Gil Guerra aka LIGONE was born in the coastal city of Setúbal in 1985, among fishes and fishermen. Soon he started scrabling and drawing, stumbling on graffiti at the age of 13 and on street art at the age of 18, inspired by the posters, stickers and stencils of Lisbon and Barcelona. In 2006 his vespa scooter took him to the city of Caldas da Rainha to study Graphic Design.

Thirsty for more knowledge, he packed his stuff and flew to Budapest, to experience an ERASMUS program. In this city, also by the riverside, he came in contact with different tools and techniques to improve his work – photography, animation, and silkscreen print. After his return he concluded his Degree, that was when he found a new challenge, again far from his home town, by the sea.

Without thinking twice he packed his things and left for a new life in Gent where he stayed for 6 months. There he had the opportunity to work with Glossy, one of the most well known studios of design in Belgium doing an internship. Lately he has been collaborating with the Artistic Collective Gentuza, from Gent, what has revealed to be an enriching experience. In his imaginary world of little stylized creatures, the challenge is now to explore different materials, techniques and platforms. Words by Sandra Faustino.

Gil Guerra has recently participated in the first Fiend Projects Art Festival, at  Designcenter de Winkelhaak where he has a new collection of screen prints on display. Don’t miss your chance to check out his work & many of the other artists involved – including the Inkygoodness Shape/Shift exhibition! The evcnt which launched earlier this month ends on Saturday 28th January. More information here:  http://www.fiendprojects.com. In the press: Inkygoodness feature on Computer Arts blog.

(l-r) Toy Factory, SKETCH Thursday’s founder Sacha Eckes, Fiend Projects founder & artist Mark Goss & the Inkygoodness girls!

(above) Inkygoodness Shape/Shift exhibition wall, at Fiend Projects Art Festival, Designcenter de Winkelhaak.

Fiend Projects Art Festival exhibition; featuring over 25 international artists & illustrators.

SKETCH Fiend session at Designcenter de Winkelhaak.

Our Shape/Shift launch party on Saturday was a blast! We had a really good time, and enjoyed meeting lots of local illustrators & artists – esp at the special SKETCH Fiend event, which attracted lots of visitors to the venue. Mark Goss (Fiend Projects founder) was a brilliant host – thanks for welcoming us to Antwerp &  introducing us to so many people! We received fantastic feedback from visitors, and look forward to checking out more of the Fiend Projects Art Festival event over the next few days.

Don’t miss your chance to check out Fiend Projects At Festival and our Shape/Shift print exhibition  - open now until 28th January! If you can’t make it to Antwerp, then why not visit our big cartel store, where you can pick up one of our Shape/Shift prints for just 55€ (unframed).

Lovingly reproduced on thick photo rag paper, each of our illustrators Shape/Shift inspired designs are available in a limited edition run of 10, for a short time only! Shop now on bigcartel now to avoid disappointment!

Shape/Shift Illustration Print Exhibition runs until Saturday 28th January 2012, at Designcenter de Winkelhaak, Antwerp. Fiend Projects Art Festival show is open daily from 10am – 4pm, closed on Sundays. Visit http://www.fiendprojects.com for the full festival line up.

Inside the Designcenter de Winkelhaak, Fiend Projects Art Festival!

Yesterday we arrived in Antwerp following a short hop across France on the Eurostar. After a relatively smooth journey (with a couple of hairy moments as Michelle attempted to steer a trolley of frames through the station and up several escalators!), we landed in Antwerp at the Designcenter de Winkelhaak to meet Mark Goss & begin preparations for our Shape/Shift exhibition!

First look inside the Fiend Projects Art Festival exhibition!

The inside of the space is fantastic, and we’re really impressed by the diversity of artwork on show – street art, grafitti, illustration, graphic design and punchy typography fills the walls from floor to ceiling, featuring international artists & illustrators from Belgium, The Netherlands, UK & overseas – there really is something for everyone. After a quick look round it was time to unpack our giclee prints (with thanks to Print Space, London), and begin the painstaking task of framing each piece…

Michelle gets to grips with the prints & mounts before hand signing each one (edition of 10) and framing them ready to hang!

After just a few hours of framing and hanging, the Shape/Shift exhibition was hung in record timing!! We’re really happy with the quality of work & can’t wait to welcome the local creative community of Antwerp down to Designcenter de Winkelhaak this afternoon to see the exhibition and the rest of the festival in all it’s glory. If you’re in the area we look forward to seeing you there – exhibition opens at 2pm – 6pm TODAY!

Our lovely prints on the walls – hurray!

Shape/Shift Exhibition, Fiend Projects Arts Festival, open today at Designcenter de Winkelhaak, Lange Winkelhaakstraat 26  2060 Antwerp, Belgium, complete with music, free beers and a special edition of SKETCH. If you can’t make the trip – don’t worry – we’re selling limited edition prints of ALL artworks on our bigcartel store from now until the end of March – visit inkygoodness.bigcartel.com to buy now!

Illustrator Luke Brookes grew up in a small village just outside of Birmingham; fortunate to be very close to the city but also not far away from the natural beauty of the local countryside; surroundings which have greatly influenced his work. “…taking a stroll through woodland and the lakes serve as my inspiration and have influenced my work a lot, which is very narrative driven. I cannot help creating little stories in my head about the scenes or characters I create.”

Having recently relocated to a small village in Staffordshire, the countryside continues to feature heavily in his drawings; “A lot of my work depicts scenes of nature and the beauty of a landscape. I like to include as much depth in my work as I can, so when you come back and look at it you discover a new element.

I use layered shapes and color’s to create vast worlds and scenes ranging from a snowy wilderness to fantasy wonderlands that always engage the viewer. I’ve worked with some really cool people including New Scientist Magazine, Anorak Magazine, Mammoth and Company and many more!”

Luke joins our line up for our forthcoming Inkygoodness Shape/Shift print exhibition – opening in Antwerp this Saturday! Part of the first Fiend Projects Art Festival at Designcenter de Winkelhaak, the festival line up includes live drawing, exhibitions, stalls & workshops! Follow Fiend Projects on twitter or facebook for all the latest updates on the event, or visit their website for full details.

Inkygoodness Shape/Shift opens on Saturday 14th January, and runs until Saturday 28th January, open daily.

Purchase the Luke Brookes Shape/ Shift Limited Edition A3 Giclee Print at the Inkygoodness Online Shop.

E.W. Thomason is an illustrator, who grew up in a small town in Alabama; an upbringing which inspired her ideas and bold and quirky work, blending a variety of influences in a new way.

E W Thomason joins our line up for Shape/Shift, opening in Antwerp this Saturday 14th January at the Designcenter de Winkelhaak, part of the official Fiend Projects Art Festival!. Check out our full line up here.

Purchase the E W Thomason Shape/Shift Limited Edition A3 Giclee print at the Inkygoodness Online Shop.