two were for Popular Science magazine; what happens to your digital data when you die? and a very grumpy Android lamenting some apps not working on some phones.

This guy has not recovered enough before exercising again and is paying the price; Men's Journal.

ipad Jungle Book goes live!

2011-05-31T22:38:00.000-07:00

We have officially launched the Jungle Book app on itunes. Here's a promo vid which gives you an idea of how it works..
http://youtu.be/AdPcG9ukJ6M

or if you care to purchase it here is the link.. The Jungle Book
and here is a look at behind the scenes.

Popular Science

2011-04-05T19:08:00.000-07:00

I've tended to keep my sketches very rough lately. Trying to be a bit more spontaneous whilst rendering. Here's one about which bits of hardware will be obsolete in the near future.

New covers for Money Week

2011-04-05T18:47:00.000-07:00

I tried to keep this one as simple as possible.. harder than it sounds. I was aiming for a very graphic image to maintain some impact on the cover. There are always a few copy lines which need to go on there so the image can't get too busy. Fun job.

Jungle Book for the ipad

2011-04-05T18:36:00.001-07:00

After a few months of work we are nearly ready to launch the ipad version of the Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling. The good folk at Electric Type have put together a highly interactive book with all sorts of animation and bits to move and jump about. They are hoping to get it onto the Apple app store in the second half of April. Stay tuned.
Here is a sneak peek of a few of the scenes.

The Economist

2010-12-05T21:02:00.000-08:00

This shows the contrast in experiences between a English businessman in China and a Chinese businessman in England. The Chinese man has a rather lonely and meager existence whereas the Englishman has a far richer time in more ways than one.

New Work for US mags

2010-11-03T16:42:00.000-07:00

Two commissions recently needed illustrations for 'Team building' stories. These bees were used on the cover of Associations Now magazine based in Washington and the image below was for SooJin Buzeli at Plan Advisor magazine in New York. The story was about putting together the ideal team; these guys have a particular advantage.

EFII podcast

2010-09-15T18:37:00.000-07:00

My new friend Thomas James, the man behind the website has posted an interview we recorded last week. I met Thomas at ICON6 in L.A. in July. EFII is the most useful resource I know of for any illustrator, helpful links, podcasts, interviews, books and much more.
Here is the link to the podcast:
efii-podcast-episode-51-nigel-buchanan/

Plansponsor magazine

2010-07-02T22:05:00.000-07:00

The excellent art Director SooJin Buzelli asked me to illustrate an article in Plansponsor magazine about executive's pay packets being scrutinized more closely. It was thought the zebra in the original sketch may be checking out more than the flip-top lion's paypacket!

Shanghai Expo / Screen Australia

2010-06-20T23:45:00.000-07:00

Another booklet cover for Screen Australia, this time for a China / Australia co-production event at the Shanghai Expo. I was very mindful that this was pushing the boundaries of cuteness, but it went down well in China.

Money Week Cover

2010-05-16T23:02:00.000-07:00

A new cover for Money Week in Paris. Investing in Nuclear energy still has a stigma attached to it but investors can invest in suppliers to the industry, stigma free, or so it is argued.

Screen Australia

2010-05-11T15:42:00.001-07:00

Screen Australia has kept me busy during the buildup for the Cannes film festival. We came up with a whole marketing look which needed to stand out from the rest. From huge banners to tote bags and menus, the designs had to be adaptable to them all. Great fun.

Artbox

2010-04-06T21:47:00.000-07:00

The good people at Artbox invited me to be a part of the New Illustrators File Vol. 8 to be on sale very soon. They are having an exhibition in Japan of all work of the overseas contributors.

Readers Digest Australia and New Zealand

2010-03-09T21:39:00.000-08:00

this little guy is caught in a metaphor for over legislation by the fun police.

Motor Trend

2010-02-24T22:01:00.000-08:00

Another for Andy Foster at Motor Trend Mag. This one was about some very odd seat coverings for cars including salmon leather and fabric coated in ground crustacean exoskeletons which in theory encapsulate smells to keep your interior smelling nice.

X Factor

2010-02-16T20:30:00.000-08:00

Screen Australia asked me to come up with an image based on the headline. A great brief to get and hopefully this will be printed as a poster.

Worst jobs in Science / Popular Science

2010-02-11T17:14:00.000-08:00

I count my blessings I can sit in a studio and draw pictures for a living. Popular Science got me to illustrate some of the worst jobs in science, marine mucus sampling, odour collecting, beached whale organ collecting and bad dancing observation!

Australia Project

2010-01-20T20:19:00.000-08:00

A rather creepy chubby chap for my contribution to Project Australia. The brief was to create an image as a comment on the Australian culture. I based my approach on those crazily optimistic and happy Chinese babies depicted in propaganda posters. So my little fat white guy is the personification of over consumption, blissfully unaware of or uncaring about the long term consequences.

Sydney's Child

2010-01-11T19:28:00.000-08:00

Coming up with 'Back to School' imagery is not as easy as one would think. Here are some of my alternatives:

Reversable bats

2010-01-11T19:24:00.000-08:00

This was a little one for Indianapolis monthly about feral bats making themselves at home. I designed it to be as the bottom one but the client preferred the top... I think it works either way.

Hot Air

2009-12-16T22:15:00.000-08:00

Qantas airways publish a mag called AIR. Its for those that fly an awful lot and spend more money than I'll ever do. This illo accompanied a story about how best to pace a political speech. Lincolns's Gettysburg address ( "Four score and seven years ago...") was only 278 words long. A sobering lesson for today's orators.

2 covers

2009-11-24T23:30:00.001-08:00

The olympic funding cover was finished for this weeks issue of the Week magazine but events in Canberra overtook it so I was asked to come up with a second cover in about 4 hours... another busy day.

Busy week, new work

2009-11-08T20:46:00.000-08:00

Motor Trend

Money Week France

Seattle Metro

FHM London

Maurice Sendak interview

2009-10-19T19:47:00.000-07:00

Here is a profile of the complex Mr Sendak. There is an HBO doco about him soon to be released.

Law Society Journal / climate change litigation

2009-10-13T20:52:00.000-07:00

This was all about suing companies who pollute the environment. Will the act of suing them, whether successful or not, actually encouraging them to stop polluting?
It was used on the cover.

3x3 Feature

2009-10-09T00:17:00.000-07:00

I was totally thrilled to be featured in the latest 3x3 mag. The article was written by my good friend and coleague the talented Mr Chris Nielsen.. You can flick throigh a small version of the mag here: www.3x3mag.com/currentissue.html

IBM

2009-10-01T23:56:00.000-07:00

A fearsome grrrl guard for IBM magazine. This was for Jill Adler at MSP Communications.

2009-09-15T17:04:00.000-07:00

Cover image for the NSW Law society Journal for an issue about white collar cartels.

Plansponsor

2009-09-13T22:47:00.000-07:00

A gnarly new one for Plansponsor. A fund manager had a call from a woman in prison, wanting to get hold of her father's estate money. She was in prison for killing him. The art director, SooJin Buzelli asked me to choose between these two sketches:

Money Week covers

2009-09-07T22:43:00.000-07:00

All the cover images for Money Week so far. Great fun to do... click on the image for a closer look.

Money Week France

2009-09-01T18:56:00.000-07:00

The full image for the most recent cover about the fascination we have for new technologies. I still don't own a mobile phone... I'll take the apple.

Motor Trend Magazine

2009-08-20T21:34:00.001-07:00

here is the new look for the modern engine cylinder. Spark plugs may be replaced by new fangled lasers for igniting fuel.

American Library Association

2009-08-17T23:09:00.000-07:00

A tough crowd; this was a marathon illo which required all manner of different types; gender, race, age, jobs, all sharing the same book.

Motor Trend magazine

2009-07-29T16:52:00.000-07:00

Here's a new one for Motor Trend about the Prius Hybrid. It has been likened to a Jetsons gadget. I put a very subtle Jetson schnoz in the driver seat.

Cincinnati magazine

2009-07-29T16:49:00.000-07:00

Some local deer have been wandering in to people's backyards and chowing down on the stuff they are given.. not always the best food for them. The locals are having ecological conscience dilemmas.

Plansponsor

2009-06-21T23:35:00.000-07:00

Here is a new one for SooJin Buzelli.

American Lawyer

2009-06-10T16:44:00.001-07:00

This is a new on for American Lawyer. It seems that in order to save money some law firms are sending their staff out to do charity work for a year or so but paying them a pittance. The layers like the work and security of employment but still have all their overheads to pay for.

Money Week France

2009-06-01T22:10:00.000-07:00

Here is a new cover illustration for Money Week France about investing in Brazil.

CA Illustration Annual 2009

2009-05-25T23:14:00.000-07:00

This is the sketch I scanned as a working drawing.

This image has been chosen for the 2009 Communication Arts Illustration Annual. It was commissioned for Herman Miller's e-zine jugglezine.com . The article was about a husband and wife who swap home and work roles every six months to maintain a healthy life balance.

SILVER MEDAL FROM SI

2009-05-25T20:30:00.000-07:00

This image won a silver award in the recent Society of Illustrators competition in New York. It was produced for a not for profit dance and rehearsal space, for their annual fund raiser auction. The dancers depicted performed at the auction night and ended up with the winning bid.

STUDIO SHOTS

2009-05-11T20:16:00.000-07:00

Here are some views of my wonderful studio. I share it with eight other people; mostly illustrators but some designers as well.