SIDE STREETS: Ian Phillips
December 4, 2015
You might have noticed that The Theatre Centre has become a little ‘chippier’ lately. That’s because we’re featuring Chipmunks on Ice by Ian Philips, as part of SIDE STREETS, a year-round series of hanging installations in The Theatre Centre Café/Bar, created by the talented and local artists of City of Craft.
This year, along with Kalpna Patel, Ian has designed and illustrated City of Craft’s highly sought-after poster and swag bag. He has a history of assisting other makers at the show, but this will be Ian’s third City of Craft with his own table of printed goodies. Don’t miss him at the show December 11-13th, here at The Theatre Centre!
Check out our Q & A with Ian below and check out his whimsical and cuddly collection of chipmunks, acorns, and pine cones – available for sale ($5 – $40) exclusively in The Theatre Centre Café/Bar until January, 2016.
Q: What is the most satisfying aspect of your work?
A: The smell of fresh ink on a printed page. I like seeing the variety of expressions on people’s faces when they look at my stuff.
Q: Favourite thing you’ve ever designed/piece you’ve ever made?
A: I think it must be the plinko carnival game board “Nutzo!” my partner Alexx Boisjoli and I made for the Come Up To My Room show at the Gladstone Hotel a few years ago. We gave away a tonne of porcelain and had so much fun performing as carnies!
Q: Celebrity you’d love to make/design for? What would it be?
A: Do they have to be alive? I would love to design a stage set for Alfred Hitchcock. He’s on my mind because I am reading Peter Ackroyd’s new biography about him.
Q: Thoughts on this whole colouring book trend?
A: It reminds me of Doodle Art from the 1970s. Doodle Art came in a cardboard tube, with a set of markers. I loved Doodle Art, so I guess the colouring books are okay.
Q: What’s next on the horizon for you?
A: I recently acquired a mandolin and an accordion and I really want to learn how to play them.
Ian Phillips is an illustrator and book designer. He is also co-founder of the Holiday Arts Mail-order School, which will soon be celebrating the Class of 1937 Graduation Ceremony and Yearbook Launch. His small press, pas de chance, recently celebrated thirty years of publishing. Follow him on Instagram and check out his website ianphillipsillustration.com