Heritage Railway Illustrator

Bennett Brook Railway (Perth, Western Australia) is seeking a talented illustrator to create a permanent collection of museum-quality Heritage Portraits depicting our historic locomotives and rolling stock. This is a unique opportunity to help establish the official artistic identity of one of Australia's heritage railways. About the Project We are creating the Bennett Brook Railway Heritage Portrait Collection. The collection will become the definitive artistic record of our locomotives and will be used across: Museum interpretation Publications Heritage merchandise Challenge coins Keyrings Prints Lapel pins Educational material Website and promotional media This is not a branding exercise. This is not logo design. This is the creation of historically accurate Heritage Portraits that preserve the identity and character of real locomotives. The First Commission The successful illustrator will create the master Heritage Portrait of: NG15 No.123 "Fremantle" This portrait will establish the artistic standard for the entire collection. Future commissions are expected for additional locomotives, rolling stock and heritage assets. Our Philosophy Our guiding principle is simple: Preserve the identity. Simplify the detail. The objective is not to produce engineering drawings or photorealistic artwork. Instead, we seek museum-quality illustrations that remain instantly recognisable while reproducing faithfully at both large display sizes and small merchandise formats. We Will Provide Extensive photographic reference Video reference Historical information Written design standards Ongoing collaboration and review Deliverables Final artwork should be supplied as: Adobe Illustrator (.AI) SVG EPS PDF Layered editable source files Artwork must be fully vector and suitable for commercial manufacturing. Ideal Experience Experience in one or more of the following is highly desirable: Railway illustration Aviation illustration Maritime illustration Vehicle illustration Museum interpretation Technical illustration Historical artwork Please include examples of previous work demonstrating accurate illustration of real subjects. Selection Process Applicants will be assessed primarily on: Observation skills Ability to faithfully reproduce real subjects Consistency of style Attention to historical detail Quality of vector illustration The successful applicant may become the ongoing illustrator for the complete Bennett Brook Railway Heritage Portrait Collection.