Bad Mum!

I'm ashamed to say that poor Kamal has been waiting and waiting for me to scan his increasingly large pile of drawings to put on his blog and all I keep saying is 'I'll do it later'. It's been about 2 months later now so I have spent the whole of today and most of this evening making up for it. And I'm not even half way through. Serves me right!! But I have noticed just how his drawing has developed even in that small space of time, he's already got his own definate style appearing, and although it is still cartoony I've noticed quite a mature line. I even asked him if he had done a couple of them himself to which he just tutted as if I had said something really stupid - well, who else would have done them Mum? Dad? The baby? Ok, point taken. Need to pay a bit more attention me thinks!

Illustration Friday - Sacrifice

Another oldie from my darker college days! It was inspired by a musical piece by John Tavener and although the title escaped my poor old brain a long time ago I do remember it had something to do with religious sacrifice so I've added the quote from Yeats.

Looking at it now it has occured to me that in the last month I seem to have come full circle in my art work especially with the Whispers set, although the subject matter has changed (I'm not quite so gloomy now!) and the techniques has improved somewhat - if gel medium and photoshop existed when I was at college things could have been very different! I've also found old sketch books from back then with ideas, poetry and doodles that go somewhere to explain my obssession with windows amongst other things and the artistic muddle that I've been living in is finally beginning to unravel. There is one glaring large problem though. Although I am enjoying rediscovering image transfers and being nostalgic about where I come from blah blah blah it is not going to get me very far in the long run. The missing link? Drawing.

I turned to collage because my drawing style wasn't fashionable back in the early 90's. I loved pre-raphaelite and art nouveau and my art at the time reflected that but to my St Martin's trained illustration tutors at college it was naff and cliche (and they were probably right) and I struggled trying to fit into their idea of illustration. So I put down my coloured pencils and picked up the glue stick instead. Now however, I'm finding that collage doesn't always do the job and I need to get drawing again. But I'm still stuck with the same problem, I don't have a style, so it's my mission to find it. I've got a new sketchbook/journal and a new pen and I'm going to stop worrying about how awful everything is (which is the scaryiest bit for a controlling perfectionist like me) and see where it ends. I sacrificed my drawing for someone elses idea of style, now I'm going to get it back!

Inspire Me Thursday - Numeral Art

Part of the Whispers series, more here...
More Numeral Art here...

NEW - Whispers Flickr Group

I've set up new Flickr group based around my Whispers project about hidden or secret messages - if you have a Flickr account please come and join in!

Latest Commission - nursery painting

Acrylic on canvas, 15.5 x 15.5 inches ready to hang. I will at some point put more of these on the website but if you want to commission one in the meantime - choose your own colours and motifs - just send me an email. This size shown is £50, or smaller 12 x 12 inches is £30.

Inspire Me Thursday - Image Transfers

Well this is timely, I've spent the last few days doing nothing else! You can see them all here and here. And if you want to have a go try the Inspire Me Thursday site for instructions and to see everyone else's wonderful creations.

Latest work

I've got another demo on the 15th July at the Gallery, this time it will be my own work and anyone can have a go so I am busy preparing. It's nice to have a whole 2 weeks to prepare (although the 1st week is nearly over already) instead of the usual last minute panic. I was excited to discover a jar of acrylic medium in the back of my cupboard so I've been experimenting with transfering vintage images onto paper already prepared with acrylic paint and the results are looking good! I've even managed a couple of pieces for the whispers series as the collaged ones just weren't working. Check the whispers blog for more.

Children's Art Day

Here are some of the photos from Saturday's demo and apart from having lots of fun we saw some really talented kids! Well done everyone and thanks to everyone who came!


Jill's printmaking demo...

Where do you live?...

Art dolls (fairies of course!)...

Create your own Matisse... Or Picasso...

Inspire Me Thursday - My Studio

I'm busy preparing for my Children's art day demo this Saturday so my space is a bit of a mess! I think being a collage artist (or as my other half puts it, an excuse to be a hoarder) makes me naturally messy when it comes to working and I am also confined at the mo to a cupboard (above) , a corner in the bedroom where the plan chest lives ( top photo - my clean area where I make my books and cards and stuff where paint is not permitted) and what occasionally doubles as a dining room table where the messy stuff happens. Oh and of course there's the computer desk but that's too boring to qualify for a photo.


I've got a few collage projects for the kids to have a go at - here is a sneaky peek of one I'm trying out - it's going to be exciting seeing how they interpret them. I will be posting photos of the day here so watch this space!

Cambridge Open Studios - July 1st - July 23rd 2006

Next month is Cambridge Open Studios. I'm not participating as such this year, these are photos from last year (and no, that's not my studio but I was lucky enough to share a beautiful space with a couple of others), but I am showing a couple of pieces at the COS gallery in Fulbourn and doing a couple of demonstrations during the course of the month! The first one coincides with children's art day so there I will be doing collage (12 - 1pm) (3 - 4pm) and Jill Ogilvy will be doing printmaking (1 - 3pm) for the kids to have a go at. If you live in the area come along! There are also kids activities at the Fulbourn arts festival, check the website for more details.

Inspire Me Thursday - In good time

This weeks IMT was to produce a piece of art quickly and as I was already thinking of trying some smaller collages decided to have a go at a series of ATCs. I optimistically thought I would get 6 done in an hour but it ended up being closer to 2 hours, that's still 20 mins each - not bad! I didn't plan them in any way but a theme did emerge if you can spot it. (For sale on Etsy.)

Illustration Friday - Dance

This was inspired by a photo of my little one twirling around. She loves to dance, Top of the Pops is her favourite - no namby pamby kiddy music for my daughter, she's a full on rock chick! Thankfully at only 14 months she also loves her frilly dresses and is utterly adorable.

Oh, and I actually painted this one instead of colouring it digitally like the last one, in fact I went as far as buying myself a massive set of gouache (watercolour are too thin for my liking and acrylic dry too fast on paper to be manageable). This is just a quick attempt, to see what would happen and I much prefer it. I can feel a whole new style of work developing and it's very exciting!

Card packs

I've put together 25 inspiration packs which have 3 greeting cards and envelopes, a dozen pieces of yummy papers from my own personal supply of fancy papers and tissues, 3 workable lengths of ribbon and a little bag of beads and bits to get you started. Each one is different and is to a particular colour theme. The last time I did these for craft fairs they sold out really quick and these are a lot better this year so get one quick! They cost £5 plus p&p so if you live in the uk send me an email or go to my etsy shop if you live elsewhere.

More goodies to follow next week!

Kamal's latest painting

Kamal doesn't paint very often, but when he does he manages to put mine well and truly in the shade! Aptly enough he's called this 'flower gaze'. Brilliant.

Latest Painting

Another thing ticked off my list - have added the rest of my paintings including my latest one (titled Drift) to my website. Many of them are still available to buy. See more here.

Shhh...

Been a bit quiet of late, mainly due to the fact that I suddenly realised it was June and I still hadn't got to the bottom of my new year's 'to do' list and panic set in. Not least because I officially finished maternity leave almost a year ago and I still haven't got my wedding/card website back up and running yet and I need to start bringing in some more regular pennies before the wedding season starts again and christmas descends!

So, firstly I've finally got around to creating a header for my other blog (which wasn't actually on my list but this way it won't even end up one) and secondly I have actually finished my main art site after 6 years of twiddling and tweaking (champagne corks popping!), all that's left to do is photograph everything and finish filling it up. Yeah! So far so good....

Inspire Me Thursday - Functional Art

This weeks Inspire Me Thursday is to create a piece of functional art so I dug out a couple of wooden mirror blanks from my craft fair days and decorated those. I'd forgotten what fun this was, will have to see what else I've got buried in the cupboard! See more functional art here.

Ilustration Friday - Portrait

Illustration Friday - Cake

There has been a lot of birthday's in the family this last month or so and there's a few more to go in the next couple of weeks so we've all eaten a lot of cake. And if that wasn't enough Kamal insisted on making one the other day (being home for half term) so we made the biggest victora sponge cake you have ever seen - it's a good job we like cake!!

Inspire Me Thursday - Word Art

Sorry for poor photo, it doesn't really do this one justice. The topic this week was to use word to express ourselves in our art. As I'm still obsessed with windows I've explored/interpreted the word 'sheer' - it may seem a little ambiguous but I can't really explain it more than to say it's to do with fragility, lightness of being, a fleeting moment etc.

Illustration Friday - Sorry

Took this out of my sketchbook (have been trying to develop a looser style of drawing for kid stuff) and coloured it in PS, but in retrospect I shouldn't have been lazy and got the paint out instead, the flat colour doesn't really go with the sketchy pen work. My son can manage it ok though (think he should be teaching me, not the other way around!) - check out his here.

Inspire Me Thursday - Abstract

I'm not new to abstract painting by any means but they usually tend to be very busy, so I thought this weeks challenge would be a good chance to try another canvas where the paint forms as an important part of the image as the collage does. An exercise in less is more and I have to say very satisfying. I'll keep my clutter in my journal!

New Blogs

You may (or not) have noticed I have 2 new blogs on the go. Whispers is for my more personal stuff that I don't always feel is appropriate on this one and will include some of my favourite poetry and my newly discovered love of journaling as well as the original paintings that started the whole thing off in the first place, if they ever get finished!

Turtle is for my 7 year old son who did this marvellous portrait (above) of his father. I've probably already gone on about how well he draws and how much he draws but the easter holidays gave me chance to spend time with him to show him how to observe things from life (a child's concept of perspective is different to ours) and hopefully help broaden and develop his talent as he gets older. And this weekend we had been watching the BBC programme about the Impressionists. I'd showed him the Monet books I have had since my college days and in the back of one he saw the cariactures and portraits that Monet isn't so famous for. Then came the idea of doing a portrait of his father. He found it understandably difficult at first, not least because dad is a fidget and a chatterbox (like father like son!?) but he got most upset at the fact that he had to draw him from an angle. 'I can't draw 3D!' he shouted. But when I told him to think of it as a 2D picture and look at his face as a series of lines and angles and shapes the penny dropped and he whipped this out in about 20 minutes! Bless.

Inspire Me Thursday - Journal

Wow, well I wished I'd got around to this journaling business a lot sooner - seriously fun and liberating! No one to please but myself and I can break all my own rules (I've always broken other people's!). Plus I have found a home for all the little scraps and snippets that I love enough to keep but not enough use. I was going to use one of my own handmade books but I settled on a shop-bought A5 spiral-bound sketchbook with black pages that I bought without really knowing what I was going to do with it. Perfect! There are more on the way so watch this space...

Latest Commissioned Portrait

A3 size in graphite on paper.

This and That

I'm having a sort out day today. I've just about caught up with all my commissioned work and although I have a ton of self promotion stuff to do (baby designs, editorials, finish wedding website that is now a year behind, put prints on portfolio site, finish paintings blah blah blah) I thought I would give myself a day off to do all those little jobs I keep leaving until 'tomorrow'. So I have been sorting through clothes, you know, bag for the bin, bag for ebay/friends with children/boot sale, bag for charity shop. Then there's my jewellery which I never wear but ended up putting it all back as now I have a little girl I couldn't quite bear to part with it, remembering what it was like to discover my mum's jewellery box for the first time!

Next is all my 'junk' as my other half calls it. Or rather my tools of the trade. This weeks inspire me thursday project is journalling, which is something I would love to do but never have time for. Too busy collecting stuff to do anything with it! I did go through a spate of making books too which I have just found in one of the many boxes I've been through today. All empty. So now may be the time to fill one. I also came across this little book of floral papers (above) which might find their way onto a page of two, who knows!

Illustration Friday - Angels and Devils

How's this for contrast! Above is a new piece, part of the baby series I'm working on (see the robot also), below is an old one. I'll leave you to work out which is which! ;0)

Inspire Me Thursday - Faraway Lands

The older I get the more I find I need space a round me. I grew up in the hilly Cotswolds which, as beautiful as it is (and I adore going back to visit) I found living there claustrophobic. So in my late teens I moved to East Anglia , finally settling in Cambridgeshire. There are a few high points (not quite hills) in my local area and the views are fantastic - the landscape just seems to go on and on forever finally disappearing into the sky in a beautiful hazy blue. Just magical.

New Brushes

I've been looking at my new brushes all week - time to get them dirty! I've never had so many new brushes all in one go before, usually just buy one or two as I need them and they are all in a terrible state! These however are clean and beautifully soft and owning them (especially as they were given to me by someone special) feels like such a responsibility, almost like having children! I have to use them well and keep them well or I will be in trouble! Hopefully though this means having the right tools for the job means that any work I produce from now on will be the best it can be, and if it isn't, I can't blame my scrappy old brushes any more!

First Digidoodle!

Looks like we have another budding artist in the house. Here's my 12 month old daughter's first doodles on the computer. This was done with my pen and tablet - I had to grab the mouse off her as she kept right-clicking everything! It's hard to tell at the mo while she's so young but I get the feeling she will be a magpie like me and love colour and paint and all things sparkly and gluey and messy. My son on the other hand (his left as it happens) likes drawing. He drew his first car at the age of 18 months (a big circle with 2 little ones for wheels) and has been drawing/sketching/cartooning incessantly since.