Take, for example, Jerome Walford, the Brooklyn-born and Bay Ridge-based illustrator and founder of The Blue Griffin Design Studio. Walford has worked for over a decade doing art in the context of advertising – creating a visual brand for clients such as the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, The New York Times and Absolut Vodka – which has helped him to make “a good living” in order to support a family of three young children alongside his wife.
But he is also creating his own works of art, six of which went on display this week at Cebu Bar and Bistro.
“Over the last few years, I’ve been looking to find another outlet for my work that’s not client-related, so I showed Mike Esposito at Cebu some pieces I felt really good about this year, and [said] that I was looking for a place to showcase them together and he offered this space,” said Walford inside the restaurant’s cozy back room where the prints hang. “In commercial work, I do a lot of different styles. This show embraces my aesthetic as well.”
Visit Blue Griffin Studio online and its mantra of “Dream. Create. Fly.” jumps out at you. This idea permeates each print on display against the yellow walls of Cebu. The first images to catch your attention are a trio of swimming fish scenes – two koi and one that resembles a Siamese fighting fish. Entitled “Koi Passing Through,” “Fobo” and “Flish,” the orange, purple and red creations appear to be alive and swimming off the paper.
“‘Koi Passing Through’ is the first one I created of those here and is inspired by the Narrows Botanical Garden pond,” explained Walford. “For ‘Fobo,’ I had an idea for a series of moods of fish [and] this one is moody and solitary. ‘Fobo’ is based on a comic book character called Lobo. There is a slight resemblance between them.”
“Flish,” on the other hand, “plays with movement and fun,” he said. “The name is a wordplay on Flash, another comic book character.”
As for the other three, the starkly lovely “Lily Is Drowning,” the Pop Art-inspired “Le Star,” and the vibrant and calm “Take Flight,” Walford describes each of them as having its own distinct personality as well, reflecting different inspirations that strike him.
“Take Flight” in particular stands out, not only because it is featured prominently on the Blue Griffin website, but because its retro, World War II aesthetic of airplane gliding through clouds against a mountainous backdrop evokes an eerie yet inspiring calm. Walford’s goal with this piece, he said, is to trigger in viewers “the same resonance as it does for me of moving forward [despite hard times] and launching yourself into the world.
“I have an ongoing narrative of adventure because life is really an adventure,” he said. “The idea of exploring the unknown is part of me as an artist.”
A sense of striving is part of why Walford feels a connection to Bay Ridge.
“To me, it’s really important to get plugged into your local community,” said Walford. “It’s been wonderful. Especially when the market and economy is like this, it’s all about local business owners connecting with community.”
So far the response has been positive, said Cebu co-owner Mike Esposito. “Jerome’s a great guy – the kind of person you want to hang out with,” said Esposito. “I like the fact that [his work] is so diverse; there are so many themes. It’s brought compliments already and it went up on Monday [December 12]. People notice it.”
All of the pieces on display at Cebu are available for purchase, although no more than 500 are available of each. If you are interested in buying one, contact Jerome Walford at info@thebluegriffin.com.