NGC Signer Spotlight: Jody Clark

For this month’s NGC Signer Spotlight, we’re sharing a video interview with coin designer Jody Clark — well-known for his effigy coin designs featuring Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III. In the video, Clark discusses how he came into the coin design world, his creative process and tips and advice for aspiring designers.

Clark, an accomplished illustrator and digital sculptor, specializes in creating captivating designs for various applications such as coins, medals, bas-relief sculptures, trading cards and packaging. After earning a degree in Illustration, Clark gained experience in the packaging industry before joining The Royal Mint as a coin designer, where he worked for nine years.

Notably, his most renowned work is the illustrious fifth and final portrait of the late Queen Elizabeth II, which has become an enduring symbol on sterling currency since 2015.

A Q&A with Jody Clark

What motivated you to pursue a career in coin design?

I first discovered it after leaving university, where I studied illustration. I worked in the packaging industry, and we actually made a lot of embossing dies using similar software to Mint to Coin, and I was lacking a bit of the illustration side of the job, which was very technical. I stumbled across a role for The Royal Mint designing coins, and it just sounded perfect. It lined up with the sets of skills that I had in 3-D modeling, and also something that I wasn’t doing enough of, which was the design side of things, as well. Then, I began working for The Royal Mint and the world of coins.

How do you incorporate symbolism and historical references into your coin designs?

I think it all starts with a brief meeting with the client. I discover what they want to get out of the design, and I’ll go from there and research the subject and offer a few options for whomever I’m designing the coin for. There’s a lot of back-and-forth and basically working together to get to the design that is right for the theme.

What is a challenge you face when designing a coin?

A lot of coin design can be challenging because you’re working under such tight parameters. You’re trying to get a theme or a concept across in a tiny 0.3 millimeters of metal. It’s a challenging process in itself, I find.

What is a project you’ve worked on that has been rewarding?

The most well-known coin was the Queen’s Effigy for UK coins and that came out in 2015. That was basically the definitive design for all of the UK circulation coins. I don’t think I even understood how big of a deal it was at the time. But that was actually through a competition format, so it wasn’t like a commission where there was a lot of pressure on. But it was a massive project when it came out.

What was the process like to create an effigy of the late Queen Elizabeth II?

It was actually done in a competition format when I was working at The Royal Mint. I entered a replica model into the competition. Some internal artists as well as some externally selected sculptors and artists entered the competition as well. Then, they were judged anonymously, and I was selected as the winner from that point. We went into creating replicas in metal to see how the design would work in that material, and then it went on from there to be produced.

Was your approach in creating the Palace-approved King Charles III effigy for the Commonwealth Mint different than the approach you used to create the Queen’s effigy?

My processes changed when designing the Charles III design. I was a lot more experienced in effigies then. So, my actual workflow has changed. When I actually sculpted the Queen’s effigy, that was a completely different piece of software, which I probably wouldn’t use now. Now there’s some software that’s a lot more artistic and feels like you’ve got a pencil in your hand and you’re sculpting, rather than being almost modeling. So, that was different, and I basically got a lot more experience. I kind of got more of a game plan on how to complete an effigy.

What design principles or techniques do you use in your work?

I mostly have to be very aware of the size that the coin is going to be. Especially if you work on it digitally, you can get lost in a big monitor. You have to step out and zoom out now and again to see how the coin’s going to work. You’ve got to be aware of how the design is going to translate into metal, into a shining material, or if it’s got a frosted effect, how that’s going to look. I’m also very aware that the silhouette is probably the most important thing, I find — because a lot of the time if it’s tiny, like a gold coin — all you can see of the design is the silhouette first. If it reads really well as a silhouette, then it’s most likely going to be a strong design.

What are some memorable or significant projects you’ve worked on?

I’ve been lucky to work on lots of interesting projects. The Queen’s Beasts series was a big success. Bigger than people thought it was going to be at the time. I was really happy with that one because it was more of an original theme. It wasn’t reliant on a theme that’s been done lots of times. It’s almost an original property, so that was really good. There’s been lots of work at the Commonwealth Mint. They’ve got a lot of capability to do high relief and great ultra-high relief modeling coins, as well. So that’s been good getting into that and really being able to push the sculptures higher and add more detail and get a different look to a design. Also, there’s the Bowie coin that I did, because I was a fan of David Bowie. That was a great project to work on. They actually sent the coin to space as a marketing event, so that was something fun as well that stands out in my mind.

How do you stay creatively inspired?

It’s just something I’m always working on. Even in my spare time I do freelance illustration as well. It’s just something I’m continuously trying to improve on. I think you’re never really happy with things, you just keep trying to improve constantly. It keeps you going.

How do you continually push the boundaries of coin design?

Work with the guys in production and start by being aware of what’s possible on the machines. Also pushing compositional aspects that have never been done in a design aspect and modeling. I suppose working with the factory guys and seeing what they can achieve and trying to push that in the design side.

What advice do you have for someone aspiring to get into coin design as a career?

Just keep practicing. Don’t give up. I really wanted to work in something to do with art and design, and I think I just kept going after university. So, there’s not those times when you think, “What am I going to do?” Just keep going and eventually something will come up and an awesome opportunity will present itself.

Read more NGC Signer Spotlights:

• Lyndall Bass
• Don Everhart
• Ron Harrigal
• Jennie Norris