A Dream Job

Katharine Asher is honoured to illustrate an iconic fashion 'look' on the cover of Radio Times.

"This is the job of my dreams", says Katharine, tasked with creating an illustration of the 1947 'New Look,' and employing the bold black and white lines characteristic of the renowned illustrator René Gruau.

The assignment required exploring both retro and contemporary approaches to Dior's classic design, which involved initial sketches, and additionally, the exciting opportunity to craft the title text in a freehand brush and ink style.

Katharine explains, "As a creative team we went from initial sketches to finished cover in just two days, the speed of decisions and response was exhilarating and the result quite dynamic - as was the collaborative intention. This Radio Times cover was created to publicise the historical story behind fashion's fiercest rivalry, between Dior and Chanel - a story of corsets, couture and Nazi collaborations. When Christian Dior shocked the world with his New Look collection, of which this look is considered the most iconic, he was expressing a desire for beauty and extravagance after the horror of war. A new drama on Apple TV this week tells the story of Dior as seen through the prism of wartime Paris and Dior's rivalry with Coco Chanel."

Katharine received some affirming comments from the art director -

'I just wanted to say thank you so much for such a fantastic illustrated cover, it really did knock the socks off not just me but everyone who saw it , the editors were really wowed by all you did, the images were beautifully drawn with loads of poses and attitude – the final image is really impactful, and your additional typography only added to it.' Jacob Howard - Radio Times.

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