I have changed the operating name of my freelance art business from Bear on Fire to Illustrious.  This change is ahead of updates to my website and over-all branding.  But the question some of my friends and clients might have – where is the bear?

Short Answer

I had a bad dream about bears.

Long Answer

I was taking a critical look at my business because life was very changey in 2011.  I had changed, my business had changed, and my goals had changed.  I wanted to think very hard about who I was as a designer, and what I wanted my brand to say about me.  I do not disavow the bear.  I love the bear.  But it wasn’t saying what I wanted it to say, (and I had a bad dream about bears).  And my website  needed an overhaul.  So I bent my will towards a make-over.

New Name

The important thing about brainstorming (or sketching or thumbnailing) is to honestly write down everything that comes out.  It gets the clogs out, it gets the mind used to generating.  And I brainstormed like crazy over multiple sessions in order to let ideas sit in my head over nights and weeks, and to be able to spend my days with the question in the back of my mind.  I think you’re more likely to pick up on fresh ideas that way.  If you have the time (and so often we don’t!) totally let things sit in between sessions.

I wanted a name that evoked the emotions and impressions I wanted to feel about myself, and what I wanted my clients to see in me, too.  Maybe something that sounded cool, but also reflected my design philosophies.

I brainstormed all kinds of crazy names and here are some for you to laugh at: Jump Fox (as in the quick fox jumped…), Quick Draw and Scribbilus.

And here are some honorable mentions: Madam Infinity’s Imagesmithy, InkShout and Fixt.

After all of it, I landed on Illustrious.  It says that I and the work I do are notable and worthy. It gives the impression of a storied existence.  The root of the word is in light (illuminate, luminous, lustrous, luster, lumos)- I love the idea of art and light and ideas, that where once something was dim now there is clarity.  Then there’s the connection to illumination as in illuminated manuscripts.  Images supporting and adding meaning and excitement to the written word.  Also, I illustrate.  It all seemed to come together in one word.

New Logo

In thinking of a name, I couldn’t help but think about the imagery associated with it, and what a logo might look like.  I liked the idea of keeping something familiar from Bear on Fire.  And even though fire isn’t the most original visual concept, I forgive it.  As I just discussed, light brings with it strong meaning.  We’ve been psyched about fire since Prometheus, after all.

I started reworking the flame shape without the bear and drew by hand to make it as gestural as possible – that was another thing I wanted to preserve in my work was the hand-done spirit of creation, that even if it looks clean there should be the hand of a person behind it somehow, in the flow of the lines.

I wanted to brighten up my colors and so I went nuts on the oranges and blues and brights.

New Website

Every day I learn more about building websites, and I realized my fascination with it reminds me the Hogwarts class The Study of Ancient Runes.   I realized my fascination with exploring code had to do less with its mathematical, logical precision, but more with what makes learning languages fun, and how in terms of role-playing Harry Potter, it’s this hunched-over-a-desk and a cramped-hand-with-quill magic that seemed so interesting to me.  That these little symbols when strung together the right way create magic, create movement or illusion.  Out of nothing but scribbles and scratches, otherwise unintelligible there is now SOMETHING.

For real magic, I love to follow Codrops.  They are a positive grimoire of ambitious runes.  I love the web as a place were the laws of print don’t apply and how much fun movement is.  So there are moving parts.  Because? Magic.

Taking about magic is dorky, but you know, I’m not talking about like… fluffy magic.  I’m talking about the systematic magic of HarryPotterVerse.  I don’t have to justify myself! It’s cool!

So anyway, the new website incorporates a feed to my blog here – which is important, and my most recent tweet.  A nice, easy-to-update portfolio gallery and then the all important client testimonials.

 

So yes.  The bear, sadly, has gone offline.  But he shall always live in our hearts.

 

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