Talk with Fig Taylor and Portfolio Review!

Fig Taylor is a graphic designer and an agent, she came into Stockport college and gave a brilliant talk on portfolios and what to expect at interviews presenting us with great advice and tips to improve our portfolios.
She told us to be prepared and confident and dress smartly for the part as you will want to make a good impression for an interview.

After a lovely funny talk with the class, we then spoke to her in smaller groups where she actually had the chance to speak with us individually in more depth about our portfolios observing our work, which I found enjoyable and intriguing learning more from an agent.
When It was my turn and I explained who I was and that I would like to create children's books and maybe a children's interior designer, she advised me to research magazines for children and parents whom are expecting to receive a different perspective connecting to a more wide spread audience. She also told me to enter as many competitions as possible as this may help you to get noticed throughout the industry. I explained to Fig Taylor that I am not very good at drawing or creating people my strongest feature is unknown creatures and animals, in response she advised me to try and draw children anyway and to add them into my portfolio as children will relate to them more as they will be interpretations of characters there own age, I especially need children represented throughout portfolio as my work is aimed at children.

Here is an example of Fig Taylor talking to someone about there portfolio;

I also explained to Fig Taylor that I would love to write and illustrate my own children's stories to hopefully publish my own book. She expressed that to write and publish your own story can take a long time, I have to make sure I create a storyboard/roughs a synopsis and the main characters. Will they be based on animals, myths, folk-tales, fairy-tales etc. What do I want to do with my story? What age range is my story aimed at for instance 5-7 year old's. If my story is aimed for an audience of young children will it be too sophisticated? or too grotesque?.

A key factor I mostly took on board was to be open minded to not dis-regard the ideas of packaging and advertising, she told me to explore other areas as my work could be used for a developing life style such as; food and drink. If this was to happen I could then add this subject matter into my portfolio.
Another tip she advised is to always make sure that my printouts are not too dark in my portfolio and to make sure I have the best quality as I would want to make an impression.

Fig Taylor advised to have a look at this book if you can as it is useful throughout your journey of creating a portfolio.

Listen to Five top tips by Fig Taylor!