Clients: Abey Smallcombe
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Abey Smallcombe is the collaborative tour de force of South West artists Jackie Abey and Jill Smallcombe. For over ten years, Jackie and Jill have made their craft with cob, earth plasters and other natural materials, during which time they have designed cob buildings and artwork for a range of public places, from the Eden Project to the Met Office, National Trust sites to primary schools.
The duo required a website that could showcase their extensive portfolio while attracting people to commission new work for themselves. The site needed to explain that Abey Smallcombe creates unique works of art, design and build a range of earth buildings, create interior design, run courses and project manage – whilst conveying the richness, beauty and communal nature of their art. It needed a look and feel that evokes vibrancy and tradition, but establishes Abey Smallcombe as modern, forward-thinking artists with broad appeal.
Making use of the vast archive of striking photos that Jackie and Jill have had taken over the years, Abeysmallcombe.com profiles their work with simplicity and clarity - upon entering the site visitors are presented with a large, clean and easily updatable slideshow that showcases their extensive range of work. Each beautifully photographed image in the slideshow shows off the remarkably rich colours and textures of their work superbly, therefore enticing people to their craft in the most simple and effective way possible.
A combination of static HTML and HTML-driven flash, the SEO-friendly website features an extremely intuitive interface for navigating through the portfolio. A straightforward navigation bar lets visitors jump between the different branches of their company with a click; an uncomplicated layout, and clear copy and visuals on each page means information is easy to find. The news section allows Jackie and Jill to update people about their latest projects, courses and inspirations.
Thrilled with the website, Jackie and Jill looked to Sound in Theory when they required someone to create a portfolio leaflet for their work that would be distributed at the London Eco Home event. A section of the event would be dedicated to their earth art and architecture, where the illustrious duo would be on-hand to discuss their craft with visitors. With the objective to showcase their portfolio and attract new clients to commission their work, the leaflet needed to show off their work cleanly and beautifully. The challenge was to create this using with vegetable inks and recycled stock. Featuring striking images of their stunning work and clear copy, the portfolio leaflet achieves this superbly – capturing peoples’ attention long enough to stay out of the bin and in the hand.
Responsibilities for Abey Smallcombe