This week on FreelanceLife we’ve taken a break from the regular format, got out of the office and headed to a local event in Birmingham. Hosted in Digbeth at the cool and cosy Mama Roux’s, Glug Birmingham brought together the creative community for an evening of ‘play’ and exploration (and great pizza!).
Freelance Creative Designer & Illustrator Kat was at the event where talks from Middleboop, Massive Music, Dylan Caldef, JOTO and House of Illustration were heard. The talks looked into the idea of ‘play’ and how closely it is related to being creative from allowing school children to experiment with making simple designs, to illustrators designing children’s books.
Kat took the time to tell us about the event, what the creative community of Birmingham is really like and why events like this are so important, particularly for freelancers.
I always do my best to attend Glug. While it’s a great event that provides creatives with industry insight, it also gives me an excuse to meet up with old friends and work colleagues. It’s a great way to keep in touch while we interact with something we all mutually love! (Mainly design, but also a good chat and of course pizza!)
There was a great variety of speakers this time, from the brilliant House of Illustration to Made by those. I particularly enjoyed the demonstrations of the JOTO that uses digital pixels to create something analogue in pen on paper! The talks by Massive Music and MiddleBoop also resonated with me in terms of my own thoughts about creative thinking, experimentation and operating as a freelancer.
It was great hearing more about the exciting plans for Birmingham Design Festival as well, which will be arriving June next year - a great example of how the creative community is working together to create something that celebrates creativity in Birmingham.
I’m still quite new to being freelance, having only been full-time freelance since May, previous to this I worked in advertising/marketing agencies for 5-6 years as a Designer/Illustrator. I’ve worked with quite a few freelancers in this time who are now good friends, and I’d say the creative community here is diverse. Everyone seems to know everyone, which is lovely and there’s a great sense of creatives looking out for each other. It’s through events like Glug, TedxBrum, Badego, ImpactHub events, IllustratedBrum and other creative meets in Birmingham, that the community grows, and new talent can emerge too.
You can next catch Kat in a Badego exhibition in Birmingham on the 8th December at the Custard Factory taking part in an auction to raise money for Acorns Hospice, “We are each producing an illustration based on a children’s book. Should be a good night! I hear Digbeth dining club may be there too”.
Next time on FreelanceLife we have a special ‘Winter Advice’ addition where seasoned freelancers offer their best advice and tips to get through the coming months.
As always, if you would like to share your #FreelanceLife or are attending an event you think we should cover, get in touch!
