Tom Burns was commissioned by The Folio Society, London.
To provide seven full colour illustrations and a binding design per volume for use in a set comprising The Talented Mr Ripley, Ripley’s Game and Ripley Under Ground.

Where do you draw your inspiration from?
Many things. To name just a few: Rauschenberg, Peter Kennard’s montages, Katharina Grosse, Jim Lambie, Modernism, books, film, music, Warhol, newspapers, taking pictures, anything that inspires a sense of value or belonging.

What type of environment do you prefer to work in? At home or in a studio? Listening to music?
In a studio.

As a working illustrator, do you still find time to create art for yourself?
There is always time to ‘create art’, it’s part of the process. The greatest success within the discipline over the last decade has been its recognition as a collectable art form. Parishioners now within the discipline are just as comfortable exhibiting work on the walls of a gallery as they are working commercially

What type of transition needs to be made between creating art for yourself and creating art that is commissioned?
For me there is no transition. My work to date has evolved considerably mainly due to the challenges of the commercial environment. With every commission I take on I work hard to develop the process my work goes through, be it photography, silkscreen, paint or photocopies. I’m always trying to think of a new concept, idea or direction to take with every project regardless of its commercial nature.

How do you deal with negative criticism?
Take it onboard and learn from it. I always want to drive forward the work that I do and having people react to it, be it positive or negative, is part of the process.

What are your goals for your future as an illustrator?
To communicate my ideas clearly using as many processes and techniques as possible, in whatever format be it animated or through the use of print. In terms of the future as a whole, I can only see more & more collaborative work being done, with greater emphasis on the roles of the illustrator, designer & art director to explore new directions.

Tom Burns illustrates an article for UCLA Magazine, ‘Is Meditation the Push-Up for the Brain?’. Fall 2011

Tom Burns illustrates for an article on ‘Smart TV apps and how they will affect the music industry’ for Billboard magazine.

Tom Burns Illustration for Q Magazine, ‘Cameron claims to have rock in his veins’.

Tom Burns’s illustrations for ‘The New York Trilogy’ (author Paul Auster) commissioned by the folio society wins the best illustrated book and is the 2009 overall winner.

Tom Burns’ new editorial illustration ‘So you want to study a master’s in forensic science’ in the graduate section of the UK’s Guardian newspaper.

Here is the piece Tom Burns did for the Guardian review section last week.

Tom Burns I was presented the gold award in the book category in the AOI Images 32 annual last week.

Since graduating from a masters degree at Kingston University, Tom now lives and works in London. He has been continually developing his visual language, illustrating a wide range of subject matter. His work embraces the digital process combining it with the more traditional techniques.

Partial client list..
The Guardian, John Brown Publishing, The Financial Times, Simplify Design, The Folio Society, BBC, Building Design Magazine, Readers Digest, Sort Of Publishers