12.12.12

An auspicious date, indeed. I am taking the time to complete a few administrative tasks and various projects - as well as clean the house - in order to clear space and energy for new beginnings. It seems an appropriate time to blog about what I've been up to since August. Let's see ...

I mentioned I've been working on my first children's picture book. Well, I now have the first printed copies and I must say it is exciting to finally see the results of my imagination and days (years) of scribbling. Bea will be released in March 2013. In line with this, I am setting up an online store to sell prints of my illustrations (more on this later), which will be accessible from my www.christinesharp.com website. Exciting!

I designed the beautiful new Mondo website and both Mondo and I love it (as do plenty of Mondo patrons, judging by the amazing feedback). As always, thanks to Excite Media for bringing my designs to life.

Projects underway include: designing a privately commissioned book about an amazing heritage house in Brisbane; re-branding a terrific health organisation; and designing the 2013 Studios & Events: Cultural trails of the Scenic Rim booklet. I'll share more details about these projects once complete. I am also working on a pile of books for Playlab and a cookbook by Brenda Fawdon of Mondo Organics. A lot in the pipeline!

Wishing anyone who reads this an awesome Christmas and New Year. If you need someone to design a book or make things beautiful (or correct), let me know. If I can, I'll be happy to help.

the year is flying by ...

Full moon on Friday - a blue moon! And then ... spring, which, up here on Tamborine Mountain, is a sight to behold.

A busy few months since my last update. I've edited an accounting textbook and a book about statistical analysis, both for John Wiley & Sons. I've done bits and bobs for my long-standing and much-loved client, Mondo Organics.

Best of all, I've been working on my first-ever children's picture book, which is being published by UQP, due for release in 2013. I'll not spill the beans just yet, but I'll let you know more closer to the time.

latest news

Here's a rundown of some of the projects the skeleton agency has undertaken since the last blog entry.

Live at the Centre

I have had a great opportunity to work with the dynamic Bronwyn Davies and the amazing team at the Scenic Rim Regional Council to rebrand the Scenic Rim's cultural centres: The Centre Beaudesert and Boonah Cultural Centre, which comprise Live at the Centre.

Besides being a place of breathtaking beauty, the Scenic Rim has a thriving arts and cultural community spread across the region, and it is wonderful to be able to contribute to its growth and identity. As part of the rebranding, I've designed a suite of marketing materials incorporating the new look, including the 80-page booklet Studios and Events 2012: Cultural Trails of the Scenic Rim.

Excitingly, the Live at the Centre website is now live. I designed the website, it was constructed by the brilliant team at Excite Media, and content was streamlined and uploaded by Bronwyn Davies and team. As with other websites I've designed, including my own, the Live at the Centre website is built around an easy-to-use content management system (CMS), which means the website can be updated at any time, without having to go back to the designer or web developer. Have a look at the Live at the Centre website to check out the design or to read about some of the fantastic arts events happening in the region.

Pivot Point

Written by Corporate Strategist Dr Monique Beedles PhD, Pivot Point: Making the decisions that matter in business addresses the seven key decisions that every business must make. Concise and extremely insightful, Pivot Point was released in paperback in November 2011 and is now available as an e-book from Amazon. I designed the cover and cover image for Pivot Point, as well as typesetting and designing the book internals. I read the book with interest while designing it and I can sincerely recommend it to business owners and decision makers who want to move their business forward.

Mondo Organics

I continue to work with the divine Mondo Organics, designing their marketing and promotional material for their restaurant, cooking school and catering business, including their e-newsletter, website, flyers and more, as well as taking all of their food photographs, which can be viewed on their website or in various food publications, from time to time. This year, I have also designed two permanent art pieces, which are now installed at Mondo: a 4-metre-wide panel on the exterior wall on Lock Street, and 2.5-metre-wide panel for the interior courtyard wall.

exterior wall panel

interior wall panel

I will also be showing some recent works at Mondo, as of April 1. I'll write more about this once they are installed.

Playlab

Playlab Press is now releasing some of it's back catalogue editions as e-books under the imprint A New Vintage Edition. In 2011, I designed the new look for the series, starting with the first digital release, Snapshots from Home by Margery Forde, which was first published by Playlab Press in 1997.

John Wiley and Sons Australia

In 2011 I edited or proofread various interesting textbooks for Wiley intended for tertiary education students, including Mental Health Care: An introduction for health professionals by Hungerford, Hodgson, Clancy, Jones, Harrison and Hart; Festival and Special Event Management 5th Ed by Allen, O'Toole, Harris and McDonnell; Marketing 2nd Ed by Graetz, Rundle-Theile and Waller; International Marketing 3rd Asia Pacific Ed by Kotabe, Ang, Griffiths, Marshall, Voola and Helsen; as well as a book on inclusive education, which is yet to be released.