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Mischievous Lil Dudes
Just for kicks
Just for kicks
The Challenge
I’ve been doodling for years as a way to think, decompress, and process the inner workings of my mind. The challenge was figuring out how to take these mischievous lil dudes, born from instinct and play, and turn them into something intentional, cohesive, and meaningful without killing their vibe.
My Role
My brain naturally works in systems, so I got to work reviewing years of doodle sheets, identifying recurring characters, shapes, and behaviours. From there, I translated spontaneous marks into a more deliberate drawing practice, extracting a shared visual language and emotional tone.
The Approach
Finding the common thread
I analysed recurring motifs, expressions and proportions to see what tied the characters together. The visual language was there all along: soft, rounded forms, simple faces, gentle trickster companions built to interrupt a bad day.
Bring them together to see how they click
I experimented with combining characters, testing relationships and dynamics. I explored them across different mediums including illustration, polyfilla and paint, and tufting, making work that was tactile and felt good to the touch.
Embedding storytelling into the core
Whimsical rest and gentle mischief sit at the front of every story, with the illustration doing the talking.
Getting help along the way
As someone who values collaboration and learning, I have gone on a significant journey with these dudes. They've taken me to the Red Bull Doodle Art Finals in the UK, they've introduced me to a host of incredibly talented mentors, and helped me find my spiritual home at Pictoplasma every spring in Berlin.
Outcome
An ongoing, evolving character world with a clear visual language and narrative tone. A system of lil dudes I can keep building with and telling stories through, in whatever format takes my fancy.
Why this matters
This project has been a driver of self-discovery and creative confidence. It sharpened how I move from intuition to system, and it reinforced a belief I hold about all my work: structure doesn't limit creativity, it gives it somewhere to live.
Places where my mischievous little dudes have taken me:
Red Bull Doodle Art Finals
Pictoplasma Academy
Publicis X Framestore 'Out Of Office' Art Show
Places where my mischievous little dudes have taken me:
Red Bull Doodle Art Finals
Pictoplasma Academy
Publicis X Framestore 'Out Of Office' Art Show
Red Bull Doodle Art Finals
Pictoplasma Academy
Publicis X Framestore 'Out Of Office' Art Show
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