some new bits

I wanted to try some new animals.. they're beginning to get all a bit too tight again! so I tried painting really fast without much thought...they kind of work but i think i just need to really quicken up.. . and do a lot more. All of these take a few minutes but I think I need them to take seconds so will do an exercise in doing them really quickly and see how that goes. For now here's an Elly that I really like and a couple of tigers I don't! so I just need to paint again. I'm currently doing some work with Benjamin Winter again. A lovely singer songwriter from California. I've just done a little illustration for Julia Stone for some writing she did recently.

some new sketchbook work

I've decided ...again!...that i need to draw more. So I've started another sketchbook here are some pages from it so far...just my immediate environment, so nothing amazing but interesting layers and bits n bobs. I've been stumbling on my MA work and the work for the Cheltenham Illustration Competition so I went to see a friend to chat over it all with fresh eyes, which was a great help!..thanks George! here's one image I've done. I now need to make sure it all makes sense and be a little more creative with it all. So onwards and upwards.

Working with a fuzzy head!

I still have a cold that started in March but muddling on through! We did well in the Scilly Gig champs with a 28th out of about 130 boats. I've returned in good spirits, albeit fed up with being full of cold!, but I've been working on the Cheltenham illustration prize this week... I'm coming up with some interesting images but not sure any of it is really making sense enough to reach an audience yet? so I'm hoping by posting some of it that it may jolt something or let me see it in a different more detached way? so here are some images for Tree Time Tales. I won't go into my reasoning for them as I'm too close to make it sound solid enough yet. I've included a more editorial slant on a similar theme.

Finding the Groove!

I've been off the boil with the college work of late, due to heavy work deadlines and other commitments and an important presentation for college so I took a day to work on my Unit 3today. It's Sunday, it was sunny and it took me a while to get into the thought of working so I started to prepare my next sketchbook to go sketching. I laid down some paint but because I've been looking at some great illustration books, I've been really inspired by a few ways of working, so I think it came out today a little! I've called the sketch book Throwing Up! as it feels like I'm throwing up all the influences I've had and although may not be directly what I want for my final show it's all part of the process of getting back into working. (Being that I work full time and need to give myself time to find the groove again! so here's a few that I've put together.

Hung, Drawn and Authored was a huge success! we had a great night and could hardly see the art on the walls for bodies! It felt really buzzy all night and felt like people actually really enjoyed it! It was interesting showing my new work and seeing the reaction. Generally it was great and really positive. I rushed framing them all and was a little disappointed that I couldn't produce original art and had to do some prints. But I did use varnish on the image which really made a difference and sealed the image so hopefully wouldn't fade like some prints. This is something I needto address before the final show!... I hope everyone who came or took part, took something from it.

New news is that I am in talks with the lovely singer songwriter, Ruarri

Joseph about a video he has just screened for a song (Severed Dreams) from his new album, Shoulder to the Wheel. I was really rather inspired by the emotions that the video evoked and really felt like I want to draw it! So we're talking about doing a children's book together. So that's very exciting! My other lovely friend Shayne from the Tea Appreciation Society has some work lined up too, so some different little projects lined up, along with the work I'm currently contracted to do for LT Press. So hoping for some space and my weekends back soon! We're heading to the Isles of Scilly in two weeks time for the Gig rowing world champs! and then after that a slow burn to the final show...watch this space for some new work!

Late night dancin and creating!

I've stayed late, very late tonight and keeping myself amused with some Blacc Jazz! Keeping me going! but also some new bits towards the exhibition, down there! here you go another one...

quality time!

I've spent some quality time today painting.. working on work for the exhibition and have done my entry for Support Structure and hereit is...along with some others I did today...

Time for Tea

I haven't had a chance to do any of my own work in what seems like an age! so today just before home time I did some painting in the style I hope to continue with and really like the results.. I get so excited when I paint like this, it's a real buzz! and reminds me that I'm creative and love painting and interpreting objects and what my creative eyes rest on!

I have to create some work for the exhibition, down there, so I'm beginning to think about what I want to do...and why? the why may come later so I'll just do what I fancy doing which is such a joy!! here they are anyway...

HUNG, DRAWN & AUTHORED at The Poly

A show from 24 MA illustration students. A show not to be missed!

sketchbooks!

I'm throwing round the idea of doing sketchbooks for my presentation at college and stumbled across this amazing idea and hope to enter this year for the next one... what a great idea and maybe proof that sketchbooks are possibly the most important part of an artists practice!...a bible of ideas, new techniques, compositions and trying out things our clients would never commission in a million years. A book of secrets!

bearscape

I'm waiting for work to be okayed and edited etc, so I've been working on my college work and doing some of my own work alongside. I'm enjoying doing landscapes at the moment to place the objects and animals I'm doing for college, but it appears there are two different things going on here....on one side I have the more contrasted work that is maybe more conceptual and then the images that would fit nicely into a children's book which is what I am working towards. So all really positive. Here they are.

and more diary entries...

I like these ones recently.. I didn't have time to do them so I've done them from memory...

more collography and moving the bears forward...

These images are going somewhere with more of a narrative feel to them which is encouraging. They are becoming more substantial in there composition and content. I really like the way they are going and it makes me want to go out and sketch more. I did some more collographs of these today and will post them when they dry.

today I have been drawings bears!

Today I was going to go to the zoo in Dartmoor but decided it was just too much on the budget and I thought I'd see how it turned out when I was drawing them from the iplayer. There was a program on black bears which was great so I decided to use that. It wasn't at exciting as being at the zoo but before spending money on travel etc i thought I'd see if bears were the way forward. Funnily enough I realised that using a program that someone else has choreographed meant that my choice of poses etc was limited. I did have to pause the images as they cut to trees or another scene all the time, which wasn't ideal. But after doing them and scanning them in I really liked the results still... I realised that it's shapes that the animal, object makes that I like. here's the results. I didn't like them so much immediately but now I've scanned them in and reduced them in size, I do and feel that there's something there to move forward with.

more diary entries

here are some more diary entries...we had a couple of dogs attack Bobo so it was actually good to put something in that wasn't quite so sweet. I'm really getting a lot out of doing the diary but I don;t really know what yet. I'm enjoying the immediacy of this still and feel compelled to continue so watch this space. I am still putting off going to a zoo, so I really need to get that sorted.

I did some college work today

I did some college work today. Writing up everything I've done so far, as back to it tomorrow! But after I did the cabinet I did some more furniture! just slowly building a library of images I can go back to and use later, when I have a whole host of ideas and images to chose from. Anyway here they are... and the last couple of diary entries.