Graphic Recording

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Years of Graphic Recording

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Meters of Live Drawing

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Successful Projects

James Durno

Strategic Visual Communicator

James Durno is a seasoned Graphic Recorder and Visual Communicator with over 21 years of experience, having pioneered the field of Graphic Recording in South Africa.

James works both as a Graphic Recorder, live drawing a visual synopsis of meetings and events - and a strategic visual communicator, working with organisations to co-create visual communications solutions.

He has worked with renowned local and international brands including Microsoft, Anglo American, Coca Cola and many more.

James runs a Cape Town-based Creative Communications Visual Consultancy servicing the Corporate Sector, specialising in Visual Solutions - Business Illustration, Corporate Visual Communications, Graphic Recording, Explainer Videos, Strategy Mapping, and design and creation of Workshop Environments and Templates.

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live graphic recording — Graphic recording Sanlam

lighthouse image — Graphic Recording Detail - ABSA

graphic recording — Graphic Recording - Standard Bank

Graphic Harvesting Image — Graphic Harvesting - Injini

spaceman illustration — Graphic Recording detail - South African Innovation Summit

chicken cartoon — Graphic Recording Detail - Datalytics

plant graphic recording — Graphic Recording Detail - HSRC

What is Graphic Recording?
You Talk… I Listen and Draw

Graphic Recording is the real-time capturing of live content as a visual summary. This requires deep listening, the ability to filter and synthesise, and the skill to collapse, distill and capture the key themes and big ideas as a rapid live-drawn Visual Synopsis.

Graphic Recording is also known as Sketchnoting, Scribing, Visual Facilitation, Graphic Harvesting, Graphic Facilitation, Live Illustration, Visual Note taking, Live sketching, Visual minutes.

Testimonials

A fantastic talent to work with. I will always appreciate the intentional and thoughtful way you worked to turn our ideas into art. Thanks so much James Durno!

– Natalie Tannous –

EDP

James is an expert strategic visual communicator. He has immense knowledge (of his field and general) and experience in the corporate and development sectors. He is a great asset to any project.

– Carla Visser –

RTI

James' huge energy and passion for what he does is only surpassed by his Endless Possibility Well (EPW). Unlike the Infinite Improbability Drive which can transport a spaceship across the galaxy in a mere nothingth of a second, James' EPW drives innovation and usefulness through him and into various client contexts, wherein he never fails to impress!

– Raymond Salzwedal –

James has an incredible natural talent to interpret conversations into powerful image depictions. What stood out for me is how quickly James was able to understand the brief and delivered exceptional visual memories of our Africa Summit event last week.

– Ian Besarabia –

Thomson Reuters

Our organization used James to visually capture the most pertinent contents of our sessions during one of our conferences. I was blown away, not only by his artistic talent but his ability to so easily capture an important concept and translate it into an amazing visual product. I also appreciated the fact that James is punctual, adaptable to change and extremely accommodating. I highly recommend James.

– Veronique Heyman –

MSH

James is a master visual communicator! There is no topic that he cannot interpret and present in the most entertaining, memorable, impactful and understandable way. I had the privilege of seeing him at work and I will never forget how the excitement built as our team talked and explained while he turned our words into pictures. Effective communication creates mutual understanding and there's no risk of ambiguity when James has turned a plan into a picture.

– Theresa Lee –

Saint Gobain

For more than a decade, I've had the privilege of collaborating with James as my co-facilitator. His expertise in visual facilitation has consistently enriched our group processes, bringing clarity and creativity to every session. James has an extraordinary ability to cultivate an environment where all voices feel welcomed and valued. He's not just a facilitator—he's a maestro and a remarkable collaborator who consistently enhances the quality of every project we undertake together.

– Monika Adelfang –

Quiet Insight

Pack your Message in a Picture

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Contact Me

James drawing graphic facilitation — James | Graphic Recording - Sanlam

Detail of live visual notes — Live thumbnail thinking drawings

How It Works

1. Pre-Session Planning
We begin with a virtual Visual Conversation Teams, Zoom or Google meet to understand your requirements and to pre-plan the integration of visual communications into your event.

2. Live Graphic Recording
During your event or meeting, I capture your key messaging in real-time by collapsing your content into a memorable visual synopsis as metaphor and rich visual narrative.

3. Post-Session
After the event, the artwork is taken for scanning at high resolution, cleaned up in post, meticulously colour-corrected, digitised, and then shared in various formats.

4. Uses
The original signed Artwork becomes the client’s property after the event. This includes all internal communications usage rights. Your digitised Artwork can be used for print, email, social media, or installed as ceiling-to-floor office wallpaper.

Details can also be extracted for slides or used to illustrate reports. In addition, the Visual Summary can be edited and shared as a Video. Speak to our Design Team to explore various Visual Solutions.