Design
GREY HAIR AND COMPUTERS DO MIX.
The good old days! AAG gave me exactly what I needed at the time: comradeship in illustration and a chance to get into a field of work that up till then I hadn’t been sure was possible for me.
Virtually overnight I changed from graphic designer to tyro illustrator. Working with the Graffiti crew taught me a lot that Prahran College and my intervening years as a graphic designer could never have achieved. And it was a lot of fun, too!
When AAG disbanded in 1978 I continued as a solo freelancer and thirty years later I’m still at it. I have a studio attached to my Melbourne home, which I share with my wife, Sue, Ollie the dog and Fred the cat.
My style of illustration has been mainly realistic, often with a humorous/satirical slant. Advertising, design and, to a lesser extent, publishing have been my main sources of work. There have been highlights along the way, such as the RSPCA animal poster, and quite a few lowlights on which I won’t elaborate. A few years ago I abandoned the brushes and drawing board for the computer, although I still maintain a traditional hand-done look within the digital medium. The brushes still get a workout with my "fine art" paintings.
There have been ups and downs along the way but most of the time I’ve enjoyed my freelancing career, kept the wolf from the door, and get a lot of satisfaction from doing what I do best. Check out more of my work at www.geoffcook.com.au
GC, 2009
From: THE KEVIN PAPPAS TEAR-OUT POSTCARD BOOK AND ALL AUSTRALIAN GRAFFITI. (UNATTRIBUTED PRESS RELEASE WRITTEN BY RENNIE ELLIS, 1977).
For many people, cricket devotees and interested persons alike, one of the highlights of the Centenary Test was GEOFF COOK’s now famous cricket poster. The marvellous green and white illustration showing hundreds of cricketers performing on the field is now stuck to the walls of cricket clubs around the world. The cricketers who played in the memorable game, clamoured for extra copies of the poster to give to their colleagues in the field. Five thousand copies were printed and it is still selling. Not only was the poster a masterpiece of satire and hilarious cartooning, but also a very fine example of graphic design which communicated on several levels.
The poster was a follow-up to Geoff’s greatly acclaimed tennis poster showing a legion of tennis courts receding into infinity, each containing some sort of bizarre activity. Like the cricket poster, one is continually discovering new happenings in the complex design.
Geoff’s hot dog postcard which All Australian Graffiti used as a promotional piece before it was made available to the public via the postcard book was also a hit. A big demand for it followed the first mailing and even included a request from a collector of hot dog memorabilia in the United States. The card shows a typical Australian beach scene with the sun worshippers depicted as animated hot dogs. This summer, a similar illustration will appear on a Scotties tissue pack.
Geoff, also a graduate of Prahran College Art School, has worked for two of Melbourne’s outstanding design studios before joining Graffiti. “It’s only since joining Graffiti some two and a half years ago that my own personality as an illustrator evolved. Graffiti allowed me the latitude to do what I really wanted to. Here I could indulge my fantasies”, says Geoff, giving one of his infectious grins. “We've had good clients like Hang Ten who've given me a completely open brief to do something to capture people's attention. I think All Australian Graffiti is doing something that hasn’t been done before in Australia. It’s a new attitude to illustration exemplified by the Post Card book".
