Main menu

HCFE Banner
Location: 

You are here

Staff Profile - Richie Peacock - Art & Design Lecturer

Richie Peacock

Staff Profile: Interview with Richie Peacock, Art & Design Staff Lecturer here at Hartlepool College of Further Education

Q: What do you love about working in Art & Design?

A: I love seeing something different and new. In many industries and areas of study there is a predefined “correct” answer to a problem or question. In the art and design industry 10 different people can arrive at 10 completely different solutions to a creative problem and with all of them be correct or appropriate. This is something we see everyday when working with our students. Working with our students is fantastic and the creative talent they have never ceases to surprise me

Q: What are your specialist skills?

A: Before becoming a lecturer I was a Design Engineer so my core skills are in concept industrial design and visualisation however my passions (and the skills I now use the most) are cartooning and illustration. These skills have developed from the core drawing skills I utilised for concept design within industry.

Q: What clients have you worked with?

A: I worked with a wide range of clients in industry, from consumer products to automotive clients, but some of the major ones were BMW MINI, LandRover, Rolls Royce, Nokia and Lotus.

Q: What have been the highlights of your career so far?

A: No doubt about this one! Without doubt the biggest personal highlight for me was having artwork that I produced used by one of personal heroes. I recently produced some cartoon work to promote the release of the new Road Crew beer produced by Camerons Brewery. The beer was inspired by, and produced with the backing of, the rock band Motorhead. These illustrations proved popular on social media and Motorhead’s guitarist Phil Campbell now uses my cartoon of him for his social media profile picture. I’ve been a Motorhead fan since I was 14 so this has been a real buzz! Second to this was seeing a new BMW MINI in a showroom just after it’s initial restyle release which featured parts that I was involved in designing, – but for me, nothing can touch the Motorhead story!

Q: If you could give one piece of advice to young creative, what would it be?

A: My advice is to experiment with as many different art and design techniques as possible and to not be afraid of trying new things. This will make you a much better, more capable and more knowledgeable designer.

Q: If you are stuck for ideas, what do you do?

A: I do one or both of two things. Firstly, I take a break and step away from my work for a few minutes. It’s amazing how just taking a short break can refresh your mind and give you a different perspective when you return to your work.

Secondly, I carry out further visual research. I go to a book or the internet to look at other examples of similar work from which to get inspiration and ideas. This has helped me get over lots of instances of “creative block”.

Q: What creative technique or specialism would you love to learn that you haven’t yet tried or mastered?

A: There’s a lot them but mostly I’d like to become more familiar with software packages such as Illustrator and Photoshop. I’ve recently started using Photoshop for a technique called “digital underpainting” and this has massively improved the quality and vibrancy of my illustration work and has given me much more flexibility in my work. This has inspired me to learn more about the process available within these software packages to enhance both my work and my working practices.

Richie's brilliant character work for promotion of 'Roadcrew' ale

 

Courses

Whatever course you choose, you'll get the highest level of training from specialist tutors, benefiting from their knowledge and experience of working not just in education but also in industry.
https://www.hartlepoolfe.ac.uk/sites/default/files/styles/medium/public/Richie-Peacock_0.jpg?itok=Qp-6OVCg