I am a graphic designer, based in Edinburgh, with a background in fine art. I have an MA in Graphic Design from the London College of Communication, University of the Arts London and a BA (Hons) in Fine Art from the Slade School of Fine Art, University College London. I maintain my own studio practice and have worked extensively in contemporary arts publishing.
Working mainly with artists, galleries, museums and arts organisations, I specialise in book design and typography. I have a background in fine art and have a particular knowledge of specialist artists’ publishing. I am experienced in facilitating artists’ ideas within the format of the book, translating ideas into form and articulating the decisions that inform the design process.
I have worked on diverse exhibition projects with museums and galleries: designing exhibition graphics and labels, as well as marketing and other printed material including posters, invitations, and leaflets. I am able to organise information visually, and have an eye for clear, effective, timeless and legible design.
As an artist, my works often combine text with image, examining the slippages of meaning that occur between language and visual communication. A constant preoccupation is the mechanics of seeing and recognition: how images are ‘read’, meanings understood and how the conventions of painting – mark-making and perspective – allow a flat surface to be experienced in three dimensions.
Essentially, all of my practice is collage: melding together seemingly disparate fragments from the history of painting; from graphic design and architecture; and from popular culture. This intuitive combining of diverse elements show how creative play can feed the imagination, giving the mind a space in which to soar.
Please visit www.jamesbrook.net for more information.