'Vincent's Ices are the Nicest'

This is a pixel art illustration of Vincent's ice cream van, a local business that has been a much loved part of Salford for many years.

More commonly referred to as Vinny, I have my own fond memories of him from when I was a kid: of Screwballs, Vimto lollies and on the odd occasions a 99 ice cream. He has since passed away, but the van continues to chime through the streets to this day, with the next generation at the helm.

I had previously done an illustration of Vincent's ice cream van a few years prior to this, although that was a hand drawn piece as opposed to being pixel art. A charity art exhibition was taking place locally in Eccles at the time, to raise funds for a child that required prosthetic limbs following an illness. Whilst reading about the story; I noticed the photo and realised that the mother of the boy was someone who I had gone to school with, and so I decided to submit something for the exhibition.

I did a drawing based on the very familiar local street on which our school had once stood. It was a simple street scene with children running towards the parked ice cream van. I had a single print made of the piece and handed it in at the Eccles Community Gallery, where the exhibition was taking place. This was an early illustration for me and I was surprised to hear that the print had sold almost as soon as it had been put up, but more importantly it had made me realise how I can use my talents as an illustrator for good.