Visual Development / Themed Environments
Every piece starts with someone's thoughts and visions. Being able to take those ideas and help bring them to life is one of the things I love most about being a concept designer — translating a brief into a fully realised world, mood, or space.
Visual development work calls for a different skill set to illustration alone: thinking spatially, taking practicalities into consideration, and iterating quickly through different directions before landing on the right one.
This kind of work spans a huge range of industries — set design, event concepts, garden and landscape design, posters, campaigns, and full themed world-building.
One example was developing a concept for an arcade-style wayfinding photo booth for T3 Creative Agency, designed for a retail park setting — balancing playful, eye-catching design with clear practical signage function. The brief was simple – think 80’s style arcade game.
I worked with BBC Studios on front of house design and concept visuals for one of their annual showcase events, developing a themed environment that needed to make a strong first impression for arriving guests while working within the practical constraints of a live event space.
Whatever the brief, the goal is the same: to give an idea shape and atmosphere early, so a client can see and feel the world before a single physical piece is built.
These banners were the initial sketches / thumbnails for an amusement park in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Sometimes clients just want a bit of brainstorming to get started.
Sometimes speed is of the essence so it's a matter of portraying an idea as quickly as possible. Here the rough sketches are translated into a quick photobashed mock-up with the odd illustrative addition. Starting with the rough initial ideas sketches, then bringing the scene to life into a single immersive concept image that a client can picture becoming a reality.
Sometimes it's just about how practicalities can blend with design. How can you make a rock pool experience more accessible and visually exciting? I came up with this starfish design, which tackles both issues. The purple starfish grabs attention and the star shape increases the ease of reach for those curious little hands.
This piece was for a theatre production of the Snow Queen. I was given mood boards and the idea of the forest and a broken mirror with the face in. This was then used as the idea going forward for the final poster.
'Go large - bring the exterior of the toy shop to life'. Such a fun project - I would love someone to actually follow through on this. Can you imagine? - well I can.
This is a bit of an alternative style for me. I loved the precision and detail that this required - a magical window, fit for a princess of your choosing. It works well in both monochrome or colour.
