Patrick George: Wildlife Matters
“In the same way that animals and faces start appearing out of cloud formations if you stare at them long enough, I enjoy doodling over a brief until an unexpected solution presents itself. Different elements can combine to give greater impact, or create a narrative. I enjoy the variety that being a freelance illustrator offers - from infographics turned around within the hour, to working as a team member with advertising agencies on global campaigns.”
Patrick also creates and publishes a range of children’s books with acetate leaves between each spread which allow the reader to interact with the printed page. The most recent title published in 2015 is called Animal Rescue, where the child gets to rescue animals by turning the transparent page: a baby elephant rescued from the circus and returned to its mother in the wild, and a tiger rug brought back to life and seen leaping from a tree, are two examples. It’s a gentle introduction to the importance of animal welfare, with profits from sales going to the Born Free Foundation. Working on this book inspired Patrick to create a new series of illustrations for a more adult audience for his exhibition, covering issues such as trophy hunting, shark fin soup and extinction. He was recently approached to contribute a poster to support the 2016 WildAid campaign to celebrate the first ever ‘Year of the Elephant’ in an attempt to stop the ivory trade and give elephants a real chance to recover from poaching and avoid extinction.
Patrick studied illustration at Falmouth School of Art before joining a communications agency where he remained for 19 years as a graphic designer. A move to Ramsgate on the coast prompted a return to his first love of illustration and he’s been represented by Début Art since 2010.