Curious Eye: Chris Harrison

May 25

May 18

This project is old. This was the first job I ever did. In July 1991, and straight out of art college, I landed myself a job as a junior designer at Saatchi & Saatchi. Right place, right time. The design departments Creative Director had just left, everyone was moving up a notch, leaving room for a new junior at the bottom (me). At that time Saatchi & Saatchi were celebrating their 21st Anniversary (and weirdly I was 21 too). Saatchi & Saatchi never did things by halves. To celebrate we decided to design a commemorative bottle of champagne. The job of designing the label came my way. On the actual day of the anniversary everyone came in to find a bottle of champagne on their desk… everyone! At the time that was over 800 people in Charlotte St alone. I’ve still got mine, as you can see. Maurice and Charles Saatchi were famously reclusive, especially Charles. Very few photos existed of them together, apart from this one which was actually taken in the 70s. I decided to do a little pop art, Andy Warhol pastiche, which was also a nod to Charles growing art collection. Cheers, Chris.

May 09

Dragon boys

May 06

‘Queen Queenie’
© Chris Harrison 2012

Just one of the prints on show at our Open House.
21a Brunswick Square, Brighton.

May 05

‘Royal Rebel’
© Chris Harrison 2012

Just one of the prints on show at our Open House.
21a Brunswick Square, Brighton.

bearyellow:

weareweirdopeople:

Hello. This is slightly off topic for this blog. But I have just finished my first book of photos and got my copies last night. It’s called “Roots: 7 Days” and is a series of 28 photos taken in a seven day stretch in the US, where I’m from, in February. I’m about to say the most I’ve said about it ever publicly…

There is very little context provided in the book itself apart from the photos. The theme is a journey and going back in time and my history, but also seeing it through the eyes of my son. It’s kind of bleak and heavy, but also offers glimpses of hope, humour and survival.

I made the book with a lot of involvement from Megan Turner-Jones, Kevin Mason of Create and Kate Benjamin.

“Roots: 7 Days” can be viewed at the 21a Brunswick Square Artists Open House along with the work of 10 other amazing artists starting today and on each weekend through the Brighton Festival.

Can’t wait to have a look at this book at the private view on Tuesday

Apr 23

A poster I designed for the re-screening of Control, the Ian Curtis biopic.

I’ve been a Joy Division and New Order fan since the mid 80s. My passion for them started in my bedroom, where I would play the vinyl and caress the sleeve artwork. Like many graphic designers, my epiphany moment came whilst holding a piece of Peter Saville design. My Control poster aims to summon up some of the very dark, and somewhat depressing, narrative of the film. I wanted to create a piece of artwork that almost felt as heavy as the story, but I wanted it to have a glimmer of light too. In her memoir, Touching from a Distance, Deborah Curtis writes of an unusual incident: Ian Curtis brought home a bunch of freesias the night before he ended his life. According to Deborah, this was a first, he had never brought home flowers before. The image stood out for me. An image of a man obsessed with death. A man who had already written his suicide note through his music. I wanted to incorporate the freesias, almost as a ‘final act’ to the story. Or if you choose to see it differently, a burial shroud. Darkness and beauty.